June 1, 2012 Coats Museum News
The Coats girls’ basketball team continued its winning streak when the girls defeated the Benson girls. Were these Benson girls from Benson High School or was Coats playing Oakdale which was formerly the Ennis School? Vallie Coats led the scoring for the Coats team with 24 points while Grace Penny had 14 and Alice Godwin had 16. Ruth Hudson was the Coats girls’ coach (Harnett County News March 7, 1929).
A few weeks later, William Andrew Stewart, prominent citizen of Coats, died on a Saturday following a short illness. Paralysis was said to be the cause of his death. For some time, he had made his home with his daughter, Mrs. Troy Stewart, and it was in her home that he had died. He was a member of one of the most prominent families in the Coats community. He was an honorable member of the Junior Order of American Mechanics and his lodge members served as pallbearers. His funeral and interment were at Prospect Church with Dr. J.A. Campbell preaching. There was a large crowd and many beautiful floral offerings were given. Mr. Stewart was survived by five sons-Claude, Rastus, Hoke, Shell, and Telton. His daughters were Mrs. Troy Stewart, Mrs. F.T. Tart, and Mrs. W.C. West (Harnett County News March 21, 1929).
Do any of you have a special memory of a school field trip? Did students go on field trips before 1929? According to the Harnett County News March 21, 1929 edition, 75 students from Coats School made an educational trip to Raleigh. Mr. J. T. Lewis, Miss Newton, Miss Broadwell, and Miss Betts led the students to the capitol where they were introduced by Representative John McKay Byrd of Coats. They made stops at the museum, Hall of History, and the penitentiary where David Wood was buckled into the electric chair that the group might see how it operated. Could that happen today in 2012?
The students had lunch at Pullen Park. After eating, the group went to the Blind Institute and to Dorothea Dix Hospital where the group was fascinated by the size of the kitchen stoves and the convenient kitchen.
The students were given two hours of free time to go where they pleased. Several went to see a vita phone. Do you know what a vita phone is? Lastly, the group toured the News and Observer (Harnett County News March 21, 1929).Are you thinking I have a lot of questions that I could ask about that field trip?
Additional activities at Coats School were published in the paper in the March 21, 1929 issue. The Literary Club at the school met on March 14th and three of the most interesting numbers were recitations by Onea Gregory, a declamation by Felton Ennis, and the debate: Resolved that Coats School should have more recreational advantages. Sound familiar? Kenneth Kelly was the best negative side and Rayline Parrish was the best affirmative side.
On March 15, 1929, the Primary Department at Coats School gave the operetta, “Cinderella in Flower Land” The four scenes were performed on the stage, which was decorated as a woodland scene. The dainty costumes added to the beauty of the little characters. Supported by the sunbeams, butterflies, and raindrops, Pauline Cobb as a daisy won her audience. Mary Susan Nichols as Tiger Lilly, Helen Grimes as Hollyhock, Audrey Louis Wood as Robin and Joe Stewart as the prince played their parts well. The Godmother Madeline Keene, Bonnie Lee and John Sorrell, Jr. added much to the operetta. Without the beautiful little fairy, Annie Ruth Wood, “Cinderella in Flower Land” would not have been complete.
The school news reported that Marie Sorrell of the junior class was at home after an operation at Good Hope Hospital for appendicitis. Do you suppose she was in the new part just built?
I do know that on March 18th, the students were entertained with five bears-one weighing 500 pounds and the largest in captivity. Three students from the audience were asked to volunteer to wrestle the bear. William Patterson, Bruce Langdon, and Edd Ennis put up some good struggles for a few minutes. Would you believe that two of those fellows –Patterson and Langdon-later became medical doctors?
For years, the Harnett County Schools had held county commencement exercises. However in 1929, Superintendent B.F. Gentry announced that there would be no commencement that year. One reason for abandonment of the events was the shortage of county funds. There was only $82,707.94 in the county’s education fund and $40,000 per month was needed to operate the schools. A second reason was that principals of the larger schools viewed that little was to be derived from the commencement. The superintendent stated that very few of the smaller schools participated anyway (Harnett County News March 21, 1929). What is your feeling on this?
How sad it was for the J.W.Tadlock family of Route 5, Dunn, N.C. when 17-year-old John Tadlock had died of injuries he had received in an automobile accident. Another young man by the name of Byrd was in Good Hope Hospital in Erwin with back and head injuries sustained in the same accident which had occurred on Highway 22 between Benson and Dunn. A truck that they were riding on the running board came into contact with a car by hitting the wheels (Harnett County News March 21, 1929).
Do you think that maybe Tadlock and Byrd had been on that field trip to Raleigh? I do know that the Harnett County Board of Commissioners named a new Board of Road Commissioners for Harnett County. The term was for two years and the county commissioners replaced the late W.J. MacStewart with R.M. Coats of Grove Township in the second district (Harnett County News April 4, 1929).
For those readers who had relatives attending Coats School in 1929, read next week to see if any of them were listed on the honor roll, if they were in the ninth grade play, or if some were in a school operetta entitled “One Midsummer’s Day”. Also you will discover what Walter Ennis, B.F. Byrd, O.R. Simpson, J.A. Turlington, Joseph Marion Johnson, J.E. Byrd, J.M. Messer and F.L. Denning had in common in May of 1929.
The Class of 1952 Treasurer Peggy Senter presented to Hilda Pope of the Coats Museum a generous contribution to give the museum to honor the memory of three of the special friends from the Coats High School Class of 1952.Many of you remember Peggy from the years she spent at the Coats Motor Company. Thank you, CHS Class of 1952 for that donation.
Please be mindful that this Coats Museum News appeared in the Daily Record on June 1, 2012.
The Coats girls’ basketball team continued its winning streak when the girls defeated the Benson girls. Were these Benson girls from Benson High School or was Coats playing Oakdale which was formerly the Ennis School? Vallie Coats led the scoring for the Coats team with 24 points while Grace Penny had 14 and Alice Godwin had 16. Ruth Hudson was the Coats girls’ coach (Harnett County News March 7, 1929).
A few weeks later, William Andrew Stewart, prominent citizen of Coats, died on a Saturday following a short illness. Paralysis was said to be the cause of his death. For some time, he had made his home with his daughter, Mrs. Troy Stewart, and it was in her home that he had died. He was a member of one of the most prominent families in the Coats community. He was an honorable member of the Junior Order of American Mechanics and his lodge members served as pallbearers. His funeral and interment were at Prospect Church with Dr. J.A. Campbell preaching. There was a large crowd and many beautiful floral offerings were given. Mr. Stewart was survived by five sons-Claude, Rastus, Hoke, Shell, and Telton. His daughters were Mrs. Troy Stewart, Mrs. F.T. Tart, and Mrs. W.C. West (Harnett County News March 21, 1929).
Do any of you have a special memory of a school field trip? Did students go on field trips before 1929? According to the Harnett County News March 21, 1929 edition, 75 students from Coats School made an educational trip to Raleigh. Mr. J. T. Lewis, Miss Newton, Miss Broadwell, and Miss Betts led the students to the capitol where they were introduced by Representative John McKay Byrd of Coats. They made stops at the museum, Hall of History, and the penitentiary where David Wood was buckled into the electric chair that the group might see how it operated. Could that happen today in 2012?
The students had lunch at Pullen Park. After eating, the group went to the Blind Institute and to Dorothea Dix Hospital where the group was fascinated by the size of the kitchen stoves and the convenient kitchen.
The students were given two hours of free time to go where they pleased. Several went to see a vita phone. Do you know what a vita phone is? Lastly, the group toured the News and Observer (Harnett County News March 21, 1929).Are you thinking I have a lot of questions that I could ask about that field trip?
Additional activities at Coats School were published in the paper in the March 21, 1929 issue. The Literary Club at the school met on March 14th and three of the most interesting numbers were recitations by Onea Gregory, a declamation by Felton Ennis, and the debate: Resolved that Coats School should have more recreational advantages. Sound familiar? Kenneth Kelly was the best negative side and Rayline Parrish was the best affirmative side.
On March 15, 1929, the Primary Department at Coats School gave the operetta, “Cinderella in Flower Land” The four scenes were performed on the stage, which was decorated as a woodland scene. The dainty costumes added to the beauty of the little characters. Supported by the sunbeams, butterflies, and raindrops, Pauline Cobb as a daisy won her audience. Mary Susan Nichols as Tiger Lilly, Helen Grimes as Hollyhock, Audrey Louis Wood as Robin and Joe Stewart as the prince played their parts well. The Godmother Madeline Keene, Bonnie Lee and John Sorrell, Jr. added much to the operetta. Without the beautiful little fairy, Annie Ruth Wood, “Cinderella in Flower Land” would not have been complete.
The school news reported that Marie Sorrell of the junior class was at home after an operation at Good Hope Hospital for appendicitis. Do you suppose she was in the new part just built?
I do know that on March 18th, the students were entertained with five bears-one weighing 500 pounds and the largest in captivity. Three students from the audience were asked to volunteer to wrestle the bear. William Patterson, Bruce Langdon, and Edd Ennis put up some good struggles for a few minutes. Would you believe that two of those fellows –Patterson and Langdon-later became medical doctors?
For years, the Harnett County Schools had held county commencement exercises. However in 1929, Superintendent B.F. Gentry announced that there would be no commencement that year. One reason for abandonment of the events was the shortage of county funds. There was only $82,707.94 in the county’s education fund and $40,000 per month was needed to operate the schools. A second reason was that principals of the larger schools viewed that little was to be derived from the commencement. The superintendent stated that very few of the smaller schools participated anyway (Harnett County News March 21, 1929). What is your feeling on this?
How sad it was for the J.W.Tadlock family of Route 5, Dunn, N.C. when 17-year-old John Tadlock had died of injuries he had received in an automobile accident. Another young man by the name of Byrd was in Good Hope Hospital in Erwin with back and head injuries sustained in the same accident which had occurred on Highway 22 between Benson and Dunn. A truck that they were riding on the running board came into contact with a car by hitting the wheels (Harnett County News March 21, 1929).
Do you think that maybe Tadlock and Byrd had been on that field trip to Raleigh? I do know that the Harnett County Board of Commissioners named a new Board of Road Commissioners for Harnett County. The term was for two years and the county commissioners replaced the late W.J. MacStewart with R.M. Coats of Grove Township in the second district (Harnett County News April 4, 1929).
For those readers who had relatives attending Coats School in 1929, read next week to see if any of them were listed on the honor roll, if they were in the ninth grade play, or if some were in a school operetta entitled “One Midsummer’s Day”. Also you will discover what Walter Ennis, B.F. Byrd, O.R. Simpson, J.A. Turlington, Joseph Marion Johnson, J.E. Byrd, J.M. Messer and F.L. Denning had in common in May of 1929.
The Class of 1952 Treasurer Peggy Senter presented to Hilda Pope of the Coats Museum a generous contribution to give the museum to honor the memory of three of the special friends from the Coats High School Class of 1952.Many of you remember Peggy from the years she spent at the Coats Motor Company. Thank you, CHS Class of 1952 for that donation.
Please be mindful that this Coats Museum News appeared in the Daily Record on June 1, 2012.