April 22, 2022 Coats Museum News
The date printed on the Daily Record was January 22, 1990. News printed was that H.A. Turlington, Jr. had earned a Purple Heart in 1945 after he had received a concussion and acid burns from an exploding grenade during WWII in the Philippines. In 1990, he shared that he had been injured in battle while fighting for our country by displaying a car license tag that signified he was a Purple Heart recipient.
Belle in her Notes about Coats also wrote that Reggie Parrish, 84, of Coats had died on Friday. Surviving him were his two daughters-the former Glenda Parrish and Emma Lou Parrish. His services were held with Masonic rites at the Coats Baptist Church.
Did that family leave Coats to live in Newport News and if so, when did Mr. Reggie return to Coats? He did return to Coats for the 1985 Coats Reunion project because I met him and drove him down to the school from uptown. I had seen pictures of him as a young man with a head full of dark hair and when he told me his name, I was shocked because he had no hair at all. I always wondered if my facial expression showed my surprise when he told me his name.
I do know that the Johnson family on Johnson Road had added a new member. Frances Simone Patterson and Tommy Wayne Johnson were united in marriage at Mount Carmel PFWB in Dunn. She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James C. Patterson and Tommy was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Stacey Johnson, Sr. The Johnson relatives in the wedding were Marsha Johnson, Lenee Sorrell, Stacey, Jr., and Christopher Johnson.
Local officials were part of the debate on whether a cult in Satan Worship existed in Harnett County. They were concerned about a confirmed ceremonial site that was found last year about 2 miles south of Coats just off Highway 55. A noose hanging from a tree greeted arrivals. Inverted crosses, a circled pentagram, various faces and several sexual drawings were in the house along with pages ripped out of a Bible (Daily Record Jan. 24, 1990).
Mr. and Mrs. Joe H. Penny, Jr. celebrated their 52nd wedding anniversary on January 14th at their home near Coats. Their children-Jo Carol Dorman, Ron Penny and Hal Penny and their families celebrated the event.
In Coats, the CACC announced its Business Focus of the Week and it was Patsy’s Beauty Den. Patsy Matthews Joyner was the owner. Kris Norris Royals and Diane Williams Parker worked with Patsy (Daily Record Jan. 25, 1990). Don’t you bet those ladies had fun working with Patsy?
Ava Gardner, the famous Smithfield, NC born actress, died at age 67 from pneumonia. The beautiful actress died in London. Elsewhere, Donna Lynn Jones and Tony Morrison planned to marry on February 17th at Neill Creek Baptist Church. Donna was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James Jones and Tony’s father was Wesley Harvell of Coats.
Miss Bertha Westbrook, who was a familiar face on the Coats faculty for decades, was presented a certificate of appreciation by the Christian Woman’s Fellowship at Hood Memorial Church in Dunn (Daily Record Jan. 26, 1990).
Wonder if Miss Westbrook ever knew the impact she had on so many lives in her classroom. Tommy Young who helped build our book cases and exhibit cabinets for the museum once shared with us that Miss Westbrook was his hero and what a difference she had made in his life.
Betty Byrd White had been elected vice president of Wachovia Bank and Trust Company. She married Mackie White of Youngsville. She was daughter of James Clifton Byrd.
Other news coming out of Coats was that Danny West, C.P.A. and Whittington Associates had a ribbon cutting in Coats. Mary Hough Williams, 73, of Coats, had died on Friday. She was the widow of Cortez Williams. Surviving were her siblings-Carl Hough and Gladys Tyndall. (Her husband Cortez Williams was the first male graduate of Coats High School.)
The Harnett County Democratic women met with a large crowd in attendance. The meeting followed the Clarence McLamb Memorial Breakfast. Juanita Hudson and Faye Etheridge were in attendance. Elsewhere, Derek Barnes announced the birth of a son, Cory Barnes, at Rex Hospital. The mother was the former Lisa Williams, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Leon Williams. Mrs. Mina Williams was Lisa’s grandmother. Linda and Harold Barnes were Derick’s parents (Daily Record Jan. 29, 1990).
Jeff Turlington, of Coats, presented a check to Ellen Hedgepeth, also of Coats, for converting eroding cropland to grass. The State Cost Share Program assisted the landowners with 75% financial assistance on their land to improve water quality. Harnett County received $68,000 in the first statewide program (Daily Record Jan. 31, 1990).
Graham Turlington had served the people of Coats area for forty years. The U.S. Postal Service honored the Coats native for forty years of service to the Coats Post Office as a rural mail carrier. He had served the post office longer than any other employee and had worked in three different buildings under three different postmistresses. Graham had seen the number of rural mailboxes grow to 609 from 150. He began as a substitute carrier on March 22, 1951) (Daily Record Feb. 1, 1990).
Mr. and Mrs. Seth Lee had celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. The surprise luncheon was held at Pope’s Barn. Their son, Tommy Lee, gave the event that was attended by 55 family members. Mrs. Lee was the former Naomi Dixon (Daily Record Feb. 2, 1990).
She was the granddaughter of Ben and Alice Johnson who were also my grandparents. Naomi was a delight to talk to about her days of growing up in the rural area with my older sisters. She and her husband moved to VA. where Seth, Jr. was associated with the railroad. She has shared so many memories with me about her Johnson cousins who also left the farm to go to Washington, DC to build their lives. For those who know her would surely describe her as one classy lady who is over 100 years old.
Arson was the suspected cause of the fire that destroyed the abandoned house located off NC55, 2 miles south of Coats. The fire occurred less than two weeks after the Daily Record had linked it to the Satanism ceremonial ritualistic activities (Daily Record Feb. 5, 1990).
Question-was this house the former home of the late Stewart Turlington? Did Carl Turlington and his sister Thelma Turlington Wilson grow up in that house?
I do know this. We had a fun and productive last Thursday at the museum. Janie Ferguson Matthews and her friend dropped in to bring the Beasley genealogy for us to copy for the Research Library. Her cousin Freddie Beasley’s son Vince Beasley has put quite a bit of work into that family research.
We also had a short visit with Karen Ennis Parrish who dropped in to give the volunteers Easter baskets she had made for them to show her appreciation for the work they do at the museum. We thank you- Karen.
Former museum board member Myrtle Bridges and her daughter Janet also spent some time with the volunteers. She has loaned several new items for display in our exhibits. Both her Cobalt Blue Exhibit and the Depression Glass Exhibit get lots of attention from visitors. Have you ever seen a cigar press form? Drop by and see her new items on display.
The date printed on the Daily Record was January 22, 1990. News printed was that H.A. Turlington, Jr. had earned a Purple Heart in 1945 after he had received a concussion and acid burns from an exploding grenade during WWII in the Philippines. In 1990, he shared that he had been injured in battle while fighting for our country by displaying a car license tag that signified he was a Purple Heart recipient.
Belle in her Notes about Coats also wrote that Reggie Parrish, 84, of Coats had died on Friday. Surviving him were his two daughters-the former Glenda Parrish and Emma Lou Parrish. His services were held with Masonic rites at the Coats Baptist Church.
Did that family leave Coats to live in Newport News and if so, when did Mr. Reggie return to Coats? He did return to Coats for the 1985 Coats Reunion project because I met him and drove him down to the school from uptown. I had seen pictures of him as a young man with a head full of dark hair and when he told me his name, I was shocked because he had no hair at all. I always wondered if my facial expression showed my surprise when he told me his name.
I do know that the Johnson family on Johnson Road had added a new member. Frances Simone Patterson and Tommy Wayne Johnson were united in marriage at Mount Carmel PFWB in Dunn. She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James C. Patterson and Tommy was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Stacey Johnson, Sr. The Johnson relatives in the wedding were Marsha Johnson, Lenee Sorrell, Stacey, Jr., and Christopher Johnson.
Local officials were part of the debate on whether a cult in Satan Worship existed in Harnett County. They were concerned about a confirmed ceremonial site that was found last year about 2 miles south of Coats just off Highway 55. A noose hanging from a tree greeted arrivals. Inverted crosses, a circled pentagram, various faces and several sexual drawings were in the house along with pages ripped out of a Bible (Daily Record Jan. 24, 1990).
Mr. and Mrs. Joe H. Penny, Jr. celebrated their 52nd wedding anniversary on January 14th at their home near Coats. Their children-Jo Carol Dorman, Ron Penny and Hal Penny and their families celebrated the event.
In Coats, the CACC announced its Business Focus of the Week and it was Patsy’s Beauty Den. Patsy Matthews Joyner was the owner. Kris Norris Royals and Diane Williams Parker worked with Patsy (Daily Record Jan. 25, 1990). Don’t you bet those ladies had fun working with Patsy?
Ava Gardner, the famous Smithfield, NC born actress, died at age 67 from pneumonia. The beautiful actress died in London. Elsewhere, Donna Lynn Jones and Tony Morrison planned to marry on February 17th at Neill Creek Baptist Church. Donna was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James Jones and Tony’s father was Wesley Harvell of Coats.
Miss Bertha Westbrook, who was a familiar face on the Coats faculty for decades, was presented a certificate of appreciation by the Christian Woman’s Fellowship at Hood Memorial Church in Dunn (Daily Record Jan. 26, 1990).
Wonder if Miss Westbrook ever knew the impact she had on so many lives in her classroom. Tommy Young who helped build our book cases and exhibit cabinets for the museum once shared with us that Miss Westbrook was his hero and what a difference she had made in his life.
Betty Byrd White had been elected vice president of Wachovia Bank and Trust Company. She married Mackie White of Youngsville. She was daughter of James Clifton Byrd.
Other news coming out of Coats was that Danny West, C.P.A. and Whittington Associates had a ribbon cutting in Coats. Mary Hough Williams, 73, of Coats, had died on Friday. She was the widow of Cortez Williams. Surviving were her siblings-Carl Hough and Gladys Tyndall. (Her husband Cortez Williams was the first male graduate of Coats High School.)
The Harnett County Democratic women met with a large crowd in attendance. The meeting followed the Clarence McLamb Memorial Breakfast. Juanita Hudson and Faye Etheridge were in attendance. Elsewhere, Derek Barnes announced the birth of a son, Cory Barnes, at Rex Hospital. The mother was the former Lisa Williams, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Leon Williams. Mrs. Mina Williams was Lisa’s grandmother. Linda and Harold Barnes were Derick’s parents (Daily Record Jan. 29, 1990).
Jeff Turlington, of Coats, presented a check to Ellen Hedgepeth, also of Coats, for converting eroding cropland to grass. The State Cost Share Program assisted the landowners with 75% financial assistance on their land to improve water quality. Harnett County received $68,000 in the first statewide program (Daily Record Jan. 31, 1990).
Graham Turlington had served the people of Coats area for forty years. The U.S. Postal Service honored the Coats native for forty years of service to the Coats Post Office as a rural mail carrier. He had served the post office longer than any other employee and had worked in three different buildings under three different postmistresses. Graham had seen the number of rural mailboxes grow to 609 from 150. He began as a substitute carrier on March 22, 1951) (Daily Record Feb. 1, 1990).
Mr. and Mrs. Seth Lee had celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. The surprise luncheon was held at Pope’s Barn. Their son, Tommy Lee, gave the event that was attended by 55 family members. Mrs. Lee was the former Naomi Dixon (Daily Record Feb. 2, 1990).
She was the granddaughter of Ben and Alice Johnson who were also my grandparents. Naomi was a delight to talk to about her days of growing up in the rural area with my older sisters. She and her husband moved to VA. where Seth, Jr. was associated with the railroad. She has shared so many memories with me about her Johnson cousins who also left the farm to go to Washington, DC to build their lives. For those who know her would surely describe her as one classy lady who is over 100 years old.
Arson was the suspected cause of the fire that destroyed the abandoned house located off NC55, 2 miles south of Coats. The fire occurred less than two weeks after the Daily Record had linked it to the Satanism ceremonial ritualistic activities (Daily Record Feb. 5, 1990).
Question-was this house the former home of the late Stewart Turlington? Did Carl Turlington and his sister Thelma Turlington Wilson grow up in that house?
I do know this. We had a fun and productive last Thursday at the museum. Janie Ferguson Matthews and her friend dropped in to bring the Beasley genealogy for us to copy for the Research Library. Her cousin Freddie Beasley’s son Vince Beasley has put quite a bit of work into that family research.
We also had a short visit with Karen Ennis Parrish who dropped in to give the volunteers Easter baskets she had made for them to show her appreciation for the work they do at the museum. We thank you- Karen.
Former museum board member Myrtle Bridges and her daughter Janet also spent some time with the volunteers. She has loaned several new items for display in our exhibits. Both her Cobalt Blue Exhibit and the Depression Glass Exhibit get lots of attention from visitors. Have you ever seen a cigar press form? Drop by and see her new items on display.