October 25, 2013 Coats Museum News
The readers of the Harnett County News on September 5, 1946 read that Raythell G. Adams, son of Mr. and Mrs. S.G. Adams, was serving on the USS Missouri and that the enrollment of the Harnett County Schools increased from 12,000 to 12,800 for the term 1946-47. Because there was no 1946 graduating class, was that the reason for the increase in the enrollment? The 1947 class was the first 12 year graduates.
Wonder if the parents accepted the idea of an additional year of school. Could they have vented on the new WRAL FM frequency modulation station in Raleigh? Did they have talk radio show formats in 1946?
This I do know. A teacher was required to be fluoroscoped at free clinics to check for tuberculosis before the health certificate was valid. We also know that the Boy Scout Troop 79 of Coats presented awards on September 29, 1946 (Harnett County News September 29, 1946). Does anyone know who some of the Boy Scouts were that might have been at that ceremony?
William Sherwood Dorman, Jr., infant boy, died at birth. How disappointed Joyce Mae and LaBetha must have been that they would have had no little brother with whom to play. J.E. Dorman of Coats was the grandfather.
When farmers heard about a new weed killer to use in their cornfields they were probably willing to buy the special sprayer to apply this miracle chemical. Don’t you bet the farm kids were excited? No more hours in the fields walking the corn rows to pull or chop those weeds and no more hot feet on that freshly plowed dirt as they lugged that lambs quarter, pigweed, morning glory, and cocklebur. Yes, the young ‘uns still had to chop weeds from the cotton and tobacco because 2-4-D would kill broadleaf plants like tobacco, cotton and soybeans.
Miss Helen W. Pollard, 14, died at her parent’s home on Route One, Coats. The funeral was at the Gift Primitive Baptist Church in Coats. She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd W. Pollard. Paul and J.L. Pollard were her brothers while Mrs. Ed Faircloth, Mrs. Audrey Stone, Mrs. Garland Matthews, Mrs. Beth Christenson, Mrs. Fletcher Flowers, Mrs. S.W. Weeks and her twin Hazel were sisters. Mr. and Mrs. J.R. Pope were her grandparents (Harnett County News October 3, 1946).
The poplar, maple, and hickory were sporting their yellow coats and the dogwood and oak displayed their radiant reds. However, in Coats Miss Angelia (Ann) Lamm was wearing her blush of pink as she planned her wedding to Godfrey Beasley. Mrs. J. D. Lamm, Mrs. Edwin Stewart, and Mrs. O.K. Keene gave Ann a lingerie shower (Harnett County News October 24, 1946).
How many of you remember when the folks in and around Coats were viewing movies on the outside wall of the old Roycroft Drug Store? In 1946, Coats had an inside theater with real seats, real bathrooms, and hot buttered popcorn (Harnett County News November 7, 1946).
Were you aware that there were no female names on the jury lists that you have been reading from the last 20 years plus? That was to change in 1946 but not without opposition by a few men. In fact, one editor actually questioned if the majority of the women would even want to sit on a jury. He questioned if women could sit through a trial and not indulge in conversation when an argument was going on (Harnett County News November 7, 1946). Ugh!
Lucian Stewart, 62, died at his home in Coats. He was the son of the late Andrew L. Stewart (Harnett County News November 21, 1946).
Carson Gregory, a Coats dairyman, headed the Harnett County Farm Bureau and Otis Autry served as manager of the new Coats Movie Theater. Mr. Autry was optimistic over the success of the movie house from the time it opened. Mr. Autry said he felt certain he had located his show house not only in a progressive community but also among people who could be counted as among the best in the world. The movie theater showed six different movies in the same week. Stars like Gene Autry, John Randolph, and John Wayne were seen on the Coats screen (Harnett County News November 28, 1946). Were there televisions in Coats in 1946?
Maybe the students at Coats and their parents were moviegoers, but surely they were excited that they could see live actors and actresses on stage when the seniors at Coats High School presented a play called “Shy Girl”. Students in the play were Junior Lee, Alice Johnson, Algie Cobb, T.J. Turlington, Sylvia Blalock, Arlene Turlington, Max Barnes, Hugh Turlington, Doris Miller, Nina Miller, Ben Fish, and Laura Sorrell (Harnett County News December 5, 1946). Are any of these alive?
Did you pay any attention to the date on that newspaper? Kids and parents were surely having serious thoughts about Christmas. Just for fun, shall we examine the cost of some toys and goodies that the little ones dreamed would be in their stockings. Dolls sold from 59 cents to $10.95. Doll furniture cost from 10 cents to 29 cents. Scooters were bought for $2.91to $3.95. Flying airplane and dirigibles were $1.94. Doctor and nurse sets had cost 59 cents. Wow –how many of those items would be requested in 2013?
The museum has been abuzz with 561 visitors since September 18th. The Coats Elementary third graders and visitors at Farmers Day pushed this year’s count to over 2,000. The fun part of being involved with the museum and writing this column is the meeting and talking with so many people who share answers to my questions or additional info. This week, Elaine Smith from Lillington answered my question about the Dorman family obituary and Verle Flowers from Angier shared that the Myrtle Norris who had lost her young husband in a car accident later married Jimmy Ferguson, father to Danny Ferguson of the Coats IGA.
Thank you to Ray Roberts and his crew for making our museum sign look especially nice for Farmers Day and for those who seek out the Coats Museum. Peggy Senter, who is so delightful to just listen to as she shares her memories of work at the Stewart car dealership in Coats, has shared class scrapbooks from her class reunions and also a yearbook, plus many other artifacts that make our exhibits memorable. Thanks –Peggy. JoAnne Hairr has also added to our Musicians Book with pictures and a history of the Pope Brothers and Master’s Touch plus two DVD’s. The volunteers find themselves listening to them as we work each Monday and Wednesday. H.A. Turlington, Jr. and his Turlington clan gave the WWII shoes of their Aunt Annie Underwood to go with her WWII nurse uniform on display in our glass military tunnel. Thanks to all including Doris Johnson Nolan who was a drum majorette at Coats when the band played at the first 6-man football game when Coats challenged and defeated Erwin. She and her husband John visited the museum to put her baton on loan for display along with a picture of her in her majorette suit.
Thanks goes to the American Legion Banner Post 109 for remembering Tony Weaver with a museum memorial and to Robie and Lynda Butler and to H.L. Sorrell for remembering Virgie Knox and Virginia Holmes with memorials. Lynda Butler celebrated her birthday yesterday—thanks to those who honored her at the museum. We have added another donor’s name to the wall plaques. He has come forth with a large donation to help meet the $50,000 challenge. Thank you Eddie Vaughan for stepping forth to give this financial support along with the volunteer hours you give to share stories about the exhibits at the museums.
The readers of the Harnett County News on September 5, 1946 read that Raythell G. Adams, son of Mr. and Mrs. S.G. Adams, was serving on the USS Missouri and that the enrollment of the Harnett County Schools increased from 12,000 to 12,800 for the term 1946-47. Because there was no 1946 graduating class, was that the reason for the increase in the enrollment? The 1947 class was the first 12 year graduates.
Wonder if the parents accepted the idea of an additional year of school. Could they have vented on the new WRAL FM frequency modulation station in Raleigh? Did they have talk radio show formats in 1946?
This I do know. A teacher was required to be fluoroscoped at free clinics to check for tuberculosis before the health certificate was valid. We also know that the Boy Scout Troop 79 of Coats presented awards on September 29, 1946 (Harnett County News September 29, 1946). Does anyone know who some of the Boy Scouts were that might have been at that ceremony?
William Sherwood Dorman, Jr., infant boy, died at birth. How disappointed Joyce Mae and LaBetha must have been that they would have had no little brother with whom to play. J.E. Dorman of Coats was the grandfather.
When farmers heard about a new weed killer to use in their cornfields they were probably willing to buy the special sprayer to apply this miracle chemical. Don’t you bet the farm kids were excited? No more hours in the fields walking the corn rows to pull or chop those weeds and no more hot feet on that freshly plowed dirt as they lugged that lambs quarter, pigweed, morning glory, and cocklebur. Yes, the young ‘uns still had to chop weeds from the cotton and tobacco because 2-4-D would kill broadleaf plants like tobacco, cotton and soybeans.
Miss Helen W. Pollard, 14, died at her parent’s home on Route One, Coats. The funeral was at the Gift Primitive Baptist Church in Coats. She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd W. Pollard. Paul and J.L. Pollard were her brothers while Mrs. Ed Faircloth, Mrs. Audrey Stone, Mrs. Garland Matthews, Mrs. Beth Christenson, Mrs. Fletcher Flowers, Mrs. S.W. Weeks and her twin Hazel were sisters. Mr. and Mrs. J.R. Pope were her grandparents (Harnett County News October 3, 1946).
The poplar, maple, and hickory were sporting their yellow coats and the dogwood and oak displayed their radiant reds. However, in Coats Miss Angelia (Ann) Lamm was wearing her blush of pink as she planned her wedding to Godfrey Beasley. Mrs. J. D. Lamm, Mrs. Edwin Stewart, and Mrs. O.K. Keene gave Ann a lingerie shower (Harnett County News October 24, 1946).
How many of you remember when the folks in and around Coats were viewing movies on the outside wall of the old Roycroft Drug Store? In 1946, Coats had an inside theater with real seats, real bathrooms, and hot buttered popcorn (Harnett County News November 7, 1946).
Were you aware that there were no female names on the jury lists that you have been reading from the last 20 years plus? That was to change in 1946 but not without opposition by a few men. In fact, one editor actually questioned if the majority of the women would even want to sit on a jury. He questioned if women could sit through a trial and not indulge in conversation when an argument was going on (Harnett County News November 7, 1946). Ugh!
Lucian Stewart, 62, died at his home in Coats. He was the son of the late Andrew L. Stewart (Harnett County News November 21, 1946).
Carson Gregory, a Coats dairyman, headed the Harnett County Farm Bureau and Otis Autry served as manager of the new Coats Movie Theater. Mr. Autry was optimistic over the success of the movie house from the time it opened. Mr. Autry said he felt certain he had located his show house not only in a progressive community but also among people who could be counted as among the best in the world. The movie theater showed six different movies in the same week. Stars like Gene Autry, John Randolph, and John Wayne were seen on the Coats screen (Harnett County News November 28, 1946). Were there televisions in Coats in 1946?
Maybe the students at Coats and their parents were moviegoers, but surely they were excited that they could see live actors and actresses on stage when the seniors at Coats High School presented a play called “Shy Girl”. Students in the play were Junior Lee, Alice Johnson, Algie Cobb, T.J. Turlington, Sylvia Blalock, Arlene Turlington, Max Barnes, Hugh Turlington, Doris Miller, Nina Miller, Ben Fish, and Laura Sorrell (Harnett County News December 5, 1946). Are any of these alive?
Did you pay any attention to the date on that newspaper? Kids and parents were surely having serious thoughts about Christmas. Just for fun, shall we examine the cost of some toys and goodies that the little ones dreamed would be in their stockings. Dolls sold from 59 cents to $10.95. Doll furniture cost from 10 cents to 29 cents. Scooters were bought for $2.91to $3.95. Flying airplane and dirigibles were $1.94. Doctor and nurse sets had cost 59 cents. Wow –how many of those items would be requested in 2013?
The museum has been abuzz with 561 visitors since September 18th. The Coats Elementary third graders and visitors at Farmers Day pushed this year’s count to over 2,000. The fun part of being involved with the museum and writing this column is the meeting and talking with so many people who share answers to my questions or additional info. This week, Elaine Smith from Lillington answered my question about the Dorman family obituary and Verle Flowers from Angier shared that the Myrtle Norris who had lost her young husband in a car accident later married Jimmy Ferguson, father to Danny Ferguson of the Coats IGA.
Thank you to Ray Roberts and his crew for making our museum sign look especially nice for Farmers Day and for those who seek out the Coats Museum. Peggy Senter, who is so delightful to just listen to as she shares her memories of work at the Stewart car dealership in Coats, has shared class scrapbooks from her class reunions and also a yearbook, plus many other artifacts that make our exhibits memorable. Thanks –Peggy. JoAnne Hairr has also added to our Musicians Book with pictures and a history of the Pope Brothers and Master’s Touch plus two DVD’s. The volunteers find themselves listening to them as we work each Monday and Wednesday. H.A. Turlington, Jr. and his Turlington clan gave the WWII shoes of their Aunt Annie Underwood to go with her WWII nurse uniform on display in our glass military tunnel. Thanks to all including Doris Johnson Nolan who was a drum majorette at Coats when the band played at the first 6-man football game when Coats challenged and defeated Erwin. She and her husband John visited the museum to put her baton on loan for display along with a picture of her in her majorette suit.
Thanks goes to the American Legion Banner Post 109 for remembering Tony Weaver with a museum memorial and to Robie and Lynda Butler and to H.L. Sorrell for remembering Virgie Knox and Virginia Holmes with memorials. Lynda Butler celebrated her birthday yesterday—thanks to those who honored her at the museum. We have added another donor’s name to the wall plaques. He has come forth with a large donation to help meet the $50,000 challenge. Thank you Eddie Vaughan for stepping forth to give this financial support along with the volunteer hours you give to share stories about the exhibits at the museums.