April 14, 2008
Out of our Past
Compiled by Bill Moose
Twenty-five years ago: Record & Landmark, April 14-20, 1983
“Since March 1982 the Iredell County Department of Social Services has distributed 57,480 pounds of cheese and 9,448 pounds of butter to persons eligible for food stamps. Donald Wall, director of social services, said new eligibility criteria will open up the program to a lot more people, including everyone 60 years or older.” (4/14/83)
“The Iredell County Board of Health approved a 1983-84 budget resolution on Thursday for $1,363,605. Although not stated in the budget, William D. Marshburn, health director, said the number one priority is a new building. ‘I hope fate will shine on us favorably,’ he said, attributing the success of the department under poor conditions to the dedicated staff.” (4/15/83)
“The Ink Spots, with Eddie Tigner, are coming to Statesville on Monday. This appearance will not be the first for the Ink Spots in Statesville. A number of years ago they appeared at the Vance Hotel in conjunction with the opening of the hotel’s supper club. The local concert will be held in MacGray Auditorium. All proceeds will go to benefit the YMCA.” (4/16/83)
“Snow, reported early in the morning in the North Iredell area, started falling in Statesville shortly before 8 a.m. today and, at noon, rooftops and many sections of lawns were under a blanket of white.” (4/18/83)
“After listening to the Iredell County Board of Education and school administrators outline the projected needs of the system in 1983-84, Joe Troutman, chairman of the Iredell County Board of Commissioners, said Monday night he would like to see a county school district, with taxing authority, created. ‘If we have a Mooresville Graded School District and a Statesville School District why can’t we have an Iredell County School District with a tax levy of certain amounts, which would get you on an equal footing?’” (4/19/83)
“Three Statesville residents participated in and finished the Boston Marathon Monday. Randy Cockerham posted a time of 2:44 and led the Statesville group. Gil Roth had a time of 2:55 for the event and Bill Brinkley finished the marathon in 3:16.” (4/20/83)
Fifty years ago: Record & Landmark, April 14-20, 1958
“Iredell County Republican party officials have called a meeting for Thursday evening in the ballroom of Vance Hotel for the purpose of completing the county ticket. A.Z. Goforth said today Republicans are hoping to have 10 candidates for county commissioners and will have a primary for the first time in many years.” (4/14/58)
“Four students took top awards in the annual Science Fair for Iredell County Negro Schools. In the senior classification, James Robert Smith won the physical science division with an electronic computer he constructed. Winning entry in the biological science division was a collection of North Carolina wildlife exhibits by a group of students head by Ada Glaspy. Rudy Summers took first place in the biological science division, junior classification, with a reconstructed anatomy of a cat. Winner in the physical science division was Maxie Houston, Jr., who displayed models of helicopters.” (4/15/58)
“Vance McLean, the ‘auto magnate of South Statesville,’ said he was ‘most delighted’ with the way his cars have been moving the past few days. It is, he said, ‘great to be a Chrysler dealer, great to be a Rambler dealer, and great to be a Statesville dealer.” (4/16/58)
“Supt. S.H. Helton said today that no complaints about lunchroom menus in the county schools have come to his office. However, there have been reports that in at least one of the schools, students are staging a mild boycott of the lunchroom in protest over monotony in the menus.” (4/17/58)
“Rightfielder Harlis Turman’s seventh-inning triple, scoring Freddie Ramsey from first base, gave the Morningside Golden Tigers a 7-6 win over Gastonia’s Highland High yesterday on Morningside Field. The Tigers continued their home run barrage with centerfielder Dewey Tucker smashing one into the centerfield bleachers in the third.” (4/18/58)
Fire Capt. W.G. Lazenby received a painful hand injury this morning while working with a hose reel at the scene of a fire. Capt. Lazenby reached up to trip a latch on the hose reel and his finger was mashed severely. He was rushed to Iredell Memorial Hospital where the end of his finger was removed. He will be a patient at the hospital for several days.” (4/19/58)
Seventy-five years ago: Statesville Record, April 14 and 18, 1933
Eavesdropper: “We’ve been told that a group of local gay ladies celebrated the national beer law by starting in to guzzle a case of new three-two beer just after the clock struck midnight on April 6th. Displaying a commendable respect for national, if not state, laws. We’ve been trying to learn who participated in the celebration so that we would know at whom we might feel offended for their failure to invite us to join them. Not that we would have accepted, of course, but our feelings are hurt for not evening having been asked.” (4/14/33)
Eavesdropper: “To those of us who love harmony the thoughts of ‘bad blood’ arising between two prominent county officials would prompt us to throw oil upon troubled waters. Roy Plott claims he is getting might tired of people mistaking him for Godfrey Kimball and greeting him in the court house hall as ‘Sheriff.’ ‘Because,’ he sez, ‘I’m a much better looking man than Godfrey Kimball.’ Of course, the Sheriff takes issue with that claim, and cited the case of a man who made that mistake, admitting later he thought that Godfrey was looking bad.” (4/14/33)
“The annual Easter egg hunt on the grounds surrounding the American Legion hut on East Broad street Monday afternoon was an inspiring sight. The hunt began at 4 o’clock when hundreds of little folk were told to go to it. There were eggs of all sorts and colors, all shapes and sizes, hen eggs, guinea eggs, goose eggs, duck eggs – anything that bore a shell. And some of the old codgers standing by chuckled when the saw some of the crafty youngsters pitting their guinea eggs (with harder shells) in ‘cracking for keeps.’” (4/18/33)
“The Nu-Way Shoe Shop moved Monday to new and larger quarters at 114 East Broad Street, two doors above its former location. The interior of the building has been renovated, and the quarters provide sufficient floor space for a convenient arrangement of equipment. The shop is operated by Guy Cornacchione.” (4/18/33)
“Sergeant Edgar Daniels of the local cavalry troop took four horses to the Charlotte Horse Show Saturday and carried away four places in the contests. Jimmie Play Boy, pride of the local cavalry, was ridden by Sergeant Daniels to two first places and one second.” (4/18/33)
One hundred years ago: Landmark, April 17, 1908
“Mayor Grier was reminded yesterday that notwithstanding the ‘panic’ and the fact that ‘Statesville is a prohibition town,’ every store room in town is occupied; every room in the new block being built on Center street was engaged before the ground for the building was broken and people are still clamoring for business houses and store rooms. He received a letter yesterday from a gentleman in another town who wanted to rent a storeroom here and the mayor was forced to answer that no room is available.”
“The Republican primaries will be held in this county tomorrow afternoon at 3 o’clock and the county convention meets Tuesday, 21st, instead of Monday, as previously stated. The first ward primary will be held at the fire department headquarters, the second ward on the second floor of the First National Bank, the third ward at the court house and the fourth ward at the opera house.”
“Messrs. R.K. Gregory and Rhoid Foster, who recently bought the bowling alley outfit at Taylorsville, have rented additional space in the basement of the Hotel Iredell building and will move the alley here at once. It will be operated in connection with their pool room and café. The carpenters are at work installing the Gem theatre bowling alley.”
“Statesville was visited by a sharp thunder and rainstorm Wednesday night and now the Easter cold snap is on.”
“On account of the bad weather yesterday afternoon the meeting of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, at the First Baptist church, was attended by a small number of ladies and nothing of importance was done.”
“Messrs. A.F. Horton and Ralph Sloan left yesterday morning in the former’s automobile for Danville, Va. Considering the condition of the roads it is doubtful as to when they will reach Danville.”
One hundred twenty-five years ago: Landmark, April 20, 1883
“Rev. J.T. Harris, pastor of the Methodist church, not content with having lifted, since the first of Janaury, the debt of $1150 which he found upon the church when he took charge of it, now has plans for the building of a beautiful and symmetrical tower at the right hand corner, front, not only to hold a new bell, which it is proposed to buy, but to add to the appearance of the building. The tower, if built, will be very high, running to a spire.”
“One of the largest and most prosperous branches of business in this place is the wholesale liquor trade. Three houses in this business here ship thousands of gallons, monthly, of pure North Carolina corn whiskey, peach and apple brandy, North, South, East and West.”
“The horned snake which was sent us last week from Mt. Mourne, has attracted a vast amount of attention. Probably not less than 200 persons have been up to see it. Half of them had, however, of course, seen many more remarkable, and our walls have echoed and re-echoed snake lies, one after another.”
