' VOLUME XIX —NO. 2
RONNER’S CONTINUED EFFORTS
* 3R HATTERAS BREAKWATER
WINS ENGINEERS’ APPROVAL
Project Costing $175,000 For Protection of
Hatteras Harbor Gets Green Light of Army
Engineers; Proposal For Deeper Water
From Harbor to Inlet Disapproved at This
Time.
The continued effort of public
spirited citizens of Hatteras for
a breakwater for protection of
shipping at the Harbor, has gone
a long ways, with the help of
Congressman Herbert Bonner
again working for the interests of
the people. Along with the fight
ers for this project have been
Maurice Burrus, Dan Oden and
other citizens, working for several
years. Dispatches from Washing
ton, D. C., advise that a plan to
provide breakwaters at the en
trance to Rollinson Channel at
Hatteras, has been approved by
the United States Army Engin
eers. Rep. Herbert C. Bonner’s
office has announced.
The project will cost the federal
government an estimated $175,
000 for construction and $1,750
annually for additional mainten
ance, Bonner said.
In approving the plan, the en
gineers stipulated that local inter
ests should “(1) furnish, free of
cost to the United States, all lands,
easements, and rights-of-way nec
essary for the breakwaters and for
subsequent maintenance when and
as required; and (2) agree to hold
and save the United States free
from damages due to the construc
tion and maintenance of the break
waters.”
The engineers’ report approving
the project is the result of a re
quest made by the House Commi
ttee on Public Works in May, 1947,
that reports on Rollinson Channel
be reviewed with a view to deter
mining the advisability of provid
ing breakwaters at the entrance to
' harbor at Hatteras.
>he Army Engineers turned
n a proposal to construct a
.annel from Hatteras Inlet to
Hatteras Harbor on the grounds
that while such a project “would
result in saving of transit time for
locally-based vessels fishing in the
Atlantic Ocean . . . The benefits
therefrom would not warrant the
required expenditures.” K
The cost of constructing the pro
posed channel was estimated at
$273,000 with annual charges of
$27,120. A request that this proj
ect be reviewed was authorized by
the House Committee on Rivers
and Harbors in June, 1945.
SPORTSFISHING UP TO
PAR IN DARE WATERS
Nags Head. —Everything from
bluefish to black bass and from
barracuda to blue marlin have
been landed in Dare coastal wat
ers during the past six weeks.
The first sailfish of the season
were landed during the past
week by angleis fishing in Gulf
Stream waters off Hatteras and
the first white marlin taken off
Oregon Inlet this year was
brought in by Jack Holt of Pu
laski, Va., on the week end.
Previously two other white
marlin had been landed by ang
lers aboard charter boats oper
ating from Hatteras on the Out
er Banks. Dolphin have been
more plentiful this summer than
in the history of Gulf Stream
fishing along the Dare coast. As
a matter of fact so many of the
fast swimming and colorful fish
es have been taken that many
anglers going offshore now are
making it a practice to release
their fish and are bringing only
a few into port.
Amberjack have been caught
in great numbers but they do
not seem to be as numerous as
in some recent years. Barracuda,
g mackerel, false albacore,
>o and bonita have been in
.ed in the offshore catches.
One of the outstanding catches
from the surf during the past
week was the landing of a 30-
pound channel bass by Mrs. D.
W. Tutterow of North Wilkes
boro. She was casting with very
light tackle and was using a
small hook baited with shrimp
when the big fish struck her lure.
“I just gave him plenty of line
and let the fish wear ’tself out
before beginning to reel it in,”
said Mrs. Tutterow. “Otherwise
I would never have been able to
land the fish.”
Pier fishing at Nags Head has
been up to par recently and good
catches of bottom and surface
fish have been made in the
sounds and at Oregon Inlet dur
ing the past week. I
THE COASTLAND TIMES
• »
PUBLISHED WEEKLY IN THE INTEREST OF THE WALTER RALEIGH COASTLAND OF NORTH CAROLINA
HYDE MIDYETTES,
DARE MIDGETTES,
HOLD A REUNION
Cape Hatteras W it nesses
Gathering of Prominent
Tribes of Two Counties
Buxton on Cape Hatteras,
July 9. Sixty three members
of the Hyde county branch
which spells its name with a “Y”
have concluded their annual
family reunion here among their
cousins who spell it with a “G”
and Hatteras Island had more
Midyetts and Midgetts on it than
ever. The visitors came from
eight states and mingled with
their g-cousins and a fabulous
time was had by everybody—
including the Grays and the
Hoopers and the Scarboroughs
and the Meekinses.
Mr. and Mrs. L. L Gibbs now
residents of Buxton where Mr.
Gibbs runs a sawmill and a sea
going pound net, were hosts to
the visitors. Both are originally
Hyde county people and Mrs.
Gibbs used to be a Midyette.
Currently they are Tyrrell coun
ty residents where Mr. Gibbs was
a farmer and sawmill man and
Mrs. Gibbs active in every phase
of community endeavor.
Headquarters for the gather
ing of the Midyetts was at the
1 modern tourist courts operated
by John Hooper and by George
Fuller at the curve of the high
way approaching the village.
1 Here they set up house-keeping
for the week end and from here
1 they visited where ever they
took the notion. A good deal of
1 the time was spent on the Point
fishing. Each evening during
‘ their three-day stay the family
gathered at the new Cape Point
’ Restaurant for family dinner and
’ family visiting.
Among those signing the fam
ily register were:
Mr. and Mrs. J. D. Midyette,
■ Mr. and Mrs. J. D. Midyette, Jr.,
and young son and daughter, of
, Winston Salem and Mr. and Mrs.
. Eugene S. Midyette, and Mrs.
W. L. Spencer, Raleigh.
Mr. and Mrs. L. S. Spencer Jr.,
and son, Carl, Short Hills, N. J.,
and C. B. Spencer and daughter,
j Lynn, Portsmouth.
Richard P. Spencer, Palo Alto,
L Cal., Mr. and Mrs. Graham Spen
, cer and Graham, Jr., Danville,
Va., and Mr. and Mrs. Grey
Stone and daughters, Cynthia
and Barbara, Arlington.
Mr. and Mrs. F. M. Adgerton,
Nashville, Mr. and Mrs. Ra’ph
, Cox, Smithfield, Miss Isabel Ed
gerton, Washington and Miss
• Gertrude Edgerton, High Point.
Mr. and Mrs. Payne H. Mid
yette, and daughter, Tallahasse,
Mr. and Mrs. S. T. Midyette and
daughter, Mrs. John Hewitt and
son, Kinston; Mr. and Mrs. J. T.
See REUNION, Page Eight
NEGRO CITIZEN
DAY AT LOST
COLONY SUNDAY
, I
The Rev. J. A. Babington-
Johnson of Mt. Lebanon A.M E.
Church in Elizabeth City will de
liver the spiritual message in
Waterside Theatre on Sunday
, morning when members of his
‘ Race will gather for the annual
Negro Citizens Day at The Lost
Colony. His sermon is scheduled
for 11 o’clock.
During the evening Dr. Neal
Hughley of the North Carolina
College in Durham will be a
feature speaker. Arrangements
for bringing Dr. Hughley, a noted
Negro educator and director of
economics at the Durham school
were made by S. D. Williams,
president of the Elizabeth City
State eachers College.
The Rev. Babington-Johnson
is well known in northeastern
North Carolina. A pure-bred na
tive of Africa, he was educated in
English schools before coining to
America.
Local arrangements for Negro,
Citizens Day is under the chair
manship of Mrs. Agatha Gray.
This iis the first year that a
Negro Citizens Day at The Lost
Colony has been observed on a
Sunday and it is expected that
a large number of persons will
I be present.
SCENES FROM THE LOST COLONY
-w’ W II T ’ juT ’
jßk ** AT
, fl ■
EPO i 'tßsh
- J '
THE LOST COLONY opened in Waterside Theatre on Saturday, June
27, to retell the story of English-speaking America’s beginning in the
Scenes from the drama are shown here. In upper left Eleanor Dare cud-
New World, the 16th Century Virginia which was to become America,
dies Virginia, named in honor of the new land, and the first child of En
glish parentage born in the New World. Upper right, the drama’s chore
ographer, who plays the role of Uppowoc, is shown in one of his sensa
tional Indian medicine man dances. In lower left ,the first Queen Eliz
abeth who named the land Virginia, receives from Sir Walter Ra
leigh, some tobacco from the New World as two Indians stand by and
in the lower right, Old Tom Harris is featured in the tavern scene of
the drama which adds comedy to an otherwise serious and historical
play. (Photo by Aycock Brown)
CELEBRATION LONG TO BE
REMEMBERED MARKS 200TH
ANNIVERSARY ON OCRACOKE
Observance of 200 Years of Contented Living
Proves Delightful Occasion for Many Peo
ple; Jane Bryan, Colored Matron, Crowned
Queen of The Pony Pennings.
By ALICE K. RONDTHALER
Ocracoke, July 6. Ocracoke
Island residents will long re
member July 4, 1953 because of
the wonderful home-town cele
bration on that day. Histori
cally the celebration might have
been in honor of the 200th anni
versary of the appointment of
a town here, since the Colonial
Assembly passed an Act in 1753
making both Ocracoke and its
neighbor, Portsmouth, towns.
And the history of the Island
goes further back than that; for
the Colonial Legislature of 1715
had purchased land on the Island
for the maintenance of pilots who
had settled here. And, going
still further back, historical re
cords indicate that on June 23,
1585, one of the Raleigh Exped
itions en route to Roanoke Island,
made its first landfall here. •
But actually the July 4th,
1953 celebration had no designs
on perpetuating history; it was
just a grand, home-town affair,
first suggested last April by
Marvin Howard, native of the
Island, happily retired here after
years of service with the U. S.
Army Engineeers —a man who
believes that everyone likes to
have a good time now and then.
Os course Pony Penning is an
annual event on the Fourth, and ,
Capt. Howard was particularly
interested in this because his
father, Homer Howard, was one
of Ocracoke’s famous horsemen '
in the old days. And to follow the ■
old-time custom, the Pony Pen- j
ning this year was on the harbor j
shore directly west of Silver !
Lake Inn, and the ponies were
started at daybreak from the I
northern end of the Island down '
the east shore to the Coast Guard
Station point. In the old days be
fore the harbor shore was lined |
with docks and buildings, the .
ponies came right along the
shore, but this year they were I
driven straight down Ocracoke’s [
paved road which borders the
Harbor. It was a stirring sight to
watch the herd of galloping pon
ies round the road into the corral,
—not a pony lost at the entrance '
corral. A small fleet of visiting I
yachts in the harbor had natural I
grandstand seats for the event, i
Afttr that, the usual branding, 1
selling, and releasing ran on
through the day. Crowned Queen
MANTEO, N. C., FRIDAY, JULY 10, 1953
of the Pony Penning was aging
Jane Bryant, respected wife and
mother of the town's only color
ed family.
Next event of the day was the
patriotic service at the local
school with an inspiring Flag
Raising, military style, by the
local Coast Guard contingent.
At noon the women of the
Methodist Church served a ham
beans-salad dinner in the Church
Recreation Hall. And immediate
ly after dinner everyone hurried
home to get ready for the Big
Parade many to be in it; oth
ers to watch it. Twenty trucks,
or cars gaily decorated, a dozen
horsemen, 35 costumed young
sters, a half dozen majorettes,
and a dozen bicyclists formed a
procession a quarter mile long,
fllying banners, penants, signs
and ribbons. Horns honked, kids
tootled and kazooed, clowns
monkeyed, and majorettes strutt
ed. Many an ancient jalopy show
ed off a brand new red, white,
See OCRACOKE, Page Eight
DARE COUNTY SCHOOLS
, TO OPEN SEPTEMBER 8
Children Six Years Old by October
16 May Enroll; Vaccinations
Required
I Mrs. Mary L. Evans, Superin
tendent of Dare County Schools,
j wishes to call the attention of
I parents to a recent change in
: the school entrance age. Prior to
! this year, it was necessary for a
i child to become six years of age
j on or before October 1 in order
: to enter school for that year. On
July 2, the State Board of Edu
' cation changed this date to Octo-
I ber 15.
The Attorney General has rul
-1 ed that any chiild born on Oct
i ober 16 would become six on
. October 15, and would there
fore be eligible for admission to
i the first grade.
Mrs. Evans wishes to remind
parents of those children enter
ing the first grade that they must
be vaccinated for small pox and
immunized against typhoid,
I whooping cough, and diphtheria.
It is also necessary for first grad
ers to present birth certificates
- upon enrollment.
The Dare County Schools will
begin the 1953-54 school term on !
September 8.
SCHOOL OF FINE
ARTS OPENS THIS
WEEK IN MANTEO
Instruction in Many Subjects
Offered to Anyone In
Area Wishing to At
tend
A variety of courses are offer
ed in the Roanoke Island School
of Fine Arts which opened for
summer sessions here this week
and will continue through Au
gust 23. Under the sponsorship
of Roanoke Island Historical
Association the school' offers
courses in the following subjects:
Chorus, Ralph Burtier B.M.
M.M., Instructor; Advanced
Dance Technique and Choreo
graphy. John Lehman, A.8., in
structor; Stagecraft, William I.
Loqg, A.B. M.A., instructor;
Sculpture, Eugene McLain, A.B.
M.A., instructor; Costume De
sign and Execution, Irene Smart
Rains, instructor; Acting and
Directing, James Byrd, A.B
M.A., instructor; The Psychology
of Relaxation as Applied to
Voice and Diction; and Play
wriiting, Elizabeth Welch, A.B.
M.A. Ph.D., instructor. This fac
ulty is made up of members of
the staff and company of The
Lost Colony.
“The purpose of the school is
to provide instruction in the
arts, particularly those allied
with the theatre, to supplement
the training of the company of
The Lost Colony and to train
residents of Dare County for fu
ture participation in this drama
of their country’s history,” said
General Manager R. E. Jordan.
In addition to the regularly
scheduled classes of the school,
one production will be staged as
a culmination of the work of the
school.
“This production will incor
porate the various aspects of the
Theatre being taught and will
be the responsibility of all the
staff members of the school,” it
was stated.
The school is open to anyone
in the area wishing to attend.
There will be no fees.
ONE DEFENDANT
PLEADS GUILTY;
DRAWS $lO FINE
Beach Disturbance Case Postpon
ed Two Weeks in Re
corder’s Court
Although only one case was
disposed of in recorder’s court,
Tuesday, two others were con
tinued.
Amos Crain of East Lake
pleaded guilty to a charge of
reckless driving and was fined
$lO and costs.
A case involving Stanley Sum
mers was continued two weeks
and he was put under $75 ap
pearance bond. Summers was
charged with being drunk and
disorderly in a public place, re
sisting arrest, and assaulting an
officer by striking him with his
fist. The arrest was made on the
beach by D. F. Twyne.
Elijah Hudson’s hearing was
postponed until next Tuesday.
He was arrested June 29 by Clar
ence Hassell, county police offic
er, on a charge of being drunk
on a state highway.
STATE SCHOOL MEN TO
EXAMINE PROPOSED SITE
A committee of the State Board
of Education will visit Hatteras
to look over a new site proposed
by the Dare County Board of
Education for a new consolidated
school to serve the Outer Banks
island, reference to which was
made in our paper last week.
It will be the same committee
which has visited the island
twice before during a long row
over location of the school. Mem
bers of the committee are Paul S.
Oliver of Marietta, A. S. Brower
of Durham and Claude Ferrell of
Elkin.
Location of the Hatteras school
has been an issue for two years.
Recently the Dare Board pro
posed a compromise site.
AVON BOY ABOARD
DESTROYER DIXIE
Far East (FHTNG) Aboard
the destroyer tender USS Dixie
with the UN Blockading and Es
cort Force is Ralph H. Gray,
metalsmith first class, USN, son
of Mr. and Mrs. Jarvis T. Gray
of Avon, N. C., and husband of
Mrs. Linda R. Gray of Jamaica
Plains, Mass.
Gray reported aboard the Dix
ie in August of 1952 from the
!U. S. Naval Air Station, Nor
folk, Va.
BEACH WATER, FIRE BOND
ELECTION FOR $850,000
IS CALLED FOR AUGUST 25
Registration of Votes in Sanitary District to
Start Aug. 1 in Preparation for Vote on
Proposal for Water Supply, Fire Protection
MISS LUCY SMITH DIES
SUDDENLY IN NORFOLK
--
t
I A i;
■ : S - n
at t,
MISS LUCY SMITH, native of
Dare County, but long-time resi
dent of Norfolk, died unexpected
ly in her sleep Wednesday night
at her home in Norfolk. Funeral
arrangements were incomplete at
press time.
Miss Smith was the daughter of
the late Robert W. and Elizabeth
Smith, Mr. Smith having at one
time been Dare County’s sheriff,
and at one time register of deeds.
Miss Smith is survived by several
nieces and nephews, among them
Mrs. Walter Harris of Manteo and
Luthei - Dixon Midgett of Wan
chese.
ELIZABETH CITY
BAND TO APPEAR
AT LOST COLONY
Celebrated High School Or
ganization to Play at
607th Performance
Tuesday
The city of Elizabeth City will
be well-represented on Roanoke
Island Tuesday night, July 14, 1
at the 607th performance of THE
LOST COLONY. Elizabeth City!
night will present as an added
attraction the far-famed Eliza
beth City High School Band un
der the direction of Scott Callo
way as a pre-curtain feature.
The “Elizabeth City Night Per
formance” promises to be one of
the events of the 13th season of
The Lost Colony.
The committee on arrange
ments is headed by Miles L.
Clark, member of Roanoke Is
land Historical Association, spon
sor of the show, Elton Aydlett,
Mayor of Elizabeth City, Forrest
Jones of the Chamber of Com
merce of the Pasquotank town,
Wade Marr, noted nationally
known speaker who will emcee
the pre-curtain program (or at
intermission), Billy McDowell,
president of the Albemarle Pota
to Festival, Dr. J. W. Selig and
Ray Jones.
In addition to the appearance
of the High School Band with
its nationally famous corps of
majorettes, there will be other
added attractions on Elizabeth
City Night. Marr is a nationally
known speaker. Dr. Selig is a
close friend of Freeman Gosden
of the team of “Amos and Andy”
and Ray Jones, is manager of
Virginia Dare Hotel. Forrest
Jones, formerly of the Lenoir
Chamber of Commerce is now
heading a drive to fill Waterside
Theatre with Elizabeth Citizens
and Pasquotank citizens on Tues
day night, July 14. Mayor Ayd
lett is lending his cooperation.
MANTEO WOMAN BITTEN
BY BLACKWIDOW SPIDER
Mrs. Etta Peele of Manteo
feels herself fortunate to have
recovered from the bite of a
black widow spider, which she
suffered last Thursday. Mrs.
Peele, who delivers the Virginian
Pilot, was at work on her route
in Manteo when she felt some
thing sting her foot. Removing
her shoe, she found the culprit,
and immediately went home,
where members of her family
took her to a local physician,
who administered first aid. Mrs.
Peele was extremely ill for more
than 24 hours, but has now re
covered and is back at work.
Single Copy 7£
Bonds in the amount of $850,-
000 for a water system and fire
protection will be submitted to
Dare Beaches sanitary district
residents at a special election
Aug. 25. The election was called
by the board of county commis
sioners upon request of the sani
tary district board.
Os the total asked, $822,000 is
proposed for a water system to
serve the beach, and $22,000 for
fire fighting equipment.
Only actual residents of the
beach, persons who vote there in
general elections, will be eligi
ble to vote on the bonds. The
sanitary district as now consti
tuted includes from curve to
curve, with all the property on
the ocean front, that on the west
side of the highway from the
road 700 feet back and all of old
Nags Head, on the sound. It does
not include Colington, Kitty
Hawk village, most of Avalon
Beach, or any of the other de
velopments more than 700 feet
west of the highway. Such areas,
however, blight be taken into
the sanitary district at some later
date.
Before the election can be held,
a registration of voters will have
to be taken, since the sanitary
district borders do not coincide
with those of the townships on
the beach. Registration books
i will be open from 9 to sunset
i each day from Aug. 1 to Aug. 15.
j That period includes three Sat
| urdays, on each of which the
! registration books will be at the
polling places. August 22 will be
challenge day.
For the election, two polling
; places have been established,
one at Twiford’s garage in Kill
I Devil Hills and one at Sherman
j Culpepper’s garage in Nags Head.
I Voters in the Kitty Hawk section
of the beach will vote at Twif-
I ord s garage. Ordinarily, the
people in that section vote at
Kitty Hawk school, but that is
not in the sanitary district.
Mrs. Nina Miller is registrar
for the northern area, and Sher
man Culpepper for the Nags
Head section.
Decision to ask the commis
sioners to call the election was
reached when the sanitary dis
trict board had a joint meeting
with the mayor and commission
ers of the town of Kill Devil
Hills, part of which is included
, in the sanitary district. R. E. Jor
dan is chairman of the district
board, with J. E. Harris and Mrs.
Daisy Midgett as members and
Martin Kellogg as attorney.
In connection with the re-
See ELECTION, Page Eight
HAYMAN REUNION Al
WANCHESE NEXT FRIDAY
Wanchese Methodist Church Scene
of Annual Event July 17th
Wanchese Methodist Church
is to be the scene of the annual
reunion of the Hayman Clan,
pioneer family of this region,
I next Friday, July 17th. Rev. L.
D. Hayman, . a native of Dare
j County is president of the Clan.
His Uncle, former Sheriff Jeff
D. Hayman is the oldest living
member of the clan. He was 90
years old in June, and he ex
pects to attend. Most of the
members of the clan live at Wan
chese, Manns Harbor and Kitty
Hawk, and others in Tyrrell
County, Currituck County, Eliza
beth City and Norfolk and New
port News, as well as in many
more distant places.
The last four meetings of the
clan were held at Kitty Hawk in
1952, Manns Harbor in 1949-50
and 51.
Rev. Mr. Hayman, who preach
ed his first sermon in his old
home church at Wanchese will
preach on this occasion as well.
A picnic dinner during the noon
hour will be spread on the
'grounds.
FRED L. WHITE DIES
IN TULLY, NEW YORK
Word was received in Manteo
this week of the death of Fred
L. White in Tully, N. Y., where
he and Mrs. White had been mak
ing their home with their son for
some time. Mr. and Mrs. White had
many friends on Roanoke Island,
where they lived for a number of
years at the Manteo airport,
White is survived by his widow
and three children.