July 30, 2021 Coats Museum News
Last week we had a visitor to the museum who grew up in both Iowa and Illinois. A question he asked was how do you know so much about the people who lived in this area long ago? Of course, we quickly responded that we had researched the history of our area through countless resources and had found the Daily Record Library in Dunn to be very helpful as we spent about three years there reading, taking notes and pictures in old newspapers .We shared that we had spent hours in the Johnston County Heritage Center, the Cumberland County and Harnett County Register of Deeds offices and in the NC Archives in Raleigh. We read family genealogies, various county heritage editions and books written by Coats and Harnett writers. We had conducted interviews, read letters, wills and the list could go on. All of our research resulted in the publishing of a 2 volume, 1200 page book about the Coats Grove area. By the way, I use a section of the “Heritage of Coats, NC” book -“There and Back on a Paper Canoe” as a source for the Coats Museum News column. New information given to us by visitors to our museum also goes into the column.
Where am I heading with this? Most weeks in Wanda Pollard’s “Social Notes from Coats”, Wanda shared with her Daily Record readers the deaths, birthdays, anniversaries and even health information about people connected to the Coats area. Years from now, who knows—maybe a great grandchild will read about their relatives who lived in Coats –pretty much how we know who lived in Coats at different time periods of the town and shared about them in the “Heritage of Coats, NC” and the “Coats Museum News.”
In her notes on November 11, 1987, Wanda shared that birthday wishes went to Kathy Grey Peede, Ruby Weaver, Elsa Sears, Delphia Norris, Josie Lynn Currin, Heather Ennis, Grace P. Carroll, Ashley S. Grimes, Ronnie Byrd, Kenneth Ennis, Charles Regan, Delores Stone, Julia B. Gregory, Thurman Garriss, Marla Langdon, Debbie Wagner, Dorothy Penny, Jennifer Penny, Alice Ann Roberts, Ronald Avery, Alicia Dixon and Amanda Dixon. Anniversary wishes went to Mr. and Mrs. Craig Matthews, Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Stewart, and Mr. and Mrs. McRay Stewart.
M.O. Phillips reported for the Daily Record November 12, 1987 edition that Coats citizens and the CACC met to form a Coats Development Group for the following purposes: to improve the community as a good place to live and work; to promote and enhance new and existing businesses and to make a profit. Shares could be purchased at $10.00 per share and all shareholders would have a voice in the decision making process of the organization.
The Board o f Directors members were Carsie Denning, Sr., president; Judy Turlington, vice president; Tim Brown, treasurer; Mack Reid Hudson, Ann Jones, N. Earl Jones, Jr., J.D. Norris, M.O. Phillips, Billy G. Pope, Randy Rambeau, Sr., Wade Stephenson, Eugene Stewart, and Mary Denning, secretary.
The same edition of the Daily Record listed the Coats Midget cheerleaders as being Brandy Pollard, Vanessa Dorman, Laura Malone, Felicia Parrish, Angela Warren, Christy Wood, Dena Denning, Jatana Byrd, Cara Avery, Diane Stewart, Mandy Dixon, and Laine Coats.
The Coats Pee Wee football cheerleaders were Allison Langdon, Natalie Stevens, Angela Barnes, Blair Wiggins, Heather Flowers, Mandy Parrish, Hilary Brown, Tammy Glover, Melissa Byrd, Missy Barnes, Elizabeth Royal, Mandy Messer, Lori Barnes and Tanya Lucas.
The CACC elected Ann Jones, president; Randy Rambeau, vice president; Margaret House, secretary; and Dottie Bowden, treasurer. The chamber also welcomed new members to the board- Dee Kelly (a 2-year term replacing Terry Miller), Sue Penny (a 2- year term replacing Margaret House), Jeff Turlington, M.T. Strickland and Earl Jones.
Other reports were about grants received for the town such as $330,000 for housing renovation; a grant to extend water line on NC 27, and an additional $8,000 grant for the Senior Center (Daily Record Nov. 17, 1987).
We will now have a new lady sharing the Coats news to the readers of the Daily Record. Belle Williams wrote her first notes from Coats on November 18, 1987. She began by wishing Wanda Pollard, former writer, the best in her new position at Campbell University Alumni Office.
Belle extended sympathy to the families of Herbert Causey and Mrs. Flonnie Byrd. Get Well Wishes went to Mrs. Florence Adams and Mrs. Ruby Johnson who were both home from the Good Hope Hospital. Sixteen family members surprised Mrs. Lucy Weaver with a birthday supper at Captains Kitchen in Dunn. Who remembers that restaurant? Was there an anchor on the outside of the building?
Speaking of pleasant surprises, Effie Turlington and Gerri Honeycutt had lunch with their grandson, Kyle Turlington, on Grandparents’ Day at Harnett Primary. A few folks from Coats had traveled a little more distance. Wilma Byrd, Katherine Strickland, Dallas Johnson and Eva Johnson had just returned from visiting friends and sightseeing in New Orleans. Mrs. Magdalene Pleasant evidently didn’t have any time for vacationing. She had just earned her diploma and nurse’s aide one and two from Central Carolina Technical College (all at the same time).
Belle sent birthday wishes to Charles Ennis, Ann Smith, Randy Mize, Alice Roberts, Rebecca Turlington, Brenda Maynard, Helen Norris, Graymon Powell, Tom Faircloth, Mary Barnes, Stephanie Williford and Teresa McLamb. Those celebrating anniversaries were Mr. and Mrs. Dan Stewart and Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Keene (Daily Record Nov. 18, 1987).
Delbert Lockamy presented an US flag to the Coats town officials from the Coats Junior Order of American Mechanics. On hand to accept the flag was Mayor Pro Tem J.D. Norris (Daily Record Nov. 19, 1987).
Ebenezer Presbyterian Church at Bailey’s Crossroads was making plans for their barbecue and craft sale. Rev. Warren Bock went on record as inviting everyone to attend.
Cornelia (Connie) Rose Williams, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Dixie Homer Williams, married William Charles (Chuck) Levorse of Fayetteville. The bride’s father was born and reared in Coats and the family restored the Williams home place (Daily Record Nov. 20, 1987).
The revisiting of history is not cheap. Very much like you have household expenses, the museum does also. Thanks to the generosity of many people who freely give donations and to others who honor or remember loved ones with donations, the museum is able to operate without fundraisers.
A special thank you this week goes to Gary Denning who remembered his friend Larry V. Stewart with a memorial and to H.L for memorializing both my mom- Alice Thornton Johnson- and Nell Penny Williams on their birthdays.
Last week we had a visitor to the museum who grew up in both Iowa and Illinois. A question he asked was how do you know so much about the people who lived in this area long ago? Of course, we quickly responded that we had researched the history of our area through countless resources and had found the Daily Record Library in Dunn to be very helpful as we spent about three years there reading, taking notes and pictures in old newspapers .We shared that we had spent hours in the Johnston County Heritage Center, the Cumberland County and Harnett County Register of Deeds offices and in the NC Archives in Raleigh. We read family genealogies, various county heritage editions and books written by Coats and Harnett writers. We had conducted interviews, read letters, wills and the list could go on. All of our research resulted in the publishing of a 2 volume, 1200 page book about the Coats Grove area. By the way, I use a section of the “Heritage of Coats, NC” book -“There and Back on a Paper Canoe” as a source for the Coats Museum News column. New information given to us by visitors to our museum also goes into the column.
Where am I heading with this? Most weeks in Wanda Pollard’s “Social Notes from Coats”, Wanda shared with her Daily Record readers the deaths, birthdays, anniversaries and even health information about people connected to the Coats area. Years from now, who knows—maybe a great grandchild will read about their relatives who lived in Coats –pretty much how we know who lived in Coats at different time periods of the town and shared about them in the “Heritage of Coats, NC” and the “Coats Museum News.”
In her notes on November 11, 1987, Wanda shared that birthday wishes went to Kathy Grey Peede, Ruby Weaver, Elsa Sears, Delphia Norris, Josie Lynn Currin, Heather Ennis, Grace P. Carroll, Ashley S. Grimes, Ronnie Byrd, Kenneth Ennis, Charles Regan, Delores Stone, Julia B. Gregory, Thurman Garriss, Marla Langdon, Debbie Wagner, Dorothy Penny, Jennifer Penny, Alice Ann Roberts, Ronald Avery, Alicia Dixon and Amanda Dixon. Anniversary wishes went to Mr. and Mrs. Craig Matthews, Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Stewart, and Mr. and Mrs. McRay Stewart.
M.O. Phillips reported for the Daily Record November 12, 1987 edition that Coats citizens and the CACC met to form a Coats Development Group for the following purposes: to improve the community as a good place to live and work; to promote and enhance new and existing businesses and to make a profit. Shares could be purchased at $10.00 per share and all shareholders would have a voice in the decision making process of the organization.
The Board o f Directors members were Carsie Denning, Sr., president; Judy Turlington, vice president; Tim Brown, treasurer; Mack Reid Hudson, Ann Jones, N. Earl Jones, Jr., J.D. Norris, M.O. Phillips, Billy G. Pope, Randy Rambeau, Sr., Wade Stephenson, Eugene Stewart, and Mary Denning, secretary.
The same edition of the Daily Record listed the Coats Midget cheerleaders as being Brandy Pollard, Vanessa Dorman, Laura Malone, Felicia Parrish, Angela Warren, Christy Wood, Dena Denning, Jatana Byrd, Cara Avery, Diane Stewart, Mandy Dixon, and Laine Coats.
The Coats Pee Wee football cheerleaders were Allison Langdon, Natalie Stevens, Angela Barnes, Blair Wiggins, Heather Flowers, Mandy Parrish, Hilary Brown, Tammy Glover, Melissa Byrd, Missy Barnes, Elizabeth Royal, Mandy Messer, Lori Barnes and Tanya Lucas.
The CACC elected Ann Jones, president; Randy Rambeau, vice president; Margaret House, secretary; and Dottie Bowden, treasurer. The chamber also welcomed new members to the board- Dee Kelly (a 2-year term replacing Terry Miller), Sue Penny (a 2- year term replacing Margaret House), Jeff Turlington, M.T. Strickland and Earl Jones.
Other reports were about grants received for the town such as $330,000 for housing renovation; a grant to extend water line on NC 27, and an additional $8,000 grant for the Senior Center (Daily Record Nov. 17, 1987).
We will now have a new lady sharing the Coats news to the readers of the Daily Record. Belle Williams wrote her first notes from Coats on November 18, 1987. She began by wishing Wanda Pollard, former writer, the best in her new position at Campbell University Alumni Office.
Belle extended sympathy to the families of Herbert Causey and Mrs. Flonnie Byrd. Get Well Wishes went to Mrs. Florence Adams and Mrs. Ruby Johnson who were both home from the Good Hope Hospital. Sixteen family members surprised Mrs. Lucy Weaver with a birthday supper at Captains Kitchen in Dunn. Who remembers that restaurant? Was there an anchor on the outside of the building?
Speaking of pleasant surprises, Effie Turlington and Gerri Honeycutt had lunch with their grandson, Kyle Turlington, on Grandparents’ Day at Harnett Primary. A few folks from Coats had traveled a little more distance. Wilma Byrd, Katherine Strickland, Dallas Johnson and Eva Johnson had just returned from visiting friends and sightseeing in New Orleans. Mrs. Magdalene Pleasant evidently didn’t have any time for vacationing. She had just earned her diploma and nurse’s aide one and two from Central Carolina Technical College (all at the same time).
Belle sent birthday wishes to Charles Ennis, Ann Smith, Randy Mize, Alice Roberts, Rebecca Turlington, Brenda Maynard, Helen Norris, Graymon Powell, Tom Faircloth, Mary Barnes, Stephanie Williford and Teresa McLamb. Those celebrating anniversaries were Mr. and Mrs. Dan Stewart and Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Keene (Daily Record Nov. 18, 1987).
Delbert Lockamy presented an US flag to the Coats town officials from the Coats Junior Order of American Mechanics. On hand to accept the flag was Mayor Pro Tem J.D. Norris (Daily Record Nov. 19, 1987).
Ebenezer Presbyterian Church at Bailey’s Crossroads was making plans for their barbecue and craft sale. Rev. Warren Bock went on record as inviting everyone to attend.
Cornelia (Connie) Rose Williams, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Dixie Homer Williams, married William Charles (Chuck) Levorse of Fayetteville. The bride’s father was born and reared in Coats and the family restored the Williams home place (Daily Record Nov. 20, 1987).
The revisiting of history is not cheap. Very much like you have household expenses, the museum does also. Thanks to the generosity of many people who freely give donations and to others who honor or remember loved ones with donations, the museum is able to operate without fundraisers.
A special thank you this week goes to Gary Denning who remembered his friend Larry V. Stewart with a memorial and to H.L for memorializing both my mom- Alice Thornton Johnson- and Nell Penny Williams on their birthdays.