Mount Airy City Schools Rethinks Education

Editor’s Note: Community Comment is a periodic column in The Mount Airy News featuring commentary from community leaders in Mount Airy and Surry County.

Mount Airy City Schools (MACS) has had a tradition of excellence for the past 127 school years focused on academics, arts, and athletics. Our current mindset of Lead-Innovate-Serve continues that tradition and moves us well into the 21st century. We believe and value every child and want to help them develop their talents, skills, and abilities. Our academics shined bright last year, just coming out of one of the most difficult years of our history. Our students and staff were amazing last year and these results are highlights of their achievements:

● MACS was 1st in the state for Math 1 and Math 3

● MACS was 4th in the state for all End of Course assessments

● MACS 3rd and 4th grade mathematics assessments were 14 percentage points above the state proficiency rate

● MACS was 5th in the state for 8th grade mathematics

● MACS was 13th in the state for 8th grade English Language Arts

● MACS was 8th in the state for English 2

● MACS was 5th in the state for 8th grade science

● MACS had 86.5% proficiency in Career and Technical Education assessments

The full results are available at https://www.mtairy.k12.nc.us

When we “Rethink Education” we want to build on the amazing academic achievements of our past but think about schools without walls such as our popular MACS Micro-School. This is a small school setting where you take your classes while being at home with a teacher that meets virtually every day. Place-based learning happens each week, having these students come together with a teacher and plant a garden or flowers, learn to swim or learn to play soccer, or be involved in the arts. This school allows your students to dream big about what they want to do, how they want to learn, and the micro-school caters to their needs. This is one example of how to not sacrifice academics, but rethink ways to approach learning.

The arts thrived last year as our teachers continued to find innovative ways to teach visual arts, theater, band, music, and chorus. We moved groups outside, spread them out in the auditorium, and added masks around instrument mouthpieces. The long tradition of the arts as a requirement for students of Mount Airy City Schools stretches back over its 127 year history. Many of you remember the great theater and chorus teachers over the years and all the productions the high school has put on through the decades. Visual arts students have graduated to four year universities and many of them are out in arts fields making their mark on the world. I was blessed to be the band director in the 90s and love watching the band program continue to grow and blossom. We have held many “Band of the Day” trophies in our hands followed by “Superior Ratings”. We have discovered new ways to incorporate the arts through our Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) framework. We encourage and train teachers on how to embed the arts into their assignments and projects. We know that in most STEM careers there is an element of the arts. Helping to rethink education by making all students STEAM innovators, engages students and motivates them to learn and problem-solve.

Rethinking Education also addresses athletics. We have been innovative in how to continue to have athletics no matter the challenges. Last year, we successfully had our seasons and are working hard to do the same this year. We are using strategies such as testing, vaccination, quarantining, and modified practices to keep us moving forward this year. We have over 27 sports offered and create opportunities for students who want to participate in athletic competitions to have that opportunity. Building on the traditions of the past, we know that our long history of athletic achievements lays a great foundation for the future. Here are some of our past celebrations in just a few sports, basketball, baseball, and football:

● Football – Football offered at MACS, first game Oct. 15, 1915 against Winston-Salem High School, seven state championships in ‘35, ‘38, ‘42, ‘46, ‘48, ‘68, and ‘08 (Kelly Holder).

● Baseball – Baseball offered at MACS, first game April 22, 1915 against Goldsboro, three state championships in ‘31, ‘33, and ‘39. In a 10 year span between ‘31-’40 the Bears were in five state championship games.

● Basketball – Basketball offered as the third sport at MACS, first game Dec.r 6, 1916 against Walkertown, five state championships in ‘47, ‘60, ‘61, ‘63, and ‘02.

● Basketball – Basketball was the first known women’s sport for MACS, the first game was Feb. 20, 1917. Women’s basketball has had two state championships in 2017, 2018 (Angela Mayfield).

Not only do we have athletic competitions when you rethink education you add academic competitions. Mount Airy Middle School (MAMS) and MACS came out on top of the rankings in the North Carolina Association for Scholastic Activities (NCASA) competitions. At the association’s eleventh annual meeting, MAMS walked away with first place in the NCASA Challenge Cup for small middle schools and eighth grader Abby Epperson was named NCASA Middle School Student of the Year. After all challenges were completed, MAMS earned a total of 220 points, ranking them 55 points ahead of the second place position. The school participated in seven out of the over 16 competitions available to students. These competitions included; Art Showcase, The Quill, Forensics, MATHCOUNTS, Envirothon, National History Day, and HOSA.

We are thankful that the traditions of Mount Airy City Schools allow us to look back and reflect. But, we are challenged to continuously “rethink education” and make sure all students learn to Lead, Innovate, and Serve. If you would like to be a part of our tradition of excellence and help build traditions for the future visit us at https://www.mtairy.k12.nc.us.

Local violin artisan carves a niche

Mount Airy has been known for many things — a big, gleaming rock, beautiful yet simple well-made furniture, quality bright leaf tobacco, the Happiest Girl In The Whole USA, and, of course, a folksy sheriff that didn’t carry a gun.

And, for most of a century, it has been known for its socks.

Whether it was for your toddler, a bobby-soxer, hiker, farmer, or M-16 rifle, Mount Airy has been turning out socks for 100 years.

The most unusual sock on that list, of course, is the M-16 rifle sock. Robert Merritt, grandson of the founder of Renfro Hosiery Mill and president of the company in 1991, he designed the rifle covers in response to requests from troops in the first Gulf War for nylons.

What they needed was a way to keep the ubiquitous sand out of their rifles and Merritt thought he could do better than a pair of pantyhose. Renfro produced the socks and competitor Kentucky Derby Hosiery dyed, finished, packaged, and shipped them.

Most of the socks produced in Mount Airy have been more traditional styles.

Renfro Corp. makes one out of every five socks sold in America. Merritt’s grandfather, William Edward Merritt Jr. founded the company on Willow Street in 1921. The company has been headquartered here ever since. It has recently been purchased by a New York firm.

Their sprawling plants employed hundreds locally producing socks for Fruit of the Loom, Carhartt, Dr. Scholls Merrell, Hot Sox and K.Bell.

That first plant was joined by as many as 13 other companies at one time, with the local business owners joined by companies drawn to the lower costs and large pool of skilled workers in this area.

But no matter where you start, the story of sock manufacturing in Mount Airy seems to lead back to Tollie Barber but it’s not exactly clear why.

Surry County has never been a metropolitan area but there has been a strong network of business-minded people who’ve created a series of industries that may seem unlikely for a county that sits so far from larger cities. Chatham Mills in Elkin, Spencer’s Infantware, Mount Airy Furniture Company and others have been nationally and, sometimes, internationally known brands.

Barber, with a degree in textile manufacturing, joined W.E. Merritt Jr. and his brother Oscar, W.G. Sydnor and W.W. Burke, all men active in the business and civic life of the county, to establish Renfro Hosiery Mill on Willow Street in part of the old Sparger Tobacco complex. They began with $200,000 in capital, just north of $3 million in today’s money.

By 1933 Barber and others at Renfro had begun two other sock mills, Argonne and Piedmont, each specializing in different products from children’s socks to misses’ anklets, to men’s boot socks. The effects of the Great Depression took their toll, though and Renfro absorbed those mills in order to keep the company financially viable.

In 1937 the company had $1 million in sales. The next year they lost $22,000 according to reporting in the Charlotte Observer at the time. It was the last year the company showed a loss until the 1979 flood that destroyed more than $2 million in stock according to the Wall Street Journal.

Despite the economic challenges, growth of hosiery production in Mount Airy didn’t stop and neither did Barber. In 1938 he built Barber Hosiery Mill atop the hill near the intersection of Hamburg and South Main streets.

The Mount Airy News reported it was “the eighth textile and knitting plant to be started in the city.” With 100 machines it employed 300 workers.

Lynne and Surry hosiery mills were built in 1941. Barber was, again, involved in operations with Surry, recruited as an advisor to the Surry mill. Though construction slowed during World War II, Barber was involved with local politics, banking, and the formation of the Mount Airy Base Ball Association.

Once the war ended and all those GIs headed home the Baby Boom that followed fueled an economic boom. Members of the powerful Carter family and JW Prather, all successful in business, bought the Blizzard Freight Terminal on South Street and built Carter Hosiery Mills in 1946.

The Moss-Foy Textile Company set up on Newsome Street that same year to do skein dyeing and winding for the hosiery mills. Construction and expansion took off with Renfro adding 50,000 square feet to its Willow Street plant and Granit Hosiery Mill consolidating their several locations under one roof by moving into the larger Renfro #2 plant at the corner of South Main and Worth streets.

Amos and Smith Hosiery in Pilot Mountain, Oakdale, Brown Wooten Mills, Adams-Millis, Blue-Chip, Kentucky Derby, and Nester were added.

As the global market opened, companies moved production, packaging, and shipping to off-shore facilities beginning in the 1990s. Little production remains in the county aside from Nester but the history and all that was accomplished is a point of pride for many in the region.

And if you happen to have one of those M-16 rifle socks in a drawer someplace, the museum would give it place of pride.

Kate Rauhauser-Smith is a local freelance writer, researcher, and genealogist.

Editor’s Note: Community Comment is a periodic column in The Mount Airy News featuring commentary from community leaders in Mount Airy and Surry County.

The Mount Airy City Schools (MACS) school district has been successful over the years and continues to be a leader in education. Last year, we were the only school district to return to school five days a week beginning in August and this year we continue to lead the way with our first semester connecting 52 Career and Technical Education interns, 38 NextGen paid interns (20 hours a week), and new pathways that lead to promising careers.

We have a new construction program, a drone program, technology classes, engineering classes, health science classes, entrepreneurship classes, and many other avenues for students to find their gifts, talents, and abilities. We have used the lessons from our elementary program Leader in Me over the years to lead like champions.

Leader in Me has been in place for over a decade in our elementary programs and is based on Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. The habits create successful leaders and we use them every day with children and in our own decision-making. We teach our children – Habit 1: Be Proactive. This teaches one to take responsibility for one’s own reaction to one’s own experiences. We know when the pandemic hit that we needed to react quickly, turn around technology, get it to students within days so learning could continue uninterrupted and prepare meals and hotspots for delivery out to homes. This habit encourages children to respond positively and improve the situation. Our response was a good lesson for them to follow.

Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind is important for children. This life habit encourages students to envision what you would like to become so you can work toward that goal. Many of our students want to go into the health field, technology field, education, accounting/banking, and many other careers. They can begin using Xello in middle school to map out the classes and pathways that best align to their natural abilities and interests. Counselors and teachers give them advice to help what they envision to become a reality.

MACS needed to begin with the end in mind this year by prioritizing keeping every child in school. We have been able to participate in Test-to-Stay this year that prevents any COVID exposure in schools from automatically sending children home. If we were in a masked environment we could keep kids in school by rapid testing them instead of quarantining them if they were asymptomatic. The goal of keeping students in school helped us make great decisions resulting in very few students on remote learning.

Students might need help in prioritizing their tasks. They need to think about whether a task is urgent and important such as getting up and getting ready in order to get on the bus on time. Or they may be thinking through whether the homework assignment due tomorrow or the larger project due on Friday is most important and how to manage their time to get both done.

This is outlined in the advice around Habit 3: Put First Things. Our school district sees that urgent and important are the strategies we use to keep all students safe. We also know that making sure all children have social-emotional support, get fed each day, have their physical needs cared for, and people who will mentor them must occur before children will be able to learn. Our school works hard to make sure all of these needs are met and families get the support they need to raise children.

The next three habits from Leader in Me outline an interdependence on others. One of the biggest lessons we can teach students is how to love their neighbor, negotiate a better solution, listen to people who have a different opinion, and take care of each other.

Habit 4: Think Win-Win is a mature way of having conversations, solving problems, and building a brighter future. We know that there is always a negotiation in schools between parents, politicians, and people within the school system. We are really thankful that the General Assembly and the Governor have used this habit with the current budget. The budget begins to value teachers, cafeteria workers, bus drivers, custodians, administrators, and all staff with increased pay as well as bonuses for some of the groups. This habit of win-win allows everyone to be able to come to agreement and move forward even if everyone doesn’t get everything they asked for in the process.

Habit 5: Seek First to Understand Then to be Understood is a great habit that we all need to adopt. If we are careful to really try to understand what others are trying to say this will help us to be able to help them. We can all move forward together. We are thankful that our community has suspended some of the disruptive behaviors we have seen in other communities concerning schools. We have worked together to keep students safe, come back to school together, hold athletics and activities, and decide on next steps to return to normal. Seeking first to understand and be collaborative is a great lesson for our children to see through us and our behaviors.

Habit 6: Synergize is illustrated every day in MACS. Our children are put in teams to accomplish goals. Our elementary teachers put students in teams to accomplish goals through project-based learning and inquiry-based activities. Our middle school and high school have athletic teams, academic competition teams, and clubs. MACS uses staff teams to show leadership every day through school-based teams, leadership teams, and administrative teams.

The last habit may be the most important right now. Sharpen your saw by taking care of yourself, creating healthy life habits, and sustaining joy and fruitful lives. This is important for our children and ourselves. We hope that everyone uses Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw during this holiday season to take some time for ourselves by doing things that you enjoy doing.Thanks for all the support for educators that you continue to give as we teach and practice the habits in Leader in Me. If you would like to be a part of our tradition of excellence and help build future leaders visit us at https://www.mtairy.k12.nc.us.

Editor’s Note: Community Comment is a feature of The Mount Airy News, presenting commentary from community leaders in Mount Airy and Surry County.

There is no doubt in my mind that the past few holiday seasons have been hard. Regardless, I believe there is only one thing we can do when confronted with difficult times; Push forward. If we continue to push forward, we can focus on the positives and pay our good energy forward.

The Give a Kid a Christmas Foundation shares the same goal of pushing forward against the challenges of life. For almost 30 years, the Surry County Sheriff’s Office and Surry County Schools have worked together to provide food, clothes, and Christmas gifts to those who otherwise would go without every year. Beginning in the 1990s, the organization set out with the hope of feeding 50 families, which seemed arduous to organizers at the time. In 2020, the foundation provided clothes and toys for 700 children and supplied more than 250 food boxes to families. Each year, the foundation continues to give more to the children of Surry County.

The goal is to make sure that children in need have an adequate supply of food to get them through the school Christmas break, to ensure that each child has appropriate clothing to get them through the winter, and some toy or other item that they would like to have for Christmas. The Surry County Sheriff’s Office and Surry County Schools believe that every boy and girl deserves to experience the joy and exhilaration of a happy Christmas morning with a full belly and warm clothes.

Can you imagine waking up every day and knowing you would be going to school wearing the same clothes as the day before? What if you woke up on Christmas morning and saw that Santa had forgotten you? What if you spent each day of Christmas vacation checking the cupboards with a growling stomach, seeing that there is still no food?

For many children in Surry County, this dire image is their reality. But with your help, we can change that! Together we can make a real difference in the lives of these children! We can make sure they have food, get them clothes, and we can even make their Christmas morning one of joy. Together, we can continue to work to make sure every child has a Merry Christmas!

With Christmas nearly upon us, I’m asking the community to help with monetary donations and help shop and assemble food boxes.

To get involved, donate or mail a check to the Sheriff Atkinson’s Give a Kid a Christmas Foundation at PO Box 827, Dobson, NC 27017 or donate online at http://paypal.me/giveakidachristmas. Donations can also be made through Venmo at sheriffsgiveakidachristmas@gmail.com

Volunteers will convene on Thursday, Dec. 9, at 9 p.m. If you would like to come to help us shop at the Elkin Wal-Mart. On Saturday, Dec. 11, at 8 a.m., volunteers will also assemble at Surry Central High School if you would like to help prepare the food boxes.

The early 20th century was a tumultuous time for the nation; wars, social and political reforms, physical and technological growth, and the Great Depression. A major concern was the well-being and growth of rural communities, especially farmers and their families. Many programs and reforms were started to benefit these communities.

One such program with a long, rich history is the Home Demonstration Club or Extension Homemaker Association.

In 1906, before any other in the South, the NC Department of Agriculture created a separate Farmers’ Institute for women and hired female lecturers. In late summer, the lecturers would head out into rural communities to instruct farm women on matters such as canning, cooking, sanitation, marketing, new work technology, and how to do work more effectively.

The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 created the agricultural extension service and gave money for farm and home demonstration agents, if matching financial support was provided in the states. It was a joint effort of the US Department of Agriculture and land-grant colleges and one of its most influential organizations was the Home Demonstration Club or Extension Homemaker Association.

Farm wives especially balanced a variety of responsibilities: mother, friend, farmer, wife, and daughter. Women were expected to take care of the family, complete household work, and contribute to farm labor. With the information provided by home demonstration agents to rural women, the opportunity for personal and financial growth for women grew. Farm women relied on the skills and talents they had accrued over the years to sell surplus food products and handicrafts. Through their own work, women could make money for themselves, establish independence, and create a separate identity for themselves from the farm.

The Surry County Extension Homemakers had eight charter clubs in 1935 and in 1988 there were 24 clubs and 414 members. It began as a volunteer organization to improve quality of life for family, home, and community. The programs were open to all adults and were focused on the needs, desires, and interests of people of varying economic, social, and cultural backgrounds.

These clubs were Beulah, Busy Bees, Copeland, Dobson Early Birds, Flat Rock, Franklin, Good Neighbor, Helpful Hands, Holly Springs, Lazy Daisies, Long Hill, Lowgap, Mountain Park, North Elkin, Pilot Mountain, Poplar Springs, Rockford, Rockford Villagers, Salem Fork, Shoals, Siloam, Union Cross, White Plains, and White Sulphur Springs.

Although the heyday was the early to mid-20th century, home extension clubs still exist. Today there are five active ECA (Extension and Community Association) clubs reporting to the NC Cooperative Extension and 60 members in Surry County. The clubs today are Beulah, Good Neighbor, Happy Tracks Club, Pilot Mountain Achievers, and Siloam Club.

On a side note, on the Historic Downtown Mount Airy Ghost Tour, there’s a particular story about a young couple in the early 1950s. He was an agricultural teacher while she was home demonstration agent. You’ll have to take a tour to find out the rest of the story!

Justyn Kissam is the director of learning at Kaleideum in Winston-Salem.

As the chill of winter creeps in, we huddle in the warmth of our homes, and turn on the lights to drive away the dark that comes earlier and earlier each day. It is easy to forget the luxury that this really is, and that for the majority of human history, up to just about 100 years ago, the onset of winter brought with it cold and darkness that we couldn’t just dispel with the flick of a switch.

The electric age shimmered into existence in the late 19th century, with famed inventor Thomas Edison’s creation of the incandescent electric light bulb in 1879. This creation would go on to illuminate the country, and the world, becoming one of the first uses of electricity in everyday homes of the time.

The adaptation of the region to electric light was rapid. Salem, before being incorporated as part of Winston-Salem, was the first town in North Carolina, and perhaps even in the whole of the South, to have the newfangled electric lights in its manufacturing plants, with Winston opening a generating plant to provide both street and residential lighting in 1887.

Closer to home, a Mount Airy News article from 1893 titled “Light the Street” voiced the early calls for the electrification of the town’s streets. The article laments that people are “heartily ashamed” of the lack of lights in the streets and that “it is a shame to allow the people to grope their way in darkness any longer.” As with most communities, before electric lights were installed in the streets, the area was reliant on gas or oil lamps, which were often unreliable and needed to be lit individually by hand. The introduction of electric street lights, that could be automated and provided a brighter level of light, proved popular.

Helping to supply the city with power and lights was the Buck Shoals power plant, located on the Ararat River. Originally built by a local merchant as a dam and cloth mill, the power plant was completed in 1904 by the city of Mount Airy. By 1918, plans were already being made to build an additional power plant, as demand for electricity was far beyond the production that the current plant could muster.

Though the technical restraints of the power grid meant there was a delay in electric spreading to areas outside cities, there was nonetheless a drive to have it available to all residents, both urban and rural. The Rural Electrification Administration, or REA, was established in 1935 by President Roosevelt, with the aim of bringing electricity to rural communities through providing low interest loans.

When the REA was established in 1935, only 3% of all farms in North Carolina were electrified, however by 1946, this rose to an estimated 44%, with a third of these farms being supplied by power lines financed by REA loans.

The Surry County section of the REA was initiated by county agent Bob Smithwick, when he called a meeting in the Surry County Courthouse in Dobson in 1940, to discuss the electrification of rural areas of the county. This group went on to become the Surry-Yadkin Electric Membership Corporation. The next year, the corporation had its Mount Airy substation built and flicked the switch to turn on the lights for around 650 households. The following year, this increased to 764 customers, many of which were farmers who used the power for their farm equipment, and the group operated 257 miles of power lines.

As we approach Christmas and begin decorating our trees, they will look much different than in the past, when instead of electric powered string lights, Christmas trees were lit with candles, seemingly much more romantic albeit even more of a fire hazard. For this, we can thank those who campaigned and innovated their way into the electric age.

Katherine “Kat” Jackson works at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. Originally from Australia she now lives in Winston-Salem. She can be reached at the museum at 336-786-4478 or kljackson@northcarolinamuseum.org

On Nov. 11, 1620, the Mayflower anchored in Plymouth Bay. Those aboard had endured a horrific 66-day journey and they weren’t done. The 102 passengers and their crew lived onboard the ship for 130 more days, weathering a severe winter as their food supplies dwindled and disease and starvation ravaged them.

The group originally set out in July with another ship, the Speedwell, but both ships were old and taking on water. After several false starts and a series of major repairs, the Mayflower set out on her own Sept. 16 headed for the Hudson Bay — 250 miles south of where they finally set anchor.

By the end of that winter only 53 people remained. When the weather permitted, they gathered supplies on land and began building huts on the hills overlooking the bay. They finally left the ship at the end of March 1621.

The Wampanoag tribe watched and debated what to do about these newcomers. The Native experience with Europeans was a mixed bag at best filled with betrayals, broken treaties, and outright treachery over the 100 years before.

The tribal leader, Massasoit, weighed the risks — help the struggling band that had already stolen food from them or attack to drive them away. He decided it would be better to build an alliance with them on his terms. It was, after all, a small group.

I don’t think any of the Native tribes could have imagined the sheer number of Europeans who would travel to North American in the coming years. The Mayflower was followed by hundreds of tall-masted ships carrying people looking for land and freedom, economic opportunity, and escape from the horrors of war and famine. The Swan. The Godspeed. The Hercules. The Blessing. The list goes on.

In 1635, the Abigail put in to Boston. Among her 220 passengers was the Freeman family from Devonshire England. John would eventually marry Mercy Pence, granddaughter of Elder William Brewster. Their son moved to Norfolk, Virginia and, later, his son brought his family to Chowan County, North Carolina.

Peter Folger arrived in Watertown, Massachusetts the same year as Freeman. His daughter Abiah married Josiah Franklin. They became the parents of Ben Franklin.

Over time sons of this line married daughters descended from two other survivors of the Mayflower. The Quaker family joined the migration of that sect to New Garden (now Greensboro) in 1777. Several members became physicians, including Walter C. Folger, born in 1868, who set up practice in Dobson.

In 1892 he married Sally Victoria Freeman, the 4x great-granddaughter of John and Mercy Freeman, bringing no less than three lines of Mayflower descendants together in Surry County.

We often think of the monumental events of history in distant terms. Things that happened far away to people with no connection to us but, we are much closer to history than we know. Those Mayflower families entwine through the Freemans and Folgers, Reeves and Marions, Pooles, Riddles, Llewellyns, Mosers, Bowles, Bolichs and many others. They have produced people who built strong communities and keept them safe, patriots who cast off the tyranny of a distant monarch, doctors, musicians, teachers, interior designers, farmers, and so many more.

There are great debates in society these days trying to put the morality of our ancestors’ actions into better context. There is no doubt that great injustices happened in the formation of this nation that I love but I will leave that discussion for others more knowledgeable than I to work out.

What I do know is that 400 years ago this month a small group of people sat down to a meal to celebrate their survival. That 242 years later President Lincoln declared a National Day of Thanksgiving to celebrate the survival of the Union. And this month many of us will sit down to celebrate our families and friends as we come out of these recent unpleasant times.

If we have erred as a nation in the past, perhaps we can gather through this holiday season in love and decide to do better as individuals in the future.

Kate Rauhauser-Smith is a local freelance writer, researcher, and genealogist.

As leaves of amber, chocolate, and sunshine brush by windshields of cars driving along the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia, just north of Surry COunty, a familiar friend springs into view. At milepost 176 on the parkway the ever-majestic Mabry Mill stands as a constant reminder of the past and future.

The site today has changed from the once bustling community center to the most photographed site on the Parkway. Back then, people from the surrounding community, or “country” as it was called, visited the Mabry’s homestead for mill, blacksmith, and sawmill services. Today, visitors can learn about mill operations, basket weaving, and everyday life in the mountains.

While at the time, many local folks were unsettled about the Parkway passing through town, it is without a doubt the reason the Mill stands today.

Edwin Boston Mabry married Mintoria Elizabeth DeHart on March 1, 1891, both at the age of 24. The couple, who were fondly referred to as “Uncle Ed” and “Aunt Lizzie,” started their lives farming in Virginia, but soon found that Ed’s passion was not in farming but in inventing. It is here that the couple decided to save up money to open and operate a sawmill.

After spending some time in West Virginia learning to blacksmith, the Mabry’s moved home and embarked on their dream. From 1905-1914, five different parcels of land were purchased. The first building to go up was the blacksmith shop, and by 1910 the water-powered mill was up with an extensive flume system underway.

Ed used local resources when setting up shop. One Mount Airy iron works supplied the cast iron gears for the mill; Millstones came from the Brushy Mountain Quarry. The sawmill and carpentry shop were the last enterprises to be added. Sometime after the 1920s, the Mabry’s built a two-story, white farmhouse. This home had room for guests to visit even though the Mabry’s mainly used the bottom floor.

Until the 1930s, families from the surrounding towns and counties came to Ed and Lizzie for their needs. The shops could cut timber, create tools, grind corn to make meal or chop and more. All of these tasks were completed by either Ed or Lizzie. When Ed’s health began to wane, Lizzie began to take on her tasks, as well as Ed’s. Not long after the mill was closed and fell into disrepair, Ed passed at 69 years old. Lizzie remained in the home for a few more years, eventually moving to live with her sister. By this time the Blue Ridge Parkway Landscape Architects were eyeing the area as a major stop along the new roads path.

The “Scenic,” as it was originally called, was the first Parkway of its kind. With 469 miles between two states, it was set to showcase the best and beautiful of Rural Appalachia. To make way for the many sites along its path buildings were moved, repaired, and destroyed, and the Mill site was no different. The Mabry’s two-story home was removed, despite disapproval from the then Parkway historian. It was replaced with the Mathew’s Cabin from Galax, Virginia.

During the tourist season, visitors flock to the buzzing restaurant and interpretive site. Whether it’s for the buckwheat pancakes or the rangers demonstrating historic crafts, the history lives on, as does the legacy of Ed and Lizzie Mabry.

Emily Morgan is the guest services manager at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. She and her family live in Westfield. She can be reached at eamorgan@northcarolinamuseum.org or by calling 336-786-4478 x229

The term asylum is often used, but rarely understood. At its essence the term describes an institute that offers shelter and support to people who are mentally ill. Our society has often struggled with how to best care for people who are mentally unstable or labeled as insane.

Through time mental illnesses have been attributed to possession, poisoning, witchcraft, fate and many other tangible and intangible ideas. Prior to proper facilities, those who were ill were often treated with natural remedies, exorcisms, and physical punishments or worse.

The 1800s ushered in a new era for mental health treatment, asylums were erected and labeled as places of hope and compassion for those whose minds were haunted with unseen illnesses. North Carolina and Virginia were no different, with each state planning and facilitating many different units of care.

During the 19th century North Carolina had a great need for mental health care facilities; thankfully North Carolina had a health care champion, Dorothea Dix. Four major asylums opened in North Carolina to cover the majority of the state: Broughton in the west, Cherry in the east, Dorothea Dix in the south, and Umstead in the north. Three of these are still in operation and serving people of North Carolina. Southwestern Virginia also had an established facility. Originally named the Southwestern Lunatic Asylum the hospital was a self-sustaining farm, complete with a diary, horse barn, and orchard.

Mental capacity and mental illnesses were looked at differently during the 19th century than today. These spaces offered little safety one would expect from health facilities. The undertrained employees were working with overcrowding and slim staff. These conditions lead to misguided treatment and fear tuned these safety nets into many people’s worst nightmares.

It is important to note that asylums housed a diverse population from the criminally insane to impoverished people. As poverty ran rapid in Surry and Stokes counties and in Virginia in Carroll and Grayson counties, (and further) families and individuals who simple couldn’t sustain themselves often ended up in poor houses or asylums. Some recollections note a lady from Lowgap being sent to Butner State Hospital for mental illness sometime during the 1850s. Another lady was taken from her home in Hillsville, Virginia, leaving behind a young daughter. She was later taken to the Southwestern Lunatic Asylum.

Those who were housed in these locations suffered from much more than mental instability, being subjected to so-called treatments such as electric shock, beatings, hydrotherapy, straight jackets, teeth pulling, lobotomies, opium abuse and more. Inhumane treatment was commonplace at these facilities. The phrase “out of sight, out of mind,” is perfect for the treatment and allusivity of these places. Not only did the buildings hold patients, they hid them from the public eye, creating the haunting of minds that will never fade.

Years have passed and our knowledge of treatment and medical practices have grown to better understand mental illnesses. People have come to accept those who suffer from a haunted mind; protection from mistreatment is imperative. The horrors of asylums will likely never be forgotten but hopefully much has been learned.

Rachel Nealis is a longtime museum volunteer and supporter. She lives with her family in Mount Airy.

Editor’s Note: Community Comment is a periodic column in The Mount Airy News featuring commentary from community leaders in Mount Airy and Surry County.

Mount Airy City Schools (MACS) has been successful over the years due in major part to the community of which we belong. We are thankful for the outpouring of support throughout the pandemic which has resulted in, not only retaining our students, but growing in numbers. Our community has been very supportive, understanding that to return to face-to-face, five days a week we needed to follow CDC, NCDHHS, and local health department guidance. This has allowed us to be in school all of last year and this year. We have been blessed to have very little COVID impact, for example, we haven’t needed to quarantine sports teams or schools this year. Our Test-to-Stay program allows students and staff deemed as close contacts to remain at school as long as they are asymptomatic. This pilot prioritizes keeping everyone learning and growing while maintaining health and wellness measures.

Mount Airy is a community of caring people. We have great volunteers that serve our staff and students throughout the year by serving on the school board. Tim Matthews (chair), Ben Cooke (vice chair), Wendy Carriker, Kyle Leonard, Jayme Brant, Thomas Horton, and Randy Moore show service before self by earning no pay but making courageous decisions to support students. Our community is full of service-oriented people. We have members of the National Guard and previous military service members in Mount Airy. The United Fund of Surry is currently running a campaign that helps agencies such as Surry Medical Ministries, The Shepherd’s House, The Salvation Army, and many more. Everywhere you turn there are church groups and civic organizations such as Rotary making a difference. It is evident that the heart of Mount Airy City is caring and concern for others.

We hope to instill this love for service in our students throughout their academic career with us. We have the Leader in Me program in elementary schools that allows students to take ownership of their own personal and academic goals. They work with the school to run programs and events that give back to the community. They can earn service hours at school, working on school projects, with their churches, with scouts and other organizations. They also have Melody Makers and the Student Lighthouse Club. Each elementary school student is encouraged to build up service hours and experience.

Our middle school has clubs such as Interact Club, which is an arm of the local Surry Sunrise Rotary Club. They also have service opportunities within their Student Government Association, sports, and arts programs. Many opportunities within their middle school years show how they can give back to others that are less fortunate than themselves. There is a schoolwide toy drive and blood drives supported by Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA). There is always a chance to pay it forward with all the blessings that we have been given.

Mount Airy High School also works hard to make sure students understand how service is part of their academic life now and they can continue to give back to their community in the future. Groups such as HOSA, Interact, Chick-fil-A Leadership Academy, National Honor Society, and the Blue Bear Cafe all are examples of giving back and providing service to the community. We can name multiple groups each month that are involved in helping their neighbors and the community.

Mount Airy City Schools has embraced the same culture as our Mount Airy community, which is to care for our neighbor. In the 2018-2019 school year, students provided over 8,510 service hours which improved our community and school culture. A large emphasis for us is Vincent’s Legacy, Kindness Rocks which is a locally founded organization that helps show our community that Kindness Matters. You can learn more by visiting https://www.vincentslegacy.com/. We are thankful to live in such a wonderful community and help the next generation of students to realize how fulfilling it is to support those in need. In the current school year we hope to have even more service hours and opportunities for our students to serve others.

As a city member there are many ways that you can support education and your local school district. We hope that you will find a service group to join or send encouragement to those who are involved in service work and public service. We also know that you can volunteer to help a school, support a project, or mentor a child. We hope you will stand with educators as we do this difficult work to build up, encourage, and grow the next generation. A heart of care and encouragement along with service comes through serving others.

If you would like to be a part of our tradition of excellence and help build success for the future visit us at https://www.mtairy.k12.nc.us.

Have you ever said, “bless you,” when a person sneezed? Or have you picked a four-leaf clover? Blown out your birthday candles and made a wish? If you have, then you may be one of the 25% of the United States population who admits to having superstitious beliefs!

Superstitions are beliefs that things can bring good luck or bad luck to a person. For example, do you know someone who believes that wearing a favorite piece of clothing will cause their favorite football or basketball team to win? You may recognize one famous person who had this superstition: Michael Jordan. When Jordan led the North Carolina Tarheels to a National Championship in 1982, he started wearing his UNC practice shorts underneath his Chicago Bulls uniform, believing that they would bring him good luck and game wins.

Scientists believe that people have superstitious beliefs because they want to feel like they have some influence over forces outside of their control, especially supernatural forces that could cause them harm. In the South, this is especially true because of the area’s roots in farming as a way of life. Many superstitious beliefs center around farming and attempts to predict upcoming weather, which could be very important to a person whose entire livelihood depended on good crop production. Take the humble woolly worm for example. A common belief in Surry County and surrounding areas is that woolly worms, those fuzzy black and orange caterpillars, can predict how bad and long a winter season will be. It is believed that if you see woolly worms with large black bands, then the winter season will be long and harsh. Farmers would rather see woolly worms with bigger orange, red, or rust-colored bands because they believe that those colors predict milder winters and better planting conditions. Another animal-centered farming belief is the basis of Groundhog’s Day, where it is believed that if a groundhog sees its shadow on February 2nd, there will be six weeks of bad weather or continued cold, a bad omen for farmers who want to get a head start on their planting.

Online polls find that the most common superstition found in North Carolina is a fear of black cats. Many people think of black cats as bad luck, but not many know the origins of this belief. In the Middle Ages, black cats and other black animals, such as crows or ravens, were omens of bad events ahead, especially an upcoming death. Another common belief during this time period was that black cats were witches in disguise. In fact, historical documents show that during witchcraft trials, black cats were often killed because they were believed to be witches or a witch’s pet. Crossing paths with a black cat was believed to be a bad omen as well. It was believed that because the black cat was a sign of “evil,” having one cross your path meant that you were literally blocked from your heavenly path and your connection to God, making it bad luck to cross paths with one of these feline fortunetellers.

Of course, seeing someone turn completely around when encountering a black cat may seem silly to some, but what about other superstitions that are part of everyday life in the South? The most prominent example of this is the practice of saying, “bless you,” when someone sneezes. While the origins of saying “bless you” are not clear, there are several theories about why we do it. One belief is that when the Bubonic Plague was sweeping across Europe, it was known that sneezing was one of the plague’s earliest symptoms. It was hoped that by saying “God bless you” when a person sneezed it would protect that person from dying of the plague. Another belief was that when a person sneezed, the soul momentarily separated from the body, and that if someone didn’t bless the sneezing person’s body, a devil or demon could swoop in and take over the person’s body.

Many people who think of superstitions as something from the past may be surprised by the amount of superstitions that are still around today. Take the number 13 for example. The number 13 has long been thought of as an unlucky number, some tracing this belief back to the Norse Gods while others to Judas Iscariot. What is known is that the fear of the number 13 is prevalent in Western culture that a large number of multi-level buildings will skip a thirteenth floor and some airports will skip a thirteenth gate. In many Eastern countries such as China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, a similar fear exists, but instead of the number 13, the fear is of the number 4.

So, what are some superstitions that you have? What about your friends and family? As Halloween approaches, take notice of those small superstitions around you. Black cats in your neighbor’s Halloween décor. Your boss knocking on wood when mentioning something bad. A friend tossing spilled salt over their shoulder. These acts may seem silly, but really, do you want to take that chance?

Casey M. Wilson is a volunteer at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. She and her family live in Mount Airy. For more information, contact the museum at 336-786-4478.

With cooler temperatures and colorful leaves, fall officially arrived on Sept. 22. For farmers, fall is one of the most important times of the year — harvest time. Food was gathered, preserved, and stored to last through the winter.

Harvests were a time for rural communities to come together and help one another with the work to be done. Afterwards, since community members were already gathered in one place, food, dance, music, and friendly competitions were had. Today, for many people, fall means all things pumpkin, festivals, and a visit to the local county fair. The fairs that we know today differ from those of yesteryear, but one thing remains the same: agriculture.

Fairs began in the United States in the early 1800s and were usually held in August, September, or October. They acted as a social and business event for people to gather together and showcase farmers’ best produce and livestock in competition. People sold products for home and farm, but fresh, hot food was a main draw. Entertainment consisted of music, races, rides, and sideshows. However, education was the prime goal of fairs which included agricultural history as well as introductions to new technology for the public and farmers alike.

Community fair exhibits often fed into the county fair and were a joint effort between community and county officials. The White Plains Community Fair of 1919 is one such example. Locals were encouraged to enter exhibits into the White Plains Community Fair and then take it to the county fair, all in order to have the best fair year for Surry County.

The Virginia-Carolina Fairgrounds, also called the Mount Airy Fairgrounds, held an annual county fair since the early 1900s. What we know as Veterans Memorial Park today was built on the Mount Airy Fairgrounds. Since 1947, the Surry County Agricultural Fair has been held there and continues to do so.

In 1941, attendance to the Mount Airy Fair was high and people came from Surry and its adjoining counties in North Carolina and Virginia. Tensions were high as the second World War raged in Europe and the United States had yet to join the fight outright until December of that year. The county fair served as a welcome momentary distraction and source of merriment.

War disrupts all aspects of life. Many fairs were cancelled due to lack of manpower and allocating all resources to supporting the war effort. However, when possible, fairs were held to keep a sense of normalcy and boost morale. Adding to the fun was a most unusual occurrence: The year boasted its own “Charlotte’s Web” (the book wouldn’t be published until 1952) and the newspaper reports below:

Amazing Spider Writes In His Web

An educated spider who writes in his web as he weaves it has been amazing the townspeople here for the past few days by producing legible writing. The spider was discovered at the home of Roy L. Campbell on Rockford Street on Tuesday morning and at that time his web clearly contained the words “Mt. Airy, NC” and “Winston-Salem” as well as a man’s name beginning “Mr.” with the rest undecipherable. The web was viewed by many interested persons Tuesday but the intelligent spider was not satisfied and tore it down during the night to replace it today. Construction is still going on at last reports.

In 1942, the Mount Airy American Legion Fair was dedicated to a “Victory” theme and was set to “offer fun-lovers of Mount Airy and the surrounding territory six big days and nights of fun and surcease from the worries of a war-torn world.” Due to the “Victory” theme, emphasis was put on the production of victory gardens and field crops. Other incentives included free admission to soldiers, sailors, and marines as well as a $50 war bond to be given to a school child.

The North Carolina State Fair began in 1853 and is in its 168th year. However, the fair has been cancelled multiple times: from 1861 to 1868 due to the Civil War and Reconstruction, in 1918 due to World War 1 and influenza, and from 1942 to 1945 due to World War II. The year 1953 marked the 100 year anniversary, but due to the cancellations, the Fair was only on its 86th edition that year. The State Fair began last week in Raleigh, and runs Oct. 14 through Oct. 24.

Make sure to support your local county fairs and keep the rich traditions and innovation of agriculture alive.

Justyn Kissam is the manager of learning at Kaleideum.

A cool, clear night in Mount Airy was split by the discordant clang of the fire bell. A dozen men leapt from their beds. They ran to the fire house and drew the hose reel wagons through the evening dark to the train depot where a wooden shed, “enwrapped in flames,” blazed ferociously next to the depot.

The crew of the company’s second unit soon had the hose connected to one of the town’s new fire hydrants and directed a steady stream of water on the building. They were joined by the first unit and the fire was extinguished in short order with only one injury.

That night, April 5, 1904, was the first fire alarm answered by the newly formed Mount Airy Hose Company.

M. A. Lowry, editor and owner of the Mount Airy News, made a last minute addition to the next day’s paper to praise the department.

“We do not believe any fire company could do better or quicker work,” he printed. “The water was plentiful, pressure all that could be desired, and the firemen worked heroically. … Ain’t you proud of the fire company and water works! We are. Three cheers for the fire boys!”

The appreciation was real. Mount Airy had suffered several major losses to fires that citizens in bucket brigades couldn’t contain. Fire was a constant demon in a world where flame was part of the everyday life.

The shed sat just a few dozen feet from stacks of lumber at the Banner Manufacturing yard. Those, in turn, sat next to businesses, homes, and acres of lumber stacked around four of the most vital businesses in the region; the furniture factories.

M.H. Sparger, secretary of the fire department, noted in his elegant penmanship that the fire fighters had “saved property consisting of lumber piled adjoining the building to the amount of about $4000 (conservatively equivalent to $120,000 today) and other property which would have been considerably damaged by heat.”

He also noted that their “unfamiliarity with the location of the hydrants” had hindered their work at first. The water mains, filled by gravity pressure and pumps from a well and tower on Lebanon Hill to the west of North Main Street, were a new and important tool in their kit.

That kit was important to the whole region. Fires and fire deaths were far too common. The local economy took a body blow whenever businesses were lost. Home fires, where victims were often children, were so much worse.

The town had organized a “hook, ladder, and bucket” company December 4, 1891, just 27 days before the New Years Eve conflagration that would destroy the magnificent Blue Ridge Inn and the entire block it sat on.

The 1904 company added hand-drawn and later horse-drawn hose reels that drew water from hydrants, wells, and creeks when possible. When it wasn’t there were tanks of water pressurized by hand pumps.

In 1917 the town bought it’s first fire engine for $8,500. It carried a 1,000-gallon tank powered by the engine.

The Mount Airy Museum of Regional History holds some of the early records of the region’s fire companies that included Sparger’s report. It also holds a back-of-the-page tabulations done by Mount Airy Fire Chief C. Shelton for his report to the town’s board on Jan. 6, 1925.

The company answered 26 calls in 1924 that had threatened $552,350 worth of property. Actual loss was only $9,882 and the department’s operational costs were noted as $2,000. He was working up to a request and he knew it was a big one. He wanted the board to authorize the purchase of a second fire truck, something many argued was an unnecessary extravagance.

Ultimately he was successful, and the town grudgingly authorized the purchase of a second American LaFrance truck for a whopping $12,500 in December 1926. While she sat on a rail car waiting to be unloaded a major business block burned to the ground. But later that year another business block was saved with the increased fire fighting capacity she brought.

Last week was National Fire Prevention Week, observed every year since 1922 on the anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Begun on October 8th it burned well into the 9th, claimed hundreds of lives and thousands of homes and businesses. We are fortunate to have so many dedicated firefighters across this region. They teach us and our children how to escape a fire. They train to be prepared in case of emergency in the hopes none of us ever have to use that knowledge.

Perhaps the best way we can thank them is to make sure we have smoke detectors with good batteries.

We are infinitely fortunate to have them and we here at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History want to join with that editor of long ago and say, “Three cheers” for our fire fighters.

By Kate Rauhauser-Smith is a local freelance writer, researcher, and genealogist. At the time she wrote this column in 2019, she was the visitor services manager for the museum.

Around Sept. 26, 1780, men gathered in Elkin eager to lend a hand. Major Joseph Winston of Surry County gathered and recruited 150 men to meet at Big Elkin Creek to join the Overmountain forces waiting in Quackers Meadows near Morganton. These untrained and under-armed men were about to reignite the Revolution in North and South Carolina.

The Overmountain men marched from Morganton to Kings Mountain to engage the Tory forces commanded by Major Patrick Ferguson, who had been sent to invade South Carolina by General Lord Cornwallis. With limited resources on the warpath, many patriots were in extreme hunger once they reached the new state.

On Oct. 7, 1780, the Patriots forces slowly crept up to Ferguson and his men atop the hill at Kings Mountain. Using a combination of stealth, natural undergrowth, and tree line the Overmountain men were able to remain unseen until the right time. The battle ensued with 28 Americans and 290 British killed. Both sides depicted the battle as gruesome and horrible.

Ferguson realized he was beaten. Calling for a retreat, he headed down the hill still atop his horse. Shots rang out, mortally wounding the major. He died from the multiple gun shots that day at the age of 36. The loyalists surrendered after his death.

The events at Kings Mountain were pivotal in the fight for American Freedom. These Overmountain men defeated trained military soldiers with backcountry knowhow. Thomas Jefferson once spoke that Kings Mountain was the “The turn of the tide to success.” Another 16 skirmishes, battles, and altercations would occur before the Battle of Guilford Courthouse and many more after that would pin Patriot and Loyalist against one another before the American Revolution would be won.

Today, there are many places and events that commemorate, not only the battle of Kings Mountain, but the men who fought from the surrounding counties and states. Kings Mountain National Military Park is ran by the National Park Service. This site not only interprets the battle, but also colonial life.

The Overmountain Victory Trail Association is working to preserve and interpret the path that many of the Patriot soldiers would have take to reach Kings Mountain. In Surry County, part of the trail passes through Elkin. The trail stretches 330 miles and through four states, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. Fifty-seven of those miles are complete and walkable.

If you have the time this week, take a stroll down the Eastern Trailhead of the Overmountain Victory Trail which runs through Historic Elkin. Look over the muster ground and camp site – imagine and remember the men who were willing to give it all, for Freedom!

It’s time to just come right out and say it.

The most enduring TV show of all time is “The Andy Griffith Show.”

“Star Trek” partisans still have something to say on this, especially at their fan conventions and comic-cons.

But no single TV series has played as long and more often than “Andy.” Sixty years after the Griffith show first aired on CBS, it airs as much as ever on multiple nostalgia TV networks at multiple times. And there can be no doubt why.

Since the 1990s Mount Airy has skillfully marketed itself as real-life Mayberry from the Griffith show. In the process Granite City has had a hand in keeping Mayberry mania alive to delight new generations. Griffith, the actor, was born and reared in Mount Airy, and in one marketing stroke of genius Griffith’s boyhood home now is a bed-and-breakfast available to everyone.

Mayberry memorabilia and nostalgia, from T-shirts to coffee mugs to posters, abound on Main Street Mount Airy. Mayberry-themed stores include Barney’s Cafe and The Loaded Goat grill, a takeoff on a favorite Griffith TV episode. Fans and others with just a casual interest alike flock to Granite City.

The most brilliant marketing idea of all is Mount Airy’s Mayberry Days, an annual town street festival about all things Mayberry. This year’s edition kicked off Saturday with a country-music concert downtown and heats up this week with lectures, music concerts and the big Saturday-morning parade downtown.

Mayberry Days draws folks from far and near, including some who dress up as Mayberry characters, march in the parade and then prowl about town. Two years ago on this page I introduced you to Knoxville, Tenn., resident Bo Pierce, who dresses up as Briscoe Darling complete with moonshine jug. Pierce sat down beside me one morning at Snappy Lunch, mentioned by name by Andy in one episode in a likely ad-lib.

Mount Airy’s contribution to the nationwide Mayberry mania is unmistakable.

And now Granite City’s shrewd marketing has broken onto the big screen. Two new Mayberry-themed films stem from Mayberry Days.

The crowd-funded, independent movie “Mayberry Man” that is about Mayberry Days will be shown during the festival this year. Producer Chris Howell said he got the idea while attending Mayberry Days, and he teamed with other Griffith show actors or children of actors who also attend the festival. A DVD will become available on the internet Oct. 1.

And then there is the documentary, “The Mayberry Effect,” which debuted on streaming services Aug. 31. Charlotte native and Clemmons filmmaker Chris Hudson said he was inspired by Mayberry Days characters, principally “Mayberry Deputy” David Browning of Bristol, Va.

“I realized there was a deeper story to tell about ‘The Andy Griffith Show,’ ” Hudson told a Charlotte newspaper, “one with a lot of layers to it.” One of those layers is the modern-day story of Mount Airy. Hudson credits Mayberry with saving Mount Airy’s economy after the decline of the mills.

In return, Mount Airy has gone a long way in making Mayberry what it is today.

Lucille Ball of “I Love Lucy” fame does not have a statue in her hometown of Jamestown, N.Y., as Mount Airy has of Andy. A Jerry Seinfeld museum in New York City lasted only five days (a promotion by a streaming service). Beverly Hills still has its hillbilly mansion, but you can’t go in and there are no tours of the town in a Jethro replica truck. No town gives “Star Trek” an annual festival and parade complete with marching bands.

Not only has Mount Airy helped make the Griffith show the most enduring. It’s helped make Mayberry a piece of Americana.

When assessing the history of Stokes County, it is easy to see why so many historical markers are in place. The region is steeped in history waiting to be told.

Moratock Park and the Iron furnace that gave it its name is one of those places.

Moratock Park is situated on the Dan River, a tributary to the Roanoke River. The park itself is open dawn to dusk and boasts many events and functions during the year including the Annual Stokes Stomp that just occurred on Sept. 11. Restrooms, picnic shelters, ballfield, and access for tubing, kayaking, canoeing, beach fun and history can all be found and had within the park’s boundaries.

The Moratock Iron furnace is the history.

The furnace and destroyed foundry works were built in 1843 by Nathaniel Moody and John Pepper for Moody’s Tunnel Works. The site originally comprised 107 acres, purchased in 1840 for $300 from Alexander Hampton. One account stresses that an iron works had already been in place upon the purchase of land.

After the paperwork was complete the two men set out to build a magnificent furnace and forge. The furnace has a 28-foot square base and is 28-foot square in height, a dirt floor, and supporting frame of iron bars on the inside. Fed with charcoal, brown hematite, and limestone the forge was brought to life. The waterwheel powered bellows, fed to the flames to help render iron pieces. Water was fed in by an intricate flume system. All these elements relied on the Dan River to keep operations afloat. In 1974, when the site was placed on the National Registry of Historic Places only depressions remained of the forge, supporting flumes, and buildings. All but the furnace was destroyed during the Civil War.

In 1854 Reuben Golding of Stokes County purchased the forge for $3,000, forming the Stokes Iron Mining Company. Cut off from other supply sources, Confederate forces needed a way to create swords and munitions, so old forges were fired up to heed the call for arms. The company supplied units with iron works until General George Stoneman came through with his raid destroying the foundry in April, unaware that Robert E. Lee had surrendered at Appomattox, Virginia, on April 9, 1865.

After the war the site sat damaged until 1875 when Johnathan Heck purchased the property during a foreclosure. He operated the site until his death in 1894. Bought by the Taylor family sometime after Heck’s death, the site remained with the family until they deeded it to the county in 1973. Work began to protect and interpret the site, leading to it being added on the National Registry of Historic Places in 1974.

Today the furnace is a staple in Stokes County and Moratock Park. The history is ever present; next time you are in the area stop by and take advantage of all the amenities the park has to offer. Be sure to stroll past the furnace and think of the history that has taken place there. Afterall it is our history.

Editor’s Note: Community Comment is a periodic column in The Mount Airy News featuring commentary from community leaders in Mount Airy and Surry County.

● MACS was 1st in the state for Math 1 and Math 3

● MACS was 4th in the state for all End of Course assessments

● MACS 3rd and 4th grade mathematics assessments were 14 percentage points above the state proficiency rate

● MACS was 5th in the state for 8th grade mathematics

● MACS was 13th in the state for 8th grade English Language Arts

● MACS was 8th in the state for English 2

● MACS was 5th in the state for 8th grade science

● MACS had 86.5% proficiency in Career and Technical Education assessments

The full results are available at https://www.mtairy.k12.nc.us

● Football – Football offered at MACS, first game Oct. 15, 1915 against Winston-Salem High School, seven state championships in ‘35, ‘38, ‘42, ‘46, ‘48, ‘68, and ‘08 (Kelly Holder).

● Basketball – Basketball offered as the third sport at MACS, first game Dec.r 6, 1916 against Walkertown, five state championships in ‘47, ‘60, ‘61, ‘63, and ‘02.

● Basketball – Basketball was the first known women’s sport for MACS, the first game was Feb. 20, 1917. Women’s basketball has had two state championships in 2017, 2018 (Angela Mayfield).

This article originally printed on Dec. 29, 2019, detailing the life and creation of the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. With the museum opening its newly remodled entrance and reimagined south gallery, museum officials thought it would be a perfect time to to rerun the column. This past Friday the new gallery and giftshop opened to the public with renewed excitement.

Mount Airy Museum of Regional History is four floors of artifacts and information telling the stories of the people who settled this area and built these communities. Begun by private citizens, artifact collection began years before the museum would open, before anyone knew where the museum would actually be.

Once the building, an old hardware store, was acquired, galleries opened one at a time over several years, as resources allowed exhibits to be completed. Today we have one of the most impressive local museums I’ve ever seen.

I don’t know if the folks who live in the area today understand how unusual it is for a county of this population and location off the beaten path to have a museum of this size and quality.

I’m sure that will strike some as self-serving but, remember, I’m not from here. I had nothing to do with building the museum or gathering her collection though I count myself fortunate to work here these last few years.

This was obviously a labor of love for a great many people who, for more than a quarter century, worked to create and maintain a history museum on Mount Airy’s Main Street.

The museum began as an idea of the Mount Airy Restoration Foundation, known today for their beautiful property, the Moore House. The foundation was established in 1982 with the express goal to “promote, restore, preserve, and revitalize the Greater Mount Airy area” by the preservation of significant structures and encourage their development into modern uses.

In 1988 they formed a museum committee to explore the idea of a history museum in Mount Airy. They set their sights high — Smithsonian high.

“Our emphasis at the museum is going to be on programs and primarily tied to local history in the schools,” chairman Barbara Summerlin was quoted in the Mount Airy News in January 1990. “This will help a lot of young people realize that what they have and where they live …(is the result of) a lot of hard work and commitment to a community.”

They also wanted historic items from Surry County to stay in Surry County. In the few years prior, a locally owned antique doll collection had been sent to Old Salem Museum and Gardens and a piano belonging to the Brower family of Mount Airy went to Greensboro History Museum.

The committee hired an architectural firm in Winston-Salem specializing in historic buildings to conduct a feasibility study. Several properties were considered, including some historic homes, but the 30,000-square foot empty W.E. Merritt Hardware building was chosen. It had room enough for active demonstrations and Smithsonian-style exhibits.

“We’re fortunate in this community to have a really well-executed museum that is more than just our collective ‘attic.’ It’s really a testament to the enduring vision and hard work the founders put into creating a quality experience 25 years ago,” Matt Edwards, the museum’s executive director said recently as he guides the institution into the first major renovation in many years.

The committee organized as a separate non-profit in 1992 and established the museum with primarily private money. It continues in that status unlike many other museums in the state that are operated by state or local governments.

Our mission statement is deceptively simple. “The purpose of the Mount Airy Museum of regional History is to collect, preserve and interpret the natural, historical, and artistic heritage of the region.” Adopted by the board of directors in October 1994, it leaves a vastly open-ended goal but one our volunteers and staff continue to pursue.

“As we start this project, we’re building on those solid foundations,” Edwards said. “We can incorporate new stories, technologies and new amenities that were not readily available when the museum first opened. This project will allow the museum to continue serving this community and visitors to it long into the future as one of the premier community museum’s in the state.”

If you’d like to be involved in the next stage of the museum’s life through docent work, volunteer participation, financial support, or photo or artifact donation, please contact the museum at (336) 786-4478.

By Kate Rauhauser-Smith is a local freelance writer, researcher, and genealogist. At the time she wrote this column in 2019, she was the visitor services manager for the museum.

Surry County celebrated its 250th anniversary this year, but another special occasion occurs this upcoming weekend in the town of Rockford. The Rediscover Rockford event is in its tenth year and celebrates the history and longevity of the town with food, music, heritage crafts, tours, and guest speakers. The event is free and open to the public from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sept. 18.

Surry County was formed from Rowan County in 1771. Due to population growth in the region, the county was divided and Stokes County was created from this division in 1789. Due to this, the county seat moved from Richmond (near present day Tobaccoville) to a central location in the county. Rockford was chosen and would remain the county seat for 61 years, from 1789-1850. However, with the formation of Yadkin County from Surry County in 1850, the county seat moved to Dobson to remain centralized in the county and has remained there since.

The town of Rockford is located in the southern part of Surry County along the Yadkin River and gets its name from the rocky ford nearby. The new county seat was developed on 53 acres of land purchased from Moses and Thomas Ayers. As the county seat, Rockford was the most important town at the time and for residents to have access to it, adequate roads were required. Most roads at the time were trails or trapper’s paths, and much work was done in the early years to create new roads, thus giving us the saying, “all roads lead to Rockford.”

The draw of the county seat was the courthouse and government but it also served as the social hub of the county. People came to Rockford to shop, get the news, get water from the spring or wash laundry, or visit the blacksmith, tinsmith, or tanner. Also, due to the close proximity of Rockford to the Richmond Hill Law School, in operation from 1848 to 1878, many aspiring lawyers visited and worked in the town.

Rockford can also boast visitation from the three presidents from North Carolina; Andrew Jackson, James K. Polk, and Andrew Johnson. Jackson and Johnson both stayed in Rockford and practiced law tentatively there until their moves to Tennessee. Polk often visited his cousin William Polk Dobson.

The town continued to grow, and the introduction of the railroad spurned this further; the Yadkin Valley Railroad ran from Winston-Salem to North Wilkesboro, with a stop in Rockford. This brought passengers, mail, and freight to the town and positioned it as a commercial center from the late 1890s until the 1920s. As time marched on and businesses moved away, the town and its historic properties fell into decline.

To combat this, the Rockford Preservation Society was created in 1972 to stabilize and preserve the historic buildings in the town. In 1976, Rockford was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Today when we think of Rockford in this area, we may immediately think of all of the streets and roads that have the same name, but we shouldn’t forget about the importance the town of Rockford had to the development of Surry County.

Justyn Kissam is the manager of learning at Kaleideum.

“I have the ground for a bed and the sky for a cover and yet I am in good health,” wrote Ambrus R. Collins to his wife Sarah Jane. It was August 28, 1862, a year into the Civil War. His unit was camped near Richmond, Virginia, and he was a stalwart Confederate. “If you and the children can make out at home I can make out here till I fulfill my duty in the war.”

The Collins farm was just north of Dobson where 601 crosses the Fisher River. He was confident, as many Confederates were, that the war would be a quick and decisive affair. He wrote again Sept. 8 from Frederick County, Maryland.

“Dear wife and children …. We have to march to Baltimore and then to Washington City (D.C.) and there I think the war will end for the Yankeys (sic) is running all the time and the New York papers is in favor of giving up and letting the south have their rites (sic).”

Nine months later another Surry farmer Isaac Thompson wrote to his friend Archie Cameron.

“Our leaders are getting so bold in wickedness that I can but think that God will crush them for their deeds. I believe that all the soldiers nearly in the Confederacy is for peace. Let it come as it will. … if my family has to suffer and die for want of something to eat what good would it do me to gain independence? For if I fight at all let me fight for my family’s rights. … I am a southern man with southern principles yet I’m not in favor of fighting until we are worse off than we would be to be subjugated.”

Too often we see history as a list of battles and great deeds, removed from the humanity of the very human people who lived through them. We see history in stark terms: all good or all bad when, in reality, history is complicated because people are complicated. Our ancestors did not walk in lockstep any more than we do today.

David W. Worth, of Guildford County, was drafted into the Confederate Army in October 1864 with three friends, Joseph, William, and JC Gilmer. They were among the many citizens in the Piedmont counties and in the western mountains of the state who were staunch Unionists and often pacifists on religious grounds.

Dozens of families migrated from Surry County to Indiana in the first half of the 19th century. During the war men who objected to violence or who supported the Union, joined relatives and friends there to avoid military conscription. Worth and his friends tried but they were captured in Tennessee. Eventually the Gilmers “succeeded in deserting the Rebel Army and are now in Rush County, Indiana,” Worth wrote from prison to Union Brig. Gen. Huffman in a petition for freedom in 1865.

He was granted his freedom and fought the rest of the war as part of the Union.

The Civil War was a pivotal moment in America. A harsh transition from America’s “Peculiar Institution” to the vilified policies of Reconstruction.

Surry was the site of a large gathering in July 1863 where local leaders, including slave owners, called for peace and a return to the Union. “The Constitution as it is and the Union as it was.”

After the war, while there were plenty of abuses and cases of bigotry in the area, the Unionist peace movement gained steam in Surry, Stokes, Yadkin, Forsyth, and Guilford counties. Surry County voters in the 1866 gubernatorial race favored the Unionist candidate nearly two to one.

In April 1867 the Hamburg Chapter of the Union League was formed at Browers Mill in Hamburg (near the Mount Airy Middle School). Jacob Brower, who had built a sprawling complex of grist mills, textile mills, and other manufacturing businesses that regularly out-produced most other producers in the region, chaired the meeting.

The organization worked for tuition-free public schools for all, to do away with voting restrictions based on land ownership and to get freedmen registered to vote and to the polls.

Founding members included leading businessmen such as Thomas Schaub and J. M. Marshall, the owners of Surry’s two wagon works. Several, including the Browers, built their businesses, at least in part, with enslaved labor.

History is complicated because people are complicated. History is also heartbreaking.

Rufus Collins, who wrote so eloquently to his wife in Dobson, died just days after he wrote the letter above at the Battle of Antietam.

Isaac Thompson, the loyal Southern man so disillusioned with his leaders, was killed at the Battle of Cedar Creek.

David Worth, a veteran of both the Confederate and Union armies, returned to the state and operated a gristmill in Westfield.

By Kate Rauhauser-Smith is a local freelance writer, researcher, and genealogist.

Editor’s Note: Community Comment is a feature of The Mount Airy News, presenting commentary from community leaders in Mount Airy and Surry County.

Over these past two weeks, it has been wonderful to see that our educators were ready for day one with students walking back into our schools. Our theme for this academic year is Ready, Reset, Go! While our routines may be different this fall, we remain consistent in our commitment to provide learning experiences that support the skills and attributes that are reflected in our strategic plan and leadership framework.

Certainly, the 2020-2021 school year was unprecedented; however, we are dedicated to moving forward and providing the best possible educational experiences for all Surry County Schools’ student leaders. This school year is a fresh start; a brand new opportunity to help our students design their dreams and grow as leaders.

As we discuss the future and moving forward, our Surry County Schools teams are going into their classrooms, offices, and departments with new perspectives. This summer gave our team the chance to take a breath and come back refreshed and open to the possibilities that this year may hold. The Surry County School system is committed to addressing the social and emotional needs of our students and staff. Students must feel safe and supported before they can learn. To reach this goal, our administrators, teachers, and staff are participating in unique training sessions like Youth Mental Health First Aid, which educates adults on the signs and symptoms of trauma in students and focuses on providing supports that promote resiliency.

The new school year also brings the opportunity for students to grow through our leadership framework, which introduces attributes that help students lead self, lead with others, and change their world. Surry County Schools believes our students can go into the world and truly make a difference. The same sentiment echoes with our dedicated employees. As we launch this program within our schools this year for our students, we look forward to seeing the growth that will occur as leadership skills are developed.

As we get ready to reset and go into this year, I look forward to leading alongside this talented group of employees and supporting the important work they do every day. I am excited about the wonderful things I will observe in classrooms and schools this year, and I challenge each of us to strive every single day to help children design their dreams and grow as leaders.

Welcome back, Surry County Schools!

Hunting makes up a big part of the Blue Ridge’s history as each year people go outdoors to find wildlife and experience a glimpse of this country’s former frontier.

Thoughts of hunting tends to bring up a romanticized image of exploring the wilderness whether it be through the perspective of the people who settled here during America’s founding or the Native Americans who cultivated these areas long before then. Many are already familiar with some of these frontiersmen such as Daniel Boone, whose name carries on in the town of Boone, North Carolina. There is also the story of Jacob “White Tassel ” Castle who is likely an ancestor of local icon Andy Griffith. While both men were known for serving in the Revolutionary War and being regular explorers, they were also part of the hunting subculture group that was known as longhunters.

Time, weather, and area did not limit longhunters when they traveled in would-be states such as North Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Kentucky, hence their name. This subculture began around 1750 when the land was still under British control and many colonists were struggling to live stable lives. Their solution to escape poverty was to go in groups of two or three people and venture into the wilderness of North America for up to a year to hunt animals. Their targets ranged from deer, elk, and wild buffalo to even more dangerous animals such as bears, black panthers, and cougars. The result would be them having various furs and skins to sell and trade to help in their personal lives.

Longhunters could not stay in one place for too long nor could their traveling parties be too big as it risked alerting wildlife to their presence, thus making it harder to hunt. In order to succeed in their profession, these hunters specialized in understanding their surroundings. They relied on natural elements such as sunset, weather, and moisture in the area to best plan their hunt.

Longhunters did rely on rifles for hunting, but they would in some instances use more up-close forms of hunting such as using knives and tomahawks. Longhunting had become such a recognized profession at the time that stations were set up to help the hunters in gathering supplies and preparing their earnings for trade.

With the adventurous details of these hunters, it is easy to get wrapped up in the image that they give, one that is not too far from folklore and fiction. However, longhunters were not perfect as they would also cause unfortunate and disastrous clashes with Native American tribes such as the Cherokee for trespassing onto their territory.

By 1790, with America becoming more formalized as a country and more streamlined in its efforts to gain resources, longhunting had eventually ended as a profession as the country was no longer the wild frontier that the settlers once saw it as. While the history of this group may seem short-lived it still has a lasting impact on Appalachia. The longhunters should not be seen as just a dead profession of the area but instead an important part of this country’s history as they helped create the image of America’s large and beautiful wilderness, a contribution local residents should never forget.

James Slattery is an intern at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History and history major at UNCC-Charlotte.

Editor’s Note: Community Comment is a periodic column in The Mount Airy News featuring commentary from community leaders in Mount Airy and Surry County.

A new school year is upon us and again Mount Airy City Schools (MACS) shows up for children. We were back five days a week face-to-face last year with health and wellness precautions in place. We had a very successful year and graduated some wonderful seniors.

This year we are back and showing up every day. We are showing up to support students’ needs, grow children, challenge them academically, grow them artistically, and cheer them on in their favorite sports. Each day is a day to encourage and celebrate their successes and help them navigate life’s challenges.

The main health and wellness tools we need will be the vaccination and masks. These will help us have another outstanding year, keeping children in school, and keeping staff and students safe. In 2021, MACS is showing up for every single child and is grateful for a community that puts others first by helping all children be successful.

The challenging year we have completed has taught us what really matters. We know that relationships and every day activities were often taken for granted. Not having all sports or having them at different times during the year was difficult. We believe deeply that our children need help to learn how to Lead, Innovate, and Serve now more than ever.

There are many ways that our personnel are showing up for children and re-evaluating what really matters. Our bus drivers are driving students to school every day. Our ridership has almost doubled over last year and we are thankful for the Smart Bus tools that will allow parents to know exactly where their children are, when the bus will arrive, and how to plan for their pickup. The bus drivers are often the same drivers throughout the children’s elementary school years and make a huge impression on children to keep coming to school and giving their best. Our cafeteria workers and our custodians talk to the students every day and make sure they have what they need to flourish in the school environment. Our children need hot meals and adults who care about them. The cafeterias will be in full usage this year with lots of great food choices. When students are learning remotely they are not guaranteed meals and over half of our students have some food insecurity issues at home.

Showing up for students can take on many faces from our teacher assistants, to our teachers, to our specialists in all areas. These staff members show up every day with fantastic lessons planned in the areas of science, math, reading, writing, social studies, music, arts, health and wellness, physical education, foreign languages and the list goes on. Our staff are experts in their fields and many of them have multiple degrees. They spend endless hours working on lessons that motivate, connect, and challenge students to be their best. We are grateful every day for our teachers and staff. They show up every day for students.

The administrators in our buildings have worked all summer. Their busiest time is often in the summer, hosting industry tours, providing school tours, offering training, ordering resources, preparing their buildings, running summer programs, and getting everything ready to show up for students. We had over half of our students attend summer programming this year to get a great start on the upcoming school year. We know that administrators are grossly underpaid for the amount of hours they put in but they have been some of the best mentors and encouragement for staff and students. Gratitude is in our heart for administrators who could have chosen other careers but they are dedicated to growing the next generation of leaders in our students.

We want to encourage you to look up, look around, and show up for children. Every day we have coaches who work with young people in extracurricular activities and sports to make sure their students are mentored and appreciated. We have reading coaches and Lego League coaches along with many volunteers who use their gifts, talents, and abilities to show up for children. We have a volunteer Board of Education that meets throughout the year and attends student events to show that they care about students and staff. How can you show up for children this year?

Instead of focusing on philosophical debates that may or may not affect your community, focusing only on your children, or getting caught up on social media controversies we ask that you show up for all children. Put aside distractions from the real work of caring for others and use your energy and amazing gifts to help others. There are many opportunities available today where you can engage with schools: write an encouraging note each day to your students’ teachers or coaches, volunteer to provide food for families, provide shadowing or internships opportunities, work with the Blue Bear Bus that takes activities and wifi to the community, help struggling readers, coach children in sports or the arts, fund special projects and events, join our mentoring program to work with an at-risk student throughout the year, or anything else that comes to you as a way to give back.

Our community has been amazing and that is why we are successful. We have the most students we have ever had in MACS and we want to make sure they all have goals that can help them achieve and that will impact them forever. Showing up for children is doing the hard work, putting in the long hours, and grappling with barriers to success so they can be overcome.

MACS is doing this work in the sphere in which we can control. We hope you will decide to show up for children in concrete ways that matter. Reach out to your local teacher, staff member, principal, coach, and others to encourage them and volunteer to show up for children with us. We hope you will be part of the MACS Granite Bear family. Visit us at http://www.mtairy.k12.nc.us to see all the great ways you can help show up for students.

In the past two weeks’ columns we talked about the man that Peter and John through Jesus healed as they entered the temple. How he was so excited about what Jesus had done in his life and to his body. We talked about how we could not see him losing that excitement for the rest of his life.

We also talked about how that so many believers today have become complacent with our salvation. We have lost the excitement of being a child of God and all the wonderful blessings He has given us because of our faith. In these columns I have been sharing challenges to help us reawaken the excitement of our salvation.

We have looked at challenge one, that we must simply get excited about our salvation again. When we think about just what Jesus did for us when He went to the cross and died for us so that we could have eternal life, and when we think of all the benefits of salvation, we must renew our excitement.

Challenge two, we must get excited about spending time in prayer. There is nothing that builds a relationship more that communication. So let us stop making prayer a ritual and truly make it an exciting time to talk with the Lord.

Challenge three, to be excited about spending times reading the Bible, God’s Holy Word. It will guide and change your life and there are so many exciting stories in it.

Challenge four, we must be excited about joining together corporately at the house of God. It is gathering at the church house where we find family, strength, encouragement and help to face life’s situations.

Today let me share with you challenges five and six.

Challenge 5, we must be excited about giving thanks to the Lord for His bountiful blessings. When the man that Peter, through the Lord healed, jumped up, he ran into the temple, and I can assure you he was giving thanks for what the Lord had done for him. God has blessed those who are His children with so much. He watches over us, guides us, and meets our needs, often in ways and times we do not even realize. Yet so often we will not even bow our heads at a meal and thank Him for our food, let alone thank Him for the other things He does for us.

Several years ago, before I was called into the ministry, I was blessed to lead a youth group and we would go occasionally into the rest home and visit and sing. One night, there was a man that I found out later did not have any family or no one to visit him in the rest home. Yet he asked us if we could sing for him the song, “Thank you Lord for Your Blessings on Me.” We have gotten so caught up in our selfishness that we have forgotten to be excited about all the things God has done for us. It is time we get excited about giving thanks to the Lord for His wonderful blessings.

Challenge six, we must get excited about sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with others. One of the problems we experience today is no one wants to share Jesus with people. Yet we have the greatest news that anyone could ever hear, and we often keep it to ourselves. Many have used the illustration but if we found the cure for cancer and would not share it, people would call us so selfish and unloving. Yet we have the cure for eternal death and a separation from God in the Lake of Fire forever and ever and yet we fail to be excited enough to share this wonderful truth. I pray we would see the urgency of sharing the gospel and would do so with great excitement.

As believers today I want to encourage us to stop enduring our religion and begin to enjoy our salvation so much that we will get excited to be a child of God. Then the world could see a difference in us and desire what we have in Christ.

In our modern day and age, it is easy to share your travel snaps with friends and family no matter how far from home you may be. You can simply send them a photo via text or upload it online. It is easy to forget that less than 20 years ago this wasn’t possible, and for much of the 20th century, the easiest and most popular way to share your travels was by the purchase of a postcard.

Though ubiquitous today, postcards only began being mailed around in Europe in the late 1860s, however at the time these were unlike the postcards we think of today. These cards were blank on both sides, apart from being pre-stamped with postage. It wasn’t until the 1890s that illustrated postcards entered circulation, and it would be another decade before they became popular in the United States.

Sending postcards from one’s travels became so popular and commonplace that the exasperated editor of the Mount Airy News in 1909 said that collectors would force their friends to “wade through albums filled with multitudinous atrocities in color, showing where he has been, where his friends have been and where he will go in his next vacation time.”

The popularity of postcards can partly be attributed to the ease of communication they allowed across distances. Telephones were still not widespread, and postcards provided a cheaper method to communicate than sending letters or a telegram. For a time, postcards were able to be sent for a flat rate of just one penny.

Before long the fad took on a new life, as a way not only to share a message, but to share an image of what you had seen on your travels.

As such, postcard manufacturers began producing cards with stunning vistas and illustrations of attractions, which could be purchased from a variety of vendors along the way of your trip such as railroad depots and hotels.

Cameras at the time were usually heavy, clunky and expensive, meaning they were unavailable to much of the general public, or just impractical to bring travelling. This meant they needed postcards in order to memorialize their travels, as a relatively inexpensive way to show off adventures. Travelers would send the cards to friends, add them to their collections, or even frame them to use as art in their homes.

At the same time that the postcard craze was in full swing, tourism to Mount Airy and the surrounding region was at an all-time high. And like anyone on vacation, visitors made sure to purchase souvenirs to commemorate their travels, which of course meant postcards.

As such, there are numerous postcards of Mount Airy and its surroundings. From the mid-1800s onwards, large numbers of visitors would come to the area from cities up and down the East Coast. Many of these visitors would have grabbed up postcards to send back home, sharing the sites and beauty of the landscapes and architecture.

One of the most popular views printed on postcards was of Pilot Mountain.

The landmark, known to the Native Americans of the area as Jomeokee, meaning ’Great Guide,’ has been an important navigational marker throughout the centuries.

Looking at the assortment of different postcards that were created featuring a view of the landmark, we see how popular they were. The mountain appears on postcards from throughout the 20th century and the 21st, in photorealistic illustrations, romanticized depictions, and photographs. The vastly different styles show how even if people did not have cameras to capture their own views, there were options available to customize/choose the way they wanted to remember the views.

It wasn’t just the natural landscape that postcards captured. There were also postcards with views of Main Street, the granite quarry, Martin Memorial Hospital, and illustrations of notable businesses such as Moody’s Funeral Home.

To this day, postcards remain a fun and inexpensive way to share your travels with friends and families. So as the world opens up again, and we can begin travelling once more, keep an eye out for those postcards along the way.

Katherine “Kat” Jackson is an intern at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. Originally from Australia, she lives in Winston-Salem. She can be reached at the museum at 336-786-4478.

In last week’s column we talked about the man that Peter and John through Jesus healed as they entered the temple. How he was so excited about what Jesus had done in his life and to his body he excitedly entered the temple. We talked about how we could not see him losing that excitement for the rest of his life.

We also talked about how so many believers today have become complacent with our salvation. We have lost the excitement of being a child of God and all the wonderful blessings He has given us because of our faith. In these columns I want to share challenges to help us as believers reawaken the excitement of our salvation.

We looked last time at challenge one, that we must simply get excited about our salvation again. When we think about what Jesus did for us when He went to the cross and died for us so that we could have eternal life, and when we think of all the benefits of salvation, we must renew our excitement.

Challenge two, we must get excited about spending time in prayer. There is nothing that builds a relationship more than communication. So let us stop making prayer a ritual and truly make it an exciting time to talk with the Lord. Today let me share with you challenges three and four.

Challenge three, be excited about Bible study. There is so much going on in the world to capture our attention that we do not have time for reading the Bible. We feel like the preacher or Sunday School teacher can teach us all we need to know. I read a few years ago a statistic that said only 16% of Americans read their Bible regularly and less than 10% have read it all the way through. It is time we get excited about reading our Bible and teaching our children to have a love for it too.

We have come to believe reading the Bible is boring and the reason is that most people do not realize some of the exciting things one can find in the Holy Bible. A talking serpent and a talking donkey, a burning bush that does not burn up, an axe head that floats on the water, a man digging a grave when he allows the body he is burying to touch a bone of a prophet that was buried in this grave and the man comes to life and runs off, a king starts to quickly ride his chariot toward a city and a prophet of God out runs him on foot and arrives in the city first. These are just some of the exciting stories one can find in the Bible. We need to get excited about reading the Bible once again.

Challenge four, we must be excited about worship time. We are living in a day when it seems most believers think church attendance is of little importance. People say, I do not have to go to the church house to worship the Lord. Yes, that is true, but there is something that brings strength, peace, comfort and hope when one corporately comes together with other believers for a time of worship.

I know in the last year because of COVID we have had to develop alternatives to corporate worship. My friends it has been wonderful to have drive-up services or online services during this pandemic but let us remember what the Bible teaches us, to not forsake the assembling of our selves together so we can exhort and encourage one another. When many of us returned to in-person worship, I was hearing how excited people were to get back together. Yet in just a few short weeks people have already begun allowing this honor, privilege, and the excitement of coming together for worship to be taken for granted. People are already beginning to find excuses to stay away. We should live with the excitement of the Psalmist when he said, “I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord.”

Life must be lived forward but understood backwards – Soren Kierkegaard

This region has produced some famous people who have touched our national culture and history in significant ways. Confederate Gen. JEB Stuart, the “eyes and ears” of Robert E. Lee, grew up not six miles from Mount Airy where he and his family came to worship, shop, collect their mail, and visit friends.

The “Happiest Girl In The Whole USA,” Donna Fargo was born Yvonne Vaughn and grew up on Slate Mountain in eastern Surry County. Elkin’s Chatham Mills produced thousands of blankets for US soldiers. And you may have heard, Andy Griffith of Mayberry fame was from here.

We celebrate the famous folks. Study the historical folks. And count the degrees of separation we might have from them. It’s important to remember, however, that there are many more people whose names we might never know but whose lives were no less important.

Genealogy, one of the most popular hobbies in America, allows us to study history in a personal way, drawing lines from ourselves, through our ancestors and cousins to historical events.

Many of us have heard stories told by our elders. Maybe we paid attention and remember them. Maybe we were too busy to stop and listen. Then, one day, when we’re finally curious and slow down enough to wonder it’s often too late and there’s no one left to tell the tales.

Thomas Winfred Frye, Windy to his friends, tackled this perpetual problem. In 1996, as he was coming out of retirement for a second time, he began to write his stories down.

“To my children,” he wrote, “When you were growing up … I would tell you of some of the things that happened in my life when I was young. At first you would listen and marvel at a story that seemed otherworldly to you.”

As his children grew, however, as with many of us, they grew bored of stories they’d “heard before.” So Windy wrote them out, talking about his parents, and grandparents. Sharing stories he’d heard about his great-great-grandfather Elisha Chaney who, family lore tells, was a full-blooded Cherokee whose family left Kentucky to escape sickness and settled on “the east side of the Blue Ridge Mountains” in Patrick County, Virginia, where he married and raised a family.

He recalled hoeing tobacco on his uncle’s farm along Faulkner’s Creek. Working in the blazing Carolina sun he thought of the place as “Hell’s Half Acre” and made a plan that would make sure he didn’t spend his life doing the back-breaking labor of farming.

“Education,” he said, “is the key to open doors,” and he pursued it with a single-minded focus. To the best of his knowledge he was the first of his family to attend school beyond the seventh grade. After a stint in the Navy he graduated from North Carolina State College.

His career in logistics and engineering took him across this country and others. He was involved in the roll out of the F-8U Crusader, the fastest fighter aircraft in the Navy during the Cold War as Castro rose to power in Cuba.

But for all his personal and professional accomplishments, the greatest gift he left Surry County (aside from his military service) is the 180-page memoir he wrote for his descendants. It was not only his history, but a personal history of life in Surry County — history that didn’t make it into the newspapers or official records.

In it he remembers the impact of the furniture factories closing during the Great Depression, how neighbors helped each other where they could, but his family lost the home he’d loved so much. When he was a teen, he and his best friend, Fred Thompson, helped tear down and move prefab barracks from Ft. Bragg to Mount Airy where they were erected along South Street as low-income public housing.

Always working toward his college tuition, he talked about his job at Watson’s Department Store on Main Street “a block just past the post office” and how stores in Surry continued the WWII tradition of closing a half day early on Wednesdays so people could work their Victory Gardens.

He did us the great favor of telling us Surry’s story. “If I don’t tell you how it was growing up during the depression, WW II, the technology explosion and everything associated with the pre-space age, in all probability you will have only a limited, and possibly wrong idea of what ‘my world’ was really like.”

Like him, I encourage you all to record your own memories for future generations and to share those stories and pictures with the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History where they can be scanned and archived for everyone to see so our history, large and small, will not be forgotten.

His memoir and many others are available to anyone who wants to read them online at the Surry Digital Heritage website (www.surrydigitalheritage.org)

In Acts 3 there is a familiar story of Peter and John as they approached the temple. There at the gate lies a man who was crippled and begging for money. Peter said to this man as he passed by, I do not have any silver nor gold but what I do have in the name of Jesus I give it to you. Immediately the man’s legs received strength and he stood up and began to walk. This man because he was crippled was forbidden to enter the temple. Now he entered the temple leaping, shouting, and praising God for his new ability to walk.

I wonder did this man ever get over what Jesus had done for him? Did he ever come to a time in his life he thought, praising God seems to be too old-fashioned for him to do, leaping and shouting is not the “in” thing to do, going to the temple is not particularly important for me, or nobody wants to hear about what Jesus did for me. This writer personally does not think he ever got over what Jesus had done for him and continued to praise the Lord continually.

Today, there are so many believers that were once lost and headed for hell and Jesus saved and transformed them but yet it does not seem so important to give the Lord praise and honor. We live in a world that says praising God is too old-fashioned for me, we do not shout and praise the Lord because someone might see me, we do not have to go to church to be a believer, we do not have to share our salvation experience with anyone. We have lost the excitement of being changed from one who was dead in trespasses and sin and made into a child of God, headed for heaven when this life on earth ends.

I would like to share with you over the next three weeks six challenges for all believers that have become complacent of being a child of God to experience a reawaking of excitement.

Challenge one, renew your excitement of salvation. We might say, well if God had healed me of being lame like the man in the story, then I would be more excited. Let us be reminded that we were on our way to the Lake of Fire and God showed His love to us, while we were yet sinners, that He would allow Jesus to die on the cross for us. We have something to be excited about.

When you think of the hymn of the faith, “Amazing Grace” and really think about the words, we could not help but get excited. The first verse speaks of “Grace” God’s undeserved favor. We did not deserve Jesus’ substitutionary death, yet he came and died on the cross for us. One verse reminds us that since we were saved God has brought us through so many toils, dangers, and snares.

Another verse tells us that we can be sure that God’s promises will never fail. Another verse tells us that if time stands, we will all walk through the valley of the shadow of death and God’s love, peace, mercy, and comfort will be with us. Another verse tells us that this world and all its material things will one day pass away but God’s word will never pass away. The last verse reminds us that one day we will, as believers, get home into the presence of Jesus and because of His amazing grace after 10,000 years, we will have just begun to enjoy our salvation.

We do have much to be excited about.

Challenge two, we need to be excited about spending time talking with God in prayer. The way we build relationships is to learn to talk with each other. This is true of all relationships: husband-wife; parent – child; friend to friend; employer – employee just to name a few.

We have often allowed our prayer time to become a check the box to ease our conscience. We go through the motions of prayer so we can feel good about ourselves but do not spend quality time with God. We often use prayer also as a 911 emergency number, and we use it when a storm arises in our lives and the rest of the time it is non-existent. Prayer for a child of God is one of the most powerful tools we have but we must truly get excited about using it if we are going to truly make a difference in our circle of influence.

Let us seek to more excited in our faith. Next week we will look at some more challenges for an exciting walk with the Lord.

The hills will be alive with the sound of music soon in Galax, Virginia for the Old Fiddlers’ Convention.

Each year, the convention draws upwards of 60,000 music enthusiasts from around the world to Galax, a city with a population of approximately 7,000, for six days. Billed as the world’s largest and oldest old-time fiddlers’ convention, it celebrates local music traditions in a variety of forms; old time band, bluegrass band, bluegrass fiddle, old time fiddle, autoharp, guitar, mandolin, clawhammer banjo, bluegrass banjo, dulcimer, dobro, folk song, and flatfoot dance. This year’s convention runs this week, Monday through Saturday.

Although the cash and trophy prizes for the different categories are a big draw, most musicians go to enjoy the camaraderie and learn from fellow musicians.

The Old Fiddlers’ Convention began in 1935 through the work and effort of the Galax Moose Lodge #733 and the Parent-Teacher Association as a way to raise money and publicity for local charity work. The mission of the convention, according to a local newspaper at the time, was “Keeping alive the memories and sentiments of days gone by and make it possible for people of today to hear and enjoy the tunes of yesterday.”

After a while, the sole organization and running of the convention became the Moose Lodge. The year 1935 saw two conventions held, one in the spring and one in the fall. By the fall date, the indoor facilities had been outgrown and the convention moved to Felts Park, where it has been held since, except for during bad weather. The convention has only been cancelled twice in its 85-year history; once during World War II due to travel restrictions and in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Also marking its debut in 1935 was the start of construction on the Blue Ridge Parkway. When World War II began, approximately 170 miles were available for travel while 160 additional miles were under construction. Today the Parkway is 469 miles long. Along with the Parkway is the Crooked Road: Virginia’s Music Heritage Trail, which is 330 miles and includes 19 counties, four cities, and 54 towns. These two systems help to bring people to the area to learn more about and enjoy the music heritage here.

For six days, people camp, jam, eat, and swap stories and tunes in the park. The main stage is where the competitions occur, but the parking lots and camping areas are where the real magic happen. There, stories and traditions are passed down from one generation to the next, ensuring it can continue on into the future. Many of the late and great musicians have graced the stage there as well as up and coming musicians.

For the sixth convention, held August 18-19, 1939 a special event was planned. An article in the Mount Airy Times for July 28, 1939 stated: “One of the special events featured on the program for the coming convention will be the public marriage of some visiting couple. Officials of the convention cordially invite anyone who is contemplating marriage to be married at their expense and many of Galax’s business houses will express their best wishes by donating lovely gifts to the united couple. Registrations for this event must be filed prior to August 10th.”

Music conventions are so much more than competition. They serve as a time and place to reconnect, bond, and enjoy each other’s company. We are so fortunate to be in the midst of such strong music traditions here.

Justyn Kissam is the director of programs and Education at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. Originally from Winston-Salem, she has moved around the state for her education and public history work until settling in Mount Airy. She can be reached at 336-786-4478 x 228 or jnkissam@northcarolinamuseum.org

A question we all have been encouraged to ask ourselves this past year before we went out into public places, “Am I contagious?” It is the way we tried to curb the spread of the COVID virus, and it has helped in other areas as well.

When a person is contagious there are at least three meanings for contagious that we need to remember. First, contagious means to spread by direct or indirect contact with others. This means to spread viruses by either touching or coming into direct contact with another person. We can also spread germs indirectly by touching something such as a doorknob and then another person touches that same surface.

Secondly, contagious means a person who is a carrier or transmits disease to others. Often this is done inadvertently by someone who really does not know they are infected, but they are spreading a virus to others.

Thirdly, contagious means someone who goes out with intention to spread germs to someone else. In our world it is considered a negative thing to be contagious. Today I want to look at contagious as being a positive thing. I want to consider how different our world would be if we were believers that were contagious in our faith. Let us look at the definitions we just used and apply them to being contagious in our faith.

The first thing we must determine concerning having a contagious faith is, are we infected ourselves? If we are to be “infectious” in our faith we must first have a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. We have to come to a point in our lives that we realize we are a sinner and in need of a Savior. We have prayed and received Jesus’ shed blood and death on the cross as payment for our sins. We have allowed the Holy Spirit to take up residence in our hearts and to lead and guide us as we walk through the world daily. It is when we have done this that we must become contagious. If we are contagious in our faith, then we will spread the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ in three ways.

First, we will go about spreading the gospel either directly or indirectly. If we are spreading it directly, we will be sharing the message of salvation through Jesus Christ in our spoken witness of what Jesus has done for us and will do for whosoever will come to Him. We will be using words, songs, testimonies, and witnessing to reach others with the gospel. We will be spreading the message indirectly by living a godly lifestyle for others to see. We will strive to act and react like Jesus would in the different circumstances and situations of life. Others would see that we are living separate from the world. When we are contagious in our faith we will not walk, talk, or act as the world, but as born-again believers in the Lord Jesus. Therefore, we will be contagious in our faith.

Secondly, if we are contagious in our faith, we will become carriers of the gospel message. This means that we will become so infected with the gospel and our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ that it would transmit the truth of salvation though Jesus Christ to those we encounter every day. We will without even trying spread the gospel to others. We will become contagious in our faith.

Thirdly, if we are contagious with the gospel of Jesus Christ, we will have a desire to purposely “infect” others with the truth of Jesus Christ. We will, go out into the world looking for opportunities to infect others with the gospel of Jesus Christ. We will want to see people that think they have no hope and do not know the truth come to know our Lord Jesus and the difference He can make in their lives on earth but most of all their eternity. We will be contagious in our faith.

I want to encourage all of us as believers, as we ask ourselves the question in the coming days, “am I contagious physically,” to determine if we can safely go out into public places. Then let us also ask, “am I contagious spiritually,” so I\we can make a difference for the Lord Jesus in the lives of others every day. Let us be contagious with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

For nearly one hundred years, hidden in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Parkway, one small general store, Tilley’s Grocery, has truly thrived as a community staple.

While not the first general store in the area, it has persevered into the modern day, bringing many old traditions with it. The owners still keep an old Ramon’s Brownie old-fashioned almanac calendar on the wall to help keep track of when to plant crops and tell when the best day for fishing is. It is also one of the only stores that lets people charge items and offers a line of credit to the local residents. When a customer pulls up to the gas pumps, they will pump your gas for you. They’ll even help you carry your groceries out to your car.

The contents of the store have changed a lot. Most people back in the day were self-sufficient and grew most of what they ate and made what they needed. You only got the essentials from the store such as salt, cloth, coffee, and cast iron farm tools. Going to town back when horse and buggy were your primary means of transportation was a lot of hassle. It may seem silly to most folks who can drive to town in about 10 or 15 minutes but, only having horses means you would only be going two or four miles per hour, turning what today is a ten-minute drive into one that takes a couple of hours.

Foy and Ellie Hiatt appear to be the original owners and operators of the first store. Calling it Hiatt’s Grocery, they would stock their shelves by buying things from peddlers and the few wholesale grocery stores at the time such as Granite Mercantile. The original building was tiny, but they were able to make the most of the space. In addition to all the retail items, they had a small lunch counter. Instead of bread, they used a sheet of crackers that came four to a sheet to make their sandwiches.

When Mount Bethel school was still around, Hiatt’s Grocery would even provide lunch for the school. Around 10:30 a.m. a “store order” would be written down. After that, two students would walk to the store with the money, where Ellie would prepare everything and box it up. Along with their sandwich, the students could also get a treat with their lunch such as candy or a soda. Then one of the family members would kindly drive the kids back to school.

The store changed hands a few times, going from Jasper Allen, Cecil Chappell, and Elmer and Lorraine Allen. During that time, the store also received several additions, going from a tiny one-room shack to a more spacious store with a backroom and a walk-in cooler. If you visit there today, you can notice where the floor is mismatched and you can see windows in the back wall which used to be an outer wall.

In the 1970s, the store became the first in the area to sell beer. But not just any beer, Coors beer. My grandpa, Howard, was a truck driver, and when he would make deliveries to California, he would bring back several cases hidden at the front of the trailer. It was a high-dollar commodity, and they would sell it at $6 per case.

In 1986, the store was acquired by Howard and Etta Tilley. For the past 35 years the family has seen the store progress into modern times, with the assistance of their two children, Melanie Tilley-Johnson and their late son Terry Tilley. They brought back having a lunch counter like the Hiatt’s had, beginning with cold cut sandwiches and hot dogs, and now they even serve cheeseburgers.

A lot has changed as the modern world has changed around us, and modern life has slowly crept into the simple mountain way of living. Simple traditions are still alive here though. People whose parents would bring them to the store for a classic glass Coke and a sweet treat now bring their kids there to get a soda and some candy. We hope to keep these traditions alive for decades to come.

Dakota Johnson is a volunteer at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. He is an avid birdwatcher, who loves to watch hockey and read.

Editor’s Note: Community Comment is a periodic column in The Mount Airy News featuring commentary from community leaders in Mount Airy and Surry County.

We are anticipating the start of a new school year. Students and staff get excited as they think about all the great things happening in Mount Airy City Schools beginning in the fall. We will all see the start of the school year with football season beginning, arts classes such as marching band starting up, new supplies for a new school year, and the reconnection of friends from last year.

The fall brings a lot of excitement and joy as we come together to learn and accomplish new things. More than of our students have been involved in a summer program, athletic camp, church camp, community event or family event. The summer has been a celebration and now it’s time to begin to think about the 2021-2022 school year.

We know that we are approaching a better than normal school return because we have learned much over the past year about connecting with students, ensuring healthy school environments, and creating various pathways to learning (face-to-face, online, and hybrid). Given all of the lessons learned our students were able to forge a great academic path forward because we were face-to-face five days a week.

This fall we will offer several new programs that include middle school dual language which is one of our most popular offerings. We will focus on middle school innovations as well as aviation and construction at high school. Our high school AVID program which stands for Advanced Via Individual Determination will help students get a leg up on being successful in high school leading to success in college. This college-readiness program will affect all students across Mount Airy High School to learn basic skills such as organization, note-taking, thinking critically, and developing leadership skills. Our students aren’t just coming out of a worldwide pandemic, they are thriving in it. We have overcome the pandemic and understand how to keep students safe and grow as we do it.

There will be a lot of questions about safety, cleanliness, and accountability for this upcoming year. You trusted us last year, during one of the most difficult years in our lifetime. I am asking that you work with us as a team, trust us in our decision-making, and support students and staff as we return this year. We know that the virus is still alive and well, being passed primarily through unvaccinated people. So, we will need to continue with cleaning protocols, some social distancing, and some masking of unvaccinated students and staff especially. We will always land on the side of health and safety first.

We want every child and staff member back in our schools well, healthy, and able to come to school every day. This may mean that we have masks inside, we spread out during lunch periods and recess, and put extra cleaning protocols in place. But it does mean we won’t be in one classroom all day, we won’t need to mask outside, and we can begin to use cafeterias again. Anything you can do to get vaccinated and encourage others will help us keep from needing to quarantine as much and continue our normal activities, including athletics and arts. We want to return to a “better than normal” and we need all of you to help us with this.

Think about ways that we can “rethink education” and challenge previous thinking about how things were and dream about how education can be better for everyone. What if we are able to create more work-based learning experiences for all children to help them find their career of the future? Imagine if we do a lot of place-based learning and have students learn outside of the four walls of the classroom in outside classrooms, on adventures in state parks, at arts venues in our state, and other great learning environments. What if we allow students to connect to micro-schools based on natural interests, talents, and abilities? This is the time to re-invent and challenge old ways of thinking. Mount Airy City Schools is ready to lead-innovate-serve in new and exciting ways. If you would like to join us please visit https://www.mtairy.k12.nc.us to see all the new and innovative ways we support students.

Enchanting organ music, multicolored rays of light, and overwhelming feelings of peace are just some of the attributes townspeople have been experiencing for more than 100 years at this historic site.

Trinity Episcopal Church is one of the oldest buildings in downtown Mount Airy and is believed to be the first made from locally sourced, famous granite.

Today, July 25, Trinity celebrates 125 years of official services.

The Episcopal faith has been in Mount Airy since before the 1850s. Irregular services, meetings, and social gatherings were taking place at meeting houses, other churches, schoolhouses and even at the opera house. One Surry County history assessment reports that “The Episcopalians around Mount Airy first banded together in 1890, holding services in Miss Belle Grave’s old schoolhouse on Rockford Street.”

After years of growth and impromptu locations the Episcopalian community decided a building of their own was needed. On March 26, 1896, this dream was starting to become a reality. A contract was let to Mr. J.A. Tesh and the fundraising began.

Thomas Woodroffe, one of the owners of the newly organized granite quarry operations, pledged to donate granite for the building. His son Francis “Frank” Woodroffe drew up the plans for the church. Many other people helped in the fundraising and creation of Trinity; Thomas Fawcett, Judge Porter Graves, the Armfields’, the Messers’ and more. Mrs. Thomas Fawcett drew up paintings to sell for benefit of the church.

The design was based on another church in Oxford, England, mimicking the gothic style architecture. Not only was the stone rubble masonry structurally sound, but it was also beautiful to look at. The combination between gothic arches and stained glass made the structure a true masterpiece in the architecture world.

Construction began in early spring 1896 and was completed around June of that same year. Tesh, the contractor, and builder on site also built several other notable structures like the Mount Airy Passenger Depot, The First Presbyterian Church, and the W.E. Merritt house.

Nothing was left to do but throw open the doors and let the people come. The first service was held in July following completion. In 1900 Bishop Joseph Blount Cheshire consecrated the church building, declaring it sacred.

Through the years some things have stayed the same, while others have changed. In the 1920s or ’30s a small reed organ was added, bringing a new kind of music to the church, some accounts say that prior to the organ, guitars and other instruments were used to lift up worship tunes. The Woodroffe boys were said to be great musicians. One record claims that Trinity sponsored the first ever church dance held in Mount Airy at the Goldsmith building sometime during the 1930s.

In 1953, Trinity’s identification as a mission ceased to exist. With 77 communicants the church was finally established as a parish.

The year 1954 saw the creation of the Parish Hall constructed with the same granite. This addition included classrooms, a kitchen, an office, parlor, and parlor hall. All the hard work and history paid off when Trinity Episcopal Church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986, 90 years after being built.

Today the parish is a thriving community of humanitarians, volunteers, and love, all packed into one of Mount Airy’s most iconic and historic buildings.

Emily Morgan is the Guest services manager at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. She and her family live in Westfield. She can be reached at eamorgan@northcarolinamuseum.org or by calling 336-786-4478 x229

“Life’s about changin’

Nothin’ ever stays the same”

And she said, “How can I help you

To say goodbye, it’s okay to hurt and it’s okay to cry” Patty Loveless

On June 17, 2021, my sister Linda Huskey died in Hartselle, Alabama.

Statistical data states on average that same day; 7,708 people in the United States and 137 people in the State of Alabama died. I’m confident that each of those deaths had a significant impact on family and friends left behind. Each is significant in some way to somebody. It is, after all part and parcel to the reality of the concept known as the life cycle.

In Linda’s case, on a personal level, saying goodbye was perhaps the most difficult transition I have ever experienced. Even more so than when my parents passed. I’ve concluded because she was closer in age to me, my own mortality has been shaken by her passing. I saw her late in the afternoon the day before she was called home during the early morning hours of the next day. In the time shared with her on that visit, my emotions included the most helpless feelings in my life to date. I, like many who have experienced similar circumstances, was relegated to a mass of incoherent thought and frustrating emotion. Finding myself helpless to alter the course of events unfolding in my presence was difficult.

Linda was a rock to many members of the family. She maintained a steadfast devotion to the notion of doing the right thing even when life’s road encountered large pebbles and potholes. Her biological father was killed in World War II just two months before the War ended. A mere baby at the time, she grew up knowing him only through relative’s recollections. She was 6 years old when I arrived as a result of the union of her mother to my father. Society makes a distinction of this type of relationship as “half” siblings. Neither she nor I joined in such a notion of distinction. After I was born, she and I shared sibling interactions exclusively for the next nine years until our brother was born. She was fiercely protective of me during those childhood years, serving notice to anyone who dared think of mistreating her little brother such an action would result in having to deal with her wrath.

I distinctly recall a day when I was about 7 years old having openly asked who the person was in the portrait of a young soldier displayed on the most prominent wall of our home. I assumed it was one of our Uncles. The answer I received, “Oh, that’s Linda’s Dad,” came as quite a shock to me and brought an immediate “What do you mean?” retort. It was only then I became totally aware her last name, kept as an honor to that young soldier, was different than mine. It is a testament to my father and her interaction, love and devotion to him since most people during our childhood unfamiliar with the circumstances weren’t aware there was a “difference from the norm” in our family unit.

In fact, when I went to high school, I decided I should purposely let a number of teachers know she was my sister even though our last name differed. Most responded something along the line of disbelief not borne of the distinction of different last names. “Linda was a great student, was a pleasure to have as a pupil, and made straight ‘A’s.’ You on the other hand…there’s no way she’s your sister.” So much for trying to tread on her good name and good will since I exhibited none of those traits.

Above all Linda was an example of undying faith and devotion to her faith. When one of those potholes in life temporarily altered her course, she confided in me later she felt lost and her faith had abandoned her. She quickly added later on she was surprised and thankful to discover her faith was right where she left it. Her realization of it being her responsibility to keep the faith was up to her and would always be secure by knowing it never faltered and was ever present, unlike the imperfect humans who drifted from it. We often find not only did it never leave but is ever present exactly where we left it to be reclaimed when we find our way back. That’s the faith my sister taught me.

We held a memorial service for her a few days after she died. Intending to be a celebration of her passing from this life to her eternal home, I found myself unable to participate in the expressions of memories other family members rightfully shared with those in attendance. I’m not the most verbal and gifted orator in our family and marvel at those who are. I generally have to contemplate and organize my thought process for a period of time before finally committing it all to written expression rather than from behind a podium.

Even now, several weeks later, I find I’m speechless and am left to lean on the words of others. I hear a Patty Loveless song ask: “How do I say goodbye?” I’ve concluded, thank God, “it’s okay to hurt and it’s okay to cry” because I’m just not ready say goodbye out loud. Perhaps I never will. I do take solace in the final words of a great hymn sung so promising by friends and family at the service. “When we’ve been there ten thousand years; bright shining as the sun. We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise, than when we first begun.” So, I’ll just substitute “goodbye” with “see ya later.” That’s what she would do.

So all I can do is dig deep and say “I love you, Linda and I miss you.” Your brave fight against a disease destined to prevail was still victorious. You became brave enough to say goodbye and be at peace with the assurance your final destination was known and your reward awaited your claim. Victory is yours. Your music, your earthly image and the fullness of your love remains in our memories. Your joy of life, your gleeful outlook, and your enduring faith remain for generations of a family who will never meet you, but will know of you by your deeds and the permanent impressions left during your time as this family’s beacon of faith.

With a deep and abiding respect for all you represented during your time with us;

The older of your “Full brothers”,

Gary Lawrence is a Mount Airy resident and retired publisher of The Mount Airy News.

Nothing says summer quite like a visit to a local park. The open space, recreational areas, and abundant nature serve to revitalize the spirit and give joy to all who visit. Fortunately, in this region, there are plethora of federal and state parks. However, local city and county parks cannot be overlooked.

With the onset of the Industrial Revolution in America in the late 1800s, people moved to cities to pursue job opportunities. As cities grew, open space and quality of life diminished. Those who could afford it would vacation in rural, often mountainous, areas to “take the air” and rejuvenate their health. White Sulphur Springs Hotel is a local example of this.

However, the push to have natural environments in cities began in earnest so that all residents could enjoy. The first foray into parks began with “pleasure gardens,” which offered city residents a highly manicured, picturesque natural area in the heart of a city; Central Park in New York City is prime example.

By the early 1900s, more was sought from park areas in cities. People did not want to just see nature and walk through parks, they sought a more active role for themselves, and especially children, in nature. The new push for parks focused on recreational opportunities and playgrounds in a safe space close to home. As time progressed, recreational opportunities expanded to include the addition of indoor facilities, swimming pools, and ball fields.

In the United States, there are 423 national parks and 6,600 state parks. The state of North Carolina boasts 34 state parks, four recreation areas, and three staffed state natural areas. Surry County has a long agricultural history due to the rich natural resources of the area. Many of the parks we know and visit today were developed from farm land. Fisher River Park, under the care and management of Surry County Parks and Recreation, developed just this way.

In 1872, the county acquired 400 acres outside of Dobson from the Jones family. Until the 1950s, the land was used as a “poor farm” and featured barns, structures, and two cemeteries that are still standing today. In the 1970s, plans were put into motion to use the land for recreational purposes. In 1998, ball fields were constructed and in the early 2000s the playground was constructed. Today the park is 135 acres and has ball fields, game courts, a horseshoe pit, walking paths, a mountain bike trail, picnic shelters, and an amphitheater. The mountain bike trail was created in 2003 with the help of a state Adopt-A-Trail grant for $5,000 and is 4 miles long.

The Mount Airy Parks and Recreation Department for the City of Mount Airy oversees the operation and maintenance of seven parks ranging in size; Riverside Park, Westwood Park, Tharrington Park, Graham Field, HB Rowe Environmental Park, Lovills Creek Park, and Lowry Park as well as a 6.6-mile greenway system.

The greenway is a connected, paved surface in the shape of a horseshoe open to cyclists and joggers or walkers. It consists of three segments; the Emily B. Taylor Greenway Segment, the Confluence Greenway Segment, and the Ararat River Greenway Segment. Along the greenway are opportunities for fishing, access points to the parks, kayak and canoe launches, and picnic areas. The parks offer fields, game courts, playgrounds, a skate park, picnic shelters, a disc golf course, and a dog park to name just a few of the amenities.

In addition to city and county parks, there are a variety of privately managed parks in the area. What is known as Veterans Memorial Park was once the C.W. Taylor farm and spans 36 acres. Originally it was known as the Gentlemans Driving Park, and hosted horseraces and shows for the community. The VFW and American Legion bought the property jointly and opened the park in 1947. Dedicated to local war dead, it served as one of the first community parks offering recreational activities. Today the park is self-functioning from the revenues it generates from events, such as The Mount Airy Old Time and Bluegrass Fiddlers Convention and the Surry County Agricultural Fair.

Originally known as Buzzard Rock, Raven-Knob Park opened to the public on July 4, 1948, and offered cabins, dancing, swimming, boating, fishing, and picnic opportunities across 250 acres. However, from 1954 through 1959, the park transformed from a public space to a Scout camp. The park was purchased by the Winston- Salem Foundation but was titled to the Old Hickory Council for the Boy Scouts to use and renamed Raven Knob Scout Reservation. Today it is fully owned by the Old Hickory Council and has grown to 3,600 acres.

Here’s a list of other local parks in the area; Homeplace Recreational Park in Ararat, Mountain Park Community Park, Rockford Park, Elkin Municipal Park, Crater Park in Elkin, Dobson Square Park, Shoals Community Recreation Park, and Salem Fork Community Park.

July is Parks and Recreation month, so go out and enjoy one of the many parks in the region.

Justyn Kissam is the director of programs and education at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. Originally from Winston-Salem, she has moved around the state for her education and public history work until settling in Mount Airy. She can be reached at 336-786-4478 x 228 or jnkissam@northcarolinamuseum.org

“The Forest was green when I was a-born and I’m green yet.”

Of the 469 miles on the Blue Ridge Parkway, milepost 189.1 boasts a legend. It is likely that anyone born in Patrick or Carroll counties in Virginia have ancestors brought into this world by the famed “Aunt” Orlean Hawks Puckett. Aunt Orlean’s talents as a midwife and sturdy woman have echoed through the hollows and peaks of the Blue Ridge Mountains that she loved so dearly.

Born in 1837, 1839 or possibly 1844, Orlean Hawks came into this world in Lambsburg, Virginia. The small unincorporated community is in Carroll County, about 20 minutes from the town of Galax. Raised among the mountains, Orlean gained a strong understanding of farm life and natural living. By most accounts she was admired for being beautiful and with her blue eyes, blonde hair, and tall slender stature, who could argue? Naturally, these traits attracted suitors, and at the questionable age of 16 Orlean was married to John Puckett, age 22, sometime in 1860 just before the Civil War.

The young couple moved into a small cabin after their wedding, but shortly after relocated again to their home in the Hollow that resided at the foot of Groundhog Mountain. This is where John and Orlean’s daughter Julia would be born, and John would enlist with the confederate forces in Virginia. In June of 1861, John enlisted in the Confederate Army and remained so for about a year until he deserted to come home. Some sources suggest his timely departure from the life of a soldier was due in part to his daughter Julia’s ailing health. Julia had contracted diphtheria, a bacterial infection that affects the respiratory system, causing weak breathing or total obstructions.

On Sept. 27, 1862, Julia Puckett died at 7 months of age. Orlean would become pregnant 23 more times, with none of her children living past 7 months. Ten of her children were stillborn, and other multiple miscarriages and quick deaths took the lives of her other offspring. Orlean was once quoted, “I would have been glad if it had been the Lord’s will to let one of my children live.”

There was and still is a lot of skepticism around the true cause of Orlean’s losses. Some local folk believed John to be abusive during Orlean’s pregnancies; some closer to the family believed it was simply the Lord’s will. Today some would suggest that Orlean had the RH Blood factor. This can cause complications when the fetus and mother are not a match. However, despite all this pain, loss, and disappointment Orlean’s love for children did not falter. In 1875 John and Orlean moved to their new home on Groundhog Mountain.

In 1889, at the age of 50, give or take a few years, Orlean delivered her first baby as a midwife. From this time forward Orlean began to deliver child after child. In her time as a midwife, she never lost a child nor mother during the process. When the news came that a mother was nearing the birthing time, Orlean would set out walking sometimes 20 miles or more to help a family in need. When the weather was icy or slick, she would nail tacks to the bottom of her shoes for better traction. If a home were further away, she would ride an old mule or go on horseback. Sometimes, horse and buggies would pull up to retrieve the midwife and later even cars.

Aunt Orlean carried with her a doctor’s bag usually containing eye drops (required by the state), scissors, string, gauze, camphor, and sometimes brandy. Some say she never asked for money or compensation, others say she did. One source suggests that around 1890, Orlean would charge upwards of $6 for her services. Regardless of price, the people surrounding her Groundhog Mountain home needed and wanted her services. During her devotion as a midwife, Orlean Puckett delivered more than 1,000 children. Using her common sense, mountain know how, and granny superstitions to literally save the day.

Today at milepost 189.1 on the Blue Ridge Parkway you can see a cabin that is often misinterpreted as The Puckett Cabin. The Puckett’s original cabin would have been close by, possibly in the garden plot at the site. The current cabin belonged to Aunt Betty Puckett, a close relative. Despite this small misconception, the National Park Service uses this space to preserve and remember the legacy of this mountain legend. The site offers interpretive markers, as well as, a small path around the cabin.

Orlean Puckett died Oct. 21, 1939. While she left behind no children of her own, she left behind a legacy that would last for the ages.

Part of the work of a pastor is developing and guiding moments of public celebration of God. This could include weddings, baptisms, Christmas, and Easter worship. As well as funerals.

As the world around us is taking steps for gathering after a long period of shelter-in-place, the importance of celebration seems more precious. Gathering to celebrate is set against the need to control. The disruption from the pandemic has spun much of the world into a struggle for control. Amidst the endless dates about following science and medical guidance, to the divergent opinions of our preferred news outlets, celebrating God seems a remote interest for most people these days. Giving focus, however, to what matters to God holds the key for moving forward.

When the Apostle Paul wrote the Letter to the Ephesian Christians, it was during a similar time of tension and struggle. There was just as much “us-versus-them” stuff going on, in the church as well as between Christians and the culture.

Paul begins this letter by reminding the Ephesian Christian community to remember and celebrate what God has already provided. We were chosen in Christ before the world was formed; God made a plan to adopt believers as God’s own children; and God chose to bestow grace upon us. Everything that is most needed has been provided already – redemption and forgiveness through Jesus.

Why would God choose to bless us so greatly, long before we had any knowledge of God’s existence or awareness of this love? I choose to believe this is an ongoing thing. This outpouring of grace and love is still at work, like the rising and setting of the sun each day. This amazing gift of redemption and grace is still unfolding!

What is God up to? What is the goal or purpose of this gift? And why extend it so extravagantly to all people and to creation itself?

Do you know the story of the tower of Babel (Genesis 11)? It’s a cautionary tale of the human desire to reach the heavens and be like God. To control the world. The effort backfires. As punishment for the arrogance of humanity, which spoke one common language at the time, God destroyed the tower and scattered the people to the ends of the earth. It’s understood as an origin story for why there are so many languages around the world.

Ephesians 1 describes the goal and purpose of God’s gift of redemption and grace as having the opposite effect of the Tower of Babel. That is, the goal of God is to bring the world together in unity. Furthermore, 2 Corinthians 5:18-21 describes this mystery, as well as the call to be partners with God in this mission to bring the world together.

So, if God’s goal is to bring the world together into unity through the gift of redemption and grace, which has been provided in Jesus, what are we doing to support it? This is a key question for all time. When I consider the difference makers in history who have done great things to bring about cooperation out of division, healing out of brokenness, reconciliation out of war, resilience out of trauma, and hope out of defeat it seems this theme is front and center in the story.

Furthermore, it seems these extraordinary people found a way to celebrate God first. Even when all around them was mired in division and struggle. For by celebrating God, they were able to focus on God’s goals and purposes, rather than their own need to control outcomes or determine who their enemies should be. As they gave themselves to being partners with God in celebrating the gifts God has already provided through the redemption and forgiveness in Jesus, they discovered new and creative ways to be devoted to God’s work of reconciliation. We need to make the same effort as we seek to reopen businesses and churches. Put the good of all above our own goals.

The Delta variant is still taking lives and impacting the young. The three main vaccines are very powerful against this variant, but slightly less than they have been against the original virus. That means there remains risk for all of us.

As much as I would love to gather as normal to celebrate, caution is needed. While I believe in God’s call to bring people together to celebrate the news of redemption and grace, paying attention to the risks is part of the call, too. Knowing that God cares about building unity in our communities, it inspires me to make the effort to be careful. I trust the time to celebrate freely is coming, and I look to God to grant us patience as we try to take the steps to get there safely.

British forces moved through the southern colonies with ease in the spring of 1780, building morale and lending a sense that the rebellion of these lucrative English holdings would soon end.

As the invading force moved northward, Scottish-born Maj. Patrick Ferguson recruited a sizable force of Tories. The predominant group in the western Carolinas and Virginia was Scots Highlanders. They generally stayed out of the conflict, ignoring calls from both British and Patriot recruiters. Many felt bound by their oath to Britain even if they didn’t care for the government’s tactics.

Ferguson advanced toward Charlotte, then a small town, protecting Gen. Cornwallis’ left flank. A small North Carolina unit of mountain men harassed his men, fighting “Indian-style” from behind trees and boulders before disappearing into the forest. Ferguson called them “barbarians,” and “the dregs of mankind” for fighting without honor.

He sent a warning in September, “If you do not desist your opposition to the British Arms, I shall march this army over the mountains, hang your leaders, and lay waste your country with fire and sword.”

Their homes and families threatened, men from the western mountain regions (today called the Overmountain Men) mustered at Sycamore Shoals (now Tennessee). They traveled 330 miles, their ranks swelling as men journeyed in from Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia and the Carolinas, including Surry Militia units.

By the time they arrived at King’s Mountain, just southwest of Charlotte in South Carolina, there were 1,800 Patriots. Ferguson made camp on Kings Mountain for its defensible terrain but it did them no good. His men were routed by a company half their size at the Battle of King’s Mountain on Oct. 7, 1780.

Afterwards, the threat neutralized, the frontiersmen melted back into the hollows and ridges of the mountains — but they had struck a blow from which King George’s army would not recover.

American history tends to focus on the more active Northern Campaigns of the Revolution: Boston, Bunker Hill, Valley Forge, Saratoga. We know about the Boston Tea Party and Washington’s crossing of the Delaware but less about the Southern Campaign and what motivated colonists far-removed from the cities and trade centers to break with a government they were so isolated from.

There were fewer newspapers in the South. Fewer collections of correspondence survive to tell the tales of those living in this region. But we are fortunate to have a long line of people dedicated to the preservation of history and who collect the fragments of personal and official paperwork, pension records, and the other bits scattered across time.

People such as Jesse Hollingsworth who wrote of the taxes levied by the North Carolian General Assembly to build the royal governor’s palace and of the “line of forts built from Smith River in Rockingham County to Long Island on the Holston River… Bethabara, Fort Waddell at the forks of the Yadkin, Fort Dobbs near the Catawba, Fort Chiswell on the New River and Fort Stalnecker or Crab Orchard near Roan Mountain.”

The forts were built in the 1760s to help garrison security forces along the frontier during the French and Indian War and the subsequent Cherokee War and to afford shelter to civilians threatened by decades of hostilities.

Families have preserved the stories passed through generations such as that of Samuel Freeman who charged up King’s Mountain as part of the “barbaric” Overmountain Men to defeat the greatest army of its time.

The rifle he carried that day is still in the keeping of his descendant Nick McMillan. It will be part of the new exhibits at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History where we are working to expand the stories we share.

At the turn of the last century the Daughters of the American Revolution obtained the land where Fort Dobbs used to stand, beginning the process of preserving it and its history for future generations. The field they bought, where they began telling the histories of their ancestors, now boasts a replica of the blockhouse.

Individuals and organizations such as the county genealogical association and the historical society have researched for years and worked to preserve sites such as the Edwards-Franklin House in Franklin Township.

The task of preserving our history falls to each of us, whether it is our family history or a fort that served an entire region. Much like the nation we celebrate today it is ours if we can keep it.

As we celebrate Independence Day, my thoughts this year go to the meaning of freedom and equality that are the foundation of the core values of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. This year they seem more important, as the COVID-19 pandemic and the political tensions of the past two years continue to challenge us.

So many voices in the media contend that freedom and equality cannot coexist. Yet many stories of scripture declare that they can. In fact, for justice and love to thrive, freedom and equality must coexist. I am grateful that this has been embedded in the Christian faith hands down to me.

From an early age I have had a deep appreciation in how Christian faith and practice played a significant influence on the founders of our country and this state. Did you know Benjamin Franklin’s contribution to the US Constitution and his rationale for a government that reflected a balance of freedom and equality was significantly influenced by his connections to the Iroquois Confederacy? It was collaboration of indigenous people and tribes spanning much of the East Coast.

Franklin’s connections were greatly aided by Christian missionaries who helped him connect to the Iroquois Confederacy, which already had in place “The Great Law of Peace” – a constitution that Franklin and others used as a prototype for the US Constitution. These missionaries played a role in helping Franklin make this discovery.

Did you know Thomas Jefferson was influenced by the writings of many European thinkers who had advocated for personal rights, freedom, and equality? Among them were Christian reformers such as John Wycliff, John Hus, and William Tyndale. Such writings would influence Luther and others to bring about the Protestant Reformation. They would also influence several political revolutions in European history that became the seed bed for western expressions of democracy.

Thomas Jefferson himself remained fascinated by the intricate role of freedom and equality as the foundation of democracy, and the requirement of pulling together to be a community of citizens that chooses to honor both in balance without the threat of violence or the direct oversight of military regime. But how do we strike such a balance?

Did you know the first community to officially observe a celebration for Independence Day was the religious settlement of Moravians in Salem, here in North Carolina? Soon other religious communities led the way. Early on few communities celebrated this day because most citizens were not confident the thirteen colonies could emerge as a sustainable and independent democracy.

It seems to me this year the celebration of July 4 is unique. Following the challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic, along with recent the political and social unrest, this is a season for reflecting anew on the core values our Christian religious forebearers had for freedom and equality. Simply put, they understood that unlimited freedom often leads to excesses that prevent equality.

At the same time, unlimited equality often leads to limited freedom. They also understood that justice demands a reasonable limit for both freedom and equality, which was reflected in early Christian settlement community covenants like Salem. I find myself longing today for a deeper expression of working together to support and preserve a balance of freedom and equality without resorting to actions that create more division and isolation.

Paul said: “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are beneficial.” (1 Corinthians 6:12). Moravians put a premium on the demand for ongoing spiritual development – “until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:13). They called upon the community to “adult up.” The older I get, the more I appreciate how many of the Christians spiritual forebearers in America understood that freedom and equality can coexist, but not without out making love and justice the higher calling.

I am grateful that Independence Day falls on Sunday this year. Many faith communities will gather today to pray for our nation and its people. I hope that our mutual prayers will take us further than our aspirations for our country to be the beacon of freedom and equality for the world. They are just the beginning. May they be accompanied by our actions, as well as a renewed effort in mature choices that build a stronger balance for freedom and equality.

Make this month a special time to pray for our community, our state, and our nation to find a deeper passion for freedom and equality that fosters a vision of hope for all people.

As surveyors trekked along the Ararat River towards Mount Airy, the sleepy stagecoach town began to hear the whispers of progress.

The year was 1877, when the Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley Railroad began the journey of laying track that would eventually connect the foothills to the coast at Wilmington. Some notable names were involved in this venture including William A. and Jesse Moore and Winston and Joseph Fulton, just to name a few.

Many men and women worked hard to ensure that the railroad could be finished. The path for the track needed to be cleared of trees, brush, rocks, and sometimes structures. Afterward the land needed to be leveled and cleared for the initial laying of track. On top of the newly cleared land a mound of rocks would have been spread called a ballast, then comes the sleepers or ties and finally the rails. All of this laid by hand, with the help of local and traveling men and sometimes convicts. The work went on for more than 11 years before the line reached from Fayetteville to Mount Airy. The crews were finally ready to test the track they had worked so hard on.

On May 18, 1888, a train arrived at the Mount Airy station. The train had left Fayetteville at 8 a.m. and arrived in town 12 hours later, a three-hour trip for us now. The hard work had paid off and on June 20, 1888 a celebration was planned.

The first official run began on June 19, 1888, and as the train arrived that evening, a crowd gathered around the delegate- and politician-filled train cars. The celebration the following day was well attended, Mount Airy saw waves of people traveling into town to experience this amazing occasion. Most accounts say that more than 5,000 people had arrived in the town of only 600 or so citizens.

The parade included The Lexington Silver Cornet Band, Gov. Scales and officers, state and federal judges, town and county officers, trade and industrial display, Mount Airy Cornet Band, a mounted procession, Granite City Band, and excited citizens.

The parade proceeded down Main Street, ending close to where the Andy Griffith Playhouse stands today. Sources suggest that this is where the Rockford Street School once stood. A grandstand was built at the same location to celebrate the day. The stage was decorated with coastal flora; smilax and cape jasmine draped the sides of the structure, symbolizing the coastal connection soon to be had. The night ended at the Globe Tobacco Warehouse where a dance went on into the hot summer night.

It would be another two years before the line finally connected to the coast at Wilmington.

This connection not only changed how people traveled, but how they did everyday business. With the train finally in and around Mount Airy, the county saw a rise in granite, produce, poultry, tobacco, lumber, and furniture sales. As demand rose and new customers were added, more factories were built, and operations were expanded.

On Oct. 12, 1899, the train brought the circus to Mount Airy, as well as entertainers to the Galloway Opera House, now Brannock and Hiatt Furniture.

The Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley Railroad was sold in 1897 to the Southern System and Atlantic Coast Lines. The Mount Airy section was eventually known as the Atlantic and Yadkin. Passenger service ended on April 29, 1939, due to a rise in automobile use.

While Mount Airy still has the occasional train sightings on U.S. 52, passenger trains are a thing of the past — or are they?

Last year, during the pandemic the North Carolina Department of Transportation renewed hope for passenger trains and are hoping to expand state rail lines in the future.

Editor’s Note: Community Comment is a periodic column in The Mount Airy News featuring commentary from community leaders in Mount Airy and Surry County.

The Mount Airy City Schools district’s summer is as full as its academic year.

This summer, the city school system boasts more than 50 enrichment and athletic camps over seven weeks. We also invite students to participate in academic camps at each grade level to either catch up or move ahead with math and reading.

Last year during a pandemic we saw more than 400 students involved in summer programming and it looks like we will exceed that number this summer. We have more than 200 students who have already been involved in just the first two weeks of our summer programming. Just listen to these awesome camp titles: Creative Cooking, If You Can Only Imagine (Design), Babysitting, Mad Scientist, Nature Spy, and Find Your Superpower. Doesn’t it make you want to go back to school for all these fun activities during the summer?

Our Community Central Office staff finds summertime to be our busiest time of the year: Finance is working hard to close out a successful year and plan for finances needed for the upcoming year. Our human resources department is making sure our personnel are fully trained and ready to go for the fall. We are thankful that we do not have many openings for the beginning of the school year. We know that is not the case across the state and we are blessed that people love working in Mount Airy City Schools.

Summer meals are being served to the community every day. You can come by Tharrington Primary School and pick up a summer lunch and next day breakfast for your children 18 and younger free of charge. Custodians, summer cleaning crews, and maintenance employees are working diligently to make sure any painting, repairs, facility cleaning. and upkeep happens during our summer months. We know that our facilities are in great shape thanks to these teams. Our technology department is busy preparing for the upcoming year. Technology has taken on a new meaning as students use technology every day to stay ahead in core areas as well as enrichment programs. We believe the future will always include hybrid learning with teachers being experts that help students learn using the latest technology tools.

Our administrative team is working this summer to train staff on effective programs such as the Science of Reading to support elementary literacy and other key areas. They are developing next year’s planning calendar to map out a year’s worth of exciting events, advisory group meetings, and parent meetings. The team has also outlined any needs from this past year and made sure we have good intervention plans to ensure student and school success.

The team also develops new ways of thinking making classrooms student-centered with activating strategies helping motivate students to engage in learning. Every aspect is planned out and supported for the upcoming new year and we are grateful for the Mount Airy City Schools team making that happen over the summer.

This year with the launch of the Blue Bear Bus (BBB) we are taking summer programming out to the community and making sure we are connecting with our families. The Community Central Office is the hub of activity for this service. Each morning a team packs up everything needed to take a mobile classroom with fun learning activities out to the communities in our district. This program was designed to keep students and families connected when it is easy to be disengaged from school. The BBB team takes meals, snacks, fitness activities, books, learning tools, and wifi to allow students to connect with us throughout the summer. If you see the Blue Bear Bus in your neighborhood say hello.

When you think education takes a break in the summer remember all of the hours of work that our team is putting in to make sure students are successful in the upcoming year. Take a minute and thank an educator for impacting the next generation in a way that most careers do not. Thank them for all of their hours of preparation, planning, and leadership as they develop a top class educational pathway for your students to succeed. If you want to know more about Mount Airy City Schools visit our website at http://www.mtairy.k12.nc.us

And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the Lord and His statutes which I command you today for your good?

This week I want to display the journey of Moses and God’s people into the Promised Land that originally started with a promise made to Abraham by God.

It is important to note early in this column that God has a promised land for each of us. Of course that ultimate land of promise is in heaven with God in our very own mansion that has been built for us to reside in, but our promise land here on earth is found in the specific purpose He has laid out for each person individually.

You will see in Deuteronomy 10:12-13 the words of Moses to the Israelites as he prepared them for their Promised Land that was filled with purpose for their descendants. The question posed here is what does God require of us as we journey toward that land, as we look toward residing in our purpose, or better stated how to live a life that God desires us to live to the fullest?

Stated in these words of Moses is five simple directives to fear God, please God, love God, serve God, and obey God. For the sake of space and time I will not be able to go into deep detail about each of these points, but simply I can state that each of them can be found intertwined in the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20 and echoed by Jesus in Matthew 22:35-40.

The verses in Matthew read this way, “Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, ‘Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?’ Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

There is a commission that we are to have an attitude of fearing, pleasing, serving, and obeying, but there is something about true love that helps us bring the first four right in line with God’s will for our lives. Paul in 1 Timothy 1-5-7 states that the commandants of our life should be derived from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from a sincere faith.

It is this pure heart that Paul talks about that gives us our genuine desire to please God through service to others. This is a direct act of obedience to God’s Word that shows that we are not scared of God, but possess a fear derived from reverence and respect.

John tells us in 1 John 4:7-10, “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”

Fearing, pleasing, serving, obeying and loving are simple requirements when we consider that God sent Christ to forsake it all for us to have freedom from the bondage of our sin. I have found that once we begin to understand 1 John 4, we begin to not only see why Deuteronomy is pertinent, but you will begin to see the truth in Jesus’s answer to the lawyer in Matthew 22.

My friend God is love. That love should compel us to love others, which will result in a display of all the requirements needed to inhabit the promises from God. Jeremiah 29:11 states, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Love God and I promise friend you will experience more than you can imagine. May God bless you and keep you and allow his face shine upon you and give you peace.

“If a June night could talk, it would probably boast it invented romance.”– Bern Williams.

Summer brings ice cream on hot days, getaways at the lake, outdoor fun that lasts till 8 p.m., and wedding bells.

Longer days, fresh and abundant flowers, and vacation time are the perfect storm to conjure up a wedding. For many the extended hours are the sweetest part of a summer wedding, allowing the party to stretch into the dusk. For others, the larger groups are better entertained outdoors. For folks in Europe during the Middle Ages it was bathing season, meaning thorough head-to-toe scrubs. During this time, many people believed that excessive bathing exposed individuals to unwanted diseases. However, contrary to popular belief personal hygiene was tended to most everyday (hand washing, teeth cleaning, and bird bathing).

Women in the 19th and early 20th centuries often married as early as 14 or 15. The church, tradition, and superstitions played an important role in all aspects of an individual’s wedding season.

Here and around the Appalachian Mountains many European traditions followed settlers.

I am sure you have heard of: Something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue. This is part of an older European folktale that is set to protect the new bride from the “evil eye” and encourage a prosperous future. The entire rhyme goes: Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, and a silver sixpence in your shoe.

Today the bridal party are often seen in similar dresses; this stems from an old superstition of protecting the bride. The coordinated dresses were worn to confuse any evil spirits or attendees looking to wish ill will on the bride or her groom.

More often than realized, trouble was close by. Maybe the bride was with child and the nuptials were forced. Perhaps an outsider was being introduced to the community; or an arranged marriage parted a pair in love. Each wedding comes with trials and excitement often resonating from the upkeep of a tradition.

For Abby Bedsaul, a local bride to be, it is all excitement. When I spoke with Abby last week, she told me about some of the traditions she would be keeping at her wedding. She will be borrowing the veil from her sister, Sydney, and her mother Heather’s pearl necklace.

Karen Nealis, the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History’s office manager, participated in a traditional money dance at her wedding. This is where the wedding guests pin money to the bride’s dress in order to dance with her.

My mother, Tracie Bowman, spoke of “Shivarees,” a teasing of the bride and groom on their wedding night. The men and boys would run around the newlywed’s house singing and carrying on, while the women spent time in the kitchen, cooking up a storm.

Here in the foothills and mountains money was often tight. Individuals may have not had the cash to spend on wedding bands or even a honeymoon. Many folks believe the wedding ring and double ring quilt had their origins in these hard times. The story goes that a solider returning from war had no money to buy wedding bands. A matriarch of the family decided to give her ring quilt to the new couple symbolizing their devotion to one another.

These are just a few stories and traditions from our region. Traditions come from single families, communities, and geographical regions. I imagine everyone reading has a wedding tradition or story different from the ones within this article. We hope that you will share those stories with us sometime. Be sure to examine the photos and captions to learn more interesting wedding facts and traditions!

We want to wish Abby and all the engaged couples getting married this summer a long and happy marriage. We wish you all the best.

Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we may boldly say: “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”

I want to start today by saying God wants you to know He is right there with you today and forever. The writer of Hebrews is clear in stating this point by first saying He will never leave you and then follows that with the wording of never forsaking you. As I counsel people I ask them to make a list of all their fears, their worries, their struggles, and most of all their weaknesses. Very rarely do I find people with the exact same list. Some express identical words but very seldom do the causes behind those words look the same.

Paul states in 2 Corinthians 12, that he had a thorn in his flesh that Satan used to try to keep him away from God, but in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 Paul states this, “And he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

As I titled this article I debated on calling it, “Finding Strength in our Weakness,” but quickly realized that although strength can be drawn from our short comings it is imperative to first accept that power into our lives.

I don’t want to completely repeat the article “Easier Said Than Done,” but I do want to say it is humbling to know that Christ is there to catch us and even pull us up out of the sinking water of life. But even that requires that we trust He will do it. Remember Peter was standing on solid water one minute and then sinking the next. His cry to Jesus was “Save me.” Such a simple sentence in words, but so strong when we scream it with meaning.

One more time I want you to remember that God wants you to know He is right there with you waiting to hear not only your voice, but he wants your heart, your mind, and your soul to desire that He is the force in this sinking world to save you. So quickly our heart says yes to the ways God tells us to face the things of this world, but our mind drifts to other means. There are times our mind knows that He is the only way, but that same mind becomes clouded with things of this world.

Paul tells us in Romans 12:1-2, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

Today my friend I encourage you to seek God with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your soul. Look for Jesus and keep your eyes planted on him for your direction. Make a list of all your fears, your worries, your struggles, and most of all your weaknesses and one by one give them to God and he will set you on a path to strength. One last time, God wants you to know He is right there with you today and forever.

May God bless you and allow His face to shine on you and give you peace. God bless you.

The history of a major staple in African-American education in North Carolina is quietly, but quickly, disappearing.

Eight hundred and thirteen Rosenwald School buildings were constructed in rural North Carolina between 1918 and 1932, part of an effort to supply schools to the African-American community. Many have been torn and burned down or have just been forgotten. Many of them, however, are still standing. Some are gloriously remodeled; others are being destroyed by the elements of nature. All North Carolina counties except seven had at least one Rosenwald School. The building program was dropped after the death of Julius Rosenwald in 1932.

This project to build schools in rural African American communities was conceived by Booker T. Washington, president of Tuskegee Institute, and his staff in 1910. Washington was joined in 1911 by Julius Rosenwald, president of Sears Roebuck, who agreed to provide financial support by matching the funds raised by African-American communities to aid in building the schools.

In an effort to save cost and provide well engineered buildings, the Rosenwald Foundation provided building plans for the schools. These plans ranged from a one-teacher school building up to eleven-teacher school buildings. The plan included blueprints given to the community for their selected building choice.

Surry County had four Rosenwald Schools built, one of which is still standing.

The first Rosenwald School built in Surry County was Sandy Level in budget year 1918-1919. This school was a two-teacher building constructed on the north side of West Virginia Street near the intersection of Franklin Road (see Figure 1 and Figure 2). The total cost of the school when built was $4,327. The community donated $1,000, public funds amounted to $2,527 and the Rosenwald Foundation gave $800 toward the project. The school remained open until all the students moved to J. J. Jones High School in 1947.

The second school built in Surry County was Mount Ararat, also known as Ararat, in the budget year 1921-1922. This school was built on the north end of town off North Main Street. The school was a four-teacher type. The total cost of the school when built was $ 5,375. The community donated $1,200, public fund was $2,975, and the Rosenwald Foundation gave $1,200. The school remained open until it burned in 1938.

The third school built in Surry County was Woodville, also known as Chestnut Ridge, in the budget year 1923-1924. This school was built in the Westfield Township on Westfield Road next to Chestnut Ridge Church. The school was a four-teacher type. The total cost of the school when built was $5,174. The community donated $1,000, public funding was $3,074 and the Rosenwald Foundation gave $1,100. The school remained open until 1957.

The fourth school built in Surry County was Combstown, also known as Paynetown, in the budget year 1929-1930. This school was built in the Combstown community at 153 Split Rail Lane. The building was a two-teacher type. The total cost of the school when built was $ 2,890. The community donated $500, public funding was $1,890 and the Rosenwald Foundation gave $500. The school remained open until 1957 when all the students moved to J. J. Jones High School.

The Combstown school is the only Rosenwald School building still standing in Surry County. The site is cbeing used as God’s Family Temple Christian Church. The building has undergone renovations to add a bell tower and a fellowship hall on the rear.

Ron Snow is a regional historian and community contributor. To learn more about Rosenwald Schools visit https://www.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=e1496b7c0fe9493aaceec56feedda53a .

Serene, classy, kind, talented, and happy are some of the best terms I heard and read when researching the life and legacy of one Mary Patricia “Pat” Gwyn Woltz.

Readers, do you recognize the name?

Pat, as she was commonly known, was the furthest thing from common. Her artistry, volunteerism, and anonymous philanthropic deeds set her as one of Mount Airy’s finest.

Born on Sept. 14 1925 in Waynesville, Mary Patricia Gwyn attended Waynesville City school before adventuring to college. She started her education journey at St. Mary’s Episcopal College in Raleigh, then went on the gradate from Randolph Macon College in Lynchburg, Virginia, with a degree in economics.

Then on Sept. 5, 1947, Miss Pat Gwyn became Patricia Woltz after her marriage to John Elliot Woltz Sr., bringing her to Mount Airy and forever changing her life. Her life in Mount Airy was full of activity as she tended to her five children: John, James, Howell, Mary, and Thomas. She taught Sunday School at Central United Methodist Church where she was awarded the Laity Service Award because she exemplified the life of a Christian steward.

For us here at the museum we are especially grateful for her involvement in the creation and startup of the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. Pat and her husband, John, were charter members of the museum. They also served on the board of directors and as a trustee afterwards.

While all these accomplishments are amazing in and of themselves, some would say that her crowning achievements were the detailed illustrations that would dominate the later half of her life. In 1983 the many friends and family who enjoyed her work were happy to hear that Pat Gwyn Woltz art prints were finally for sale.

Here at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History we have been lucky enough to receive the remaining Pat Gwyn Woltz prints available to the public, some sketches, and production materials. Pat’s artwork makes you long for home or have feelings of fernweh, a longing for places you have never been.

In her own words: “I enjoy painting with a feeling of nostalgia… I like to make people want to go home again, if only in memory. By retrieving and cherishing the best of the past, we can help to enrich the quality of life in the future.”

These realistic paintings encompass only the best of memories: Travel to ancestral homes, holiday times, fond childhood frolics.

The print titled “Snowball Fight,” completed in 1981, depicts children engrossed in play surrounded by snow-topped pine trees and now historic homes. You can almost hear the silence that follows a glorious snowfall, you can see the weight of the snow pressing into the boxwoods and winter grass. The realistic depictions make you feel present in the artwork. Each painting also contains a signature little rabbit, winter, spring, summer, or fall.

She also illustrated many historic homes and sites. The Orlean Puckett print takes the viewer back in time to the midwifes heyday, depicting various activities of a backcountry life.

Each print transports the viewer to a different place and time, surrounding them with invisible smells and sounds. The prints that she sold traveled all around the country creating a stream of nostalgia that graced the walls of households, offices, and public spaces. The images, just like the person, were a catching trend. Once you took in all their distinction, you could not help but admire them.

On Sept. 14, 2011, Mary Patricia “Pat” Gwyn Woltz passed away peacefully at her home in Mount Airy. Beloved by all, she left a legacy of kindness and skill. The museum is working on a rotating exhibit in her honor.

Thanks to the Surry Community College Foundation we now have some limited Pat Gwyn Woltz prints to sell to the public. These will be available once we unveil our new giftshop and first floor exhibit spaces.

Emily Morgan is the Guest Services Manager at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. She and her family live in Westfield. She can be reached at eamorgan@northcarolinamuseum.org or by calling 336-786-4478 x229

Tomorrow is a day of prayers, moments of silence, and amazing stories.

On the last Monday of May, we as Americans celebrate Memorial Day. While the origins of the holiday are complicated and diverse this day of remembrance can traditionally be traced back to the Civil War.

The holiday was originally known as Decoration Day. This specific day was used to clean, commemorate, and pay homage to the many men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice in their service to our country in war. In our Post-Civil War world, families, communities and our entire country were struggling with an appropriate way to mourn the loss of the more than 620,000 American citizens no longer alive.

This day of remembrance was nationalized due to the extreme number of casualties during and after the Civil War. During this time America saw a rise in community cemeteries devoted solely to soldiers of war; however, some of the traditions dated back to more distant times.

Prior to community and church cemeteries, smaller family-owned plots were popular. Many such places can still be seen on private land and on federal and state holdings. These smaller, family-owned burial places are usually maintained by the descendants of the deceased or through a family-trust. Caretakers clean and maintain the various elements within the graveyard to ensure that traditions were intact.

Keith Kggener, a professor of art and architecture in Missouri, was once quoted with saying that cemeteries were “created for celebrating and containing.” Many different groups and religions feared that spirits continued to walk among the living after death. The common practice of laying a tombstone or headstone was said to ensure that their loved ones stayed put. Fences were added to keep wildlife and grave robbers out, but some suggest iron bars were used to keep the spirits in.

Decoration Day, and later Memorial Day, celebrations see loved ones and caretakers carefully placing new flowers, seeds, or tending to the faded synthetic blooms. Romans planted flowers among their gravesites to bring beauty and peace to the spirits who dwell there. At the turn on the century, superstition suggested that seeds would blossom into flowers on the grave of a good and kind persons but turn to weeds on a wicked soul. Today, flowers are left in remembrance of love, good times, and hope.

Many gravestones once cleaned reveal detailed symbols or poems of peace and hope. Some common markers in our area are doves for children, or for peace, Hand of God to symbolize ascension into heaven, or a willow tree for belonging and relief.

After a day of travel, hard work, and likely some tears, families often gather for cookouts, potlucks, or snacks. As families settle into their meals, stories and memories are exchanged in hopefully good humor. Victorians also shared food after a day in the cemetery. Funeral biscuits were given as favors. Two sweet cakes wrapped in paper sealed with black wax were given out to funeral goers as a Thank You for attendees.

As we celebrate this Memorial Day with cleaning, remembering, and eating we implore each and every one of you to share wonderful memories of the dearly departed with your friends and family. Our memories and history stay alive as long as we share them with others.

Editor’s Note: Community Comment is a periodic column in The Mount Airy News featuring commentary from community leaders in Mount Airy and Surry County.

Mount Airy City Schools has a mission to lead, innovate, and serve. Leadership is built throughout our K-12 classrooms. We have leaders in each classroom, at each school, and in many areas such as the arts and athletics. We provide leadership opportunities in our elementary program, Leader in Me, as well as Interact Rotary and HOSA clubs beginning in middle school, and through the Chick-Fil-A Leadership Club at the high school level, just to name a few.

We hope every child develops their own leadership style and strengthens their skills to lead throughout life. This year, during a pandemic, our leaders have helped each student and school return to in-person learning, five days a week beginning in August. Mount Airy City Schools deeply values leadership and service to our students and community.

Over this year, our principals have shown exactly how leaders should act during a crisis. They stepped up to the challenge, overcame great obstacles, put students first, and problem-solved every day to keep our schools open. Emily Niston at BH Tharrington Primary (BHT), Chelsy Payne at Jones Intermediate, Levi Goins at Mount Airy Middle School (MAMS), and Jason Dorsett at Mount Airy High School (MAHS) set the bar high for leaders across our state. They have been absolutely amazing and have shown true leadership when given tremendous life challenges.

Emily Niston is finishing her fourth year at BH Tharrington and leads the school where it all begins for Mount Airy City Schools students and families. BHT had amazing growth of more than 5% last year with kindergarten growing from 95 to over 130 students in one year. Tharrington has also received “Lighthouse Status” with Leader in Me (LIM). This illustrates that Ms. Niston, as a leader, also models leadership with her students. Students through the LIM program set their own academic and personal goals, share their progress through student-led conferences, as well as help plan classroom, school-wide events, and activities. Ms. Niston has led the school to double the enrollment for our Spanish dual language immersion program and works every day to show BHT as the premiere K-2 school and staff in the state.

Our Leader in Me program continues at Jones Intermediate School where Chelsy Payne is serving as principal. This is her second full year at Jones Intermediate as she began her principal career in the spring of 2019. The LIM program helps students set their own goals, create a plan to attain those, and participate in many activities that earn them service and leadership hours. We know that this is setting the tone for a lifetime of leadership and we want all of our students to graduate as leaders. Mrs. Payne completed the Distinguished Leadership Program through the North Carolina Principal and Assistant Principals Association (NCPAPA) this year. She was out on maternity leave for part of the year and continued to lead in many ways even while on leave. We are thankful for Bill Goins stepping up and filling in for us. The team at Jones has shown that we can come back to school and lead our community to a strong place even during the pandemic by continuing to offer Spanish for All, visual arts, recess, STEAM classes, and academically gifted classes.

Mount Airy Middle School was able to return to school in August and continue with the arts, academic competitions, and sports. This is truly remarkable as the year held many challenges for each of these to occur. Thankfully, first-year principal, Levi Goins met this tremendous challenge. He brainstormed with his staff and students on how to make each of these pieces happen. Some of the opportunities in athletics didn’t occur in many parts of the state but MAMS came back strong, experiencing only one team quarantine during the 2020-2021 school year. We know that leadership, careful planning, support from coaches, athletic directors, parents, staff, and students had to all be present for this to occur.

The North Carolina Association for Scholastic Activities (NCASA) recognized Mr. Goins and his team for participating in academic competitions when many others found it impossible. NCASA awarded Mr. Goins as finalist for Principal of the Year, Patricia Combs, as finalist for program director of the year, the school won the School Challenge Cup with the most statewide points for a middle school, the district won the School District Cup with the most points for a district, and also had a student named NCASA Student of the Year. This award went to Abby Epperson who participated in at least five academic competitions and placed in the top category in several of these. She is also set to participate in the International HOSA competition. It is fantastic to see leadership modeled and encouraged throughout the middle school.

Jason Dorsett, principal at Mount Airy High School, brought back the only high school five days a week beginning in August. This is his third year at Mount Airy High School. This accomplishment is great when realizing that most high school students around the state didn’t go back to school full time until just recently. This will make a big difference in helping these students be career and college ready and have a head start on many students throughout our nation. Jason Dorsett is our Mount Airy City Schools Principal of the Year this year for many reasons. He leads by example and attends almost every single event at the high school showing his support for staff and students. He also works hard to create innovative programs as the high school will be adding aviation science to the drone program and construction to the existing cabinetry program just to name a few.

Athletics was very difficult for everyone this year and he led the state in bringing all athletics back with few quarantines. High school students were able to come to class, take all the normal classes offered, and keep clusters and school transmission to a minimum while gaining students this year. Remote students from around the region were able to come to Mount Airy High School and attend face-to-face. That is amazing and will make such a difference in those teenagers’ future.

I am extremely proud of Mount Airy City Schools, our students, families, staff and administrators who worked together this year to show true leadership in a pandemic. Leadership shined throughout every avenue that challenged us this year. Today, I want to take time to celebrate four of our leaders, Emily Niston, Chelsy Payne, Levi Goins, and Jason Dorsett. If you see these folks please give them a pat on the back and encourage them. This is notably the hardest year they have had in their careers but it may just have made the biggest impact on their students. We want to thank them and let them know that their leadership matters. If you want to be a part of Mount Airy City Schools please feel free to check out our latest publication of the innovative programs we have to offer your family: https://bit.ly/AboutMount Airy City Schools21-22

In the early years of the 20th century, Stewarts Creek Township was home to a few hundred families who mostly made their living through farming. Many faced hardship and strife in the first few decades of this new century, regardless of occupation or location. The rural residents of Stewarts Creek Township faced an added difficulty, one that still remains a struggle for many today; expensive medical bills.

Many of the leading causes of sickness and death in rural communities at the time were preventable diseases, however access to medical care was usually too expensive for these families.

Adding to the community’s health care costs was the distance to the nearest doctor’s offices. This community, located in the western edge of Surry County, would have to pay extra to get their doctors to travel to them. This cost could be as much as a dollar for every mile, often amounting to a hefty sum just for the doctor to travel to them, even before the consultation fee and medication costs. This meant a simple doctor’s visit could damage their savings. A prolonged sickness, requiring multiple visits and extra medicine, could have extreme financial consequences.

The citizens of this area banded together to find a unique solution to this common problem. In 1922, 200 of the families joined together to create the The Stewarts Creek Doctor’s Association. The idea was that families in the area would pay a yearly fee for medical care which would cover as many visits as the doctor needed to make to their home that year and would do away with travelling fees entirely.

Each family that joined paid $18 annually. The fee covered medical care for the entire family and anyone living in their household (excluding servants.) During the Great Depression, with many struggling to make ends meet, the fee was decreased to $15 annually.

Two years after the founding of the association, a new physician moved to Surry County, Dr. Moses Young Allen. Born in Georgia, Dr. Allen studied at Mercer University in Georgia, completed medical training at Tulane University in New Orleans, and worked for a time in West Virginia. In the early 1920s, Dr. Allen accepted a position as a physician in Mount Airy. In 1924, Dr. Allen left Mount Airy for Stewarts Township to serve as the association’s doctor. For the next 17 years, Dr. Allen would be the only doctor available to more than 200 families in a 10-mile radius.

In 1993, his daughter recalled that the doctor never “pressed a man down on his luck to repay a note.” In fact, Dr. Allen tried to reduce the price his community paid as much as possible; he would purchase his medicines at cost and sell them to his patients at wholesale prices.

Dr. Allen’s dedication to helping his community is evident in his determination to reach his patients. In an era where roadways were only slowly catching up to the boom in the number of cars, local roads were rarely paved. Dr. Allen’s Chevrolet would often become stuck in mud while travelling to house calls, and he would keep a shovel and a hoe in his car in order to dig himself out. As a backup, Dr. Allen had his horse, Byrd, to transport him wherever he needed to go.

This scheme to lower the cost to their healthcare was a success, with three quarters of the bills being paid when due. Those who were late to pay were not left behind. Understanding the financial strain, if there was at least an effort to pay by those past due, they would continue to be eligible for care and no interest was charged on their late payments.

Though the coverage had restrictions (it did not cover dental or surgery) it made basic medical care much more accessible for this rural community. After the first decade of the association, 75% of the original families continued to be part of the scheme, and many new families joined.

The story of The Stewarts Creek Doctor’s Association is one of a community banding together to solve a problem that affected them all, and in turn, bettering their community as a whole.

Katherine “Kat” Jackson is an intern at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. Originally from Australia she now lives in Winston-Salem. She can be reached at the museum at 336-786-4478.

Medusa, Samson, Rapunzel, and Sif (Wife of Thor) all have on thing in common — hair.

Hair, while physiologically dead once it leaves your scalp, is a vibrant piece of our lives as humans, during and after we have departed.

For many of our legendary heroes and villains, such as Medusa and Samson, hair is regarded as a symbol of power, status, and beauty.

Many Native cultures believe hair is a direct representation of one’s self-esteem, self-respect, belonging, and holds a higher purpose than simple ornamental beauty. Some European sources echo this statement saying that “the virtues and properties of a person are contained within that person’s hair,” explaining why multiple cultures have rituals and superstitions when it comes to cutting, coloring, covering, and styling their locks.

Even ailments were said to have been cured by the wonders of hair and old superstitions. One granny tale suggests that if a child is ailing with asthma, you must “Drill a hole in a black oak or sourwood tree just above the head of the victim, put a lock of his/her hair in the hole sealing it with wax afterwards. Once the child passes the spot in height, they will be cured.” This tale also warned caretakers to be sure not to cut down the tree — I’ll leave the result of that to the imagination.

Here in Appalachia, many superstitions suggested that hair should be cut on a particular day and never after sundown. Disposal of hair was also important; many believed it was to be burned. Hair was/is sacred and could be used against you. If a bird used your hair to create or add to its nest, lore implied that you would be stricken with headaches. The tighter the nest was weaved the worse off you could be.

The Victorian Era or Second Industrial Revolution was noted for its resurgence of women and men wearing hair jewelry. Not only was hair revered as a powerful characteristic, but also a meaningful and tangible token. Rings, necklaces, chains, pins, artwork, and more were carefully crafted and preserved for several occasions and meanings.

Queen Victoria of England (Victorian Era 1837-1901) helped popularize new mourning practices which included wearing jewelry or carrying tokens that contained hair of the dearly departed. These tangible reminders helped the grieving process loss without losing the person entirely. Often lovers would give hair jewelry as a way of being remembered while not together. The crafting of the actual jewelry was detail-oriented and was quickly labeled as an appropriate activity for upper-class women and men. Master hair artisans opened up shop creating refined hairwork that often consisted of precious metals and stones.

While the practice of wearing hair jewelry has fallen out of favor, saving hair as a token of love and remembrance has not.

One 1945 Beulah High School yearbook in the museum collection has a page full of clipped hair. Jessie Snow Chilton clipped and gathered hair from her friends to commemorate their year in school. Each bunch of hair is labeled and placed neatly within the yearbook’s pages. Jessie went on to open Glamour Beauty Shop, which was operated from the early 1950s to the mid-1960s on Main Street in Mount Airy.

Recently Chad and Debbie Taylor donated a trunk belonging to Chad’s mother, Ethel Booker Taylor, that contained two bunches on hair. One a long reddish-brown and a smaller blonde clipping. We are unsure who these clippings belonged to, or why they were saved.

No matter the reason, be it for love, superstition, religion, loss, or friendship, hair has unknowingly played an important role in our lives.

In the years following the Civil War, African Americans gained their freedom from slavery. Families that had been enslaved their entire lives were now free to pursue their dreams and create their own paths. These groups began to spread out over the country, even to create a home in Surry County, an area that had been developed by white landowners for a little more than a hundred years at this point.

The first free African Americans to settle in Surry County came in 1889, though the history surrounding the first settlements is muddy due to a lack of records from the time. The settlement began in the area known as Chestnut Ridge, a section of modern-day Westfield. Perhaps the most noteworthy of the settlers, George Robert McArthur II, bought about 23-1/2 acres of land in 1899 for about 50 cents per acre, eventually spreading out to a further 93-1/2 acres.

Over time, the community would grow into a self-sufficient farming combine. The members of the Chestnut Ridge community would farm, build, and clear land for expansion, being quoted as being able to “raise a cabin in one week.” McArthur’s farm became big enough that local farmers, both black and white, would come help in their tobacco barn every Sunday during curing season.

In 1904, the community would build what is now known as the Chestnut Ridge Progressive Primitive Baptist Church, led under the teachings of the nearby Locust Grove Primitive Baptist Church, in which they shared a building. A few years later, in 1907, the group found themselves locked out of the original church, citing doctrinal differences. Later that year, they were able to purchase the plot where the church currently stands for $25. The church still stands today, and you can see it as you drive Highway 89 into Westfield.

Chestnut Ridge got its name from the large number of chestnut trees that the farmers had on their land. The chestnut trees were used to create housing shingles, and chestnuts were sold by the cup alongside the streets for 5 cents. A good number of African American farmers had claimed their territory in the Chestnut Ridge area by the 1920s, but the great depression would prove too much for a lot of them. Noted by Nathaniel McArthur, son of George, Virlen Jessup (a local farmer) lost his entire farm for less than $60 due to the state of the economy at the time.

Nathaniel would put forth an effort to preserve the history of the Chestnut Ridge Community, and in May of 2003, a memorial was dedicated to the founding African American farmers of the area. A celebration was had, and more than 300 people showed up to its dedication. Then governor Mike Easley noted “Their perseverance and commitment to excellence served them well. These same traits have passed down from generation to generation. It is fitting, therefore, to honor their legacy.”

The site can now be found on McCarthur Road (another historical spelling of McArthur), with a memory garden and historical placards.

Michael Morgan is a resident of Westfield with his wife Emily. He is a graduate of Appalachian State, and is a network technician for SouthData Inc. in Mount Airy.

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