September 26, 2014 Coats Museum News
There were so few hard surfaced roads in the area in 1950. Were the streets in Coats paved? Recall that they had only recently purchased a road grader for the town for $4,100. I do know that the March 3, 1950 edition of the Dunn Dispatch printed that two contracts had been let for hard surfaced roads. Both were bond contracts for 11.2 miles of hard surfacing from Williams Crossroad to Baileys Crossroads by Bethel Church. Does that read like two different contractors or two different sections were bid upon?
I do know that a retired Coats farmer, Patrick Dixon (63), of Coats Route One had died on a Saturday night. He had been ill for two years. Services were held at Hodges Chapel FWB Church by Rev. J.D. Capps. Mr. Dixon was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Ben Dixon of Johnston County. He was survived by his wife, Alda Moore Dixon. He had one son, Elzie Carr Dixon of Norfolk, VA, and two daughters, Mrs. Lloyd Hall of Coats and Miss Hilda Dixon of the home. Ed Dixon was his brother and John Dixon also survived him (Dunn Dispatch Mar. 3, 1950). Surely some of you recognize some of those names.
Staff Sergeant James H. Lee of Coats had returned to Chatham Air Force Base in Savannah, GA, where he was a radio operator. His parents were Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lee and Vic Lee was his brother. Mrs. Exie Smith had attended the formal, annual DAR and SAR banquet at the Woman’s Club Building in Raleigh. Mrs. Annie Adair had returned to her home in Siler City after spending a few days with Clyde Grimes and family. Delma Grimes had had guests from all around. Ray Grimes from Lillington and Jessie Grimes and Joseph Coats from Raleigh had spent Sunday with them. Mrs. Wade Stephenson and daughter Kathy had returned to Wilson with Mr. Stephenson.
Carson Gregory was seeking the NC House seat of Howard E. Parker, who was vying for the NC Senate seat. Gregory operated a dairy. He and his brother, Jim Gregory, operated the Red Bird Taxi. He was the son of Alex Gregory, who with his wife, lived in the Coats area.
T.M. Stewart of the Dunn Dispatch staff had attended the Coats FFA Banquet and wrote highly of the meal and especially of the pretty home economics girls who served it. He also mentioned about the business atmosphere of Coats. He wrote that more businesses change and move to new locations in and around Coats than in any vicinity he went.
Jurors on the April docket were Ferney Tripp, Eddie Pollard, and Casper Johnson. The Oakdale HD Club met at the home of Mrs. Edison Ennis with Mrs. Kirkland Ennis as joint hostesses. The feature on the program was a demonstration of sewing in zippers. Study the list of members who were present to get an idea of who lived around Bailey’s Crossroads in 1950. Two new members present were Mrs. Bronnie Ennis and Naomi McLamb. Current members present were listed as Mrs. Delmer Ennis, Mrs. J. A. Ennis, Mrs. Geraldine Norris, Mrs. Kirkland Ennis, Mrs. Hubert Creech, Mrs. W.T. Howard, Mrs. Arlene Allen, Mrs. Oliver Ennis, Mrs. David Ennis, Mrs. Dallas Norris, Mrs. Garland Coats, Mrs. Charles Denning, Mrs. Herman Woodall, Mrs. Jim Pleasant, Mrs. Boot Norris, Mrs. Glenn Morris, and Miss Martha Nordan (Dunn Dispatch Mar. 8, 1950). Can you imagine the conversation that was carried on at that meeting? This was the era that televisions were just being introduced into the home so conversation with neighbors was precious time spent.
I do know that Coats residents might have seen cars with license tags from out of state. One of those cars might have belonged to Captain and Mrs. Bob Kelly who were visiting his mom, Mrs. Lucy Kelly, or the car could have belonged to Mr. and Mrs. J.M. Tucker who were guests of Dr. and Mrs. Donald Moore (Dunn Dispatch Mar. 10, 1950).
Mr. and Mrs. Hyson Denning of Raleigh had spent the weekend with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Bland Stewart at their suburban home (Dunn Dispatch March 13, 1950). Did that mean that they lived in the country? Recall that sixty-four percent of the Americans lived in the city at this time. Surprised?
Was Bland Stewart’s mom one of the prominent Ennis girls? Was Bland a descendant of Daniel or Eldridge Stewart who served in the NC Legislature? Didn’t one of those Stewart girls from near Bailey’s Crossroads marry Norwwod Stephenson of the Commercial Bank in Dunn? Which bank was older-the Commercial Bank or the Bank of Coats?
I do know that another one of Coats’s prettiest girls was no longer single. She had married Earl Suggs of the Bailey’s Crossroads area. The bride was Elgie Grey Byrd, the daughter of the late William M. Byrd and Mrs. Wade Bolin. Earl was the son of Elton Gilbert Suggs of Route One, Benson. The informal candlelight ceremony took place at the Full Gospel Tabernacle in Coats on Friday evening, March 10th. The bride wore a dusty rose gabardine suit with navy accessories. Doris Suggs, cousin of the groom, was soloist. Mrs. Edwin Ragan, James Ragan, George Ryals, and Stacy Suggs were in the wedding party.
Can anyone name the three children of Elgie and Earl Suggs?
Weddings, births and deaths had found their announcements into the paper in March of 1950. Mr. and Mrs. Linwood Britt of Coats welcomed a daughter, Marsha Lynny, into the family. The Mom was the former Mildred Stewart. J.C. Williams, 57, had died at his home on Benson, Route 3. His wife Deanah Williams and two children, Harold E. and Mrs. R.J. Anderson, survived him. John L. Williams, M.G. Williams, and F.R. Williams were his brothers while Mrs. R. Collier and Mrs. D.J. Graham were sisters (Dunn Dispatch Mar. 15, 1950).
The March 20 edition of the paper printed that Stonewall Allen and Charles Grimes were patients at the Dunn Hospital. In Coats, Mrs. Fred Fleming was hostess to the Coats Jr. Woman’s Club. Mrs. Herbert L. Johnson and Mrs. W.M. Keene assisted. Mrs. W.R. Langdon gave a show on making flower arrangements. The following ladies had to make one-Mrs. Ted Malone, Mrs. Fred Byrd, Miss Ruth Langdon, Mrs. Marie Honeycutt, Mrs. J .D. Lamm, Miss Toby Surles, Mrs. Haywood Roberts, Mrs. Johnnie Williams, Mrs. Donald Moore, Mrs. Leroy Stewart, , Mrs. Ray Langdon, Mrs. M.O. Phillips, Mrs. Thomas Williams, and Mrs. W.E. Nichols. Guess which lady won the prize for making the prettiest arrangement judged by Mrs. Stewart Turlington, Miss Jane Williams, and Mrs. Viola McNeill? An arrangement of camellias created by Mrs. M.O. Phillips took the prize. The dessert for this March meeting was ice cream shaped like a shamrock served with Russian tea (Dunn Dispatch Mar. 20, 1950.
The Denning family has a long history in the Coats and Oakdale area. Recently Charles Denning celebrated his 90th birthday with hundreds of his friends from everywhere. Charles owns Dixie Denning and has always been generous to so many of the needs in the community and the museum really appreciates the $90 dollars that was given to represent each year of his life. Thanks, Dorothy! Teresa Honeycutt who keeps our grounds picture perfect and Paul Parker who checks out our electrical issues-we thank you.
The Board of Directors met for its third quarter meeting. David Barnes, Sandy Kay Howard and Teresa Honeycutt, our Class of 2017 Board of Directors of the Museum, were welcomed to the board. It was announced at the meeting that the exhibit hall is now called the Kress and Nell Penny Williams Exhibit Hall. The museum thanks the family and friends who matched the funds for naming rights. Information is forthcoming about this couple.
There were so few hard surfaced roads in the area in 1950. Were the streets in Coats paved? Recall that they had only recently purchased a road grader for the town for $4,100. I do know that the March 3, 1950 edition of the Dunn Dispatch printed that two contracts had been let for hard surfaced roads. Both were bond contracts for 11.2 miles of hard surfacing from Williams Crossroad to Baileys Crossroads by Bethel Church. Does that read like two different contractors or two different sections were bid upon?
I do know that a retired Coats farmer, Patrick Dixon (63), of Coats Route One had died on a Saturday night. He had been ill for two years. Services were held at Hodges Chapel FWB Church by Rev. J.D. Capps. Mr. Dixon was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Ben Dixon of Johnston County. He was survived by his wife, Alda Moore Dixon. He had one son, Elzie Carr Dixon of Norfolk, VA, and two daughters, Mrs. Lloyd Hall of Coats and Miss Hilda Dixon of the home. Ed Dixon was his brother and John Dixon also survived him (Dunn Dispatch Mar. 3, 1950). Surely some of you recognize some of those names.
Staff Sergeant James H. Lee of Coats had returned to Chatham Air Force Base in Savannah, GA, where he was a radio operator. His parents were Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lee and Vic Lee was his brother. Mrs. Exie Smith had attended the formal, annual DAR and SAR banquet at the Woman’s Club Building in Raleigh. Mrs. Annie Adair had returned to her home in Siler City after spending a few days with Clyde Grimes and family. Delma Grimes had had guests from all around. Ray Grimes from Lillington and Jessie Grimes and Joseph Coats from Raleigh had spent Sunday with them. Mrs. Wade Stephenson and daughter Kathy had returned to Wilson with Mr. Stephenson.
Carson Gregory was seeking the NC House seat of Howard E. Parker, who was vying for the NC Senate seat. Gregory operated a dairy. He and his brother, Jim Gregory, operated the Red Bird Taxi. He was the son of Alex Gregory, who with his wife, lived in the Coats area.
T.M. Stewart of the Dunn Dispatch staff had attended the Coats FFA Banquet and wrote highly of the meal and especially of the pretty home economics girls who served it. He also mentioned about the business atmosphere of Coats. He wrote that more businesses change and move to new locations in and around Coats than in any vicinity he went.
Jurors on the April docket were Ferney Tripp, Eddie Pollard, and Casper Johnson. The Oakdale HD Club met at the home of Mrs. Edison Ennis with Mrs. Kirkland Ennis as joint hostesses. The feature on the program was a demonstration of sewing in zippers. Study the list of members who were present to get an idea of who lived around Bailey’s Crossroads in 1950. Two new members present were Mrs. Bronnie Ennis and Naomi McLamb. Current members present were listed as Mrs. Delmer Ennis, Mrs. J. A. Ennis, Mrs. Geraldine Norris, Mrs. Kirkland Ennis, Mrs. Hubert Creech, Mrs. W.T. Howard, Mrs. Arlene Allen, Mrs. Oliver Ennis, Mrs. David Ennis, Mrs. Dallas Norris, Mrs. Garland Coats, Mrs. Charles Denning, Mrs. Herman Woodall, Mrs. Jim Pleasant, Mrs. Boot Norris, Mrs. Glenn Morris, and Miss Martha Nordan (Dunn Dispatch Mar. 8, 1950). Can you imagine the conversation that was carried on at that meeting? This was the era that televisions were just being introduced into the home so conversation with neighbors was precious time spent.
I do know that Coats residents might have seen cars with license tags from out of state. One of those cars might have belonged to Captain and Mrs. Bob Kelly who were visiting his mom, Mrs. Lucy Kelly, or the car could have belonged to Mr. and Mrs. J.M. Tucker who were guests of Dr. and Mrs. Donald Moore (Dunn Dispatch Mar. 10, 1950).
Mr. and Mrs. Hyson Denning of Raleigh had spent the weekend with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Bland Stewart at their suburban home (Dunn Dispatch March 13, 1950). Did that mean that they lived in the country? Recall that sixty-four percent of the Americans lived in the city at this time. Surprised?
Was Bland Stewart’s mom one of the prominent Ennis girls? Was Bland a descendant of Daniel or Eldridge Stewart who served in the NC Legislature? Didn’t one of those Stewart girls from near Bailey’s Crossroads marry Norwwod Stephenson of the Commercial Bank in Dunn? Which bank was older-the Commercial Bank or the Bank of Coats?
I do know that another one of Coats’s prettiest girls was no longer single. She had married Earl Suggs of the Bailey’s Crossroads area. The bride was Elgie Grey Byrd, the daughter of the late William M. Byrd and Mrs. Wade Bolin. Earl was the son of Elton Gilbert Suggs of Route One, Benson. The informal candlelight ceremony took place at the Full Gospel Tabernacle in Coats on Friday evening, March 10th. The bride wore a dusty rose gabardine suit with navy accessories. Doris Suggs, cousin of the groom, was soloist. Mrs. Edwin Ragan, James Ragan, George Ryals, and Stacy Suggs were in the wedding party.
Can anyone name the three children of Elgie and Earl Suggs?
Weddings, births and deaths had found their announcements into the paper in March of 1950. Mr. and Mrs. Linwood Britt of Coats welcomed a daughter, Marsha Lynny, into the family. The Mom was the former Mildred Stewart. J.C. Williams, 57, had died at his home on Benson, Route 3. His wife Deanah Williams and two children, Harold E. and Mrs. R.J. Anderson, survived him. John L. Williams, M.G. Williams, and F.R. Williams were his brothers while Mrs. R. Collier and Mrs. D.J. Graham were sisters (Dunn Dispatch Mar. 15, 1950).
The March 20 edition of the paper printed that Stonewall Allen and Charles Grimes were patients at the Dunn Hospital. In Coats, Mrs. Fred Fleming was hostess to the Coats Jr. Woman’s Club. Mrs. Herbert L. Johnson and Mrs. W.M. Keene assisted. Mrs. W.R. Langdon gave a show on making flower arrangements. The following ladies had to make one-Mrs. Ted Malone, Mrs. Fred Byrd, Miss Ruth Langdon, Mrs. Marie Honeycutt, Mrs. J .D. Lamm, Miss Toby Surles, Mrs. Haywood Roberts, Mrs. Johnnie Williams, Mrs. Donald Moore, Mrs. Leroy Stewart, , Mrs. Ray Langdon, Mrs. M.O. Phillips, Mrs. Thomas Williams, and Mrs. W.E. Nichols. Guess which lady won the prize for making the prettiest arrangement judged by Mrs. Stewart Turlington, Miss Jane Williams, and Mrs. Viola McNeill? An arrangement of camellias created by Mrs. M.O. Phillips took the prize. The dessert for this March meeting was ice cream shaped like a shamrock served with Russian tea (Dunn Dispatch Mar. 20, 1950.
The Denning family has a long history in the Coats and Oakdale area. Recently Charles Denning celebrated his 90th birthday with hundreds of his friends from everywhere. Charles owns Dixie Denning and has always been generous to so many of the needs in the community and the museum really appreciates the $90 dollars that was given to represent each year of his life. Thanks, Dorothy! Teresa Honeycutt who keeps our grounds picture perfect and Paul Parker who checks out our electrical issues-we thank you.
The Board of Directors met for its third quarter meeting. David Barnes, Sandy Kay Howard and Teresa Honeycutt, our Class of 2017 Board of Directors of the Museum, were welcomed to the board. It was announced at the meeting that the exhibit hall is now called the Kress and Nell Penny Williams Exhibit Hall. The museum thanks the family and friends who matched the funds for naming rights. Information is forthcoming about this couple.