November 3, 2017 Coats Museum News
It was spring of 1966 and buttons and bumper stickers shared the feelings of some Americans. Some of the more popular ones were “War is Good Business, Invest Your Son”, “Draft Beer, Not Boys”, “Send Batman to Vietnam” and “I Love My Corvair”.
The Coats Junior Order hosted the District 6 meeting. There were ten counties in the district and J.D. Norris was counselor of the Coats group (Daily Record Apr. 20, 1966).
How many of you can name at least ten former mayors of Coats. Is Levinson a mayor you recalled? L.L. Levinson was indeed one of our former mayors and a very progressive one. He wrote for the Harnett County News and really pushed for the Coats town folks to vote for its first brick school and because they followed his advice and voted for the tax increase, it resulted in the students moving out of the five room wood school and the two room one. The current theater room and research library of the Coats Museum was the former two room building. Yes, there are pictures of both buildings in the museum. Thanks to Anita Grimes, we finally have the picture of the old five room school.
Mr. Levinson had left Coats a few years after serving as mayor to move to Benson to practice law there. He died a few years back and his widow remained friends with many of the Coats citizens in 1966. In fact, Mrs. Louis L. Levinson and Mrs. Leola Gates were guests of Mrs. Eva Nichols in St. Petersburg, Florida were Mrs. Nichols made her home for several weeks each year according to the Daily Record Apr. 25, 1966 edition.
Back in Coats, Mr. and Mrs. William Earl Gregory announced the birth of a daughter on Apr. 26. The mother was the former Julia Taylor (Daily Record Apr. 27, 1966). Everyone loved Julia and I bet her family welcomed a “Little Julia.”
The time was approaching for the seniors of 1966 to leave the school and start a new life away from the campus. Once again for those who knew these students from your high school days, church or community, recall your thoughts about them. Did they meet your expectations? The following are the students who graduated from Coats High School in 1966: Donald Allen, Brenda Barefoot, Ronald Barefoot, Miriam Beard, Jerry Beasley, Dianne Blackman, Shirley Bunn, Johnny Byrd, Joe Byrd, Paulette Byrd, Teresa Byrd, Ann Campbell, Jimmy Campbell, Janet Carlson, Doan Coats, Michael Coats, Barry Cutts, Jerry Denning, Ronny Denning, Marcia Dorman, Shelia Dupree, Gary Ennis, Glenda Flowers, Roger Faircloth, Carol Franklin, Carol Godwin, Betty Gregory, Gail Grimes, Don House, Bobby Johnson, Debbie Jones Johnson, James Johnson, Glenn Lee, Charles Malone, Brenda Norris, Carolyn Norris, Janet Norris, Becky Page, David Parker, Edwina Parker, Matthew Partin, Murry Phillips, Keith Pollard, Kenneth Pollard, Carolyn Regan, Dwight Roberts, Jeanette Stewart, Ruth Sorrell, Hope Stewart, Bennie Sullivan, David Surles, Carolyn Lockamy Tart, Charlotte Tart, Teresa Taylor, Sue Turlington, Frank Turlington, Carolyn Weaver, Helen Weaver, Kenneth Weaver, Douglas Weeks, Roscoe Williams, Becky Wilmoth, Frances Wiggins, Kenneth Wilkins, and Ronald Womack Coats (Echoing Memories 1966).
That was a large number of graduates. How proud the hometown people should be of them then and now. Another person of which Coats is proud is Gerald Hayes, Jr. who honeymooned in the mountains following his marriage to Linda Louise Wheeler. The couple was married at the Macedonia Methodist Church in Raleigh. Mr. and Mrs. Rhyland Wheeler were the parents of the bride; whereas, Mr. and Mrs. Gerald Hayes, Sr. were Gerald’s parents.
Mr. and Mrs. Vellie Devone Page of Coats announced the birth of a son, on September 4, in Good Hope Hospital. The mother was the former Faye Jeanette Williams (Daily Record Sept. 1966). Who was the son?
A former Coats graduate, Judson Keith Parrish, was assigned with the N.C. State Highway Commission in Greensboro. He was a student at Holding Technical Institute. Parrish was married to the former Patsy Gauldin, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Gauldin of Buies Creek (Daily Record Sept. 8, 1966).
Question-did Mr. Gauldin ever operate the abattoir on Abattoir Rd. outside of Coats? I do know that J.S. Upchurch, 73, of Coats, had died at Adams and Kinton Nursing Home (Daily Record Sept. 15, 1966). Do you recall reading that Mrs. Gauldin recently died, living to be 100 years old according to her obituary in the Daily Record? Something that might be of interest to you is that the museum volunteers also clip all the obituaries from the papers and place them alphabetically in notebooks in our research library. Museum board member and volunteer Hilda Pope also shares the printouts from the Rose and Graham Funeral Home in Coats. Much family history can be found in an obituary. At the museum a few days ago, Becky Adams commented on the obituary of C.L. Upchurch, Sr. from a recent column and exclaimed that she had no idea all those people were relatives of C.L and Joanne Upchurch. Same goes here.
Back to the newsprint of the Daily Record where it recorded that Mr. and Mrs. Linwood Jackson, of Coats, announced the birth of a daughter on Sept. 18 at Good Hope. Mrs. Jackson was the former Linda Andrews. The same edition also shared that once again the Coats High Band had sponsored a big Country and Western Show. Jim and Jesse and the Virginia Boys and Lebb Brinson performed (Daily Record Sept. 19, 1966). Do you recognize those names?
Carson Gregory, Jr. had died after a bout with duel cancers. Carson had been an outstanding student at Coats High and was survived by his parents- State Representative Carson and Mrs. Gregory; his grandmother, Mrs. Vida Byrd; his wife Betty Sue Holder Gregory; one daughter and son; his siblings Joe and Frances Gregory.
Another former Coats graduate made the news. Miss Barbara Ann Langdon and Michael Wayne Keller were 1965 graduates of East Carolina College. Mr. and Mrs. Merchant Langdon announced the engagement of Barbara. Mr. and Mrs. Earl R. Keller of Kitty Hawk were parents of Michael. Barbara was employed as the assistant home economics agent of Granville County and her fiancé’ was working as a marketing representative with Atlantic Richfield Company in Baltimore, Maryland (Daily Record Sept. 22, 1966).
The seniors of 1967 had begun school in 1955 The sixty first graders quickly saw the next seven years whiz by leaving memories of a fourth grade trip to the Morehead Planetarium in Chapel Hill and a trip to Raleigh in the eighth grade. In grade nine, Darlene Stevens and Garry Williams were class marshals. Three class members were inducted into the Beta Club-Angela Stephenson, Garry Williams, and Darlene Stevens.
As juniors, the class enjoyed the prom, “Moonlight and Roses”. The class marshals in grade 11 were Darlene Stevens, Angela Stephenson, and Teresa Avery. The first big event of grade 12 was the selection of the class ring with a black onyx stone with old English “C”. Black and gold were the class colors and the bronze mum was the class flower. Timmy Peede and Beth Garris were the class mascots. The seniors chose to dedicate the Echoing Memories to Principal Joe Hawley. They had a special place in their yearbook to remember a deceased classmate-Randy Langdon (Coats Echoing Memories 1967).
We are so excited about all the visitors coming through the doors of the museum. Patricia Gregory Richardson of Raleigh, a former “Miss Benson” and a descendant of the original Gregory family in the Coats area, visited on Sunday with friend Hazel Pearson who has given Christmas tours at the Governor’s Mansion. Pat has given a large mantel clock, her dad’s fiddle, the Gregory biscuit tray and several other items of her ancestors.
Janet and Phil Parnell also visited on Sunday. His dad, Bobby Parnell, was the brother of a fallen Vietnam veteran who died on the battlefield there and was awarded two purple hearts –one while alive and one posthumously. It was a joy to meet this young couple from the Elevation Church area and was excited to learn that his dad reads our Coats Museum News.
Coats folks are really proud of the museum and the museum board and volunteers love to share the Coats story with visitors like Gail Rumler from Fuquay whose late Uncle Joseph Veasey was a Coats teacher and coach before moving to Cary where he served many years as mayor of the city. Gail is working hard to learn more about her Coats- Buies Creek connection via the Research Library at the museum.
We encourage all of you to visit coatsmuseum.com and other websites that share information about the Coats Museum. Neither of the museums on the Heritage Square could have been possible without the goodness and generosity of hundreds of people who donate and share display items. Without the hundreds of monetary donations from local and faraway supporters could we have ever built and now maintain this 5500 sq. ft. facility. It is that goodness and support of those individuals that encourages the volunteers to literally give hundreds of volunteer hours each month.
One way you can support YOUR town’s nonprofit museum or startup museum is the way Coats Museum has found successful is by individuals giving memorials and honorariums for those they love. This week we received generous memorials for Charles Spivey of Greensboro who married Joy Dan Fleming. Charles’s nephews, Mike and Chris Spivey, and also Luci and George Spivey along with Hilda Pope and Robie and Lynda Butler remembered Charles. Thank you goes to these individuals.
Donnie and Craig Matthews helped renovate the original two room school into the Coats Museum. Donnie was so proud of that gift of labor and in fact that is the last conversation I had with this former student at Ma’s Grill a couple of months ago when he shared about getting the old building level. Rest in peace Donnie and know that H. L. and I loved you and are proud to add your name to those remembered in the Coats Museum Endowment.
It was spring of 1966 and buttons and bumper stickers shared the feelings of some Americans. Some of the more popular ones were “War is Good Business, Invest Your Son”, “Draft Beer, Not Boys”, “Send Batman to Vietnam” and “I Love My Corvair”.
The Coats Junior Order hosted the District 6 meeting. There were ten counties in the district and J.D. Norris was counselor of the Coats group (Daily Record Apr. 20, 1966).
How many of you can name at least ten former mayors of Coats. Is Levinson a mayor you recalled? L.L. Levinson was indeed one of our former mayors and a very progressive one. He wrote for the Harnett County News and really pushed for the Coats town folks to vote for its first brick school and because they followed his advice and voted for the tax increase, it resulted in the students moving out of the five room wood school and the two room one. The current theater room and research library of the Coats Museum was the former two room building. Yes, there are pictures of both buildings in the museum. Thanks to Anita Grimes, we finally have the picture of the old five room school.
Mr. Levinson had left Coats a few years after serving as mayor to move to Benson to practice law there. He died a few years back and his widow remained friends with many of the Coats citizens in 1966. In fact, Mrs. Louis L. Levinson and Mrs. Leola Gates were guests of Mrs. Eva Nichols in St. Petersburg, Florida were Mrs. Nichols made her home for several weeks each year according to the Daily Record Apr. 25, 1966 edition.
Back in Coats, Mr. and Mrs. William Earl Gregory announced the birth of a daughter on Apr. 26. The mother was the former Julia Taylor (Daily Record Apr. 27, 1966). Everyone loved Julia and I bet her family welcomed a “Little Julia.”
The time was approaching for the seniors of 1966 to leave the school and start a new life away from the campus. Once again for those who knew these students from your high school days, church or community, recall your thoughts about them. Did they meet your expectations? The following are the students who graduated from Coats High School in 1966: Donald Allen, Brenda Barefoot, Ronald Barefoot, Miriam Beard, Jerry Beasley, Dianne Blackman, Shirley Bunn, Johnny Byrd, Joe Byrd, Paulette Byrd, Teresa Byrd, Ann Campbell, Jimmy Campbell, Janet Carlson, Doan Coats, Michael Coats, Barry Cutts, Jerry Denning, Ronny Denning, Marcia Dorman, Shelia Dupree, Gary Ennis, Glenda Flowers, Roger Faircloth, Carol Franklin, Carol Godwin, Betty Gregory, Gail Grimes, Don House, Bobby Johnson, Debbie Jones Johnson, James Johnson, Glenn Lee, Charles Malone, Brenda Norris, Carolyn Norris, Janet Norris, Becky Page, David Parker, Edwina Parker, Matthew Partin, Murry Phillips, Keith Pollard, Kenneth Pollard, Carolyn Regan, Dwight Roberts, Jeanette Stewart, Ruth Sorrell, Hope Stewart, Bennie Sullivan, David Surles, Carolyn Lockamy Tart, Charlotte Tart, Teresa Taylor, Sue Turlington, Frank Turlington, Carolyn Weaver, Helen Weaver, Kenneth Weaver, Douglas Weeks, Roscoe Williams, Becky Wilmoth, Frances Wiggins, Kenneth Wilkins, and Ronald Womack Coats (Echoing Memories 1966).
That was a large number of graduates. How proud the hometown people should be of them then and now. Another person of which Coats is proud is Gerald Hayes, Jr. who honeymooned in the mountains following his marriage to Linda Louise Wheeler. The couple was married at the Macedonia Methodist Church in Raleigh. Mr. and Mrs. Rhyland Wheeler were the parents of the bride; whereas, Mr. and Mrs. Gerald Hayes, Sr. were Gerald’s parents.
Mr. and Mrs. Vellie Devone Page of Coats announced the birth of a son, on September 4, in Good Hope Hospital. The mother was the former Faye Jeanette Williams (Daily Record Sept. 1966). Who was the son?
A former Coats graduate, Judson Keith Parrish, was assigned with the N.C. State Highway Commission in Greensboro. He was a student at Holding Technical Institute. Parrish was married to the former Patsy Gauldin, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Gauldin of Buies Creek (Daily Record Sept. 8, 1966).
Question-did Mr. Gauldin ever operate the abattoir on Abattoir Rd. outside of Coats? I do know that J.S. Upchurch, 73, of Coats, had died at Adams and Kinton Nursing Home (Daily Record Sept. 15, 1966). Do you recall reading that Mrs. Gauldin recently died, living to be 100 years old according to her obituary in the Daily Record? Something that might be of interest to you is that the museum volunteers also clip all the obituaries from the papers and place them alphabetically in notebooks in our research library. Museum board member and volunteer Hilda Pope also shares the printouts from the Rose and Graham Funeral Home in Coats. Much family history can be found in an obituary. At the museum a few days ago, Becky Adams commented on the obituary of C.L. Upchurch, Sr. from a recent column and exclaimed that she had no idea all those people were relatives of C.L and Joanne Upchurch. Same goes here.
Back to the newsprint of the Daily Record where it recorded that Mr. and Mrs. Linwood Jackson, of Coats, announced the birth of a daughter on Sept. 18 at Good Hope. Mrs. Jackson was the former Linda Andrews. The same edition also shared that once again the Coats High Band had sponsored a big Country and Western Show. Jim and Jesse and the Virginia Boys and Lebb Brinson performed (Daily Record Sept. 19, 1966). Do you recognize those names?
Carson Gregory, Jr. had died after a bout with duel cancers. Carson had been an outstanding student at Coats High and was survived by his parents- State Representative Carson and Mrs. Gregory; his grandmother, Mrs. Vida Byrd; his wife Betty Sue Holder Gregory; one daughter and son; his siblings Joe and Frances Gregory.
Another former Coats graduate made the news. Miss Barbara Ann Langdon and Michael Wayne Keller were 1965 graduates of East Carolina College. Mr. and Mrs. Merchant Langdon announced the engagement of Barbara. Mr. and Mrs. Earl R. Keller of Kitty Hawk were parents of Michael. Barbara was employed as the assistant home economics agent of Granville County and her fiancé’ was working as a marketing representative with Atlantic Richfield Company in Baltimore, Maryland (Daily Record Sept. 22, 1966).
The seniors of 1967 had begun school in 1955 The sixty first graders quickly saw the next seven years whiz by leaving memories of a fourth grade trip to the Morehead Planetarium in Chapel Hill and a trip to Raleigh in the eighth grade. In grade nine, Darlene Stevens and Garry Williams were class marshals. Three class members were inducted into the Beta Club-Angela Stephenson, Garry Williams, and Darlene Stevens.
As juniors, the class enjoyed the prom, “Moonlight and Roses”. The class marshals in grade 11 were Darlene Stevens, Angela Stephenson, and Teresa Avery. The first big event of grade 12 was the selection of the class ring with a black onyx stone with old English “C”. Black and gold were the class colors and the bronze mum was the class flower. Timmy Peede and Beth Garris were the class mascots. The seniors chose to dedicate the Echoing Memories to Principal Joe Hawley. They had a special place in their yearbook to remember a deceased classmate-Randy Langdon (Coats Echoing Memories 1967).
We are so excited about all the visitors coming through the doors of the museum. Patricia Gregory Richardson of Raleigh, a former “Miss Benson” and a descendant of the original Gregory family in the Coats area, visited on Sunday with friend Hazel Pearson who has given Christmas tours at the Governor’s Mansion. Pat has given a large mantel clock, her dad’s fiddle, the Gregory biscuit tray and several other items of her ancestors.
Janet and Phil Parnell also visited on Sunday. His dad, Bobby Parnell, was the brother of a fallen Vietnam veteran who died on the battlefield there and was awarded two purple hearts –one while alive and one posthumously. It was a joy to meet this young couple from the Elevation Church area and was excited to learn that his dad reads our Coats Museum News.
Coats folks are really proud of the museum and the museum board and volunteers love to share the Coats story with visitors like Gail Rumler from Fuquay whose late Uncle Joseph Veasey was a Coats teacher and coach before moving to Cary where he served many years as mayor of the city. Gail is working hard to learn more about her Coats- Buies Creek connection via the Research Library at the museum.
We encourage all of you to visit coatsmuseum.com and other websites that share information about the Coats Museum. Neither of the museums on the Heritage Square could have been possible without the goodness and generosity of hundreds of people who donate and share display items. Without the hundreds of monetary donations from local and faraway supporters could we have ever built and now maintain this 5500 sq. ft. facility. It is that goodness and support of those individuals that encourages the volunteers to literally give hundreds of volunteer hours each month.
One way you can support YOUR town’s nonprofit museum or startup museum is the way Coats Museum has found successful is by individuals giving memorials and honorariums for those they love. This week we received generous memorials for Charles Spivey of Greensboro who married Joy Dan Fleming. Charles’s nephews, Mike and Chris Spivey, and also Luci and George Spivey along with Hilda Pope and Robie and Lynda Butler remembered Charles. Thank you goes to these individuals.
Donnie and Craig Matthews helped renovate the original two room school into the Coats Museum. Donnie was so proud of that gift of labor and in fact that is the last conversation I had with this former student at Ma’s Grill a couple of months ago when he shared about getting the old building level. Rest in peace Donnie and know that H. L. and I loved you and are proud to add your name to those remembered in the Coats Museum Endowment.