THE YANCEY JOURNAL
VOL. 3, NO. 39
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Yancey Railroad Engine Number One Brings ‘Tallulah Yancey’ Home
A Journey Home:
My Name Is 6 Tallulah Yancey 9
BY MIKE MITCHELL
Special To The ‘Journal’
As you humans would say:
“Boy, it sure is good to be in my
new home and have my wheels
back on solid rail. For so long, 1
had to sit stock still in Clinton,
S.C., as a Boy Scout House for
the Lydia Mill Troop. 1 had no
rail to move around on, and I
sure got tired of staying in one
place for so long. A caboose
should be able to move around,
you know. Otherwise, our
wheels rust and our journal
boxes get full of dirt.
I GUESS I’M OLD
“I guess by your standards,
1 am old. I saw daylight as a
home-made caboose car in
Cornelia, Georgia, around 1900-
I don’t really remember the
date. I do know that until 1 came
‘home’ to the Yancey Railroad
that I never ran on any railroad
other than the Tallulah Falls
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Brass Quintet To Aid Band Program
The Board of Education, in cooperation with Music in the Mountains, is sponsoring an instrument
clinic featuring the Brass Quintet of the North Carolina Symphony on Tuesday, October 1 at 1:00 p.m.
Vhe 80 students Involved in the Yancey County band program will meet in the gym of Burnsville
Elementary School to hear the two trumpets, French horn, trombone, and tuba which comprise the
brass quintet. Mrs.-Lisa Mauney, Band Director, says that the fifth grade at BurnsvUle Elementary,
up-coming players in next year’s band, will also be invited to attend. Other persons who would like to
hear the Brass Quintet in this educational session are Invited to contact Mrs. Mauney through the
schools, or Susannah Jones, Administrative Dlrectorof Music In the Mountains, at 675*4060. The
North Carolina Symphony Brass Quintet has been Invited to come to Yancey County because of the
growing interest In the band program, which was started in January 1974 and already has developed
to such a point that the band will play at four high school football games this fall. Pictured left to right
are: Vincent Simonettl, tuba; George Mitchell, French horn; Douglas Myers, trumpet; John Henes,
trumpet; and Richard Fecteau, trombone.
Railway which ran from Corne
lia for 57 miles up to Franklin,
N.C., over some mountain
railroad like my new 12 mile
‘home’. Oh yes, I forgot to say
that I did dust the rust off the
railroads of the Southern, the
Atlantic Coast Line, and the
Columbia, Newberry, and Laur
ens when I made my one trip
from Cornelia to Clinton in 1960.
“How’d 1 get here?, you ask.
Well, a big construction crane
plucked me from my home of 14
years and took me by truck to a
railroad siding where I rested on
ACL 77325, a ‘big’ railroad
flatcar. You see, they wouldn’t
let me ride on my own wheels
due to my age. I’d ha- r e made it
all right, but you know how
much of a ‘fuddy-duddy’ big
railroads can be about things
like that.
A FRIGHTENING TRIP
“After they got me and my
BURNSVILLE, N.C.< 28714
• • .
wheels tied down on the flatcar,
away we went. I had never
moved that way before, nor had
I ever moved so fast. Those big
engines on the Seaboard Coast
Line and the Clinchfield really
took me for a ride. It was all so
new to me for on my railroad
before, we had little engines
and went so slowly all the time. I
was scared on that big rail, in
those tunnels, on the Blue Ridge
grade, and 1 really got frighten
ed when we went through
something called the Noli
chuckey Gorge. It was dark at
night, but I could see that water
foaming over the rocks. The
terrible thought that my flatcar
might stub its toe and jump the
track terrified me.
“And that huge yard in
Erwin-all sorts of cars, the like
of which I had never seen
before, spoke to me and
wondered who I was. They
treated me well in respect of my
age, I suppose.
“Then, I wound up back in
another train and figured I was
going on to my new home, but to
my horror, the train headed
back the way I’d come. I
realized 1 had to go through that
Gorge again, this time in the
daylight. 1 shut my window eyes
and hoped. Pretty soon, the
Clinchfield local was at Poplar
and 1 was feeling tetter. At least
we were not now so close to that
river and tts rocks-can’t be too
careful at my age, you know.
One trip into the river and the
result is splinters.
THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE
“Past Huntdale, Relief,
Toecane, Rose’s Branch 1 went,
my flatcar’s flanges howling
against the curve and giving me
cold chills each time. Soon, the
Kona depot showed up, and my
train slowed to a stop. They
threw a switch and shoved me
and my flatcar off on the Yancey
Railroad interchange track. The
local left after wishing me well,
and I was alone in the middle of
nowhere--I mean NOWHERE! I
could see that the track 1 was on
swung out across a couple of
bridges high above the river and
then disappeared into the trees
on the other side. I wondered
where it went.
"I was lonely--and, oh how
much lonelier I got there at
[Cont’d on page 2]
Little
Theatre
Tryouts
Tryouts for “Blithe Spirit”,
a three act comedy play by Noel
Coward to be presented by the
Burnsville Little Theatre, will be
held this Thursday evening,
September 26, 1974, at 7:30
p.m. in the First Presbyterian
Church of Burnsville.
"Blithe Spirit” calls for two
male and five female roles.
Anyone interested in trying out
for any of.these parts is invited
to participate. The play is to be
directed by Mrs. Jack Kelly
is expected to be presented to
the public on Friday and
Saturday nights of November 22
and 23.
Men arc needed for this
play! Any interested male is
most welcome to attend the
tryouts tonight.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 1974
Weekend
Football
Slated
The Yancey-Madison County
Little League Football season
started with a bang. Two games
were played on September 14.
Bald Creek played Marshall
at Cane River with a close win
for Bald Creek, 6-0. Laurel
played Hot Springs and inched
at 6-0 win over the Hot Springs
team. Burnsville played Mica
ville at East Yancey and
Burnsville handed them a 30-0
loss.
On the 21st of September
there were three good games.
First a double-header at Cane
River which featured Burnsville
vs. Laurel for the first game.
Burnsville won 44-12. The
second game was between
Micaville and Bald Creek in
which Micaville won 14-0. The
Mars Hill vs. Marshall game at
Mars Hill was also played on the
21st, but scores have not yet
been reported.
There are going to be three
exciting games this coming
Saturday. The first game will be
between Bald Creek and Laurel
at Mars Hill at 6:00 p.m. Right
after that, it’s Mars Hill and
Micaville, also at Mars Hill.
Game time for this double
header is 6:00 p.m. for the first
game; 8:00 p.m. for the next
one. At 7:30 p.m. Marshall will
; lay Hot Springs at Hot Springs.
Everyone come on out and cheer
your favorite team to victory.
Admission to the games is SI.OO
for adults, 50c for students.
August
Sales Tax
Collection
Local 1% Sales and Use Tax
collections by county were
reported recently for the month
of August, 1974.
The report shows Yancey
County collections amounted to
$16,740.40 for that period. This
exceeds the amount collected by
Madison County of $10,618.59
for the same period, but lags
behind Avery and Mitchell
County collections of approxi
mately $24,000 and $20,000
respectively.
C . . I i I
P! w JMHHBI
Yancey County’s arch-rivals in football, the Fast Yancey
Panthers and Cane River Rebels, vied for victory last Friday night,
September 20 at the Cane River field. Excitement ran high before
and during the game as pep rallies were held and cheerleaders from
each school led their side in ear-splitting chants. The stands were
filled to capacity with the tremendous turnout of supporters for both
schooisJFlnai score gave the East Yancey Panthers victory with 13
points to 6 points for the Cane River Rebels.
After a scoreless first quarter, East Yancey’s Tim Parker took a
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Soil Conservation Service Can Help Place Farm Ponds
State SCS Expands Services
To Assist Landowners
BY FRANK JETER, JR.
USDA-Soil Conservation Service
During the fiscal year
concluded June 30, 1974, the
Soil Conservation Service in
North Carolina expanded its
professional services both to
individual farmers and land
owners and to local units of
government. This was disclosed
today by State Conservationist
Jesse L. Hicks of Raleigh, who
heads the federal conservation
agency in North Carolina.
Technical assistance to indi
viduals climbed to 32,263,
ahead of 31,244 the year
previous. But assistance to units
of government scored a drama
tic increase. Some 755 govern
mental units received 3,497
services during the year, in
contrast with 2,216 services
provided to 603 governmental
agencies the year previous.
RANGE OF SERVICES
Such services can range
from soils data in planning land
use to locating sites for sanitary
landfills. During the past year
considerable emphasis on ero
sion control has been provided,
as more municipal and county
governments move to imple
ment the new statewide law on
sedimentation control.
For years farmers have
received SCS assistance on a
wide range of conservation
problems, ranging from farm
pond location to cover crops,
field borders, stripcropping,
tree planting, wildlife foou and
habitat, and other practices.
“No matter whether SCS
assistance has gone to farmers,
other landowners, or govern
ment leaders,” Jesse Hicks
pointed out, “the assistance has
been aimed at erosion control,
environmental improvement,
and a better quality of life. Os
course, many conservation
practices also aid in improved
food supply and farm income.”
•NO TELL’ INCREASES
One of the biggest increases
in agricultural practices came in
the growing practice of mini
mum tillage, with 27,875 acres
of “no till” as many farmers
call it, planted with SCS
screen pass from Quarterback Gary Winters and raced 69 yards for
the score. Jeff Bailey kicked the extra point giving the Panthers a
7-0 half-time lead. The Panthers increased their lead to 13-0 an Burl
H Utkins' two-yard plunge, a bad snap from center fusing the extra
point attempt to fall. Cane River came back in the fourth period to
score on Quarterback Thomas’ 1-yard sneak, to end the «n~t»g for
both teams. Tim Parker was the leading ground g»i-» with 124
yards in 12 carries. Phillip Deyton had 109 yard, for the Rebels on
13 carries. Gary Winters threw for 102 yards on 3 r—r-
10 c
assistance, up from 24,422 acres
the previous year. This practice
is one of the most effective
methods of controlling run-off
and erosion, with row crops
planted in stubble or other
residue with almost no conven
tional tillage.
Substantial assistance in a
number of other farm categories
that contribute to environmental
improvement, wildlife habitat,
increased food production and
farm income were reported.
Tree planting assistance was
provided on 23,296 acres, while
assistance with pasture and
hayland was provided on 27,507
acres.
Critical area planting, where
cover crops suitable to the land
are planted to repair severe
erosion, gullying, or similar
problems, was reported on
2,632 acres. Stripcropping,
which helps control both water
and wind erosion, was listed on
4,316 acres.
CONSERVATION PLANS
Altogether, some 2,337 new
[Cont’d on page 2]