ALL WHO READ
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THE NEWS-TIMES
I
10/
50th YEAR, NO. 83. EIGHT PAGES
MOREHEAD CITY AND BEAUFORT, NORTH CAROLINA TUESDAY, OCTOBER 17, 1961
PUBLISHED TUESDAYS AND FRIDAYS
a structure that was Standing upright at 10:45 Thursday morning looked like a heap of jackstraws
half an hour later. Side walls and roof joists of this menhaden scrap shed at Standard Products Co., Len
noxvilie, cracked and toppled. One workman died as a result of injuries. Structures at the plant are
being rebuilt after a devastating fire last December.
News-Time* Photo by McComb
Three Hospitalized As
Result of Auto Wrecks
% Stolen
From Auto Firm
Approximately $85 in cash was
taken Friday night or Saturday
morfting in a break-in at Sound
Chevrolet Co , 1308 Arendell, More
head. City.
The theft was discovered at 7:30
Saturday morning by Mack Collins,
parts department employee. The
■ missing money was taken from the
parts department.
Police said that entry to the
building was made through the
northeast corner door of the main
office. Two filing cabinets in the
upstairs office were also broken
into but nothing was reported miss
ing from them.
This marks the second break-in
in recent weeks investigated by
Morehead City police. In the oth
er, $490 was taken from Dorn’s
Lunch.
Spphony Drive
Now Under Way
Persons who would like to be
come symphony society members
, and are not contacted by member
ship workers this week should call
Mrs. R. K. Meadows, PA6-3737, or
Miss Nancy Russell, PA8-4588.
The week-long symphony drive
started Sunday with teas for the
membership workers in Beaufort
and Morehead City.
President of the county sym
phony society is the Rev. Charles
Kirby, Morehead City. Vice-presi
dents are William Nicholson, Beau
fort, Mrs. Leon Youngblood, New
port, and the secretary-treasurer
is David Black, Morehead City.
Children’s chairmen are Ralph
Wade, Morehead City, and Mrs.
James Cason, Cherry Point.
Mr. Kirby reports that the or
chestra, on tour last year, traveled
9,426 miles and gave 122 concerts
attended by 117,126 children and
47,226 adults.
Beaufort Observance of UN
Week Will Start Sunday
United Nations Day, Oct. 24, in
Beaofort, will be highlighted by a
parade and tree-planting.
Mayor W. H. Potter and town
commissioners have proclaimed
Oct 22-28 as UN Week.
A mayor’s proclamation, term
ing “the United Nations as the
last best hope for peace” states
that Beaufort's observance at UN
Day demonstrates the town’s con
fidence in “this international ef
fort.’’
Mayor Potter has named Mrs.
chl,iman
4 Three persons are confined to
Morehead City hospital with in
juries suffered in weekend auto
mobile accidents investigated W
highway patrolman W. E. Pickard.
Mrs. Dorothy Gaskill and Wil
liam H. Piner, both of Morehead
City, were injured at 12:30 a.m.
Saturday in a wreck at the inter
section of highway 70 and the Mer
rimon road. Mrs. Gaskill has a
leg injury and Mr. Piner, a brok
en shoulder.
Patrolman Pickard said Piner
was driving a 1957 Chevrolet west
on highway 70 and failed to make
a. sharp turn. The car skidded into
a ditch. It was foggy at the time,
the officer said.
Damage to the Chevrolet was
estimated at $300. Piner was charg
ed with driving too fast for existing
conditions. Mrs. Gaskill was rid
ing in Piner’s car.
A 1959 Chevrolet station wagon,
driven by Robert Gaskill of More
head City, collided with a 1962
Chevrolet driven by James J. Rae
ford of Wilson at 5:30 p.m. Satur
day. The mishap occurred on
highway 70 eight miles east of
Beaufort.
According to the patrolman, Gas
kill was beaded east and Raeford
west. Raeford made a turn in
front of GaskiU’s auto and was hit
in the right side.
Joe Joyner and Woodrow Rae
ford, passengers in James Rae
ford’s car, were taken to More
head City hospital, where Joyner
remains with a broken leg. Rae
ford was suffering chest pains.
Mrs. Gaskill, riding with her hus
band, suffered a bruised knee.
Damage to the station wagon
was estimated at $400 and to the
new automobile at $600. Raeford
was charged with making an im
proper turn.
A rear-end collision occurred at
4:45 p.m. Friday on the Beaufort
drawbridge, according to the pa
trolman. Steven Purifoy Jr. of
Morehead City was headed to
wards Beaufort in a 1957 Ford
when lights on the draw gates be
gan flashing.
Purifoy stopped his car sudden
ly and Norman L. Fulcher of Mar
shallberg, following Purifoy in a
1956 Buick, hit him from the rear.
Damage to the Ford was esti
mated at $100 and to the Buick
at’ $150. Charges are pending.
Mr*. Wheatly states that church
es, Sunday schools and the public
schools have been invited to fea
ture programs on the UN next
week. Posters will be placed in
downtown stores. Plays will be
given in the Beaufort and Queen
Street schools on UN Day.
The Sea Spray Garden club ol
Beaufort will plant a tree on Ann
street, as a symbol of the living
hope for peace, the UN.
The parade will begin at 3:30
p.m. Two school bands, pupils,
► Jesse Frasier, Harlowe, carpen
ter who was seriously injured in
the collapse of a menhaden scrap
shed Thursday morning, died Fri
day morning.
Frazier had a ruptured kidney
with severe hemorrhage and a
broken left leg. He underwent sur
gery Thursday night.
The workman, who was in his
late 40’s, is stsvived by a wile,
Seadie, two sons, three daughters,
two brothers, a sister and one
grandchild. The funeral was being
handled by an undertaker at New
Bern.
Five other men injured in the
freak accident at Standard Prod
ucts Co., remained in the Morehead
City hospital yesterday. They are
Joseph LeBlanc, Leo, J,amcs and
Bernie Frazier and Sylvester Mor
ris. Discharged were Fred Willis,
Salter Path, and McKinley Godette,
Harlowe...
Wesley Willis, manager of Stand
ard Products, said Thursday night
that H. L. Humphrey, owner o£ the
firm, and all others in charge of
the operation, appreciate every
thing their Lennoxville neighbors
did to get workmen out of the
wreckage.
“Words can’t express our grati
tude for their help,” Mr. Willis re
marked. They brought blankets,
sheets, everything that was need
ed. Some even climbed the wire
fence around the property to get in
and help the injured, the manager
remarked.
Harrell Taylor, building inspec
tor, said that he had visited the
building at least six times after
construction started. The building
permit was issued Aug. 21.
He said he didn’t know who drew
plans for the building, but he said
construction was proceeding in ac
cordance with the building code.
The sides were bolted into the foun
dation, heavy center columns were
supporting the roof, normal bracing
in the upper part of the building
was in place, and Mr. Willis was
complying in every way with the
structural details of the building
code, Mr. Taylor said.
The construction job was not be
ing done by a contractor. Carpen
ters, hired for the purpose, were
putting up the building.
Both Mr. Taylor and Mr. Willis
say they can find no reason for
the structure’s collapse.
Willard Wills
Hurt in Accident
Willard Preston Willis, 301 Vir
ginia Ave., Morehead City, suf
fered a shoulder injury at 11:45
a.'m. Friday when the 1960 Ford
piekup he was driving collided
with a 1957 Ford driven by Ozell
Godette, Harlqwe.
The accident happened on high
way 101 just south of the Core
Creek bridge, according to high
way patrolman R. H. Brown.
Willis was charged with making
an improper turn. Patrolman
Brown said he was headed to Beau
fort and turned abruptly to the left
into a private drive, but as he
turned, collided with the Godette
car, which was headed north.
The pickup was knocked around
and into a ditch. Its damage was
estimated at $600; damage to the
m M $M9.
Board Exempts
Atlantic Beach
From Blue Law
Atlantic Beach commissioners, in
session Friday morning at the
town hall, exempted the town from
the state’s “blue law,” concerning
operation of Sunday businesses.
It was reported that Shelby Free
man, owner of a dilapidated build
ing on the boardwalk, had made i
no effort to move the wreckage.!
The board ordered that if the de
bris is not cleared away by Oct.
21, deadline given Mr. Freeman,
the building inspector should have j
the building torn down, and Mr.
Freeman’s bond of $100, posted to -
assure compliance with the board's
orders, would be forfeited.
A. B. Cooper, mayor, reported on
mayor’s court operation during the
past season and presented a fi- j
nancial report. Received by the j
town, through court costs, was
$330.
Commissioner W. L. Derrickson
was named as the board’s official |
representative to the League of
Municipalities meeting Oct. 22-24.
The mayor requested board mem
bers to think about town develop
ment and during the next several
months present ideas for further
progress.
Attending the meeting, in addi
tion to those mentioned, were com
missioners Charles Walters, R. A.
Barefoot, Mack Smith; M. G.
Coyle, clerk; Bill Moore, police
chief; and George McNeill, town
attorney.
Court Grants
Three Divorces
Three divorces were granted in
yesterday morning’s session of civ
il court: Theodore Scurletis vs.
Rebecca Scurletis, Ella D. Buch
anan vs. Louis M. Buchanan, and
Lois C. Bitter vs. David K. Bitter.
The divorce case, Moon vs.
Moon, went to the jury at 11:50
a.m. Judge Walter J. Bone is pre
siding at the one-week term of civil
court.
The following were sworn in for
duty this week: Dewey WiL
soil, Guy C. Gillikin, Dennie F.
Lewis, Peter J. Pogera, Derry!
Garner.
Dewitt Truckner, Andrew Wes
ley Davis, Mervin Fulcher, L. B.
Daniels, Maurice Richardson,
James W. Morris, William L. Can
non.
J. .C. Hill, Hunter H. Brown,
Mrs. David A. Kirk, James W.
Lewis, Samuel L. Johnson, W. E.
Lawrence, J. B. Midgett.
Douglas Stewart, Robert M. Bar
row, Frank Cassiano, Mary Lu
cille Salter, J. E. Barbour Jr.,
Lytle C. Smith.
Talesmen (persons who will
serve if regular jurors can’t):
John Avery, Mrs. Julia Holt,
George Tosto Jr., and Mrs. Lila
Kirk.
Driver Cited
On Two Counts
Charges of drunk driving and
hit and run were filed Sunday aft
ernoon against Robert A. Fisher,
Newport, who was involved in a
traffic accident at 34th and Aren
dell streets, Morehead City.
According to police, Fisher was
the driver of a 1952 Chevrolet that
collided with a parked 1955 Ply
mouth owned by G. Elkins Knable.
The collision occurred in front of
Knable’s home at 3303 Arendell.
Fisher left the scene of the acci
dent but was stopped three blocks
away by patrolman Gerald Korec
ky who witnessed the accident.
Damages to Knable's car were
estimated by police at $350 while
Fisher’s auto was a total loss.
—
Drilling Begins on Third Site
In Current Exploration for Oil
Dredge Arrival
Postponed Again
The dredge, Gerig, scheduled to
be in Morehead City harbor Sat
urday, has been delayed again.
According to latest reports, the
Gerig is now due Nov. 1, This
is the second postponement, and
port pilots say the shoaling is
getting worse daily.
The Coast Guards last week
moved buoys in preparation for
the arrival of the dredge, but
now is going to put them back,
since the dredge won’t be here
for another two weeks.
One of the pilots observed Sat1
urday, ‘‘The longer they delay
in getting that dredge in here,
the more it costs to get the chan
nel the way it should be.”
The Gerig is operated by the
Corps of Army Engineers.
Two Fishermen
Still Missing
Two Fayetteville men, who left
Cedar Point Wednesday in a 12
foot aluminum boat, were still
missing yesterday, according to
the Coast Guard.
The missing men, whose swamp
ed boat was found Friday, are
Curtis Odum, age unknown, and
Jack Stevens, 37.
Carteret county's sheriff’s de
partment was notified of the miss
ing men by the Coast Guard,
which was alerted when one of the
men’s wives phoned to Cedar Point
Friday to learn if* their car was
still here.
The . car, belonging to Stevens,
was. still at the old pulpwood land
ing at Cedar Point Saturday, ac
cording to deputy sheriff C. H.
Davis of Carteret.
The boat was found by Coast
Guard aircraft Friday afternoon
and retrieved by a Coast Guard
boat. It was located off New Riv
er inlet, about 25 miles south of
Cedar Point.
Odum has been identified as a
retired Array man and Stevens as
a sergeant, stationed at Fort
Bragg.
Deputy Davis said the men had
been to this area on several pre
vious occasions to fish. They left
Cedar Point Wednesday morning
to go floundering and were due to
return Wednesday night.
Two County Men
Inducted; Board
Seeks Lee Wilson
Two county residents reported
for induction into the armed forces
Tuesday. The county selective
service board is seeking the where
abouts of another, Lee Warren Wil
son, according to Mrs. Ruby D.
Holland, clerk of local board 16,
Beaufort.
Inducted were Billie B. Gillikin,
route 2 Beaufort and Henry B.
Pickett Jr., Morehead City.
Mrs. Holland reported that Wil
son, a Beaufort Negro, failed to
report for his armed forces physi
cal examination and unless he is
located, his absence will be report
ed to the US district attorney for
action.
Anyone knowing the whereabouts
of Wilson is asked to contact Mrs.
Holland at the courthouse annex.
Highway 70 Convention Starts
D. Cordova, Motehead City, tea ter, a direct descendant of the fonnder of Cordova, N. M., was the
guest Sunday of the U8 Highway W association which is holding Its national convention here. With Mr.
Cordova are Gene Baca, left, and Fred Patton of Santa Fe, N. M. Mr. Baca and Mr. Patton represent
apt advortMhg aganaj whtsh rooOntty, featured Cordova, N, M,, in a Mat for a natwarh tv series.
Rig Moves to Straits;
Atlantic Well Capped
. Drilling on the third site, in the current search for oil
in the county, began Sunday night.
The drilling, on the George Huntley-Ernest Davis prop
erty at Straits, follows completion of a well at Atlantic
where it is reported that the best indications of oil-bear
ing sands to date had been found. But no oil.
R. S. Gunther, petroleum engineer with the Coastal
Board Takes No
Action on Civil
Defense Request
No action was taken at the re
cent Beaufort town hoard meeting
on a request from Gerald Woolard,
town civil defense director, for
items to be used during a town
wide emergency.
The items requested are 25 cots,
12 blankets, 6 gas lanterns, 6 kero
sene lanterns, 6 first aid kits, 1
hand light, 50 2-inch helmet de
cals, and 5 table model citizens’
band radio antennas.
In Mr. Woolard’s written request
for these items was the following
report on civil defense activities
during hurricane Esther, Sept. 19
and 20:
When hurricane warnings were
ordered for this area, prearranged
shelters were opened for public
use and the general public was
informed of their location and
what they should bring with them.
Emergency lighting, if needed,
was to be provided by gas lanterns
borrowed for this purpose.
Civil defense wardens were at
each shelter to register each per
sons (name and address^ and they
stayed on duty as hag as the shel
ters Wgfe open.
Approximately 600 persons from
both within the town and from out
lying communities spent the night
in these shelters.
An emergency medical center
Sec BOARD, Page 7
Letter States Landowners
Position on Hospital Site
Following is the letter from Earle
W. Webb, owner of the land that
the county had selected as the
site for the proposed county hos
pital.
It is published because of the.
extensive interest in the hospital
situation. It states that the writer
is no longer interested in selling
the land to the county for hospital
purposes. The proposed referen
dum on hospital sites, which had
been scheduled for Nov. 7, has
been cancelled.
October 10, 1961
Mr. Moses Howard, Chairman
Carteret County Commissioners
The Court House
Beaufort, North Carolina
Dear Mr. Howard:
I received here in New York last
Saturday the Friday, October 6th
issue of the Carteret County News
Times and to say the least was
amazed with the recital on the
•Plains Oil Co., which is putting
down the test wells, said, “We
found quite a few potentially good
sands at Atlantic, but ‘no shows’.”
The Atlantic drilling went below
5,000 feet, the deepest any well has
yet been driven in this county. The
first of the three wells was put
down at Merrimon, to a depth of
4,l0u. The Atlantic and Merrimon
wells have been capped.
The oil drilling equipment was
moved last week to the Straits site.
Work is under way day and night.
Mr. Gunther said it is hard to pre
dict how long they will be on the
Huntley-Davis property.
The weather has been excellent
for drilling. But Mr. Gunther com
ments that at this point even they
could use some rain. Weather has
been fair and dry.
The Coastal Plains Oil Co. does
not plan any further exploration in
Carteret at the present, if the
Straits well proves to be a dud. Mr.
Gunther said the company may re
turn for some more searches later.
The fact that oil has not been dis
covered in six wells that have been
drilled thus far means nothing, Mr.
Gunther said. (One well was put
down at Crab Point in 1945 and
three others at Merrimon in 1948.)
“You can miss oil by a few
inches,” he remarked. “Along the
Gulf coast and in west Texas hun
dreds of wells have been drilled
that have never yielded a thing
before one was sunk that brought
in oil.”
He commented that this is a vast
territory here and inferred that a
few exploration wells are only the
beginning of a large number which
may have to be sunk before oil is
found. “The area we encompass
See OIL WELL, Page 7
front page of what occurred at last
Monday’s meeting of your board.
I think you more than anyone else
will understand the reason for my
amazement. Shortly after the elec
tion last November I received a
letter from you in Florida stating
the result of the election in favor
of a bond issue for a County hos
pital and that the site was to be
at least three miles west of More
head City.
You stated that you were writing
a similar letter to people who own
ed property in the location men
tioned asking that they submit any
property they owned and were
willing to offer to sell to the Coun
ty. I immediately wrote you that
I thought everybody should coop
erate with your board toward get
ting a suitable site and that I own
ed a tract of land of about 150
acres located on the south side of
Highway 70 at the junction of the
Wildwood Hoad which 1 would sub
mit for your consideration.
Later I informed you that I would
sell this property to the County for
$45,000 or an average of about $300
acre. This is the only property I
mentioned to you at that time.
About two months after the elec
tion I received word that the mem
bers of your board would like to
have a meeting with me at our
place on Bogue Sound to discuss
a possibility of my offering to sell
to the County property between
Highway 24 and the sound imme
diately East of our house.
I met with you and several of
your associates at the house on
January 20th for this purpose. Aft
er discussing the matter for quite
a while we went out to look at the
property which has been often re
ferred to in the local press as the
“Webb site."
About a week later 1 wrote you
$S £3
Tide Table
Tides at the Beaufort Bar
HIGH ' LOW
Tuesday, Oct. 17
a.m. 7:40 a.m.
p.m. 8:54 p.m.
Wednesday, Oct. 18
a.m. 9:12 a.m.
p.m. 9:56 pjn.
Thursday, Oct. 19
3:49 a.m. 10:18 a.m.
4:16 p.m. 10:51 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 29
4:54 a.m. 11:16 a.m.
1:19 p.m. 11:34 p.m.
$800 Collected;
Chamber Pays
Certain Bills
Reports on collection of 1961
chamber of commerce dues were
far from encouraging, it was re
vealed at a special meeting of the
Greater Morehcad chamber’s
board of directors Thursday night.
Manager Joe DuBois said his and
Norwood Young’s salaries had been
paid through Oct. 1, that a two
months’ telephone bill of $104 had
been paid, and that there was a
balance uf $362 in the bank.
President S. A. Chalk said $800
had been collected since the Oct.
2 meeting, and added if those at
tending the Oct. 2 meeting had
worked as hard at collecting as
he had “we haven't had near the
response we should have.”
“1 believe the best thing for us
to do, in all fairness to Norwood
Young,” President Chalk added,
"is to let him know we can’t con
tinue on with his services.” Mr.
Young was given notice at the Oct.
2 meeting that his salary would
stop as of Oct. 15, unless collec
tions greatly improved. Mr. Young,
in turn, agreed to work through
the remainder of October without
pay, in the event collections did
not improve.
Mr. Young said today it is still
his understanding that his salary
officially ceases Oct. 15. He add
ed he would continue through Oct.
31, with or without pa^.
The board plans to keep the
chamber open throughout the re
mainder of the year, if at all pos
sible, and plans were discussed
for the membership meeting and
banquet set for 7 p.m., Thursday,
Oct. 26. Said Director Garland
Scruggs: “We need a first class
banquet.”
In this connection, Mr. Scruggs
added that H. J. Williamson, man
ager of the Biltmore hotel, has
promised something spectacular—
“the best banquet Carteret bas
ever had—it’s going to be a sur
See CHAMBER, Page 7
submitting my offer to sell to the
County the Highway 70 site for
$45,000. or the Boguc Sound site
for $75,000. Since then I read in
the paper that at a meeting of your
board you made the statement I
was reluctant to sell the sound
site, which was true to put it mild
ly
I have always considered the
“Webb site,” so offered, as the
most attractive piece of property
I have had anything to do with,
and really did not want to sell it
to anybody for any purpose at
that time.
Subsequently you told me an in
vestigation of 20 or more sites had
been visited by members of your
board and Mr. Henderson repre
senting the Medical Care Associa
tion and as a result the “Webb
site” on Bogue Sound was rated as
No. 1 and my said property on
Highway 70 as No. 2 and that your
board would look with favor on the
purchase of "The Webb Site.”
I was in Morehead all summer
and you came to see me occasion
ally. You said there was very
little you could report because of
the pending lawsuit. You are the
only member of your board 1 have
seen or heard from since January
20th. The last time I saw you was
about a month ago. I then told
you so long as your board main
tained the position you had taken
right along, that the hospital must
be West of Morehead, 1 would go
along with you on the offer made
to you on the “Webb site.”
If the press report of last Fri
day’s is correct that your board
agreed to submit the selection of
a site between one located at Crab
Point and the “Webb site” I do
not feel In any way bound by my
offer made to you in January.
I assure you that I would not do
anything to prevent your board
from considering a compromise lo
cation because I feel that an up
to-date 100 bed hospital costing
in the neighborhood of two mil
lion dollars is more important to
the entire population of Carteret
County, regardless of location, than
to run the risk of losing it. How
ever* 1 do not intend to be a party
to the voters’ not having the op
portunity to make a fair choice
based upon the merits of the en
tire matter.
The press has stated the charges
See jLSTTER, Page 1