Newspapers / The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.) / Oct. 5, 1978, edition 1 / Page 1
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The Hoke County News - Established 1928 VOLUMK LXX NUMBER 23 RAEFORD, HOKE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA r - ^ oumcd The Hoke County Journal - Established 1905 S8 PER YEAR THURSDAY, OCTOBER 5, 1978 Around Town BY SAM C. MORRIS The rain chart that appears elsewhere in this issue of the paper shows that less than an inch of rain fell during the month of Septem ber. This is unusual and could cause problems for the farmers and the soybean crop. While on the subject of crops, can you remember when cotton w as as late as this years. I can remember when the wagons would be lined up at the gins in Septem ber when I was on my way to school. Of course we don't have wagons and mules now. but to the best of my knowledge no cotton has been ginned in the county this year. On the way back from the golf course last weekend someone in the car made a comment about how clean it was around Oakdale Gin and it didn't look like the gin had been in operation this year. The weather is certainly the fall season, with cool nights and the temperature getting into the seven ties during the day. The rain Sunday was welcomed by everyone too. ? ? * Worth (Jinx) Graham called me last week and called my attention to an error in the write up about the courthouse of Hoke County. It stated in the writeup that "the county seat of Raeford was named for the McRae family and is the county's largest community." This is part true but Jinx said that the RAE came from McRae but that the FORD came from Williford. He is correct and I will quote from a history of Raeford and Hoke County. "Old Raeford was located near what is known as the swim ming hole on Rockfish Creek. John McRae and A. A. Williford operat ed a turpentine distillery and "general store there. These gentle men wanted a post office in their store for the convenience of the people in the neighborhood. They had to have a name for the post office so each contributed a syllable from his name, and the post office was called Raeford." Jinx stated that he didn't want to take anything away from the McRac family but he had known Mr. Williford and thought that the record should be made correct. Mr. Williford last lived in the house now occupied by Mrs. Walter Baker on North Main Street. Thanks Jinx, and 1 don't know where the people that compiled the information about courthouses got their information, but it couldn't have been from anyone that has lived in Raeford for many years because the mistake wouldn't have been made. Anyway this sets the record straight. * * ? The Hoke High Bucks lost a hard - fought battle to the Richmond County football team at the local stadium last Friday night by the score of 14-t>. The Bucks play here again this week when they host the ^Lumberton Pirates. Lumberton. who was leading the conference until last week, went down to defeat at the hands of Lee County by the score of 14-0. Hoke High defeated Lee County two weeks ago. so this should turn into a toss - up battle. In talking with John Pecora last Saturday, he stated that it looked like one of those years when any team in the conference could beat another on any given day. So Hoke isn't out of the race yet. So make plans now to attend the game at the stadium Friday night. Game time 8:00 p.m. ? * * While on the subject of sports. Monday was a day that brought forth two excellent viewing games on television. Monday afternoon the New York Yankess defeated the Boston Red Sox for the eastern division cham pionship in a playoff game. This was the first play off game in 30 years. 1 believe the Red Sox was in that game against the Cleveland Indians in 1948. They lost that game also. ?Then Monday night the football game between the Washington Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys was one that will go down in history as a defensive and kicking battle. It was one of the best football games 1 have ever seen and when I stay up until midnight it must have been (See AROUND TOWN, Page H) FAA Compromises On Air Zone w w w w w w w W W W W *********?*?*????? 1 Mill Prong House To Be Preserved Mill Prong Preservation, Inc., recently announced that steps are being taken to preserve Mill Prong House. Mill Prong House, located in Blue Springs Township, five miles northeast of Wagram, is a large two-story Federal Style residence with a delicate two-story portico and attached kitchen. It appears likely that Mill Prong was built by John Gilchrist, a native of Scotland and a member of the North Carolina Legislature in the late 1700s. It is certain that Col. Archibald McEachern enlarged and complet ed the residence orobablv around 1820. Col. McEachern was a half brother of John Purcell, and the descendents of these families should be particularly interested in the project. Since May, Guy Hardman, a Hoke County deputy sheriff, and his family have been living on the grounds to keep an eye on the old house. ? A temporary roof has been installed and the windows have been covered to make the main residence secure from the elements. The North Carolina Department of Archives has indicated that the house will be placed on the study list for the National Register for Historic Places and that nomina tion to the register should follow. Mill Prong Preservation, Inc. was formed last May 12, and the corporation secured from the own ers a 50-year lease for the house and 2.6 acres of surrounding property. Members of the board of direc tors are Albert McMillan, Ruth McEachern, Dick Brown, Hector MacLean, Mrs. Spencer Carlton. Mrs. Neill McFaydgen. Charles Hostetler, A.T. McLean. Jr., Ralph McQueen, John G. Balfour. John K. McNeill, Mrs. T.B. Up church. Mrs. R.D, McMillan, A.K. Lovin and Stephen McLean. Monday Deadline For Registration Next Monday, October 9, is the deadline for registering to vote in the November 7 general election, according to Rosa Sturgeon, Hoke County Supervisor of Elections. Voter registration here has been extremely light for this election, with fewer than 25 registering since the May primary, Mrs. Sturgeon reported. Special registration drives were held last Saturday in the Antioch and Blue Springs communities. Hoke County voters will cast ballots for U.S. Senator and member of Congress, state judicial officers, district attorney, state senator and representatives, county officers, board of education, and soil and water supervisors. If you are going to be away the entire day of the election or will be unable to go to the polls, you may request an application for an absentee ballot if you do so before November 1. To get an absentee ballot, go by the Hoke County Board of Elec tions office in the County Office Building or write to the board of elections and request a ballot. All persons presently registered with the board of elections are eligible to vote. No new registration is required. It is the responsibility of each registered voter to sign an affidavit to change name, party affiliation, residence, or precinct no later than the close of registration, according to state election law. For further information, call the Hoke County Board of Elections at 875-4526. State Officials Study Drainage Problems Two officials from the state Department of Transportation in Raleigh were scheduled to come to Hoke County this week to view firsthand drainage pro blems along state roads here. John Balfour, chairman of the Hoke County Board of Commissioners, said during the break at Monday's session that the visit comes as a result of a recent meeting on drainage problems. He said he is opti mistic that some action will be taken to correct the situation. Balfour said he plans to take the two officials around the county and show them the problem areas. "Of course, even with the inch of rain we had over the weekend, there isn't any water standing beside the roads." Balfour pointed out. But there certainly was last spring, one of the wettest springs for Hoke County in recent memory. Seven inches of rain fell during one week in April, flooding areas where drainage ditches had become clogged with debris and vegeta tion. At that time, state officials said they would assume respon sibility for drainage problems caused by the roads. But DOT representative Charles Edgerton told the commissioners that individual property owners must bear responsibility for their own drainage problems, those not caused by highways. Personnel Policy At Monday's meeting of the county board, Balfour appoint ed commissioners Ralph Barn hart and James A. Hunt to look into personnel policy matters with the county manager and make recommendations to the board. The study committee comes in the wake of the resignations of two new members of the Hoke County Department of Social Services over the county's lack of policy governing transfer employees. Questions over vaca tion leave and other benefits prompted the workers to accept employment elsewhere. Medical Examiners At the urging of the state medical examiner's office, the board voted to raise the rates of the county's two medical ex aminers from $25 per case to $40 for a routine call and $50 when travel is involved. The board had received a letter of resignation from Dr. Robert Townsend, one of Hoke's medical examiners, over the low rate of pay. Dr. John Butts, with the state office told the board Monay that 100 examiners had resigned in the last few months for the same reason. He pointed out that the rate had not been increased in 10 years. The legislature is taking steps to up it to the $40-$50 range, he said, and he asked the county to supplement the current fees until legislative action is taken. (See DRAINAGE. Page 13) ? . .j iwir. k** J.I Jipmiui . " jV*? ,V Mill Prong House Councilmen Invited To Renewal Program Members of the Raeford City Council were invited Monday to attend the first public presentation of a downtown revitalization study financed with $1 1 ,000 in city funds. The program was given by Peter Bachelor at 8 p.m. Wednesday in the new city council conference room. Chamber of Commerce Manager Earl Fowler extended the invitation to councilmen and also urged the general public to attend. Bachelor is an instructor with the School of Design at N.C. State University. "I believe this will be one of the most important decisions the coun cil has made in a long time." Fowler said of the board's support of the project. He also thanked the councilmen for their long hours of service to the people of Raeford. "We hear a lot about what city hall does wrong, but little is ever said about what's done right." Fowler said. "1 thank you for doing a whole lot of things right. Good things are happening, and they aren't happening by accident." New Industry City officials. along with the chamber manager, met with representatives of Raeford Manu facturing Company on Monday afternoon. "They will come out from under cover in the not too distant future." Fowler said of the new firm. "They are not hiding anything but are keeping a low profile for business reasons." Not much is known about the new company, which bought the old Summerfield Industries plant here, other than it will manufacture cosmetics and begin production soon. An exact date for the company's opening has not been set. although company officials were reportedly aiming for the middle of this month. Announcements about employ ment. and other information on the company, will be released through the chamber of commerce, which has been acting as spokesman for the Firm. At the luncheon meeting, com pany representatives told city officials the type of effluent they will be discharging into the town's sewer system. Mayor J. K. McNeill. Jr. said city ofFicials were told to expect a maximum discharge of 50,000 gallons a day. That estimate means the city will have a surplus wastewater capacity of 200,000 gallons a day, the mayor said. SummerField was a textile Firm and discharged considerably more into the city system than the new company will. The mayor pointed out that this (See COUNCILMF.N. Page 13) The Federal Aviation Admin istration (FAA) has rejected the Army's plan to lower the floor of a military air zone in Hoke County to 500 feet, it was learned this week. Instead of 500 feet, as the Army proposed for the floor of the air zone, the FAA is suggesting it be set at 1 ,500 feet. In a letter to city officials. Congressman Charlie Rose said that the latest proposal by the FAA also calls for "the elimina tion of the MOA (Military Operations Area) for a three - mile radius of Raeford and the airport except at levels of over 3,000 feet above the ground." Rose continues: "These recommendations must be approved by the Army, the environmental assessment must be finished and then another notice will be issued informing the public of these changes. It is probably the changes will then be charted unless there is sufficient outcry from the citizens of Raeford. "The FAA does not expect all this to be accomplished before February, and I will keep you informed in the meantime of any further developments." Rose concluded. Rose was made aware of these changes in the zone in a letter from Richard Robinson, chief of the Airspace and Procedures Branch of the FAA. The controversial air zone comes in the wake of a new FAA regulations which prohibit high speed military jets from flying below 10.000 feet unless they are in designated air space. Military jets have flown over Hoke County for a number of years in connection with train ing missions at nearby Fort Bragg, and military spokesmen say air support is essential for combat training. Hence, the MOA was proposed. Army and FAA officials have said repeatedly that the air zone will bring no change in activity, but local residents have express ed opposition to the MOA because of the possibility that an increase in noise levels might hurt the local economy. The text of Robinson's letter follows: The proposal by the military to chart Military Operations Areas (MOAs) adjacent to Fort Bragg Restricted Area R-5311 continues to bring comments and objections from the citizens of Raeford. North Carolina. The Informal Airspace Meet ing discussed in my letter of July 18, 1978, was the third airspace meeting to be held in Raeford in less than a year. At this meeting the Army's amended proposal which was outlined in my letter was presented to the citizens of Raeford . Some of the Raeford and Hoke County people continue to object to the proposed MOAs because of perceived economic impact but mostly because of land acquisitions, which was an issue in the early 1900's. and (See MOA. Page 9) Hoke County Gets More CET A F unds The Hoke County Employment Security Commission has been awarded S154.600 in Comprehen sive Employment and Training Act (CETA) funds to operate work experience programs, according to a recent news release from Howard N. Lee, secretary of the Depart ment of Natural Resources and Community Development. The funding received by the county will fund only Title I positions, and will have no bearing on the Title II and VI positions that have not yet been refunded. "Our 1978 contracts have expired, although the employees are still working,' " Marverra McAllister, CETA co-ordinator, said. She explained that they are being paid by carryover funds from the CETA Title II and VI pro grams. The new funding will pay for 60 young people and adults to receive work experience and on the job training. Under Title I. the youth pro grams are aimed at potential dropouts or unemployed dropouts who are economically disadvan taged. Unemployed and economi cally disadvantaged adults are pro vided with jobs and a chance to complete or improve their educa tion and occupational skills. The money will be divided into five segments, according to Stephen Benkosky of the Em ployment Security Commission. Of (See CETA, Page 13)
The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.)
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Oct. 5, 1978, edition 1
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