'ME XXI NO. 4
PHOOEY TO YOU, DARE OFFICIALS TELL TAXPAYERS
THREE DAYS TO HONOR THE
MEMORY OF HATTERAS ISLAND
HEROES OF THE SEA SHAPE UP
An Interesting as Well as Spectacular Program
Will Do Honor to the Men of the Coast Guard
Service, With a Memorial Program at Fair
haven Church Led by Capt. Roy Bishop, USN,
Chaplain of the Atlantic Fleet.
RODANTHE, July 28.—The twin
communities of Rodanthe and
Waves are looking forward to a
glorious celebration beginning Fri
day, August 12 and extending
through Sunday, when more than
50 veterans of the old Life Saving
Service and several hundred of the
Coast Guard will be honored in
elaborate ceremonies.
Chairman W. W. Edwards said
no effort nor expense will be spar
ed to make this a memorable event.
A luncheon will be given the old
Life Savers, and other notable
guests. The Elizabeth City High
School band is expected, along with
other invited guests, to do their
drills and furnish music for the
big day, which is Saturday, the
13th.
Visitors are expected to begin
pouring into this village about
.noon on Friday, and housing ac
commodations are being arranged.
The first events will be boxing
matches Friday night to get things
warmed up a bit.
Ceremonies will begin promptly
at 10 o’clock Saturday with music
and the invocation by Rev. A. E.
Tyson, pastor of the Fairhaven
Methodist Church. A. H. Gray will
"'•ike the welcome speech. Re
_ se for the County Board of
y , pissioners will be by Melvin
aniels, the Clerk to the Board.
„merous invited guests heading
up the Coast Guard, the Park
Service and public officials, will
be presented. David Stick of Kill
Devil Hills will recite some of the
great deeds done by the old Life
Savers of the vicinity. Congress
man Herbert C. Bonner will make
the principal speech honoring the
veterans.
Spectacular and exciting drills
will follow the lunch hour. First
is a beach apparatus rescue drill,
which will be done by retired men
of the service. They will show
they have not become too rusty
to come to aid in time of need, de
spite their years away from the
beach. This drill will be followed
by a demonstration of latest meth
ods as done by helicopter from
the Elizabeth City Coast Guard
Air Station. Then there will be a
capsize drill by men of the shore
stations of the Coast Guard, where
they upset their craft, climb on
top and back to safety in the sea.
Swimming races are planned,
fishing contests are in the making,
and there may be a beauty con
test. There will be a dance on Fri-
See HONOR, Page Ten
THESE ARE NAMES OF
OLD TIME LIFE SAVERS
The committee for celebration
for the Coast Guard at Rodanthe
August 12-14, have received the
names of the following men who
have served at some time in the old
Life Saving Service, which was
consolidated with the Coast Guard
in 1915. These men will be invited
as honor guests at Rodanthe, Aug
ust 13th:
DAVIS LITTLETON GRAY, and
ARTHUR V. MIDGETT, Waves,
N. C.
W. Bembury Miller, Eugene G.
Gray, James W. Scarborough, Nel
son Gray, of Avon, N. C.
Clarence P. Brady, Nasa F. Jen
nette, Warren Midgett, Bernice R.
Ballance, Cyrus H. Gray of Bux
' - N. C.
'rlie S. Styron, of Hatteras,
n Marchant Meekins, Claude
Jones, Edward W. Etheridge,
Walter Otis Dough, Washington
Franklin Baum, Christopher Co
lumbus Midgett, Samutel Alonzo
Stowe, Otho C. Ward, Clyde Has
sell, W. Van Lewark, Roscoe Bur
rus, Sr., of Manteo, N. C.
Joe Etheridge Midgett of New
York.
Arthur J. Fulcher, 3118 Cot
tage Toll Road, Norfolk, Va„ Jess
M. Rogers, 804 E. 26th St., Nor
folk, Va.
Request is made that names of
all former veterans of the Life
Saving Service be sent to the Chic
amacomico Committee, P. 0 .Box
75, Rodanthe, N. C.
THE COASTLAND TIMES
PUBLISHED WEEKLY IN THE INTEREST OF THE WALTER RALEIGH COASTLAND OF NORTH CAROLINA
SCHOOL OF FINE
ARTS PROGRAM IN
MANTEO AUGUST I
Under the sponsorship of the
Roanoke Island School of Fine
Arts, a program of music, dance
and theatre, will be presented in
Manteo School auditorium on Mon
day evening, August 1, at 8
o’clock.
The program will include Walt
Whitman’s “Drum Taps,” put to
music by Howard Hanson and
presented on Monday by the choir
class. The choir is under the direc-
See SCHOOL, Page Ten
NANCY GORDON SHOOTS CELEBRITY
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NANCY GORDON, Manteo, member of The Lost Colony cast is shown shooting a picture of “Deacon”
Andy Griffith, former Sir Walter Raleigh of the drama who has during the past two years soared to
fame with his recordings, television and stage appearances. While vacationing on the Dare coast last
week with his wife Barbara and Jiis parents, Mr. and Mrs. Griffith of Mt. Airy, Andy made a guest ap
pearance at The Lost Colony during intermission on Saturday
(it was Lions Internation Night at the show) roar, he made the audience of more than 1,000 persons split
their sides laughing. (Aycock Brown Photo)
PATROLMAN'S ACTIVITIES
MAKE SCHOOL FUNDS GROW
Increasing Court Docket From Traffic
Cases in Recorders Court
Yields Fines
The Dare County school fund is
growing rapidly, the result of traf
fic cases brought for the most part
by Highway Patrolmen into Re
corder’s Court. Judge Baum had a
lengthy session Tuesday.
Leßoy Bowser was fined SSO for
driving at 75 mph; also $25 for
reckless driving, also costs, and
will lose his driver’s license.
Shelby Ray Pellett of Virginia
Beach failed to appear to answer
a reckless driving charge, and
George Crocker, tourist court op
erator at Nags Head, forfeited a
SSO bond he signed for the de
fendant.
A charge of reckless driving
against Phillip Perkins Johnson of
his offense was not on the high-
Creswell was dismissed, because
way, but on a motor court. A
Charge of careless driving against
Mrs. Susie Malco was dismissed.
Eugene Norman, colored, of Cur
rituck, was fined sls and costs
and given a 30-day suspended sen
tence for assaulting Allan Gillard,
operator qf a negro dance hall at
Duck. A similar charge against
Jerome Lindsay and Roosevelt
Moore was dismissed.
Deputy Sheriff Darrell Daniels
of Wanchese brought his first traf
fic case into court. Jethro Payne,
Jr. was fined $25 and costs. He
was charged with driving after
his license had been revoked, and
with driving 60 mph in a 30-mile
zone.
William M. Cox, charged with
See COURT, Page Ten
MOSQUITO PARTY'S
AMPHIBIAN CRAFT
IS SUNK AT SEA
Modern Vehicles Fail Sometimes;
This One The Coast Guard
Pulled Out of Soak
Hatteras, July 28.—Three mem
bers of the staff of the Institute
of Coastal Studies of Louisiana
State University, engaged on a re
search project for the office of
Naval Research and the National
park Service in this area whose
amphibious vehicle, borrowed from
the Army by the Navy Depart
ment for their use, sunk with them
off here this week, were rescued
and after thirty hours unremitting
work their seven-ton vehicle was
located and hauled ashore by mem
bers of the crew of Cape Hatteras
Group of the U. S. Coast Guard.
Officially it has not been deter
mined why the amphibian valued
at SIO,OOO went down in 12 feet
of water and 150 yards off-shore
abreast the Hatteras Lifeboat Sta
tion but it is generally conceded
that professors are a somewhat
absent-minded species and they
neglected to note the fact that
small craft warnings were flying
See PARTY, Page Ten
LOST COLONY CAST
PAYS HOMAGE TO
CLIFTON BRITTON
Clifton Britton of Goldsboro,
where he is director of the nation
ally-famous Goldmasquers, was
honored by members of The Lost
Colony cast following the Tuesday
night performance of the drama.
Britton, who has been with The
Lost Colony for nine seasons, for
four of which he has been active
director, has not had a vacation
in some 10 years. From his out
standing work at the Goldsboro
School each year he has come di
rectly to Roanoke Island to take
over his important duties with The
Lost Colony. But this year he will
take a vacation, and that is what
caused a lot of homage-paying to
him on Tuesday night.
After the audience on Tuesday
night, largest of the season for a
Tuesday night, had left the thea
tre, Britton in the light control
tower, looked stageward and saw
all of his caat assembling. Jim
Byrd, lighting technician, grabbed
him by the arm and said, “We had
better go wn there aiu see what
is happening.”
Upon his arrival on the stage
Britton so-,n learned w iat was hap
pening. The cast and company of
The Lest Colony was giving him a
party, a party which consisted, in
addition to good wishes for his va
cation, of sandwiches and punch.
And then, from the cast, a gift was
presented. This was a Jim Pace
water-color of Jockey Ridge which
someone had learned that Britton
admire?! and wanted to purchase
recently, but couldn’t because it
was already sold. (He did not
See BRITTON, Page Ten
MANTEO, N. C., FRIDAY, JULY 29, 1955
RABBI TO PREACH AT
LOST COLONY ON SUNDAY
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RABBI F. I. RYPINS of Temple,
Emmanuel, Greensboro, will be
guest minister at a fifth of a
series of Lost Colony season Sun
day worship services at Waterside
Theatre Sunday morning, July 31,
at 11 o’clock.
A native of Nebraska, Rabbi
See RABBI. Page Ten
LET THE HURRICANES ROAR. nr
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HERE at the right of the picture is the newly completed radar tower of the Hurricane Warning Center
in process of activation by the U. S. Weather Bureau at Hatteras. So sensitive is the antenna perched at
the top of the 65-foot tower that “it can see a duck landing on the water five miles away.” It can also
reach out into the center of a hurricane 300 miles away and take its secrets—its velocity, direction, and
the power of its winds.
At the left is the ballooa building from which twice daily the meteorologists in charge of the
station send aloft, sometimes reaching an altitude of 91,000 feet to send back by radio news of what sort
of weather it encounters. At the center of the picture is the main building of the weather station. This
year the state will be ready for hurricanes with this most powerful tracking equipment in the world.
Photograph by Ben Dixon Mac Neill
MANY INCREASES
IN DARE BUDGET;
REVENUE FALLS OFF
Indications Are That Overspend
ing Has Been Going On, and
Will Still Go On
The budget in Dare County for
the current fiscal year, shows
sharp increases in most depart
ments. Largest gain is in the Sher
iff’s office, which is $2,290, bring
ing the cost of this office up to
$18,170.
Substantial increases in salaries
for all the workers in the welfare
department a S3OO increase in sal
ary for the Recorder’s Judge; an
increase of $1,200 for holding elec
tions; an increase in salaries in
the health department are all com
ing.
The amount of $21,880 is set up
to cover interest and payments on
county bonds, and this is a sav
ings of $440 as the bonds grow
smaller. Oddly enough this saving
will not help, for the same amount
has been added to the Tax Super
visor’s office, increasing that bud
get $440 and bringing the cost of
the office of SB,BOO. Register of
Deeds office increased $1,930.
A $469 increase has been given
the Veterans office. The office of
County Accountant shows a $4lO
increase; the Clerk of Court, sllO
increase. Few departments show
decreases.
Last year’s budget was original
ly set at $198,949.60, but during
the year, without any prospect of
new income, the Board kept add
ing expenditures. The budget on
May 15 had then expanded to
$209,025.47. As of May 15, the an
ticipated revenue had fallen short
by some $30,000.
This year the Board has antici
pated it will get an income of
$254,000. It will have to get, in
addition, enough to cover last
See INCREASES Page Ten
TAX INCREASE DUE IN
TOWN OF MANTEO ALSO
Taxpayers in the town of Man
ton may expect an increase in thmr
taxes this year. One increase of j. 3
cents is »\.i templated by reason of
the new SII,OOO fire ruck recently
purchased, and the to v • is faced
with the necessity installing
sewage pumping fac’ l ’.”' s to cost
about $5, 'O. The tax rate last
year was 80 cents on the SIOO.
The total value of property in
the Town of Manteo as appraised
by the Dare County tax board is
$2,639,960, a sum in excess of the
entire valuations in Dare County
a few years ago. The county valu
ation is now more than 17 million
dollars and increase in some years
by a million dollars.
The Dare Commissioners this
week put on a special levy on Roa
noke Island of 13 cents to apply
on the purchase of the fire truck.
IN A NEW JOB WITH
DISTRIBUTING FIRM
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A- £
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ELMER R. DOWDY, for the past
twenty years teacher of vocational
agriculture, has resigned his posi
tion with the Hillsboro High
School to enter private business.
Mr. Dowdy has accepted a posi-'
tion as Southeastern States region
al manager for the Jones Food
Supplement Company of Compton,
California, international distribu
tors of “Abundavita”, a food
supplement for people.
Mr. Dowdy is a native of Curri
tuck County, a brother of L. L.
Dowdy of Harbinger and T. G.
See DOWDY, Page Ten
MOSQUITO QUEEN
TAKES NAGS HEAD
IN MIGHTY STRIDE
Mrs. Isabelle Fisher Collier Con
vinces Everyone She is Some
thing Out of This World
Swooping down on Nags Head
some ten days ago, the self-styled
“Mosquito Queen” from the Poco
no Hills of Pennsylvania, has cre
ated something of a furore, and of
a certainty has made many people
forget the pestiferousness of mos
quitos or the time being.
Mrs. Isabelle Fisher Collier, who
says she was born in Asheville of
Scotch parentage, and educated by
the Quakers in Pennsylvania, de
clares she is going to put the Dare
County area on the map, drive out
mosquitos, bring cheap electricity,
more transportation, and incor
porate into a single town the com
munities of Wanchese, Kitty Hawk,
Nags Head and Kill Devil Hills.
She is projecting a golf course, a
yacht basin, a luxury hotel and
many other things, including the
total extermination of mosquitos
and flies.
In pursuit of her aims, she has
kept both telegraph and telephone
wires hot, usually collect, to the
office of J. Edgar Hoover, head of
See QUEEN, Page Four
Single Copy 70
QUARTER MILLION
DOLLAR BUDGET
SET UP IN DARE
Commissioners Plan to Spend
$253,886.10; New Motto:
"Dam the Voters, Go
Ahead With Jails.”
The theme slogan of the
Commissioners of Dare County
this week seemed to be “dam
the voters, go ahead and
build jails.” On Monday they
adopted the proposals voted
down by the people earlier this
month, and plan to go ahead with
building a jail at Manteo, and at
Buxton.
The county budget this year is
set at $253,986.10. Budgets in most
of the county departpartments
were increased. They provided to
increase the tax rate from .90
cents to $1.15 throughout Dare
County. They will increase the tax
rate on Roanoke Island from $.95
to $1.33.
The Commissioners appointed
Raymond Basnett, Charlie Wil
liams Jr. and George Fuller to pick
a site for the Buxton jail. The
Board requested the Board of
Education to give them a site on
the old school grounds at Buxton
for this purpose. They appointed
Commissioners E. P. White and
James W. Scarborough a commit
tee to work with the Navy on the
mosquito control project.
They voted the sum of $25,000
to buy a 350 to 500 foot strip of
the Brinkley farm at Manteo, con
taining ten acres, for a site for a
proposed high school. They voted
$15,000 to buy a site for a school
at Kill Devil Hills. Commissioner
Scarborough declined to vote on
these items. He merely abstained
from expressing an opinion.
They voted to give F. B. Gas
kins back $22.74 penalties assessed
on taxes. They set up $2,300 for the
Dare County Tourist Bureau and
S2OO to aid the celebration at Ro
danthe, honoring the Old Life
Savers. They asked the Highway
Commission to improve three
roads at Avon and one at Buxton
leading to the home of J. S.
Turner.
PRES'T OF NEGRO
BANK TO ADDRESS
"COLONY" VISITORS
A Full Day's Program For Negro
Citizens at Fort Raleigh
Pageant Today
(Friday)
By AYCOCK BROWN
An address by J. H. Wheeler,
president of the Mechanics and
Farmers Bank, Durham, N. C., and
choral music by the Norfolk
Staters, a 30-voice Men’s Glee
Club of the Norfolk Division of
Virginia State College, will high
light the annual Negro Citizen’s
Day program at Paul Green’s
symphonic drama The Lost Colony
here on Friday night, July 29, it
was announced today by General
Manager R. E. Jordan.
Jordan stated that Dr. S. D.
Williams, president, Elizabeth City
State Teachers College had co
operated in arranging the program
of Negro Citizens Day which is
an impressive annual event of The
Lost Colony since the drama’s be
ginning in 1937.
Dr. Williams stated that a local
housing committee to help care
for those planning to come down
and stay overnight included the
following: Lloyd Meekins, chair
man, Joe Tillett, Delilah Simmons,
Agatha Gray, Marshall Collins and
Kelly Golden.
Management of The Lost Colony
has announced that the National
Park Service would permit Negro
citizens into the National Historic
Site throughout the day on July
29, without charge and the Lost
Colony management has stated
that picnic facilities will be avail
able on the spacious Lost Colony
Parking Lot adjacent to Fort
Raleigh.
Dr. Williams stated that the pre
performance program featuring
the address by the noted Mr.
Wheeler and the singing by the
Norfolk Staters would begin in
side Waterside Theatre at 7:30
o’clock. The Lost Colony perform
ance, which is reported by critics
to be better than ever this year
will begin at 8:15. There will be
no reserved seats on Friday and
all tickets for all races will be
SI.BO and 90 cents.