SG 05-2010

May 2010 Tyrrell County’s Country Magazine Published Monthly www.ScuppernongGazette.com

Issue # 33

Cover Photo by Neli Lemme

May 2010

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PUBLISHERS: INGRID AND NELI LEMME

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Quote of the Month

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Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children.! ~William Makepeace Thackeray

DEAR READER

Relay For Life of Tyrrell County, NC click on linked text above June 4, 2010 at Eastern 4-H Center 5 Teams 52 Participants

Tyrrell Safe Neighborhoods Yard Sale nnn

May is a month to celebrate our mothers, grandmothers, greatgrandmothers, friend-mothers, mother-in-laws, and life in general. There are so many nice ways to say thank you, - like getting a tree sapling and planting it at Mom’s or your house together. Don’t forget to the a photo, of mom and the tree.

The Tyrrell Safe Neighborhoods will be sponsoring a YARD SALE on April 30th - May 1st at the corner of Main and Broad Streets beside Pledger Hardware. All donation items are welcome for the sale and can

I am sure that the family members and friends of Tyrrell County’s Relay for Life group were especially happy at the annual RfL Survivor Celebration. My husband and I are both cancer survivors and support the cause whenever and wherever we can.

- We are truly looking forward to the inaugural IBX Arts event. - IL be brought to the sale on either day. For more information please contact Sue Griffin at 252-796-2331.

Couple of the Month LaVonda & Tracy Godwin

Baby of the Month Stephen’s little brother Owen Spruill

MAY 2010 Man of the Month LeRoy Copeland A very Happy Mother’s Day to Bridget Etheridge Spruill

Photo by Neli Lemme May 2010

...On the Board Walk...

Couple of the Month

LaVonda & Tracy Godwin of Tyrrell County, NC

Teen of the Month Alex Simmons of Columbia, NC

Kid of the Month

A pretty young lady who had a fine catch at Lake Mattamuskeet recently

Man of the Month

Leroy Copeland of Tyrrell County

It is TIME to register for the inaugural IBX Arts Show

BY MAY 14TH TO RESERVE YOUR EXHIBIT SPACE! please follow the below link for registration. We have simplified due to not being able to reach everyone by phone. Thanks for your participation in this wonderful opportunity! - Tom Kilian www.IBXarts.com

Sponsor of the Month

Hot Tip of the Month

A ‘Downeast Custom Fishing Rod’ by Bob Thomas of Swan Quarter 212-926-5121

Movie of the Month "TiMER, When will you find the one"

Travis Creek Wood Products of Tyrrell County, official sponsor of the 1st IBX Arts event, May 29th www.traviscreek.com

Website of the Month

The new Town of Columbia, NC website www.townofcolumbianc.com

May 2010

Our ‘Kid of the Month’ with her catch at Lake Mattamuskeet

SAVE

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An Annapolis-based Christian musical group, will perform at the Columbia Christian Church on Thursday, June 25 at 7:00 p.m.

The show, “Life on the Edge”, is a youth musical about real life and the choices we make.!

For more information v i s i t www.SoulSearchers.org

Photo by Dom Lemme

May 2010

Teen of the Month http://www.facebook.com/alex.simmons1?ref=ts

Scuppernong Gazette any suggestions for a Teen of the Month?

Brooke Brickhouse What do you base it on?

Scuppernong Gazette good person, good reputation and liked by many Lauren Roughton Alex Simmons :) Shari Swain Roughton I agree with Lauren - Alex Simmons!!! :)

A TYRRELL CRAZY QUILT

BY WLILLIAM WEST All of them are gone now, those whose names or initials are embroidered onto a “crazy quilt” now owned by my elder daughter, Lynn Mann, who lives in Raleigh.

Sometime in the mid-1920s a Tyrrell County church held a raffle to raise funds by having subscribers write or print either their names or initials onto red or white patches of cloth. The pieces were then sewn together to make a quilt cover and the church ladies embroidered over the names and initials, red on white or white on red. All of those subscribers must surely have passed away by now but the old quilt tells us that they once were part of the fabric of Tyrrell County. !My great-uncle, Jim West, won the cover and presented it to my parents, Luther E. West and Rosaline E. Beasley, as a wedding present when they married on December 23, 1929.! Therefore, the cover must have been assembled at least a year or so earlier. I was told that Uncle Jim subscribed five dollars, but in those tight times my guess is that the usual subscriber paid a dollar for his or her subscription. There

is mystery -- Uncle Jim belonged to the Cabin Swamp Church of Christ, just down the road from his home. However, Cabin Swamp Church of Christ was not organized until 1932 by Miss Lillian Sawyer, Annie West, Jim West and Tom Godwin. Was the raffle a fund raiser for the old Sharon Church or Malachi Chapel Free Will Baptist Church?

I doubt that anyone now living can answer that question for me.

Sometime around 1938 some of the ladies of the Cross Landing Community met with my mother and paternal grandmother, Lily Liverman West, at my grandparents West’s crossroad store and used the cover in making a quilt. All of those people are now deceased and the old, time-worn quilt is one of my daughter’s prized possessions.

The old quilt shows its years, as do I. It is stained in places and has two holes, probably made by a mouse, when it was stored in a trunk years ago.

There are surely many other family heirlooms in Tyrrell County that the readers of “Scuppernong Gazette” would enjoy learning about. There must be home-made furniture, embroidery, quilts, feed bag apparel, and many other such items in trunks, attics, or in corners. For example, I was

probably 13 or 14 years old when I visited Kermit Walker’s home.

On their mantel was a large,!intricately incised, cow horn. I believe that it was a “blowing” horn rather than a powder horn. Does anyone in the Walker family know the current whereabouts of the item?

I have a hand-written note of my paternal great-grandfather, Whit Liverman, who ran a store in Cross Landing, which reads, “Received of J. E. Liverman four dollars and 60 cents for 23 gallons of grape juise (sic) and the same bein (sic) part payment on one note that I hold against him of twenty dollars to be due on the first day of November 1890. Sept the 21st 1890. (signed) H. W. Liverman.” Imagine, 23 gallons of Scuppernong grape juice for $4.60, or twenty cents per gallon.

The note and some old handwritten tax receipts were found in the attic of the Anne Liverman Place when my parents bought the farm in 1936. For example, Nancy Liverman’s tax for 1825 was $1.16. A. Liverman’s tax for 1831 was $4.00, and Frank Liverman’s tax for 1866 was $1.30. !History really comes alive when you can hold such items in your hand. A worthwhile project for Columbia school students would be the locating of historical May 2010

May 2010

documents, family heirlooms, etc. and making a data base for those who might wish to refer to such materials for term papers, etc. As a high school teacher, years ago, I passed around for my students to handle and examine Confederate States and various state’s Civil War era paper money, ancient Greek and Roman coins, Native American artifacts and many other items. !On one occasion I held a demonstration out on the school yard. We were studying the War for Independence and to

illustrate the fact that our poorly trained soldiers and militia-men were no match for superbly trained British troops I carried my old muzzle-loading squirrel rifle to school. British infantry loaded and fired by ranks, with the first rank firing, then kneeling and reloading while the second rank fired a volley. The Americans fired a volley and then usually ran away, especially early in the war. I took my old squirrel rifle and the class outside so that I could demonstrate what loading the rifle entailed. With today’s rules and regulations a teacher

would be hauled before a judge for taking such a weapon onto school grounds. Oh, I almost forgot. When I loaded the rifle, using powder, cloth wadding and no bullet, I asked who wanted to fire the weapon. All of the boys held back but one of the girls took the rifle and blazed away.

Even though the demonstration occurred over 50 years ago you can bet that she still remembers the incident even though I don’t know what else she might remember from my history class.

Photos & story by William West, a native of Tyrrell County

May 2010

4 H 2 0 1 0 Chelsea Gerhart shows off her swine to perspective bidders as Laurence "Bucket" Swain starts the bidding at auction time.

Tyrrell County 4-H Livestock Show 2010 participants.

Dress Your Lamb participants pose for the Letty Swain-Hernandez proudly models "A Day crowd. at the Beach" in the Dress Your Lamb contest.

Photo and captions by "Cottage Photography and Design by Christy Maready" her phone # 252-394-4094

Quinton, Brendon, and Cameron Reynolds steady their lambs and listen to the judges.

Cloverbuds Mallorey Smith, Lydia Swain, and JohnMark Swain line up their lambs for the judges.

Hannah Swain with her Grand Champion Lamb.

May 2010

FISH POND MANAGEMENT

BY STEVE GABEL We are blessed with a considerable amount of quality fishing here in the northeast part of North Carolina. We have creeks, rivers, bays, sounds and the ocean that offer a vast amount of fishing opportunities for a host of different species.

However, there is one body of water that is often overlooked when a person thinks about fishing and that is the farm pond. In a well-managed farm pond, there is no season, the weather rarely prevents you from fishing, and you can almost always catch fish.

However, a good farm pond does require some management in order to maintain a quality level of fishing. That quality begins with the construction of the pond. A well-constructed farm pond rarely has water shallower than 3 feet, to prevent aquatic weed infestations, nor very much water deeper than 10 feet, to reduce the amount of unproductive water and potential of water quality issues in the pond. Well-constructed ponds also often have irregular

shorelines that act as structure for the fish congregate. Some ponds may also have irregular depths with abrupt rises and drop-offs that also serve as fish attractors. Some pond owners like to mark these areas of irregular depths either with markers or maps so they can be easily located.

Establishing an algae bloom on the pond is also very important.

Algae give the water its green color and are the base of the food chain in the pond. It is also critical to shading out the bottom of the pond to control aquatic weeds. Plankton in the pond feeds on the algae and the larval fish in the pond, in turn feed on the plankton. The small fish feed on the larval fish, which are eaten by larger fish and so on up the food chain until you get to the top predator – the fisherman.

the fall of the year, which is followed by 50 to 100, 1-2 inch long largemouth bass per acre in the following spring to early summer. This will allow the bluegill to reproduce once before stocking the bass, which will give the young bass plenty of food for rapid growth.

Maintaining this predator to prey balance is equally important. It is generally recommended that 5-10 pounds of bluegill be removed from the pond for every pound of bass.

Fishing in a new pond should improve for the first 3 years at which time, if properly managed, it should level off and remain a prime fishing pond." " " If you would like more information about managing a pond for fishing, please contact me, Steve Gabel, at the Chowan County Extension Center office (252-482-6585, or e-mail steve_gabel@ncsu.edu ).

Another critical element in assuring quality fishing in a pond is the stocking process. It is very important to begin a pond with a good balance of predator and prey fish. While there are a variety of fish that can be stocked, most ponds are stocked with 500 to 1000, 1-2 inch long bluegill per acre in

May 2010

Please register for our inaugural IBX Arts Show

BY MAY 14TH TO RESERVE YOUR EXHIBIT SPACE! please follow the below link for registration. We have simplified due to not being able to reach everyone by phone. Thanks for your participation in this wonderful opportunity! - Tom Kilian www.IBXarts.com <<

â&#x20AC;&#x153;...there is one body of water that is often overlooked when a person thinks about fishing and that is the farm pond. In a wellmanaged farm pond, there is no season, the weather rarely prevents you from fishing, and you can almost always catch fish.â&#x20AC;? ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

- Steve Gabel Photo by Neli Lemme

May 2010

BLACK GOLD POTATOES MISSING THE SMELL OF A FRESHLY PLOWED FIELD

BY JEANNE SIMMONS DAVIS “Just remember, Jeanne. He’s tall, and he’s important.” This is exactly what I told myself moments before I met Gregg Halverson. I undoubtedly was psyching myself to not say anything stupid on my interview with the man that was purchasing Mr. Durwood’s Farm. It’s quite difficult to hide your roots when you grew up someplace called Frying Pan. Mr. Halverson was about to get a taste of pure country. I’m proud of that. I just didn’t want him to get a taste of pure stupid on the side.

I walked into the tiny office trailer, greeted with the familiar green chair and pictures of the Gum Neck Flood. I wasn’t really sure what to expect, and I couldn’t tell you now who else was in there. The only face I remember other than Gregg’s was wonderful Mr. Durwood. I

felt a moment of sadness I guess for the legacy that was about to change hands. “You’re gonna have hard shoes to fill, Mr. Black Gold, North Dakota.” I thought to myself. I was approaching this I guess as ‘City meets Country’, or ‘Welcome to the Other Side of the World’.

Gregg was always generous and kind, but strictly business and intolerable of disrespect or incivility. He demanded your attention, but I for some reason became comfortable being myself. Blonde-ness and all.

Gregg Halverson is by far one of the most understanding gentlemen I have ever met.

Whatever fear of failure I had when I first met him disappeared almost immediately. He made things incredibly interesting and fun.

It didn’t take me long to realize that although some things were changing drastically, the part that was its foundation would remain the same. He provided me with opportunity, and family and new friends, both at home and in several different states.

The friends I made at home though, the friends that stayed the same and are still there, are by far some of the best I’ve ever known.

Those friends are Black Gold’s foundation. Long, late night waits, planting, harvesting, mowing, driving and driving and driving. These were things that bound the employees.

There was dedication unlike anything I’ve ever seen and in some sense, I believe honor. I was privileged enough to work with these people for one season. I learned about commitment, and working every day from sun up to way after sun down. I learned about helping to get the job done, no matter what the job. I learned about why it’s important to keep the beer iced on the back of the truck. I learned about GPS in a brand spankin’ new John Deere tractor. I learned about how good it feels in the middle of July to have air conditioning in those suckers, too. I learned how to cook, how to care for and how to love. I learned how to make unpleasantness a little more bearable and I learned how to handle over -zealous truck drivers that thought I was purdy.

Lunchtime became the widely anticipated event of EVERY day. What would Mr. Buddy (Hopkins), or Ronnie (Hewitt) or anyone be cooking up out in the shop?

May 2010

" I honestly don’t know where these gentlemen learned to cook, but I have never had a better cheese biscuit or pork chop in my life. Unfortunately there were days that I would have to man the kitchen and whip us up something. Thank goodness these days were few and far between, and my part usually only consisted of running up to “Mr. Buddy’s Store” to pick up provisions. We certainly ate well.

The nights we would wait on trucks were actually the most fun for me.

Some of the crew would bring cards; others would have music, just good old summertime fun. During the day, the hustle of trucks loading and unloading, sweat and rotten potatoes filled the air. On the afternoons we could ‘knock off ’ early the cold beer would come in, resulting in joking and laughing around the tailgate before heading home our separate ways to spend a few precious moments with our loved ones. It seems like we didn’t see much of anyone else but each other that summer.

Kudos to the guys that are still there today, still dedicated and planting. These guys truly make sacrifices to make the farm a success. I think Gregg Halverson realizes this. I also think he truly appreciates it.

The next time you’re in Gum Neck, take a moment to think about the growth and change

that has happened there in the last few years. Think about that ever so tiny map dot and the opportunity that lies within for some of us. I of course found my wings again and flew from Tyrrell County. I reside near Lake Gaston on the Virginia side. The landscape is hilly and curvy, but always beautiful and green. I can’t help but think of the familiarity of home though, and sometimes I miss the smell of a freshly plowed field. I miss

continuous squares with rows as straight as arrows, the way a potato plant blooms, and what millions of blooms look like along Highway 94 in early June.

I am also deeply appreciative of the instruction I received from these fellas on ‘How- to- Pass Large –Farm- Equipment Safely –on- Narrow- Roads’.

There are many lessons I learned with this incredible group of gentlemen. # There are lessons of friendship and forgiveness and loyalty. There are many opportunities that I experienced with them that I will never forget, such as our trip to North Dakota and friendships that will never be broken. I often wonder how everyone is doing, and how things are going for Mr. Black Gold, North Dakota.

I think he did an outstanding job. And yes, I would probably say that out loud.

BY JEANNE SIMMONS DAVIS FORMER BLACK GOLD EMPLOYEE www.blackgoldpotato.com

May 2010

Ladies of the Month Lacey Brinn & Kim Westover Photo by Neli Lemme

May 2010

Business of the Month Scuppernong Mill House Antiques & Collectibles Bakery & Cafe The old Scuppernong Millhouse store is today not just a place of good talk and great coffee, but also homebaked bakery goods; besides a treasure chest for everyone who loves antiques and collectibles. People of all ages stop by for their daily sweet tooth treat and many remember baker Kim Westover ( green shirt), formerly Kim’s Sweet Tooth of Columbia, when she had her little shop across the street, just a few years ago. And here she is once again Back on Main! - And Lacey Brinn, she makes a mean expresso that especially middays draws in people for a ‘lifter’. The feeling at the Cafe is inviting and cozy, people like to hag out there. The Cafe is open Monday through Friday from 7 am to 5 pm and Saturdays from 7 am to 2 pm, closed on Sundays. They serve a good soup, sandwich, drink and dessert for $5 (includes tax) every day and you may take out.

Photos by Neli Lemme

May 2010

Photo by Neli Lemme

May 2010

A QUICK & HEALTHY WHITE PERCH RECIPE: Mix lemon juice, garlic powder, onion powder and Worcester sauce in a bowl. Spread fish fillets on aluminum foil and salt and pepper. Pour mixture over fillets. Spread several pats of margarine on top the fillets and seal aluminum foil. Place on hot grill about 4 inches above coals and cook for 20 minutes or until fillets are flaky to the touch of a fork. This recipe would also work in a oven by replacing the aluminum foil with a baking dish. Flounder, striped bass, black bass, white bass or most any white meat fillets could be substituted for the white perch.

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www.scuppernonggazette.com

SCUPPERNONG gazette 436 Bridgepath Road Columbia, NC 27925 Tyrrell County www.scuppernonggazette.com nelip@mac.com & ilemme@mac.com

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www.visittyrrellcounty.com

May 2010