* UME XX —NO. 53
1 aUL green and graham
BOTH TO APPEAR FRIDAY
AT LOST COLONY OPENING
Author of the Play, and Chairman of State High
way Commission To Speak at Fort Raleigh To
night as Drama Begins Its 15th Season; Many
Changes Noted in Both Script and Costumes;
Much Interest Presages Large Attendance.
By AYCOCK BROWN
A. H. (Sandy) Graham, chair
man of the North Carolina State
Highway and Public Works Com
mission and Paul Green, who gave
the world its first symphonic
drama type of outdoor theatrical
production will be speakers at the
15th season premiere of The Lost
Colony in Waterside Theatre at
Fott Raleigh National Historic
Site on Roanoke Island Friday
night. Lights will shine on the be
ginning of this longest lived of
all outdoor productions at 8:15
o’clock, E.S.T., and performances
will be presented nightly (includ
ing Monday, July 4th) until July
10, after which there will be per
formances every night, except
Mondays, through September 4.
Sandy Graham will be here to
officially represent North Caro
lina and its Governor Luther
Hodges. Paul Green will make a
flying trip from Berea, Ky., where
another of his symphonic dramas
has its premiere on June 29, in
order to be here to greet the audi
ence at Lost Colony’s 712th per
formance Friday night.
Several Changes
Director Clifton Britton of The
Lost Colony states that there have
been several changes in drama
this year and many of the cast
members will be newly costumed.
It will be the most exciting edi
tion of the drama’s long run. The
changes involved have given more
speed to the reduction, and per
formances this year will be six
minutes shorter than last year
and previous years.
le of the most noticeable
' jes will be found at the very
■j* mi ng of the drama during the
<m corn dance of the Roanoak
Island Indians. Under the choreog
raphic direction of Marvin Gordon,
who will be cast also, as Uppowoc,
the dancing Indian Medicine man,
this opening dance has been made
more primitive and authentic.
Other dances have also been given
historical background.
There will be several new faces
in the cast this year, many of
whom are playing principle roles.
Martin Gerrish, of Tucson, Ari
zona, will play the male lead.
There will be a new Old Tom Har
ris, played by David Bowen, for
merly with Raleigh Little Theatre,
and other leading personalities of
the show, cast in their roles for
the first time this season. Jordan
stated that advance ticket sales
had been very good for the prem
iere and also other performances
on this July 4th week end.
GEORGE A. DANIELS NEW
MEMBER WELFARE BOARD
Mrs. Louise Forehand Tillett
having served six years on the
Dare County Welfare Board, she
has been replaced by George Al
bert Daniels, also of Wanchese,
and Mr. Daniels will take office
July 1. His term is for three years.
Membership on this Board is
limited to six years consecutively.
Mrs. Tillett, a faithful commu
nity workers, is also a teacher in
x>the Wanchese school, and has been
highly commended for her work
on this Board. Mr. Daniels is like
wise known as a big-hearted com
munity worker, and his previous
interest in assistance work is con
sidered an excellent qualification
for taking this new post.
MEETING AT RODANTHE
FRIDAY NIGHT AT 8
TO DISCUSS JUBILEE
A meeting of interested citizens
—<d their friends, of Rodanthe
’es area has been called at R.
wens case for Friday evening
—o' ,iis week, today, to discuss a
.oposed jubilee celebration deal
ing with the history of Chicami
comico and the Life Saving Serv
ice, to be held tentatively in Au
gust.
Woodrow Edwards, R. D. Owens
and other have called this meeting,
and urge all people interested in
the history and progress of Hat
teras Island to attend.
NO REBEKAH MEETING
Mrs. Tracy Ward, Noble Grand,
of Manteo Rebekah Lodge No. 62
reports that the next regular meet
ing will not be held since it falls
on July 4th, a legal holiday.
THE COASTLAND TIMES
PUBLISHED WEEKLY IN THE INTEREST OF THE WALTER RALEIGH COASTLAND OF NORTH CAROLINA
CONTENDS PROPERTY
AT BODIE ISLAND
WORTH MILLIONS
Elizabeth City Attorney Making
Strong Fight For Big Price
For 2400 Acres. at Ore
gon Inlet
Continuing with a vigorous fight
in his protest against accepting
the offer of something like
$200,000 for the 2,400 acres of
beach and marshlands at Bodie Is
land, W. A. Worth, one of the ablest
attorneys of the region is being
heard this week in Dare County
courthouse before a panel of three
commissioners who are Chairman
I. D. Thorp of Rocky Mount, J. C.
Sawyer of Elizabeth City and
Charles W. Bradshaw of Raleigh.
Mr. Worth has put an array of
imported experts in geology who
attempt to show that the potential
of ilmenite and kindred minerals
which might be extracted from the
land might yield the owner several
times in royalties what the Park
Service offers for the land.
Mr. Worth is represented by a
battery of distinguished legal
talent, including Major L. P. Mc-
Lendon of Greensboro, W. B. Rod
man of Washington, and Hubert
Humphrey. A number of “expert
See WORTH, Page Ten
AIR-MINDED OHIOAN DARE COAST BOOSTER
*
* v • .{Sy ,j|r ;
1 fVL* r
gissSEHM• > HF
fISBjHHPv tr
Photo by Ben Dixon Mac Neil!
Since he first landed a small aircraft on the Skyco landing strip
14 years ago without knowing precisely where he was, E. W. Grove,
wealthy Cleveland, Ohio banker, has come back oftener and sent down
more people to taste of the pleasures of a Dare county vacation than
almost anybody. He came down last Friday afternoon for a week end
outing, just to see the country again before he and Mrs. Grove took
off next month for a flying vacation that will take them as far north
as Point Barrow, Alaska.
When he first came to Dare county Mr. Grove was on a spring
vacation with his teen-age son William, who had a week off from
school. It was the custom of father and son to take that sort of a vaca
tion somewhere. They knew only that they were about 100 miles south
of Norfolk when they had to hunt a place to land. They sighted Dave
Driskill’s Stinson and came in for a landing. Nobody was around but
within a little while Ben Dixon Mac Neill and Albert Bell drove down,
just to see if it was anybody who needed anything. Roanoke Island
was like that—then.
That trip they stayed a week, making short trips here and there
by air and in either Bell’s or MacNeill’a automobile, driving around
the community. They fished very little, but just looked and sunned
themselves in the April sunshine. There was still snow in Cleveland.
With time out during the war Mr. Grove has been making several trips
a year down here, staying at Parkerson’s Hotel, which was the only one
open when they first came, and they liked it so well they have always
stayed there.
Last Friday they casually telephoned Mr. Bell that they were com
ing and suggested that if he could find out where Mac Neill was, to get
hold of him. They brought two friends and their wives and spent the
week end, making a long flight over the Outer Banks Saturday morn
ing. They returned to Cleveland Monday, arriving in time for a day’s
work at the bank of which Mr. Grove is president. Young Grove, after
trying the bank, is living in New York on his own and has made Mr.
Grove a grandfather.
Because of its longer cruising range and speed Mr. Grove has
finally settled on the Beechcraft Executive as the aircraft suited to his
needs. He owned three of the smaller Beechcraft Bonanza’s since the
war, but prefers the larger and faster ship for long trips. This spring
they skipped Dare County for their early vacation and flew to Yucatan.
SCENES YOU'LL SEE IN LOST COLONY'S ISTH SEASON PREMIERE
ft.lyl
imMM
nil I illllH ii 11.I I.
Colorful and dramatic scenes
that will come to life again with
The Lost Colony’s 15th Season
Premiere at Waterside Theatre on
Roanoke Island are shown above
surrounding the view of the
amphitheatre where 711 perform
ances of the internationally fa-
MANTEO, N. C., FRIDAY, JULY 1, 1955
mous symphonic drama have been
presented to date. The Paul Green
play, first presented on July 4th,
1937, has been more responsible
for changing the economy and pro
moting the progressive growth
and development of Roanoke Is
land and the Dare Coast than any
thing else. The drama today is
one of the largest single industries
of the arpa. Photo in upper left
shows the famous Lost Colony
Chorus urtder direction of Nena
Williams. The Chorus is made up
of students and/or graduates of
the Westminister Choir College,
Princeton, N. J. Top right scene
shows Eleanor Dare singing a
lullaby to her new born daughter
Virginia Dare. Talented Ann Mar
tin of Cherokee, with a rich back
ground of theatrical activity in her
career, plays the role of Eleanor
Dare, the female lead, for her sec
ond season this year. One of the
very dramatic and most exciting
scenes of the play is shown in
'Unto These Hills' Gives Indians Full Measure
Os Sympathy, Understanding, Opportunity
This, With Many Other Attractions, Makes the Far Journey To
The Mountains Well Worth While.
By CATHERINE D. MEEKINS
The season of outdoor theatre is
on in North Carolina. Our own
“Lost Colony” by Paul Green is
scheduled to open Friday night,
July 1. “Unto These Hills” at
Cherokee and “Horn in the West”
at Boone opened last Saturday
night and my husband and I were
fortunate enough to be able to at
tend the opening of “Unto These
Hills.” Being fully aware of the
great dramatic quality of “The
Lost Colony” and knowing how
complete and professional a pro
duction it is, I went to the moun
tain show not a little biased, and
expecting a show somewhat infer
ior to our own. However, I was
in for the surprise of my life, be
cause “Unto These Hills” is also
a great dramatic achievement and
equally as well done as our own
show. As far as comparing the two
shows is concerned, it would be
hard to do so. Where “The Lost
Colony” is a great symphonic dra
ma with the music interwoven as
an integral part of the production,
“Unto These Hills” is straight dra
ma with a certain amount of inci
dental music. The Indian dances
were most interesting and extreme*
ly well-done, as why shouldn’t they
be? Their choreographer is Foster
Fitz-Simons, who was for several
years choreographer for “The Lost
Colony” and who did such a mag
nificent job of it. He also has one
t>f the leading character parts in
the mountain show, and does it to
perfection. In addition, he is associ
ate director.
Where “The Lost Colony” covers
a comparatively short period of
time, “Unto These Hills’ covers a
period from the coming of De Soto
in 1540 until 1842, when the re
maining Cherokees were allowed
to live in peace in their native
hills, after most of their tribe had
been removed to Oklahoma across
the Trail of Tears, their suffering
beyond our comprehension.
Having been an “adopted na
tive” of Roanoke Island for the
last 25 years, I love every inch of
lower left as Uppowoc, the Indian
Medicine Man begins his dance to
drive away the spirits followed by
the massacre of the sleeping In
dians by Governor Lane’s men.
Marvin Gordan of New York, the
drama’s choreographer, plays Up
powoc. Colorful scene of the play
portrays a Garden Party reception
by Queen Elizabeth. The Queen
again this year will be played by
Mary Wood Long, who has been
with The Lost Colony for many
seasons. She is shown receiving
Eleanor White (later Dare) as her
master of Ceremonies, played this
year by William L. White Jr., of
Topsham, Maine. Waterside Thea
tre, designed and built by Albert
Q. Bell is the center picture, and
the spot where the expected record
breaking 15th season premiere will
be held on Friday, July 1, one week
from today. (Photos by Aycock
Brown, Dare County Tourist Bu
reau and Dick Bruckse, Ports
mouth (Va.) Star.)
Dare County, and especially our
beautiful Waterside Theatre on
Roanoke Island, the home of “The
Lost Colony.” But, being hill-bred
I reveled in the beauty of the
Mountainside Theatre in Cherokee.
Built in a natural amphitheatre,
with towering mountains as a back
drop and other mountains on all
sides, the theatre has the best
acoustics I have ever heard at an
outdoor production of any kind.
In the high, thin mountain air,
the actors did not have to battle
with the heavy sea-level'atmos
phere and the ever-present winds
that our actors have to combat.
We had seats in the fifth row back
in the center section, just about
the best seats in the theatre, but
I am sure those seated high in the
back of the theatre heard every
bit as well as we.
We arived at the road leading to
the theatre about 30 minutes
ahead of opening time and our
hearts fell when we were told we
would have to park at the foot of
the mountain, as the parking lot
near the theatre entrance was al
ready filled. A steep mountain
climb was not much to our liking;
but just as we had parked our car
and started toward the road, we
discovered that the management
was running shuttle busses from
the foot of the mountain to the
See TRIP, Page Ten
REDUCTIONS IN TAXES
AT KILL DEVIL HILLS
A reduction in taxes to 25 cents
per SIOO has been made this year
by the town Board of Kill Devil
Hills, and Schedule B. Privilege
taxes have also been reduced. The
new budget set up to operate the
town for the fiscal year beginning
July 1, totals $15,297.25.
The items covered by this bud
get are as follows: General gov
ernment expense $4,797.25; Police
Department $2,600; Fire Depart
ment $1,000; Contingency S4OO
and Street Department $6,500.
CLOSING OF BINGO GAMES
AT NAGS HEAD CREATES
FURORE IN MANY CIRCLES
Highly Controversial and Exciting Court Action
Sponsored by Four Church Groups Comes to
A Head, With Padlocking of Establishments;
To Be Heard Saturday, July 9th by Judge Mor
ris at Currituck.
McCOWN PRESIDENT OF
MANTEO ROTARY CLUB
, f, < / gj^;. . . JjSj
WALLACE H. McCown, Manteo
attorney will take office Monday
night, July 4th as president of the
Manteo Rotary Club, succeeding
John H. Long. Mr. McCown is a
former Secretary of the Club.
Ralph Swain is the new Vice-presi
dent; R. D. Sawyer, Treasurer, and
See McCOWN, Page Ten
HOME AGENT RESIGNED
DAY BEFORE BRINGING
ACTION AGAINST BINGO
Others Back Water Under Force of Vig
orous Antagonism in Behalf of
Games; One Signer Agreed
to Withdraw
It now appears that Mrs. Vir
ginia (Pat) Wescott had resigned
as home agent for Dare County,
in a letter transmitted to her
superiors the day before she at
tached her name to, the petition
for the closing of the bingo games.
On June 21, due to circumstances
and costs involved in the require
ments essential to become a per
ice she has concluded acceptance
manent worker in Extension Serv
os permanent work would be to
her disadvantage. Dare County
will be without a home agent for
sometime to come, due to lack of
experienced workers in this field.
Here is Mrs. Wescott’s letter of
resignation:
Miss Florence Cox
District Home Agent
Raleigh, N. C.
Dear Miss Cox:
The letter from Miss Dakin with
details from my becoming a mem
ber of the Federal Retirement
system has upset my outlook on
the future considerable. I am per
fectly willing to conform to Ex
tension regulations but having to
go back to years service in Bertie
and Durham counties requires
that I repay more than eleven hun
dred dollars. To receive a monthly
income after I am 62 years old
would be fine, but one of the pur
poses of my working now is to
give our children educational ad-
See AGENT, Page Ten
WANCHESE SOLDIER
*
- SkL. mI
■- W. L : ;- < •
•" Eufe ■v <
PVT. TOMMIE D. D.ANIELS, son
of Mr. and Mrs. Ruford A. Dan
iels of Wanchese, and the husband
of Mrs. Edna M. Daniels, who
entered the armed services on May
17, is receiving his basic training
at Fort Jackson, S. C. He will re
turn home in the early part of
August.
Single Copy 70
One of the most far-reaching
court actions ever undertaken in
Dare County came to a head last
Thursday night with the serving
of a court order padlocking 3 of 4
four bingo games at Nags Head,
and summoning the operators to
appear on July 9th at 10 a. m. be
fore Judge Chester Morris at
Currituck courthouse to show
cause why they should not be per
manently enjoined against further
operation of the game of bingo.
The action was brought in a
petition signed by Mrs. Marjorie
Wescott and Mrs. Virginia P. Wes
cott of Manteo, following senti
ment expressed by the three Meth
odist Church Boards of Manteo,
Wanchese, and Kitty Hawk, and
the Manteo and Nags Head Baptist
Churches, which began early last
fall.
The two signers are leaders in
church and community work and
say that they sincerely oppose the
game of bingo for moral and reli
gious reasons and were moved
further by the strong support
urged upon them by religious
leaders of the congregations men
tioned.
A terrific furore has been
aroused on the Dare Beaches,
where the most of the business in
terests look upon bingo as a harm
less, but highly profitable amuse
ment to the beaches. The reactions
range from fear to highly volatile
indignation. Some interests fear
that the beaches will suffer a tre
mendous loss in trade and tourist
business. They contend that a
great number of people who
patronized the resorts have come
only because of the bingo games.
Many of these people are open and
above board in their support of
the games, and in their fight to
retain them. But some letters sent
have been anonymous, disgraceful,
and ridiculous in the extreme.
Because the two Mistresses Wes
cott were in quasi-public employ,
Mrs. Marjorie Wescott, a capable
stenographer employed heretofore
by the Dare County Tourist Bu
reau, and Mrs. Pat Wescott, hav
ing recently been employed for a
full year as Dare County Home
Agent, appeals have been directed
to their superiors demanding their
dismissal. (Two such letters,
frankly signed, are reproduced
elsewhere in this newspaper to
day).
But many anonymous, venomous
and cowardly’ letters have been
sent through the mails to the two
signers of the petition. Many bit
ter telephone calls have been re
ceived. Here is one of the letters
mailed, postmarked at 3 p. m. Sun
day from Elizabeth City:
“Dear Marjorie:
Writing you a few lines in re
gards to what you have done in
regards to the bingo on the beach
you have took all this mistake on
your self used the people of Wan
chese and Manteo for your alabi
and what you know about this you
don’t know nothing out of the way
you don’t go there and you know
nothing what goes on except what
you heare and as a friend to you
and your whole family I want to
give you some advice first thing
you do you go draw that warrant
get your name out of this you are
making your self pretty busy and
playing pretty smart you are put
ting your whole family on the spot
I have heard plenty about your
husband stealing from the govern
ment and you know this too when
he was doing this you are going
to be dealt with in a mighty bad
matter you will loose your job the
other party will do the same mabe
burned out of home mabe shot
blowed up, mabe your daughter
kidnapped you won’t know what
will hanpen study this matter over
carefully let conscience be your
guide act now dont wait maybe
prolong serious trouble
a friend to you and your
whole family „
“do something at once”
E. City, N. C.
June 26, 1955
On the other hand many mes
sages of congratulation and
promises of support have come to
the two Mrs. Wescotts, which in
dicates a surprising number of
people who think bingo should go.
Cash Basis Fostered Trouble
See BINGO, Page Nine