July 13, 2012 Coats Museum News
The enumberators for the population census for Coats in 1930 had been Miss Brookie Stewart, Mrs. Elsie L. Garton and Mrs. Grace McKoy. These ladies had visited every house in Coats to come up with the total of 562 residents in Coats. The population of the town was decreased by one on May 20th when Mrs. Bettie Turnage Stewart, wife of John C. Stewart, died at her residence following an illness of only a few hours. Her death was not a shock because she had been in declining health for several years. The 46 year-old Mrs. Stewart was the daughter of C.J. Turnage and Frances Stone Turnage of Coats. She was a concentrated Christian woman reared in Coats. All who knew her loved her. She was a member of the Primitive Baptist Church and Elder O.S. Young officiated and her interment was in the Coats Cemetery beside her son Herman. Her surviving son was Carl Stewart and daughters were Mrs. Nadie Williams, Miss Bouis Stewart and Lela Stewart. Four sisters and three brothers also survived her: Mrs. Willie Gregory, Mrs. William Sheffield, Mrs. J.A. Giles, Mrs. Richard Boward (?), Mr. J. W. Turnage, Mr. W.D. Turnage and Mr. J.J. Turnage (Harnett County News May 20, 1930).
Death visited another Stewart family in the area. Mrs. W.E. Stewart of Dunn, Route 3, had died on Thursday, June 12 at the age of 42 after a long illness during which she was a most appreciative recipient of many kindnesses. She was survived by her husband and four children: Leon Stewart, Waylon Stewart, Willie Mae Stewart and Mrs. Wilbert Strickland. Five sisters were Mesdames Dallas Mitchell of Angier, Route 2, Mack Cannady, J.F. Cannady of Coats, Lenn Byrd of Erwin, and Hubert Reardon of Buies Creek.. Buddy Brown of Lillington was her brother (Harnett County News June 26, 1930).
The Coats Town Board met on June 3, 1930 and issued a license to sell radios for one year to Berle (Burl) Barnes. The board voted to pay up rent for use of the house for town meetings and to pay the mayor and commissioners. The clerk, T.H. Grimes, saved the town $181.95 on the town light bill due to burned out lights. T.H. Grimes was given $25 to cover gas, oil and trouble counting lights (Coats town board meeting minutes, June 3, 1930). Can you imagine the bookkeeping nightmare if all towns had similar problems with burned out lights reimbursements?
The death of Alton Stewart on Christmas day of 1929 had resulted in the pilot’s wife filing her plea with the Industrial Commission for compensation under the Workmen’s Compensation Act. She was asking for $6,250.00 (Harnett County News June 26, 1930).
On the county level, the residents of Lillington were required to buy a tag for their vehicles. The cost was one dollar-“Dollar’s worth of pride”. The town policemen were to arrest those who failed to comply and a few were trying the patience of the officials (Harnett County News September 18, 1930).
On the local scene, J.B. Ennis had received 273 votes in Grove for the Harnett County Board of Commissioners (Harnett County News October 12, 1930). There were also three Republicans who were seeking seats for public office. Stuart (Stewart) Turlington for commissioner, B.F. McLeod for Judge of Recorder’s Court, and J.M. Byrd for N.C. Legislature (Harnett County News October 23, 1930).
This was at the same time that Ruth Wakefield in her inn called Tollhouse first made chocolate chip cookies. That was the beginning of “Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookies”. However in Coats, a group of citizens were attending the funeral of little Gladys Stewart Fuquay. Do you recognize the names of the following who were at the funeral: Mrs. J.N. Fuquay, Mrs. John D. Johnson, Miss Annie Burt, Misses Mabel Burt and Estelle Burt and Mrs. Claud Burt of Buies Creek (Harnett County News November 2, 1930)?
December had arrived in 1930 and notices to serve on the January docket of the Harnett County Superior Court had been given in Grove. Haywood Ennis, Bernard Ennis, A.T. Avery, A.W. Beasley, and John W. Weaver would have to brave the cold of January for their trip to Lillington. It was also the week that the marriage of Mrs. Edna Thomas Roberts of Coats to Dr. James R. Butler was announced in the Harnett County News December 4, 1930 edition. The widow of Dr. Harry C. Roberts married Dr. Butler of Dunn in the Presbyterian Church in Raleigh. The bride was becomingly attired in a blue velvet chiffon with matching accessories. The couple would make their home in Dunn.
Do you ever hear some of the older citizens say that school has changed so much from when they attended it. They often talk of the rigidity of their teachers. Do you think that any of the following might have been remembered as being very strict: Owen Odum, Mr. James T. Lewis, Miss Ellen Broadwell, Miss Ludie Lee, Miss Lillian Johnson, Mrs. Dennis Arnold, Mrs. Mattie Highfill, Miss Maisie Patterson, Miss Blannie Betts, Miss Ada Burt, Mrs. J.B. Williams, Miss Willa Horton, Miss Jane S. Howell , Miss Rosie Edwards, Miss Nina Brickhouse, Miss Ruth Hudson and Miss Delestine Tyner at Coats and Mrs. J.E. Wright, Miss Bevie Johnson, Miss Esther Morgan, Mrs .Mamie Johnson and Miss June Ritter at Oakdale School on the county line near Norris’s Crossroads (Harnett County News December 11, 1930)? Were there no more male teachers in 1930?
Read next week to learn of the events that confronted the folks during the hard times and be surprised at some tidbits of that year occurring in our county and nation.
Contributions that went to the Coats Museum Endowment to honor the memories of Isobel Wolf and Lamas Denning are appreciated and will continue to increase the fund to support the upkeep of the Coats Museum in future years. Also, a special thank you goes to the family who gave a paver for the walkway at the museum to honor the memory of Lamas and Janie Denning. A special thank you the donors of the television and video equipment for the Theater Welcome Room. We hope that everyone in the community will drop by between 10:00 and 12:00 on Saturday morning for the Bare Walls Preview Brunch to see the new expansion project at the museum.
Please be mindful that this Coats Museum News appeared in the Daily Record on July 13, 2012.
The enumberators for the population census for Coats in 1930 had been Miss Brookie Stewart, Mrs. Elsie L. Garton and Mrs. Grace McKoy. These ladies had visited every house in Coats to come up with the total of 562 residents in Coats. The population of the town was decreased by one on May 20th when Mrs. Bettie Turnage Stewart, wife of John C. Stewart, died at her residence following an illness of only a few hours. Her death was not a shock because she had been in declining health for several years. The 46 year-old Mrs. Stewart was the daughter of C.J. Turnage and Frances Stone Turnage of Coats. She was a concentrated Christian woman reared in Coats. All who knew her loved her. She was a member of the Primitive Baptist Church and Elder O.S. Young officiated and her interment was in the Coats Cemetery beside her son Herman. Her surviving son was Carl Stewart and daughters were Mrs. Nadie Williams, Miss Bouis Stewart and Lela Stewart. Four sisters and three brothers also survived her: Mrs. Willie Gregory, Mrs. William Sheffield, Mrs. J.A. Giles, Mrs. Richard Boward (?), Mr. J. W. Turnage, Mr. W.D. Turnage and Mr. J.J. Turnage (Harnett County News May 20, 1930).
Death visited another Stewart family in the area. Mrs. W.E. Stewart of Dunn, Route 3, had died on Thursday, June 12 at the age of 42 after a long illness during which she was a most appreciative recipient of many kindnesses. She was survived by her husband and four children: Leon Stewart, Waylon Stewart, Willie Mae Stewart and Mrs. Wilbert Strickland. Five sisters were Mesdames Dallas Mitchell of Angier, Route 2, Mack Cannady, J.F. Cannady of Coats, Lenn Byrd of Erwin, and Hubert Reardon of Buies Creek.. Buddy Brown of Lillington was her brother (Harnett County News June 26, 1930).
The Coats Town Board met on June 3, 1930 and issued a license to sell radios for one year to Berle (Burl) Barnes. The board voted to pay up rent for use of the house for town meetings and to pay the mayor and commissioners. The clerk, T.H. Grimes, saved the town $181.95 on the town light bill due to burned out lights. T.H. Grimes was given $25 to cover gas, oil and trouble counting lights (Coats town board meeting minutes, June 3, 1930). Can you imagine the bookkeeping nightmare if all towns had similar problems with burned out lights reimbursements?
The death of Alton Stewart on Christmas day of 1929 had resulted in the pilot’s wife filing her plea with the Industrial Commission for compensation under the Workmen’s Compensation Act. She was asking for $6,250.00 (Harnett County News June 26, 1930).
On the county level, the residents of Lillington were required to buy a tag for their vehicles. The cost was one dollar-“Dollar’s worth of pride”. The town policemen were to arrest those who failed to comply and a few were trying the patience of the officials (Harnett County News September 18, 1930).
On the local scene, J.B. Ennis had received 273 votes in Grove for the Harnett County Board of Commissioners (Harnett County News October 12, 1930). There were also three Republicans who were seeking seats for public office. Stuart (Stewart) Turlington for commissioner, B.F. McLeod for Judge of Recorder’s Court, and J.M. Byrd for N.C. Legislature (Harnett County News October 23, 1930).
This was at the same time that Ruth Wakefield in her inn called Tollhouse first made chocolate chip cookies. That was the beginning of “Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookies”. However in Coats, a group of citizens were attending the funeral of little Gladys Stewart Fuquay. Do you recognize the names of the following who were at the funeral: Mrs. J.N. Fuquay, Mrs. John D. Johnson, Miss Annie Burt, Misses Mabel Burt and Estelle Burt and Mrs. Claud Burt of Buies Creek (Harnett County News November 2, 1930)?
December had arrived in 1930 and notices to serve on the January docket of the Harnett County Superior Court had been given in Grove. Haywood Ennis, Bernard Ennis, A.T. Avery, A.W. Beasley, and John W. Weaver would have to brave the cold of January for their trip to Lillington. It was also the week that the marriage of Mrs. Edna Thomas Roberts of Coats to Dr. James R. Butler was announced in the Harnett County News December 4, 1930 edition. The widow of Dr. Harry C. Roberts married Dr. Butler of Dunn in the Presbyterian Church in Raleigh. The bride was becomingly attired in a blue velvet chiffon with matching accessories. The couple would make their home in Dunn.
Do you ever hear some of the older citizens say that school has changed so much from when they attended it. They often talk of the rigidity of their teachers. Do you think that any of the following might have been remembered as being very strict: Owen Odum, Mr. James T. Lewis, Miss Ellen Broadwell, Miss Ludie Lee, Miss Lillian Johnson, Mrs. Dennis Arnold, Mrs. Mattie Highfill, Miss Maisie Patterson, Miss Blannie Betts, Miss Ada Burt, Mrs. J.B. Williams, Miss Willa Horton, Miss Jane S. Howell , Miss Rosie Edwards, Miss Nina Brickhouse, Miss Ruth Hudson and Miss Delestine Tyner at Coats and Mrs. J.E. Wright, Miss Bevie Johnson, Miss Esther Morgan, Mrs .Mamie Johnson and Miss June Ritter at Oakdale School on the county line near Norris’s Crossroads (Harnett County News December 11, 1930)? Were there no more male teachers in 1930?
Read next week to learn of the events that confronted the folks during the hard times and be surprised at some tidbits of that year occurring in our county and nation.
Contributions that went to the Coats Museum Endowment to honor the memories of Isobel Wolf and Lamas Denning are appreciated and will continue to increase the fund to support the upkeep of the Coats Museum in future years. Also, a special thank you goes to the family who gave a paver for the walkway at the museum to honor the memory of Lamas and Janie Denning. A special thank you the donors of the television and video equipment for the Theater Welcome Room. We hope that everyone in the community will drop by between 10:00 and 12:00 on Saturday morning for the Bare Walls Preview Brunch to see the new expansion project at the museum.
Please be mindful that this Coats Museum News appeared in the Daily Record on July 13, 2012.
