Gaston County’s
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Volume 85 • Issue 44
News from a neighbor! • Belmont • Cramerton • Lowell • McAdenville • Mount Holly • Stanley
Thursday, October 31, 2019
Mt. Holly Lantern Parade lit up the town By Alan Hodge alan@cfmedia.info
Last year’s inaugural Lantern Parade in Mt. Holly was an artistic spectacle that saw dozens of illuminated, handcrafted, paper and wire lanterns in a wide variety of fanciful shapes carried through the downtown area. Folks who witnessed the event were filled with reverence and awe at what local students, artists, and other
participants had created. This year’s parade blew the 2018 show out of the water in terms of the number of participants, spectators, and handcrafted lanterns. “Last year we had about 100 people and their lanterns and this year we had around 400!” said event organizer and Awaken Gallery owner Emily Andress. “It was insane!” Andress thanked parade
sponsors Daimler, Gaston County Travel and Tourism, the Mt. Holly Community Development Corp., and Stanton Enterprises. “Stanton gave $3,000 to teachers for lantern making supplies,” Andress said. A number of schools made lanterns and took part in the fun. Schools included Ida Rankin Elementary, Cramerton Middle, Pinewood See PARADE, Pages 10 & 11
Lantern parade organizer Emily Andress sported this creative costume in the procession. Photo by Alan Hodge
This time of year great for visiting old graveyards By Alan Hodge alan@cfmedia.info
Shear Dimensions salon beauticians Frankie Richards, Wanda Queen, and Dana Ray will be closing up shop on Nov. 1 after decades of business at 327 Catawba St. Photo by Alan Hodge
East Belmont beauty and business icon closing By Alan Hodge alan@cfmedia.info
The Shear Dimensions hair salon at 327 Catawba St., one of East Belmont’s longest lasting business landmarks, will be closing on
Nov. 1 when Wanda Queen and Frankie Richards retire. Their partner, Dana Ray, will move her hair cutting skills one block down Catawba St. to Village Clippers. Queen has operated Shear Dimensions for nearly four
decades at its present location, but the quaint little building itself goes back even beyond that. “It was a store, a bus station, and a tax preparation office,” Queen said. See CLOSING, Page 4
Now that cool fall days are here it’s a perfect time to get some outdoor exercise and learn about our local lore by strolling through old graveyards. The oldest graveyard in the BannerNews region is Goshen Cemetery on Woodlawn St. in North Belmont. This plot dates back to the early part of the 19th century and was the burying ground for Goshen Presbyterian Church that was founded in 1764. It is said to be the oldest graveyard west of the Catawba River. The ground where Goshen Cemetery is located was originally owned by Robert Smith. It was part of a 650 acre piece of property that Smith had bought from two
Catawba Indians that encompassed what is now most of Catawba Heights and North Belmont. In 1839 Smith sold 17-acres to the Goshen Church Trustees for eightyfive dollars. Smith and many of his relatives are buried in Goshen Cemetery. Joining Smith in the graveyard are about a dozen men who fought in the American Revolution. A plaque naming them was at one time affixed to the cemetery gate, but it is now gone. Most of the old tombstones in Goshen Cemetery have survived, including some going back nearly 200 years, but vandals have also desecrated several others. Other graves in the older portion of Goshen Cemetery hold members of Belmont area pioneers including
names such as Armstrong, Abernethy, Fite, and Rhyne. Local legend has it that there were once Indian burial mounds and a village near where Goshen Cemetery is located. The Abernethy clan itself also has a small and very old cemetery at the end of Turner Rd. off Hickory Grove Rd. not far from Goshen Cemetery. The Smith name also appears on an old graveyard on Belwood Dr. off South Point Rd. This Smith graveyard has dozens of graves going back to the early 19th century. For many years it was neglected and had fallen prey to vandals, nature, and time. However, an effort led by Leigh Ford of Charlotte a couple of years ago saw most of the See GRAVEYARDS, Page 4
Have a Safe Halloween Boo Fest Scenes on Pages 12 & 13