VOLUME XXIV NO. 5
PAYMENTS FOR
TAX APPRAISAL
JOB SUSPENDED
Commissioners Stop Payments to
New Jersey Firm Until
Further Notice
The Darc County Commissioners
this week ordered that no pay
ments be made t 6 the New Jersey
firm on the contract for apprais
ing the property in Dare County
this year. Their action followed a
request from W. H. McCown, at
torney for the Dare County Tax
payer’s Association which is op
t posing the valuation on the ground
that the job is inequitable, bur
densome to the people and in short,
outrageous.
The order of the Board failed to
get entered on the minutes, but C.
S. Meekins, County Accountant,
said he got instruction verbally to
not pay anything further on the
$11,500 alleged to be due under
contract until further notice.
Previously, the firm, by apply
ing to the officials, had collected
$10,50# for their work, most of it
without having tendered any prog
ress reports to the Board.
When some of the results of
the appraisal had been made pub
lic, popular opinion became wide
spread that the job was ridiculous
ly incompetent. The prncipals in
the firm, Associated Surveys of
Passaic, N. J. did not come to
Dare County to do the work, but
sent various employes who made a
poor impression on those who met
them.
When the county board sent no
tices of the results of the valua
tions these men had arrived at, a
storm of protest arose.
Largely, due to this situation*
the Board which was responsible
was voted out in the May primary.
The Board has discovered for it
self, as indicated by its action that
there is doubt that further money
under the contract has been earn
ed. It is apparent that the public
doesn’t think so, and opinion gen
erally is that the entire appraisal
should have been discarded.
It is also apparent that the coun
ty has been put to many thousands
of dollars in needless expense, and
much further expense will be re
quired before an equitable apprais
al can be arrived at.
However, this is nothing new
in small counties, where county
boards Without asking questions,
often buy anything that is offered
them. No investigation was made,
» See PAYMENTS, Page Six
BEACH TRIPS AND
HISTORICAL TALKS
AT NATIONAL SEASHORE
In improving their service to the
public the National Park Service
lias started conducted trips on the
lie aches at Coquina Beach and
Cape Hatteras. Both places are
part of Cape Hatteras National
Seashore.
The trips at Coquina Beach start
from the shade structure each day
of the week at 8:30 a.m. and 4:00
p.m. Local school teachers serving
as park ranger naturalists con
ducting these trips are: Cliff Wag
staff and Grady Gaskill of Wan
chese and Bill Wilkerson of Kitty
Hawk. They conduct interested
park visitors on a walk along the
beach, during which they explain
the importance of the barrier dune,
talk about life in the sea and on
the beach, and point out historical
features. Their manner is informal,
and visitors are invited to ask
questions and give any additional
information they may have.
Changes in hours and days for
these trips may be necessary from
' time to time.
Two conducted activities are of
fered at Cape Hatteras. Beach
trips similar to those at Coquina
Beach are conducted by a park
ranger naturalist at 8:30 a.m. on
Sunday, Wednesday, and Thursday,
and at 8:00 p.m. on Friday and
Saturday, and the starting point
is the Museum of the Sea near
Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. Tommy
Lewis of N. C. State College, Ra
leigh, is in charge of these trips.
At 9:30 a.m. on Monday, Tuesday,
Friday and Saturday Park Histo
rian Norman Delaney of Duke Un
iversity gathers interested visitors
' on the porch at the Museum of the
Sea to talk with them informally
about the history of the Outer
Banks. All of these activities are
being well attended, and it is ex
pected even greater interest will
be shown in them as they become
better known to the visiting public.
Local {residents are invited to par
ticipate in these tourfl with visi
tors from more distant places.
Another activity receiving bet
t?ter attendance as it becomes bet
ter blown is the 20 minute record
ed program illustrated with 140
colored slides of the National Sea
shore whjch is presented daily at
10, 11, 1,2, and 3 o’clock at the
Bodie Island Visitor Center a mile
See TRIPS, Page Six
THE COASTLAND TIMES
PUBLISHED WEEKLY IN THE INTEREST OF THE WALTER RALEIGH COASTLAND OF NORTH CAROLINA
THREE PRINCIPALS IN CELEBRATION ON ROANOKE ISLAND THURSDAY
"OPT!
I
IF
- w 1W H
A. W. DRINKWATER, who was honorary Chairman of the Bruce Etheridge celebration, Sheriff Frank
Cahoon the Chairman and treasurer and Representative R. Bruce Etheridge. Photo by Aycock Brown.
MAN WITH OAR
AND BIRTHDAY
OF COAST GUARD
Unique Observance Planned at
Hatteras Inlet Ferry Next
Monday
After a decade of not seeing a
1 man with an oar in his hand nor
any note taken of the traditional
observance of the U. S. Coast
Guard’s birthday, Hatteras Island
’ will see something of both next
Monday afternoon in the ferry slip
at Hatteras Inlet when competing
teams from the stations that make
up Cape Hatteras Group will dip
their oars and flex their inherited
rowing muscles.
The notion began to simmer
three weeks ago when Group Com
mander Melvin Midgett went over
to the National Park Service Mu
seum and saw there his great
grandfather’s own account of one
of the great feats of oarsmanship
in the long history of this island.
He is a .descendant of the re
doubtable Capt. Benjamin Dailey
who led his crew to the rescue of
the Ephraim Williams—and the
first Congressional Medal for Life
saving ever awarded.
With all sorts of modern gad
gets to facilitate rescue of dis
tressed seamen the oar has reced
ed into the background in these
latter years but mention a. rowing
race and the pulse of the Islanders
begins to beat a little faster and
by the time of the race at 2 o’clock
Monday afternoon it is not unlike
ly that the Island’s population will
be assembled. At the first an
nouncement of the race the instant
response of Eph and Cedric Mid
gett was I‘Well, we'll just shut
up this store for once and go.”
The response-is typical.
Group Commander Midgett has
just recently assumed command of
the group. He was bom in Buxton
but most of his life has been spent
off the Island, largely in command
of stations or Groups of stations
on Long Island, and in New Jer
' sey. Crews on short notice have
begun their training, and compe
tition for place is keen. The race
will be rowed in skiffs, there be-
See MIDGETT, Page Seven
TWO NEW FERRY BOATS
NOW BEING CONVERTED
National Park Service Obtains Two
Vessels For Ferry Service at Cape
Hatteras National Seashore
Superintendent Gibbs Cape Hat
teras National Seashore, said to
day that two LCU vessels were
received from the Navy for ferry
service. These vessels will be turn
ed over to the North Carolina
Highway Commission. The Navy
Department advised that these
vessels were built at a .cost of
approximately $350,000 each. The
vessels are in excellent condition
and were in service at the time of
transfer. These two vessels make
up a total of six that have now
been turned over to the North
Carolina State Highway Commis
sion by the National Park Service
for use at Oregon and Hatteras
Inlets.
STATE TO BUILD A NEW
BRIDGE COSTING $159,719
A contract has been let by the
State Highway Commission for a
new bridge on Roanoke Sound, east
of the long bridge, to cost $159,-
719. The project is part of the
, super-highway being constructed
> between Whalebone and Kitty
Hawk. The contractor is Kitchin
Construction Co. of Kinston.
FOURTH GENERATION CAST MEMBER
OF LOST COLONY IN MAKING
■S3
Two year old Hunt Thomas, shown here with his parents, Mr. and
Mrs. Harry Thomas and his grandmother, Mrs. Hazel Twyne, is a po
tential fourth generation member of The Lost Colony cast. His great
grandmother, Mrs. Dora Lee Willis was once a member of the cos
tuming and wardrobe section of the drama; his grandmother as a cast
member 17 years ago played the role of Margaret Lawrence, a colonist
woman, and his mother, Marjalene Midgett Thomas, started in the
drama as a flower girl and became the first native of Roanoke Island
to be a member of the Lest Colony Chorus- She also doubles today, as
Joyce Archard. one of the principal colonist women in the cast. Her
husband, former USNR Lieutenant Harry Thomas is in charge of the
lighting crew of The Lost Colony.
MANTEO FAMILY
LONG IN LOST
COLONY ROLES
Hunt Thomas, Two, May Be
Fourth Generation Member
To Join Drama's Cast
By JOHN PALMER
Could be there is a fourth gen
eration company member in the
fairly immediate offing for “The
Lost Colony.”
Tradition, at least, if it takes a
part in the destiny of youthful
Hunt Thomas, might well instill in
him a love for the theatre in gen
eral, and for the dramatization of
Sir Walter Raleigh’s ill-fated col
onization attempt in particular-
For Hunt’s parents, Harry and
Marjalene Thomas , have been
identified, singly and jointly, with
“The Lost Colony” virtually since
its inception in 1937. What is
more, his maternal great grand
mother and his grandmother help
ed launch the production, follow
ing Pulitzer prizewinner Paul
Green’s completion of the script.
A year later, in 1938, Marjalene
Midgett, now his mother and a
native of Manteo, joined the cast
as a flower girl.
But that first inauspicious part
stirred an enduring interest, one
that has brought her back to the
See THOMASES, Page Twelve
MANTEO, N. C., FRIDAY, AUGUST I, 1958
TAX RATE STATIC
SINCE 1955 AT
KILL DEVIL HILLS
Town Officials Get No Pay For
Service; Rate Stays at 25f
There is one town in North Car
olina where the tax rate has never
increased. This is the town of Kill
Devil Hills in Dare county where
the tax rate set on July 25 in a
special meeting of the town board
remains at 25 cents on the SIOO.
The rate in its neighboring town
of Manteo is nearly four times as
great.
Mayor Thos. Chears says one
reason the rate is kept down is
that the town officials receive no
pay. Gratuitous services are ren
dered by the Mayor, the town
Board, the members of the Zoning
Board and of the Fire Department
Kill Devil Hills has no bonded in
debtedness and operates on the pay
as you go plan. It anticipates no
bonds in the foreseeable future.
This despite the Governor's recent
warning that North Carolinians
should prepare themselves to pay
more taxes next year.
Due to the recent county revalua
tion of property, the taxable prop
erty in the town has increased from
$3,620,493 in 1957 tn $4325,645 in
1958. The town, under its new bud-
See TAXES, Page Six
DARE COUNTY NOT
CONCERNED WITH
ITS CIVIL DEFENSE
Little Interest Manifested Wed
nesday Night at Meeting
in Courthouse
Few people attended, barely a
dozen, in the Dare County court
house Wednesday night to hear
Civil Defense discussed by offi
cials from Raleigh. Col. John A.
Crawford, Chief Planning Staff
Officer, N. C. Civil Defense and
F. M. Culvern, Assistant, appeared
: n Manteo after having visited
Hyde, Tyrrell, Chowan and other
counties in the Northeast.
Plans for operating effectively
were discussed, and Col. Crawford
outlined various divisions of duties
tn event of enemy attack.
Sheriff Frank Cahoon opened
the meeting. County Commission
ers Hallett Perry and Lawrence
Swain attended.
Sometime ago the County Board
paid expenses of Major J. L. Mur
phy to Raleigh td attend a civil
defense meeting. Major Murphy
returned and advised an appro
priation of $6,000 to organize
Dare County. This recommenda
tion was overlooked in making up
the new budget.
Col. Crawford explains that un
der existing custom, the counties
See DEFENSE, Page Six
MANY PEOPLE OF
DARE COUNTY 80
YEARS OLD PLUS
Special Invitation Extended All
Octogenarians on July 31
KITTY HAWK, July 30 On
Thursday this week, when state of
ficials and friends of the Coast
land assemble at Fort Raleigh to
■elebrate the 80th birthday of R.
Bruce Etheridge, this community
■>f Kitty Hawk expects to have
more delegates of the age of 80 or
over, than any other community in
Dare County.
In this neighborhood are eight
remarkably active people, 80 years
•>M or over who are planning to at
tend this celebration honoring
Dare County’s representive in the
Legislature, former state official,
banker, and holder of many coun
ty offices.
Ceremonies attended by most of
the State officials and many legis
lators will be held at 11 a.m. fol
lowed by a picnic dinner, with
Congressman Herbert Bonner mas
ter of ceremonies, and Edwin Gill
and Lindsay Warren speakers.
Arrangements have been made
to take all of Kitty Hawk’s octoge
narians to Fort Raleigh Thursday
morning. The list is headed by
Capt. W. A. Perry, who is past 95.
yet is an active fisherman and
boatman. The others are Mrs. Ma
ry F. Best, Mrs. Mary E. Midgett,
Mrs. Hildegrade Perry, Mrs. Mary
Love Perry, Geo. W. O’Neal, W. I.
Dowdy and Mrs. Doll Beacham.
Nags Head has only one resident
See OLD-TIMERS, Page Twelve
UNCLE DOCK FROM DUCK WRITES:
Everything Moves Toward More Burdens And
Worse Problems For the Man Who Pays Oft
Dear Mr- Editor:
I take my pen in hand to write
you again, as the saying goes. I
am disturbed mightily these days.
I can’t understand why it is,
when people get to handling other
people’s business and spending
other people’s money, they can be
so reckless as most of our office
holders seem to be these days.
Maybe I am wrong in my idea
that these people are what we are
told, “public servants.” It is more
like we are their servants. I had
thought for years that when we
employ a man his first concern
was to look out for our interests.
But on the other hand, some
thing seems to set them afire the
other way. We may excuse some
of course on the ground that so
many of our office holders never
could make a living, until they
managed to get on the public pay
roll. Some of them got there
through the influence of relatives
who in this manner avoided hav
ing to support them. Others got
there by appealing directly to the
sympathy of the people, and let
me say Mr. Editor, that is nearest
no excuse imaginable, electing
somebody who ain’t fit, to an of
fice at the expense of the people,
just because of feeling sorry for
him-
As we have now seen, it is the
mostly costly help in the world,
when we turn over large affairs,
to a man who isn’t smart enough
to make nearly «o much on the
outside as the taxpayers give him.
It goes all tiie way to the top.
Just a day or two ago, the Gov
ernor says, look out for more tax
es next year- Well that is just
what we have been looking out
STATE OFFICIALS AND
FRIENDS AT HOME PAY
TRIBUTE TO ETHERIDGES
Career of County's Representative Lauded by
Congressman Bonner, Lindsay Warren, State
Treasurer Gill and Dr. Frank Graham; Sterling
Silver Service Awarded at Picnic Dinner
Thursday, at 80th Birthday Observance.
ROBERT H. ATKINSON, SUPT.
ROOSEVELT AND VANDERBILT
NATIONAL HISTORIC SITES
-a I®.
I Jill
®-a -■' ’•« O■' ■ •
art > JIBII
ROBERT H. ATKINSON, for
eight years, superintendent of
Fort McHenry National Monu
ment,, Baltimore, Md., has been
promoted to superintendent of the
Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt
National Historic Site and Vander
bilt Mansion National Historical
Site, Hyde Park, N. Y., the Na
tional Park Service reports. He
will succeed James B. Myers,
whose appointment as superinten
dent of Gettysburg National Mili
tary Park, Pennsylvania, was an
nounced recently.
A native of Fremont, N- C., At
kinson started working for the
National Park Senice in 1940 as a
guard at Wright Brothers Nation
al Memorial, Kill Devil Hill. In
1941, he was appointed superin
tendent of the then newly desig
nated Fort Rale : gh National His
toric Site, also in North Carolina.
He served as principal of the
Manteo High School, and later as
Dare County School Superinten
dent. He has an A. B. degree from
Guilford College. During World
War II he served with the U. S.
Coast Guard. His wife is the for
mer Roxie Etheridge of Manteo.
REV. J. C. BROOKS TO PREACH
MANTEO BAPTIST CHURCH
The Rev. J. C. Brooks of Hamil
ton, pastor of the Hamilton Bap
tist Church, will take the morning
and evening services at the Man
teo Baptist church Sunday, Aug
ust 3, in the absence of the Rev.
W. E. Cholerton.
for every year for a long time. 1
can’t get it out of my head that
our office holders should be look
ing for ways to save us some
money, instead of ways to put on
more employes and spend more all
the time.
And here’s another thing that
doesn’t appeal to me. The Gover
nor says maybe we should have
twice as piany senators—loo, one
for every county, and then turn
around and give more representa
tives to the big counties, so about
six or seven counties would be in
complete control of the state. Now
if there ever was a case where
the poor gets taken from them
“even what they have,” this looks
like it to me.
The heart and soul of North
Carolina is its small and poor
counties where people are closer
together. You don’t find the heart
and conscience of the state in the
big industrial centers with its gi
gantic power of capital, and its
ruthless domineering by labor
racketeers of all sorts. It would
be a sad day indeed for North
Carolina when we put our state
into the complete control of such
influences. Right now, a refugee
driven out of Germany, enabled
to make millions in North Caro
lina, is begging to go to Congress
and brags about spending $40,000
in the primary to buy his way in.
If Jie admits spending $40,000, how
much you reckon he actually did
snend. I don’t want our state rep
resented by no such foreigners as
this guy, and no other country in
the world would let men like this
think about it
Well, Mr. Editor, all the fools
; and rascals are not in county of-
See DOCK, Page Six
Single Copy 7<
Had July 31, 1878 been as hot a
day as Thursday of this week, it is
doubtful that Hon. R. Bruce Ether
idge would have survived to be
honored on his 80th birthday as
was done at Fort Raleigh with
high tribute paid him by prominent
state officials, and others. A pro
gram of more than an hour in the
Fort Raleigh Theatre closed with
the presentation of a sterling sil
ver service to Mr. and Mrs. Ether
idge, the gift of many friends in
Dare County and several else
where.
Despite the sweltering heat a
goodly number of friends from the
county came, including some 17
people 80 years or older, and many
friends from other counties. The
meeting was opened by Sheriff
Frank Cahoon, who has headed up
the celebration committee and car
ried the event through to a suc
cessful conclusion.
Foliowing the openeing prayer
by Rev. W. E. Cholerton, Manteo
Baptist minister, Supt. Bob Gibbs
of the Cape Hatteras National Sea
shore welcomed the visitors to the
Fort Raleigh Historic Shrine, and
read a letter from Director Con
rad Wirth of the 1 National Park
Sevice, and from Regional Direc
tor Elbert Cox.
Sheriff Cahoon presented the fol
lowing list of persons over eighty
who had braved the heat to pay
tribute to Mr. and Mrs. Etheridge.
These included W. F. Baum, O. J.
Jones, Mrs. Eliza Twyne, Mrs. Sal
lie Midgete, A. C. Mann, Mrs. Lil
lie Swindell, all of Manteo; Mrs.
Sallie Anne Austin, 93, W. C.
Saunders, Bart, Garrison, Brinkley
Gray, all of Wanchese; M. L. Twi
ford of Norfolk, an East Lake na
tive; N. F. Jennett, J. A. Gray
and Martin Tolson of Buxton. Mrs.
Hildegarde Perry, Capt. W. A.
Perry, 97, Mrs. Mary Best, all of
Kitty Hawk. Capt. Pen-y w'as ac
companied by his wife who is 73.
Congressman Herbert Bonner
was then recognized as Master of
Ceremonies who read from many
letters of regret sent by prominent
people unable to attend. Hon. Lind
say Warren was then presented,
and he paid high tribute to the
career and the worth of Mr. and
Mrs. Etheridge. He gave Mr. Eth
eridge great credit for the wonder
ful progress of Dare County
through the years, and ranked
along with him in worth to the
county in making it better known
and winning for it friends, three
others, A. W. Drinkwater, the late
Bradford Fearing and Victor
Meekins. These four, he said, had
done most for Dare.
Mr. Bonner called on Former U.
S. Senator Dr. Frank P. Graham
■who came to the front and paid
tribute to the work of Mr. Ether
idge. Elsewhere is printed the
poem by Dr. Graham on this oc
casion.
State Treasurer Edwin Gill of
Raleigh made a masterful address
in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Ether
idge, and told of numerous instanc
es of the worth of Mr. Etheridge
to Dare Co.unty and the state dur
ing his long career as a public of
ficial.
A handsome sterling silver serv
ice was then presented to Mr. and
Mrs. Etheridge. Sheriff Cahoon
gave Mrs. Etheridge a spray of
red roses, and after the benedic
tion by Dr. John D. Messick, Pres
ident of East Carolina College,
the visitors repaired to a picnic
dinner op Fort Raleigh grounds.
A partial list of prominent citi
zens and officials attending cere-
See ETHERIDGE, Page Six
CONGRESSIONAL PARTY
ON RODANTHE WEEK END
Guests of Herbert C. Bonner,
Congressman spending the week
end at Rodanthe at Mirlo Beach
Lodge, and fishing at Oregon In
let with Charlie Perry of Kitty
Hswk are Congressman Hugh
Alexander of North Carolina;
Congressman Thor Tollefson of
Oregon; Noah Brinson, Ira Ewers
and Tom Bartie of Washington,
D. C. They arrived at the Manteo
Airport Thursday morning.
DARE COUNTY MEN ATTEND
FIREMEN’S CONVENTION
Lumberton. Raymond Wescott
from Manteo fire department and
from KiU
STS**