March 15, 2019 Coats Museum News
Does anyone remember when the Eckerd’s Drug Store in Dunn sponsored the “Baby of the Month”? I do know that the Daily Record June 26, 1975 edition shared that Brent Weeks, 10 weeks old son of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas Weeks, had won the title and his parents carried home a playpen.
Did some of you listen or dance to the music of the Platters? This group was known nationwide and can you believe that Joe Odum, a former Coats policeman, once sang with this group and traveled the US with them. He left the group in 1973 (Daily Record June 27, 1975).
The June 30, 1975 copy of the Daily Record had both happy and sad news for its readers. Miss Michelle Byrd, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Stacy Byrd, was named “Miss Coats Jr. Order” for 1976. Starling Richard Coats, 96, of Route One, Coats, died on Saturday. His wife, Mrs. Lettie Parker Coats, survived him. He had five sons: Starling, Jr., Charles, Clenton, Stanley, Raymond and Edward Coats. His six daughters were Mabel, Gladys, Kathleen, Ella Mae, Lela Coats and Mrs. Bessie Barefoot.
Jennifer Lee Danenburg, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Julian Danenburg, announced her engagement to Charles Wayne Hawley. The wedding was planned for September 28 at Pleasant Memory. Death visited Mrs. Alma Webb, 73, of Coats. Her death was on Sunday and her services were at the Coats Church of God with burial in the Suggs Cemetery. Mrs. Eloise Tart, Mrs. Ada Capps, Mrs. Vada Suggs and Mrs. Mae Webb were relatives (Daily Record July 1, 1975).
Several hundred people attended the Blue Grass Festival and watched Melody Neighbors crown the new Miss Coats Jr. Order, Michelle Byrd. Elsewhere, Kim Whittington and Lydia Langdon registered at Campbell College (Daily Record July 3, 1975).
Coats youngsters ages 6-9 were eligible for an art contest that was sponsored by the Coats Recreation Committee with a deadline for entries set for July 25th. Age group winners were to receive a 2-dollar prize and to have their work framed. The grand prize was 10dollars. Jeanette Pleasant worked with the contest (Daily Record July 4, 1975).
June the 28th had been a very special day for Mrs. Flonnie Wood. It was her 85th birthday and a celebration was enjoyed by her family (Daily Record July 9, 1975).Did she and Willie Wood own the land that in the area of the current Mexican Restaurant?
A historic display was exhibited at the Coats Library celebrating the nation’s bicentennial. Pictures, scrapbooks, and various items were on display (Daily Record July 11, 1975). Would you not like to know what happened to those items?
When you were young, did folks who were a few years older than you seem to be old? When I was in high school, we had to have physicals to play basketball and Dr. Moore was the doctor who gave those physicals. It seemed that he had been around forever. The July 15, 1975 edition of the Daily Record shared that the 56 year old doctor had been practicing medicine in Coats for 26 years in 1975. With a mail run strapped into the right hand seat of a twin-engine turboprop plane, he flew to Greensboro, Charlotte and Columbia, SC. It allowed him to gain experience to meet the multiengine requirements and instrument flying needed for a commercial pilot license. He said, “Flying gives me great personal satisfaction and I guess, I’ll have to be called an old “fly-by-night”. Perhaps he had more time to fly after his daughter, Dr. Linda Robinson, joined him in his medical practice.
Approximate 130 descendents of Benjamin Franklin Grimes and wives gathered at the Coats Community Building on Sunday. President P.B. Wood, Jr. eulogized those who had passed away. Delma Grimes and Debro Wood had a memorial prayer and song (Daily Record July 16, 1975).
Alonza Rufus (Lonnie) Coats had died. The seventy-six year-old man was fatally injured in a car –truck collision on Old Fairground Road. He was the son of Elim and Ardella Norris Coats. He was a retired civil service employee and electrician at Fort Bragg. His wife, Mary Louise Godwin Coats, survived him. Two of his five sons lived in Coats-William and Ferrell Coats (Daily Record July 18, 1975).
Murry O. Phillips of Coats was honored at Hilton Hotel in Raleigh with a 30-minute presentation of “This Is Your Life” from Phillips’s baby picture to present. He was retiring after serving 10 years as a consultant to the State Department of Public Education.
The same edition of the July 29, 1975 edition of the Daily Record shared that Harry Glenn Matthews, son of Mr. and Mrs. W.L. Matthews, was engaged to marry Debra Johnson of Route 2, Four Oaks.
The Coats Saddle Club, along with several other clubs, presented a 600 dollar check to the United Cerebral Palsy. Jeff Turlington represented the Coats Club (Daily Record Aug. 5, 1975).
Pamela Ann Stephenson, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Benny R. Stephenson, and Haywood Collier, son of Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Collier, exchanged wedding vows at the Coats Baptist Church (Daily Record Aug. 18, 1975).
Mrs. Verle Pollard Flowers of Route One, Coats was appointed as the newest Harnett County magistrate. Resident Superior Judge Harry Cannady appointed her (Daily Record Aug. 19, 1975).
There are so many wonderful rewards for writing this column but one of the downsides is when some of the wonderful people who have encouraged me along the way with phone calls, visits to the museum or short encounters about town to share answers to my many questions. Many of those individuals are now the people that the museum volunteers are clipping their obituaries from the papers. Verle Flowers was one of these remarkable people who had a storehouse of information about the early Grove Coats area. Her visits to the museum to donate artifacts such as the family anvil and a cane stabilizer are two reminders of how much she loved preserving her family’s heritage. We miss Verle Flowers.
Mrs. Rena Moore Ennis, 70, of Benson, had died on Tuesday. She was survived by her husband, Herman Ennis, and four sons-William, Earl, Ray and Michael Ennis (Daily Record Aug. 21, 1975).
Mrs. Nance Jane Coats, 63, of Route One, Coats, had died on Friday. Her services were held at St. Mary’s Grove FWB Church. The Rev. Ed Taylor and Rev. Leon Hawley officiated. She was survived by her husband, Reuben Coats; two sons-Jerry and Larry; six daughters –Mrs. Victor McLeod, Mrs. Wesley Pleasant, Miss Jo Ann Coats (Hairr), Miss Patsy Coats, Mrs. William Nash and Mrs. Nathan Pope (Daily Record Sept. 1, 1975). I bet you recognize many of those names and can put a face to them. Many of them are strong supporters of the museum and community.
A new school year had begun and Coach Bill Turner was preparing for the football season. He had five lettermen returning. Roy Jones, 6’3”- 190 pounds senior, was a “jack of all trades”. He was president of the student body, most valuable player in basketball last year and the Yellow Jackets outstanding defender in football at his tackle post.
Kenneth Godwin, Willie Nixon (Dixon) Robert Dunston, B.W. Holland, J.T. Holmes and Kimry Gardner were expected to make good showings. Willie Spears and Danny Stanley, Mike West, Dudley Denning, and Junior Joyner were anticipated to be a group of cohesive players (Daily Record Sept. 3, 1975).
Plans were being finalized for the Farmers Day and Wagon Train. Bill Wilder, Asst. Commissioner of Agriculture, was scheduled to be the guest speaker. Janice Lucas said the populace would dress in old-fashioned dresses and overalls (Daily Record Sept.10, 1975).
Time had come to elect town officials in Coats. Those who had to file were incumbents Mayor Ronald Coats, Joe Tart and Cecil Fuquay. The challengers were Robert Pleasant and Mayton Upchurch (Daily Record September 8, 1975).
Death had returned to Coats. Floyd “Son” Weaver, 66, retired Coats merchant, had died on Tuesday. Funeral services were held at the Rose Funeral Home. His burial was in the Williams and Weaver Cemetery on Route 2, Angier. He was survived by Mrs. Lucy weaver; two daughters-Mrs. Ann Lee and Mrs. Mary Frances Williams; two son-Kenneth W. and Benny R. Weaver (Daily Record Sept. 19, 1975).
While the Weaver family was mourning their loved one, some in the area were planning a special conservation exhibit and outdoor display at the Coats Community Building. The Coats Hunting and Fishing Club sponsored the event which had exhibitions showing gun safety and first aid by the Coats Fire and Rescue, camping by the Boy Scouts, casting for fish, and shooting a bow were held. Mayor Ronald Coats proclaimed September 28, 1975 as Coats Hinting and Fishing Day and that this day would be an annual observance-the fourth Saturday of each September (Daily Record Sept. 24, 1975).
Volunteers spend hours making the museum a very special place to visit at no cost to visitor or taxpayer. We invite all to come to the Coats Museum for a visit on Thursdays from 9-3PM and on Sundays from 2-5 PM. There is so much to see, remember and learn from the items on display. We have just received a buggy wheel wrench, a tobacco oil burner regulator, a 1970’s football warm up pants, coveralls and shirt from the Coats Rescue Squad worn by Mark Powell, a very early member of the squad.
In our “Art of War” glass exhibit you can see the beautiful art of Diane Stephenson Allen, Myrtle Bridges and Sandra Denning displayed about the early wars uniforms. Mannequins wearing clothes depicting the days of “Camp Followers” are found with a handmade washtub and washboard, eating and cooking utensils, rubberized blanket, spinning wheel, a hatchel and two mourning dresses.
Our PACESETTERS wall exhibit shares the photos of local African Americans who have made a difference in church, school, business, military, government and community. We have saved spaces for those individuals that others think should be worthy of recognition.
There is a research library, a theater room, vintage bedroom and kitchen, grandma’s attic, education and music corners, uniforms from the Revolutionary War to Iraq displayed on mannequins. A pre-1850 2/3 scale cannon made by Andy Cole has received much attention along with a USN Blue Angels flight suit loaned by Joe Tart.
There is a transportation cubicle honoring astronaut Dr. William Thornton, first licensed aviator Alton Stewart and the DS Railroad. Myrtle Bridges’ Depression glass in all colors can be found in three exhibits. There are more than a dozen more glassed exhibits plus a huge Cotton Museum in which one can spend an hour learning about early farm equipment, a 1905 cotton gin, underground railroad quilts, quilting, spinning and much more for young and old to enjoy and learn.
Does anyone remember when the Eckerd’s Drug Store in Dunn sponsored the “Baby of the Month”? I do know that the Daily Record June 26, 1975 edition shared that Brent Weeks, 10 weeks old son of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas Weeks, had won the title and his parents carried home a playpen.
Did some of you listen or dance to the music of the Platters? This group was known nationwide and can you believe that Joe Odum, a former Coats policeman, once sang with this group and traveled the US with them. He left the group in 1973 (Daily Record June 27, 1975).
The June 30, 1975 copy of the Daily Record had both happy and sad news for its readers. Miss Michelle Byrd, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Stacy Byrd, was named “Miss Coats Jr. Order” for 1976. Starling Richard Coats, 96, of Route One, Coats, died on Saturday. His wife, Mrs. Lettie Parker Coats, survived him. He had five sons: Starling, Jr., Charles, Clenton, Stanley, Raymond and Edward Coats. His six daughters were Mabel, Gladys, Kathleen, Ella Mae, Lela Coats and Mrs. Bessie Barefoot.
Jennifer Lee Danenburg, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Julian Danenburg, announced her engagement to Charles Wayne Hawley. The wedding was planned for September 28 at Pleasant Memory. Death visited Mrs. Alma Webb, 73, of Coats. Her death was on Sunday and her services were at the Coats Church of God with burial in the Suggs Cemetery. Mrs. Eloise Tart, Mrs. Ada Capps, Mrs. Vada Suggs and Mrs. Mae Webb were relatives (Daily Record July 1, 1975).
Several hundred people attended the Blue Grass Festival and watched Melody Neighbors crown the new Miss Coats Jr. Order, Michelle Byrd. Elsewhere, Kim Whittington and Lydia Langdon registered at Campbell College (Daily Record July 3, 1975).
Coats youngsters ages 6-9 were eligible for an art contest that was sponsored by the Coats Recreation Committee with a deadline for entries set for July 25th. Age group winners were to receive a 2-dollar prize and to have their work framed. The grand prize was 10dollars. Jeanette Pleasant worked with the contest (Daily Record July 4, 1975).
June the 28th had been a very special day for Mrs. Flonnie Wood. It was her 85th birthday and a celebration was enjoyed by her family (Daily Record July 9, 1975).Did she and Willie Wood own the land that in the area of the current Mexican Restaurant?
A historic display was exhibited at the Coats Library celebrating the nation’s bicentennial. Pictures, scrapbooks, and various items were on display (Daily Record July 11, 1975). Would you not like to know what happened to those items?
When you were young, did folks who were a few years older than you seem to be old? When I was in high school, we had to have physicals to play basketball and Dr. Moore was the doctor who gave those physicals. It seemed that he had been around forever. The July 15, 1975 edition of the Daily Record shared that the 56 year old doctor had been practicing medicine in Coats for 26 years in 1975. With a mail run strapped into the right hand seat of a twin-engine turboprop plane, he flew to Greensboro, Charlotte and Columbia, SC. It allowed him to gain experience to meet the multiengine requirements and instrument flying needed for a commercial pilot license. He said, “Flying gives me great personal satisfaction and I guess, I’ll have to be called an old “fly-by-night”. Perhaps he had more time to fly after his daughter, Dr. Linda Robinson, joined him in his medical practice.
Approximate 130 descendents of Benjamin Franklin Grimes and wives gathered at the Coats Community Building on Sunday. President P.B. Wood, Jr. eulogized those who had passed away. Delma Grimes and Debro Wood had a memorial prayer and song (Daily Record July 16, 1975).
Alonza Rufus (Lonnie) Coats had died. The seventy-six year-old man was fatally injured in a car –truck collision on Old Fairground Road. He was the son of Elim and Ardella Norris Coats. He was a retired civil service employee and electrician at Fort Bragg. His wife, Mary Louise Godwin Coats, survived him. Two of his five sons lived in Coats-William and Ferrell Coats (Daily Record July 18, 1975).
Murry O. Phillips of Coats was honored at Hilton Hotel in Raleigh with a 30-minute presentation of “This Is Your Life” from Phillips’s baby picture to present. He was retiring after serving 10 years as a consultant to the State Department of Public Education.
The same edition of the July 29, 1975 edition of the Daily Record shared that Harry Glenn Matthews, son of Mr. and Mrs. W.L. Matthews, was engaged to marry Debra Johnson of Route 2, Four Oaks.
The Coats Saddle Club, along with several other clubs, presented a 600 dollar check to the United Cerebral Palsy. Jeff Turlington represented the Coats Club (Daily Record Aug. 5, 1975).
Pamela Ann Stephenson, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Benny R. Stephenson, and Haywood Collier, son of Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Collier, exchanged wedding vows at the Coats Baptist Church (Daily Record Aug. 18, 1975).
Mrs. Verle Pollard Flowers of Route One, Coats was appointed as the newest Harnett County magistrate. Resident Superior Judge Harry Cannady appointed her (Daily Record Aug. 19, 1975).
There are so many wonderful rewards for writing this column but one of the downsides is when some of the wonderful people who have encouraged me along the way with phone calls, visits to the museum or short encounters about town to share answers to my many questions. Many of those individuals are now the people that the museum volunteers are clipping their obituaries from the papers. Verle Flowers was one of these remarkable people who had a storehouse of information about the early Grove Coats area. Her visits to the museum to donate artifacts such as the family anvil and a cane stabilizer are two reminders of how much she loved preserving her family’s heritage. We miss Verle Flowers.
Mrs. Rena Moore Ennis, 70, of Benson, had died on Tuesday. She was survived by her husband, Herman Ennis, and four sons-William, Earl, Ray and Michael Ennis (Daily Record Aug. 21, 1975).
Mrs. Nance Jane Coats, 63, of Route One, Coats, had died on Friday. Her services were held at St. Mary’s Grove FWB Church. The Rev. Ed Taylor and Rev. Leon Hawley officiated. She was survived by her husband, Reuben Coats; two sons-Jerry and Larry; six daughters –Mrs. Victor McLeod, Mrs. Wesley Pleasant, Miss Jo Ann Coats (Hairr), Miss Patsy Coats, Mrs. William Nash and Mrs. Nathan Pope (Daily Record Sept. 1, 1975). I bet you recognize many of those names and can put a face to them. Many of them are strong supporters of the museum and community.
A new school year had begun and Coach Bill Turner was preparing for the football season. He had five lettermen returning. Roy Jones, 6’3”- 190 pounds senior, was a “jack of all trades”. He was president of the student body, most valuable player in basketball last year and the Yellow Jackets outstanding defender in football at his tackle post.
Kenneth Godwin, Willie Nixon (Dixon) Robert Dunston, B.W. Holland, J.T. Holmes and Kimry Gardner were expected to make good showings. Willie Spears and Danny Stanley, Mike West, Dudley Denning, and Junior Joyner were anticipated to be a group of cohesive players (Daily Record Sept. 3, 1975).
Plans were being finalized for the Farmers Day and Wagon Train. Bill Wilder, Asst. Commissioner of Agriculture, was scheduled to be the guest speaker. Janice Lucas said the populace would dress in old-fashioned dresses and overalls (Daily Record Sept.10, 1975).
Time had come to elect town officials in Coats. Those who had to file were incumbents Mayor Ronald Coats, Joe Tart and Cecil Fuquay. The challengers were Robert Pleasant and Mayton Upchurch (Daily Record September 8, 1975).
Death had returned to Coats. Floyd “Son” Weaver, 66, retired Coats merchant, had died on Tuesday. Funeral services were held at the Rose Funeral Home. His burial was in the Williams and Weaver Cemetery on Route 2, Angier. He was survived by Mrs. Lucy weaver; two daughters-Mrs. Ann Lee and Mrs. Mary Frances Williams; two son-Kenneth W. and Benny R. Weaver (Daily Record Sept. 19, 1975).
While the Weaver family was mourning their loved one, some in the area were planning a special conservation exhibit and outdoor display at the Coats Community Building. The Coats Hunting and Fishing Club sponsored the event which had exhibitions showing gun safety and first aid by the Coats Fire and Rescue, camping by the Boy Scouts, casting for fish, and shooting a bow were held. Mayor Ronald Coats proclaimed September 28, 1975 as Coats Hinting and Fishing Day and that this day would be an annual observance-the fourth Saturday of each September (Daily Record Sept. 24, 1975).
Volunteers spend hours making the museum a very special place to visit at no cost to visitor or taxpayer. We invite all to come to the Coats Museum for a visit on Thursdays from 9-3PM and on Sundays from 2-5 PM. There is so much to see, remember and learn from the items on display. We have just received a buggy wheel wrench, a tobacco oil burner regulator, a 1970’s football warm up pants, coveralls and shirt from the Coats Rescue Squad worn by Mark Powell, a very early member of the squad.
In our “Art of War” glass exhibit you can see the beautiful art of Diane Stephenson Allen, Myrtle Bridges and Sandra Denning displayed about the early wars uniforms. Mannequins wearing clothes depicting the days of “Camp Followers” are found with a handmade washtub and washboard, eating and cooking utensils, rubberized blanket, spinning wheel, a hatchel and two mourning dresses.
Our PACESETTERS wall exhibit shares the photos of local African Americans who have made a difference in church, school, business, military, government and community. We have saved spaces for those individuals that others think should be worthy of recognition.
There is a research library, a theater room, vintage bedroom and kitchen, grandma’s attic, education and music corners, uniforms from the Revolutionary War to Iraq displayed on mannequins. A pre-1850 2/3 scale cannon made by Andy Cole has received much attention along with a USN Blue Angels flight suit loaned by Joe Tart.
There is a transportation cubicle honoring astronaut Dr. William Thornton, first licensed aviator Alton Stewart and the DS Railroad. Myrtle Bridges’ Depression glass in all colors can be found in three exhibits. There are more than a dozen more glassed exhibits plus a huge Cotton Museum in which one can spend an hour learning about early farm equipment, a 1905 cotton gin, underground railroad quilts, quilting, spinning and much more for young and old to enjoy and learn.