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____________________
Spring
2009 Newsletter
Still
Witnessing a Proud Heritage
Longstreet and Sandy Grove on the Fort Bragg Reservation
Friday-Saturday,
April 18-19
Register now for
the meeting!
Our
Spring Tour this year will begin early Friday afternoon,
April 17, with an excursion into Fort Bragg to visit two
historic churches and their cemeteries. Longstreet and Sandy
Grove were closed when the surrounding farms were bought
in 1918-1922 by the federal government to form a tract large
enough for an Artillery School. However, the buildings and
cemeteries have been faithfully preserved by the U.S. Army.
Friday we will carpool from our motel promptly at 12:30 p.m.
and will be met at the entrance to Ft. Bragg by Dr. Linda
Carnes-McNaughton, Curator and Archaeologist for Fort Bragg’s
Cultural Resources Program. For security
reasons, you will need a photo ID.
|
Longstreet
Presbyterian Church |
Longstreet,
Bluff, and Barbecue were the first Presbyterian churches
to be established by the Highland Scots who settled in Cumberland
Co. in the years following 1739. Hugh McAden held services
at these locations in 1756, and in 1758 the Rev. James Campbell
was sent to organize the three congregations and to preach
in Gaelic. He served alone until the Rev. James MacLeod arrived
in 1770. The present structure at Longstreet was built in
1847, and the
cemetery goes back well before that time.
Sandy
Grove is a daughter of Longstreet, and the beautiful frame
church by the plank road was built in 1854, a year before
the congregation was organized. Unfortunately their early
records were destroyed by Sherman’s troops.
|
MacPherson
Presbyterian Church |
MacPherson
Presbyterian will be our host church on Friday evening. Services
here were held as early as 1793, and the congregation was
organized by 1800. Their first minister, Angus McDiarmid,
preached a sermon in English and one in Gaelic at each service.
In 1867 members of the congregation built the present sanctuary
with bricks from the Fayetteville
Arsenal, which Union troops
had razed to the ground.
Our
speaker Friday evening will be the Historic Properties Manager
for the City of Fayetteville, Bruce Daws. He is an enthusiastic
local historian and the commanding officer of the Fayetteville
Independent Light Infantry, a militia company organized in
1793.
Saturday
morning we will first visit another active congregation founded
by Highlanders, Big
Rockfish church outside Hope Mills. The
present building was constructed in 1855 in the Greek Revival
style, with brick chimneys.
Our
attention will then turn to the town at the center of these
Scottish settlements. After Cross Creek and Campbellton merged
in 1778, the name was changed to Fayetteville in 1783. It
was the first town named for the Marquis
de Lafayette, and
the only one he visited in 1825. It sat at the head of navigation
on the Cape Fear River and at the center of wagon roads leading
into the countryside. After the Revolution, with no permanent
state capital, the legislature met in Fayetteville several
times, and a State House was built to accommodate them. In
1789 a state convention met there and finally ratified the
U.S. Constitution. The same convention also chartered the
University of North Carolina, America's oldest state university.
The State House was the first meeting place for Presbyterians
in Fayetteville.
In
1831 a disastrous fire swept through Fayetteville, destroying
over 600 buildings, including the State House. The city was
soon rebuilt, however, and continued to be an important commercial
center. In the 19th century, steamboats plied between Wilmington
and Fayetteville, and plank roads allowed goods to be transported
in all weathers. The U.S. government built an arsenal there,
which was taken over by the Confederate government and then
was burned and flattened by Sherman’s troops.
In
Fayetteville on Saturday we will meet again with historian
Bruce Daws, who will take us to some of the more interesting
historic sites within a small area of downtown. We will visit
St. John’s Episcopal Church, which was formed in 1817 and
rebuilt after the great fire. We will also see the Evans
Metropolitan A.M.E. Zion church, founded in 1796 by Henry
Evans, a free black preacher from Virginia. One of the highlights
will be a historical tour of the Market
House, built in 1832
on the site of the old State House.
After
lunch we will have the presentation of awards for excellence
in publications or other projects on church history. The
afternoon will be free for members to visit Cross Creek Cemetery,
which dates from 1785, or return home, or visit museums or
other historic sites in the area. These include the Museum
of the Cape Fear and the Airborne & Special Operations Museum.
Despite
our initial advertising, we are not able to include Galatia
Presbyterian Church in our tour this year. If anyone would
like to drive there to see the cemetery, we will provide
directions. A listing of the burials at this and many other
Cumberland Co. cemeteries can be found at the following website:
http://ncgenweb.us/cumberland/cemeteries.htm.
Register
now for the meeting!
______________________________
Hon. Robert W. Scott, 1929-2009
Governor, 1969-1973
President of NCPHS, 1976-1978
When
Gov. Bob Scott died on January 23rd, the NC Presbyterian
Historical Society lost a very good friend, a life member,
and a former president of the society. He was born in Alamance
County where his Scotch-Irish and Scottish ancestors had
farmed for generations, and he worshipped whenever he could
at historic Hawfields Presbyterian Church, even on those
Sundays when he was governor. He arranged for Hawfields to
host our society’s
fall tours in 1981 and 1994. In 1981 he and his wife, Jessie
Rae, graciously invited our tour group to have lunch in their
home — a detail that brought the largest number we’ve
ever had on a tour! Scott loved history, supported our society,
and often came to our meetings. He had hoped to join us for
lunch when we visited Hawfields in 2007, but was unable to
do so.
During
his term as governor, he was a staunch advocate of civil
rights and once had a cross burned on his lawn. True to his
Presbyterian roots, he was also a strong supporter of improvements
in the state’s educational system. He oversaw
the creation of the 16-campus University of North Carolina
system, and he successfully lobbied for the state’s first
cigarette tax to pave the way for public school kinder-gartens
statewide. He served on the state board for community colleges
and later was president of the N.C. Community College System
for 12 years. His passion for history led among other things
to preservation of the State Capitol and renovation of the
Governor’s Mansion.
His
funeral was at the Hawfields church where he was baptized,
married his third-grade sweetheart, served as a deacon, and
taught Sunday school. His casket, draped in a state flag,
was placed on a horse-drawn caisson and pulled across to
the cemetery, where a lone bagpiper played “Going Home.” We
will all miss him.
Officers
Dr. Donald B. Saunders, President
P.O. Box 1846, Blowing Rock, NC 28605
Phone: (828) 295-8917
saundersdb@appstate.edu
Brenda Spence, Secretary
294 Fairway Lane, Sanford, NC 27332
Phone: (919)-498-2159
tom-brenda@charter.net
Ann Myhre, Awards Chair
1005 Park Ave., Garner, NC 27529
Phone: (919) 772-5514
annmyhre@nc.rr.com
Sally MacLeod Owens, Membership Chair
710 North Person Street #204
Raleigh, NC 27604-1276
Phone: (919)-835-0920
Tony Brewer, Program Chair
915 Evans Dr., Sanford, NC 27330
Phone: (919) 776-8091
Email: abrewer8091@windstream.net
Arthur H. Burgess, Jr., Treasurer
P.O. Box 2587, Hickory, NC 28603
Phone: (828) 322-2720
E-mail: ahbco@aol.com
Barbara T. Cain, Newsletter Editor
1041 Shelley Road, Raleigh, NC 27609
Phone: (919)-782-0944
btcain@nc.rr.com
Thomas K Spence, Past President
294 Fairway Lane, Sanford, NC 27332
Phone: (919)-498-2159
tom-brenda@charter.net
_____________________________
Annual
Dues:
Individual---------------------------$ 10.00
Family-------------------------------$ 15.00
Individual Life Membership--------$ 100.00
Need
a Ride?
We
may not be able to help, but if you need a ride, please call
our secretary, Brenda Spence, at 919-498-2159. It is possible
that someone who is planning to go would be able to take you.
She could give you the names of some people to ask.
Membership
News
Our
society lost another long-time member with the death of Tom
McPherson on Dec. 23rd. He was born in Mebane, graduated from
NCSU, married Lib Parker of Raeford, served in the Korean War,
and returned to the family dairy farm. He was deacon in the
Mebane Presbyterian Church and then an elder and clerk of Session
in Yanceyville. He and his wife and son restored the historic
Woodside Inn, Gen. Stephen Ramseur’s home built in 1836.
Some of our members may remember our lunch at Woodside in 1997
and the beautiful stair rail and mantles carved by Thomas Day.
Tom
and Lib shared a lively interest in local history and Presbyterian
history, and they often attended our meetings. We send Lib
our heartfelt sympathy for her loss.
Awards
If you know of a recently published church history or a completed
history project that you feel is worthy of consideration
for an award, please send the book or a description of
the project to Awards Chairman Mrs. Ann Myhre, 1005 Park
Avenue, Garner, NC 27529, by Monday, March 16. Her contact
information is in the previous column.
Program
— Davidson in October!
Our plans
to meet at Davidson this spring had to be changed because
of the large numbers expected in the area for the Loch
Norman games on the weekend of our spring meeting. So we
decided instead to hold our fall meeting at Davidson College
on Saturday, October 10. Davidson has had a special place
in the hearts of North Carolina Presbyterians since its
founding in 1837. The Old Quad has dormitories dating from
1836, and the halls of the literary and debating societies
have been beautifully restored. However, we will also learn
about the very modern college of today, offering an excellent
education within the Reformed tradition. We will also visit
the two Presbyterian churches in Davidson. Put the date
on your calendar!
Update on the Montreat Collection at Columbia Theological
Seminary
Ms. Chris Paton, the Special Collections archivist at Columbia,
reports that they now have on-line a list of the presbyteries
that chose to send their records to Columbia. They have been
working for some time on a list of the congregational records
that were transferred to them, and that list will available
before long. At present they are migrating data into their
own system from the database used by PHS to describe the Montreat
materials. This will enable them to generate catalog records
and eventually put them on-line. Meanwhile, they respond to
questions by telephone, email, or letter, but they may be visited
only on Fridays by appointment.
In
last summer’s newsletter, I erroneously stated that
the vertical files on congregations had been transferred from
Montreat to Columbia. They are in fact at the Presbyterian
Historical Society in Philadelphia, and they are listed in
an on-line vertical files index, along with files for churches
across the US. Their contents are not described, but in general
they contain such items as brief histories, bulletins, photographs,
and clippings.
Philadelphia’s
on-line finding aid CALVIN now contains descriptions of the
Pamphlet Collection from Montreat and some of the microfilmed
church records.
New
Scottish Heritage Center at St. Andrews
St.
Andrews Presbyterian College in Laurinburg has prepared a new
home for their Scottish Heritage Center. Synod’s
Career and Personal Counseling Center was moved to Charlotte
several years ago, and that building has now been renovated for
the SHC. Along with a new roof, a high-quality HVAC system was
added to maintain constant temperature and humidity control.
The extra space will allow for more exhibits as well as room
to accept more materials from individuals and clan societies.
The award-winning books from our society will have their own
bookcase. The ribbon cutting will take place at the beginning
of this year’s Scottish Heritage Symposium, being held
March 20-22.
The
symposium’s
Flora MacDonald Award will this year go jointly to Mrs. Betty
Holmes, retired librarian of St. Andrews, and Mrs. Pinny
Geffert, retired archivist at the Scottish Heritage Center.
These two have contributed enormously to the appreciation
and preservation of our Scottish heritage in North Carolina.
The brochure for this event can be found at http://www.sapc.edu/shc/images/2009SHBrochure.pdf.
Minutes
from our Fall Meeting in Valdese
The
Annual Meeting of the North Carolina Presbyterian Historical
Society was held on Saturday, October 11, 2008, hosted
by the Waldensian Presbyterian Church in Valdese. After
registration and beautiful refreshments provided by the
church, President Don Saunders gave the welcome and opening
prayer. The group was then given a tour of the Waldensian
Museum, followed by an address by Dr. John Bleynat on the
history of the Waldensians and the Presbyterian Church
in Valdese. After our luncheon, President Don Saunders
called the annual meeting of the NCPHS to order.
The
first item of business was a report by Dr. Saunders on the
Presbyterian Heritage Center at Montreat, as he is now serving
on their board of directors. He explained that the center
has a complex legal arrangement with the Mountain Retreat
Association, which owns the older part of the former Historical
Foundation building where they are located. The Presbyterian
Historical Society in Philadelphia took what they wanted,
sent some to Columbia, and left what they didn’t want,
leaving the premises in poor condition. However, Dr. Saunders
reported that Director Ron Vinson has been doing a fantastic
job. They are rebuilding the collection, with a library focusing
on reformed theology and history and providing resources
for genealogy. The museum currently displays visual presentations
and exhibits on the 100th anniversary of the great revival
in Korea and the history of Montreat. In 2009 they will have
an exhibit marking the 500th anniversary of John Calvin.
Visitation to the center is four times what it was during
the last years of the Montreat branch of the Historical Society.
They also have an excellent website, www.phcmontreat.org.
The building includes a substantial educational facility
and space for archival material as well as books and microfilm.
Their greatest need is money for their endowment. They receive
no support from the PCUSA denomination but can receive donations
from congregations and presbyteries. Saunders also reported
that the Associate Reformed Presbyterian records were sent
to Erskine Seminary.
He then announced that, since the PHC at Montreat is now accepting
archival materials, the Board of Directors of NCPHS voted this
morning to send the our organizational records to the PHC.
The
next item of business was a report by Treasurer Earl Fitzgerald,
who announced that he is resigning his office but will continue
to help as assistant treasurer. Our current checking balance
is $1,328. Our funds have been considerably affected by the
downturn in the economy. Since our annual meeting last year,
the value of the Dudley Fund has dropped from $65,159 to $59,483
on June 30 to $46,368 now, and the New Covenant Balanced
Growth Fund has dropped from $13,457 last year to $12,284
on June 30 to $9,576 now. Don Saunders called for a vote
of thanks to Earl for his 8 years of excellent service as
treasurer, and the vote was unanimously given.
The
Membership Chairman, Sally MacLeod Owens, reported that our
society has 39 family memberships and 85 individual memberships.
The latter includes 40 life members and 3 complimentary memberships
given to last year’s award winners.
Barbara Cain of the Program Committee reported that the spring
meeting will be held in Davidson on Friday and Saturday, April
18-19, the weekend after Easter. It was pointed out that the
Loch Norman Highland Games are also on that weekend, at Huntersville
near Davidson. Don Saunders, who is helping to arrange the
meeting, said it would be difficult to change the date. The
location of the fall meeting has not yet been decided, and
suggestions are welcome. Barbara also reported that the Presbyterian
Historical Society of Ireland has been invited to bring a group
over to one of our meetings and to take a tour of some of the
Scotch-Irish churches and historic sites in our state, but
nothing definite has been agreed.
Awards Chair Ann Myhre asked that names of books or projects
be sent to her. Awards will be presented at our spring meeting
in Davidson.
The last item of business was the election of officers. President
Don Saunders reported the following nominations: Tony Brewer
to serve as First Vice-President (Program Chair); Ann Myhre
to serve a second term as Third Vice-President (Awards Chair);
and Arthur Burgess to serve as Treasurer. There being no further
nominations from the floor, Sally moved and Barbara seconded
that the proposed slate of officers be elected. The motion
passed unanimously.
The president then announced that the Board of Directors had
appointed Sam Martin to be chairman of the newly formed Publicity
Committee. He will be responsible for promoting the society
through the presbytery offices, on the website, and in other
ways. He asked to be informed of major anniversaries of churches,
so we can send them a certificate of recognition.
President Saunders thanked the Waldensian Presbyterian Church
and the Waldensian Museum for hosting our meeting. The meeting
was then adjourned. Members of the group were invited to tour
the Trail of Faith and/or Waldensian Heritage Wines before
leaving for home.
Respectfully submitted,
Barbara T. Cain, Acting Secretary
_____________________
Schedule
and Registration for the Spring Meeting
Friday,
April 17
11:45-12:20 Registration in lobby of the Innkeeper at Cross
Creek Mall, 1720 Skibo Rd., Fayetteville
12:30 Assemble
in lobby to carpool to Fort Bragg.
1:00 Arrive
at Fort Bragg’s Randolph Street Gate, off Bragg Blvd. For entry
to Fort Bragg you must have a driver’s license or other photo ID. Foreign
nationals must have a passport. We will be met by Dr. Linda Carnes-McNaughton,
Curator and Archaeologist for Fort Bragg’s Cultural Resources Program,
who will lead us on a tour of Longstreet and Sandy Grove Presbyterian Churches
and Cemeteries within the reservation. You may bring drinks and snacks. There
are portable toilets at Longstreet.
5:00 Exit
Fort Bragg at Plank Road on the south side of the base.
5:30 MacPherson
Presbyterian Church, 3525 Cliffdale Road, Fayetteville.
Late registration and refreshments.
6:00 Tour
MacPherson Presbyterian Church and Cemetery.
7:00 Dinner
in the church fellowship hall followed by evening program.
Guest speaker: Mr. Bruce Daws, City of Fayetteville Historian.
Saturday,
April 18
8:30 Leave the motel to drive
to Hope Mills.
9:00 Tour
Big Rockfish Presbyterian Church and Cemetery.
10:30 Downtown
Fayetteville tour led by Mr. Bruce Daws. Will include the
Market House, St. John’s Episcopal Church and other landmark churches.
1:00 Lunch
at a downtown restaurant. (Cost not included in the
tour package.) Presentation of awards.
After
lunch, depart for home, or explore other points of interest,
such as:
Cross Creek Cemetery, Cool Spring and Grove Streets,
Fayetteville.
Museum of the Cape Fear, 801 Arsenal Avenue, Fayetteville.
The Airborne & Special Operations Museum, 100 Bragg Blvd,
Fayetteville.
Both museums are open until 5:00 p.m. Saturday.
Suggested
accommodations and map are above. Registration: $19 per person.
Please
send form below and check (payable to NCPHS) by Thursday, April
10 to our Treasurer, Arthur H. Burgess, P.O. Box 2587, Hickory,
NC 28603 (Tel. 828-322-2720).
Registration
Form
Name(s)*:________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
*Because
of our visit to Fort Bragg, please let us know if anyone
in your group is not a U.S. citizen, so the name can be cleared
in advance.
Address: ________________________________________________________
Telephone: ______________________
Email: ______________________________________
No.
of registrations ____ @ $19.00 ea= $ ___________
Dues (Individual $10; Family $15; Individual Life Membership,
$100): $_______
Total
enclosed: $________
Please
send this form with your check (made out to NCPHS) by April
10 to Arthur H. Burgess, PO Box 2587, Hickory, NC 28603.
Suggested
accommodations:
Innkeeper at Cross Creek Mall, 1720 Skibo Road, Fayetteville,
NC 28303. Rooms have been set aside for us until March 27 at
the special price of $71.99 + tax. Telephone 910-867-7659 and
tell them this is for the NCPHS meeting. This rate is good
also for Thursday and Saturday nights, as well as Friday, should
you wish to stay longer.
Discounted
rooms are being held at the Innkeeper
at Cross Creek Mall,
910-867-7659.
Also
in the area:
Hampton Inn-Cross Creek, 1700 Skibo Road. Tel: 910-487-4006.
Holiday Inn Express, 1706 Skibo Road. Tel: 910-867-6777.
North Carolina Presbyterian Historical Society
P.O. Box 20804
Raleigh, NC 27619-0804
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