PAGE TWO
*" “ r » T~ '
(The YANCEY RECORD
ESTABLISHED JULY, 1936 \
Editor ....... —.■■■■ ■■ Mrg. C. R.JHlainrick
Managing Ed. „ Lee E. Edwards
•v
Published Every Thursday By
YANCEY PUBLISHING CO
~ A Partnership
Entered as second-class matter November 11th, 1936, at. the
Post Office, at Burnsville, North Carolina, under the Act of
March 3, 1879.
', . ■
TYPHOID CLINICS BY HEALTH DEPARTMENT
June 30, July 7
SWISS—Post Office—9:3o to 10:36 —
BALD CREEK—Proffitt’s Store 10:30 to 12:30 ;
CANE RlVEß—Bailey’s Store, 2:00 to 3:00
CANE RIVER—Mrs. Peterson’s House, 3:30_t0 4:30
. July 1, July 8
WIN DOM—Gibson’s Store, 9:30 to 10:30
BOONFORD—Young’s Chapel Church, 11:00 to 12:00
MlCAVlLLE—Robinson’s Store, 2:00 to 3:00
NEWDALE—Post Office, 3:30 to 4:30
July 2, July 9
PAINT GAP—Austin’s Store, 9:30 to 10:3(1“
HORTON’S CREEK—England’s Store,
‘ PHIPPS CREEK—Charlie Allen’s house, 1:00 to 2:00
BAKERS CREEK—School house, 2:30 to 3:00
July 3, July 10
JACKS CREEK— Store, 9:30 to 10:30
’CLEARMONT—HoweII’s Store, 11:00 to 12:30
JACKS CREEK—Presbyterian Church, 1:30 to 2:30
TOLEDO—Zion Baptist Church, 3:00 to 4:00
: J . July 14, July 21
BUSICK—Mt. Mitchell Baptist Church, 9:30 to 10:30
SEVEN MILE RlDGE—Ballew’s Store, 11:00 to 12:00
CELO—Baptist Chuyelv 13)0 to 2:00
BOWDITCH—MiII Office, 2:30 .to 3:30 -•
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It*« the lateit discovery in : f -
paint ecienc«... a paint that • Covert with One Coat!
coven almott any interior tur- • t) r j et j„ One Hour!
face, painted or unpainted; • | t -, Wothoble!
wallpapered; bnck or cement! m . . c . . , . _ .
Ideal for iquick, low-co.t room * 1 Bal - Avero » e Roeml
f Xnveatiaatel See us. NEWEST PASTEL CO) OHS
B[
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Burnsville, N. C.
Sherwin-Williams Paints 1
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JOHN MITCHELL LYON :
'By James Hutchins)
Western North Carolina
abounds in many interest
ing, original and unique
people. Such a person isj
Honorable John Mitchell
Lyon, Burnsville, a mem
ber of a pioneer American
family, many of whom have
been business men, editors
and publishers of newspap
ers, state legislators, gen
erals;, Congressmen and
.other notable public offi
cials.
The first member of this
old-time family, about
whom much is known and
one of the most famous of
the -name, was Matthew
Lyon. He came over from
Wicklow county, Ireland, in
1759, and settled in the
State of Connecticut. A
few years later he moved
to Verm o n t, where he |
founded the town of' Fair'
Haven in the year 1783 d
His first wife was the
grand nipce of Colonel Ef
han Allen, the hero of Tic
onderoga; the second, the
daughter of Thomas Chit
tenden, the first Governor
of Vermont.
He -led a company of
soldiers and was with Col
onel Ethan Allen in the
battle of Ticonderoga. He
also fought the British in
the battle of Haliburton,
where he saved the Coloni
al troops from defeat, thus
making a great contribu
tion to American indepen
dence. He represented a
district in Vermont in the
National House of Repre
, sentatives from 1797 to
1801 and cast the deciding
vote to make Thomas Jef
ferson President of the!
United States. Next he
,went, to Kentucky, 'Where
he set up the first printing
office in the State. While*’
there he represented a dis
trict in Congress for a
period of eight years, earn
ing the title of the Hamp
den of Congress. After
wards he was appointed by
President Monroe as fac
jtor of the Cherokee Indi
-1
- • •?. V ~ I
THE YANCEY RECORD
: ans in Arkansas. He died
there, territorial delegate
elect' to Congress.
Another incident of note
was his indictment on a
charge of life4|rng Presi
dent John Adams. He was
found guilty and fined one
thousand dollars, which
sum was later refunded by
special Act of Congress.
This event is one of the
outstanding triumphs in
the long struggle against'
arbitrary authority and
for the freedom of the
press.
The next member .of the
family in line of descent
was James Lyopy teacher
and newspaper ■ publisher.
He was the father of Mas-;
on R. Lyon, who was a Bap-1
tist minister, school teach
er and publisher. His son,
James Benjamin Risle.v
Lyon, editor and publisher;
of The New Era paper of
1 Greenville, Tennessee, was
the father of the. subject of I
this sketch.
Mr. J. M. Lyon was born
in Greenville, Tennessee,!
August 13, 1860. He atten
ded the public' schools in;
Greenville, Tuscidum Coll
ege for two years, and
poodman’s Business Coll
ege. On leaving Goodman’s
Business College, he work
ed a short while for The
Knoxville Journal.
This was not his first ex
perience, however, as a
printer, for he had worked
in Greenville as a printer’s
d£vil since he was twelve
or thirteen years of age
during the months- that
school was not in session
and in afternoons while he
was in school.
Soon after leaving Knox
ville he went to Mexia,
Texas and here he worked
for two years on The Mex
ia Ledger with Martin
Dies, who later became
Congressman for several
terms, representing the
same district as that now
represented by hra illustri
ous son who heads the fam
ous Dies committee.
Leaving Texas for a
L ,
f ’ ,
brief period, he was called
back to Groesbeck, Texas,
to edit a paper for L. L.
Foster, who was to be
Speaker of the House in
the, Texas legislature and
later to head the State
College of Agriculture.
Greenville, however, held
too many attractions for
Mr. Lyon. So he came back,
purchased The Greenville
Democrat from his brother
James, and edited it till
1903.
Many noted people are
numbered among his ac
quaintances and friends.
He well knew the great
■————^—1——— L L.-'J "
| Advertising Notice
FOR
1941 TAXES
Thi 1941 taxes on your property are overdue and
delay means extra cost to you.
PAY NOW
AND SAVE
Penalty and advertising costs
• • "cu
DONALD BANKS
( » 4
Tax Collector of Yancey County
-% - . '
Senator Bate, Governors;
Bob and Alf Taylor, and j
he was an intimate friend
and neighbor of President j
Andrew Jackson and his!
two sons, Charles and And
rew, Jr.
During the year 1896 Mr.
Lyon came to Burnsville
where he stayed for a brief
period and established the
Black Mountain Eagle, the
pioneeri newspaper of Yan
cey County. Returning to
Burnsville in 1897, where j
he has since resided and|
1 where he now lives, he re-!
sumed the,-editorship of
The Eagle and continued
in that position, but for a
short period of suspension j
of publication, until the ;
paper was merged with the
Tri-County News in 1936.
Not only is Mr. Lyon our
pioneer editor and publish
er, h ewas Yancey Coun
ty’s first cashier of a bank,
taking- charge and opening
the Bank of Yancey on
January 5, 1905.
However, these activities
did not absorb all of Mr.
Lyon’s time. He served the
| County for four years as
j Chairman of the Board of
County Commissioners,
during which period of
time much of the road sys
tem of the County was gra
ded. In 1931 he was the
jCounty’s representative in
the General Assembly. He
re his efforts were mainly
directed toward the impro
vement of the public scho
ols of the State. It is, more
over, worthy of note that
he did not miss a roll-call
'while the Legislature was
.J in. session.
| Mr. Lyon married Miss
Mary Lewis, eldest child of
’ Dr. O. M. Lewis of Burns
| ville. To them were born
six children: three sons,
‘ Rhea, John P., and Ernest;
J and three daughters, Jess
( ie, Ruth, and Lora Lee—all
of whom are living.
At the age of almost 82
years, Mr. Lvon is hale,
- hearty, and unusually vig
! orous for a man of his age.
'j He attributes his good
‘ health largely to. the fact
that he has sowed no wild
' oats-, to regular and prop
■ er habits, to the mainten
ance of poise and serenity
of mind, to right living,
-T r
THURSDAY, JULY 2, 1942
and to the cultivation of an
attitude of friendship.-and
helpfulness tow ar d his
| friends and neighbors.
After a busy, varied and
strenuous life, Mr. Lyon
has retired from active
Work. He lives with his
children most of thfe time.
He makes an annual visit
to see his eighty-six year
old brother, James—ex
editor, ex-publisher, poet,
etc.—who lives at Jackson
ville, Florida, and passes *
the time attending to his
I chickens, bees, pigeons,
and flowers, and is styled
the “philosopher” by his
admiring neighbors.
Although he is in his
eighties, Mr. Lyon is ment
ally alert anti keenly int
erested in all questions af
fecting the public welfare.
He keeps up„.with the war.
Questioned as the the out
! come of the conflict, he,
i being the good and consist
ent Presbyterian that he is,
has unfaltering faith not
only in the final persever
ance of the .saints, but is
sure that the principles of
freedom, justice, democra
! cy, and Christianity are
“bound” to triumph.
CANE RIVER NEWS
Mr. and Mrs. John Han
mum of Ramseytown were
dinner guests of Jessie
Radford Sunday. t- I—. 1 —.
Mr. and Mrs. Seth Laug
hrun of Mills River, Md.
were visiting relatives here
over the week end.
WadeuPhoenix, the son
I of Mr. and Mrs. T. H. Phoe
i nix, is recovering from an
appendix operation.
‘ Mrs. J. J. Laughrun
’ spent last week
sister. Mrs. J.
i shaw at IteiieijgJ
Mrs. bjkM
jm
Tenn.fl
™ sill
! tlir mmit y tB ;
, ing up some
school graduates
thought might like to at
tend the college next fall.
Will Phoenix of Durham
visited his brother, T. H.
Phoenix, over the week
end. He made an interest
ing talk in Sunday school
on prohibition.