folkways

This 1897 photograph of the David Miller family
depicts life on a typical mountain farm.

After the United States gained its independence from Great Britain the mountains of Western North Carolina and what would become Tennessee were opened for settlement.  The majority of the early settlers were English, Scotch-Irish and German.  They came seeking land and independence.

The land was inexpensive and the climate was relatively mild.  Many settled in the fertile river valleys, while others ventured further into the mountains.

Travel in the region was difficult though.  The first roads were steep, rough, muddy and often impassable.  The area was isolated and for many decades economic and political conditions were poor.

 

Families survived by being self-sufficient and hard-working.  They cleared small areas for planting grains, vegetables and fruit.   They raised hogs, chickens and cattle.  They hunted and fished and gathered native plants to meet their needs.  From their harvests they produced what was needed, including medicine, moonshine, molasses and much more.

A mountain moonshine still set-up on Diamond Creek, ca. 1940.

Turpentine, yellow root, catnip, black snake root and many more cured all that ailed the early settlers.  Old-timers recommended wild cherry-bark juice mixed with corn whiskey as a spring tonic or sassafras tea for those who preferred a non-alcoholic tonic.  Golden seal was used for stomach problems, sore eyes, kidney trouble and tonsillitis.  Flaxseed and honey helped with whooping cough.

In addition to the personal needs, medicinal or otherwise, distilled alcohol provided much needed cash income.  Jugs of liquor were easier to haul to market and to sell, plus it was more profitable then selling grain. 

In the early 1960s the congregation at Oak Grove Methodist Church in Brevard
raised can and made molasses to raise money for their new church,
St. Timothy United Methodist.

Another crop that was boiled down to liquid form was sorghum.  Sorghum is a grass with a high sugar content.  It is relatively easy to grow, even in poor soils.  The sorghum cane was cut, boil, squeezed and strained to produce molasses.  For many mountain families molasses was their primary type of sweetener.  They poured it on corn bread or hot cakes, used it to make cookies or cakes and seasoned foods with it. 

Folkways, the traditional practice of a particular community were passed down from generation to generation.  While many of these have disappeared over the years as it became easier to purchase goods and technology advanced, others continued well into the 20^th century and in various forms survive today.

To learn more about North Carolina folkways and folklore try one of John Parris’ books on mountain life or North Carolina Folklore by Frank C. Brown.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 X242.

Miss Hattie Collected Holiday Postcards

Hattie Aiken was born on September 7, 1886. The daughter of William and Mary Lankford Aiken and the granddaughter of B.C. and Amanda Morris Lankford, Hattie spent most of her life in the family home located on East Main St.  Her father had built the house in 1893.

Hattie taught at Brevard Institute from about 1915-1920.  She continued her teaching career in North Wilkesboro and Mt. Airy for the next 29 years.  She was the principal at Rockford Street School in Mt. Airy.

After retirement Miss Hattie returned full-time to the family home in Brevard.  To supplement her retirement she took in boarders.  In a 1977 interview, Miss Hattie stated, “I really enjoyed having people in the house, I have four rooms upstairs and three down that I rented.”  Her guests included summer tourists and working men with Ecusta, DuPont and American Thread.

In 1977 Miss Hattie sold the property to First State Savings and Loan.  She felt that she could no longer care for old home and had decided to move to the Brevard Residential Care Center (now the Brian Center).

Miss Hattie died at the age of 96 on Christmas Day, 1982.  Many of her mementos, including an autograph album, photographs, greeting cards, postcards and personal correspondence are now in the Family Collection in the Local History Room at the Library. 

Christmas and New Year’s postcards from Miss Hattie collection dating from 1906 to 1935 will be on display on the 2^nd floor for a couple of more weeks.

The old Aiken house was torn down in 1977 for the new bank building.  Today the bank is the home of the Chamber of Commerce and Heart of Brevard.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 X242.

Smathers Was Household Business Name

Paul Smathers worked in the automotive and machine business in Transylvania and Buncombe counties.  In 1913 he started an auto transfer business in Brevard with his father-in-law, T.W. Whitmire.  Together they also co-founded Whitmire-Smathers Motor Company in Asheville.  

Walk behind gas mower.

Smathers and Whitmire operated automotive businesses in both Asheville and Brevard until the mid-1930s.  In 1937 Smathers went into the machinery business in Brevard.

Acme riding tractor with cultivator.

On March 24, 1943 Paul Smathers purchased the Cash & Carry Grocery building on the corner of North Broad and East French Broad streets.  Smathers Manufacturing Company designed, built and distributed small utility tractors and equipment.  World War II had led to a large shortage of machinery.  Smathers was able to use old, discarded machinery to build farm equipment that was in big demand.  

For a couple of years in the early 1950s Smathers became a stockholder with the Acme Manufacturing Company and operated as a Southern representative for the Wisconsin based company.  He later sold his Acme interests and return to operating his own machine and welding shop.

The shop operated under the name Power Equipment Company into the mid-1950s.  By 1957 Brevard Auto had moved to the location.  Brevard Auto built a new building behind the old Smather’s building around 1970.

Smathers Manufacturing located in the former Cash and Carry

on N. Broad and E. French Broad streets,

Photographs of Smather’s business and machinery sometimes carry the Smathers name and at other time the Acme name. 

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 X242.

During The Acme Manufacturing Co. period, 1951-52.

Stamps, Victory Gardens Helped War Effort

World War II had a big impact on the availability of goods in the United States.  As mentioned last week, citizens helped with the war effort at home by collecting scrap metal to be recycled into materials needed by the military.

The government also placed rations on food items.  A large amount of canned, package and processed foods were being used to feed the troops.  As foods became scarcer, prices increased.  To aid in the demand for food people across the country grew Victory Gardens.

Locally businesses, club and schools were encouraged to grow their own Victory Gardens.  County farm agents recommended a tenth of an acre per family member.  Ten or more different vegetables that matured at different times from spring to fall were advised.  Gardeners were also encouraged to grow berries and other fruits.

A variety of stamps were issued to buy rationed items.

Harry Straus provided a garden plot for any employee who didn't have a garden at home.  In 1943 it was reported that 1095 Ecusta employees planned to have Victory Gardens, 95 of those were on Ecusta property.

The Ecusta Echo carried a monthly column offering planting advice and gardening tips.  In the fall, Ecusta held an exhibition showcasing fresh fruits and vegetables, canned products and flowers from employee’s gardens.  Prizes were awarded for quantity, quality and display. 

In 1945 Ecusta won the national Victory Garden Award Plaque for outstanding participation with 90% of employees having gardens.  The program was in place for three years during the war.  Victory Gardens were another way for people to aid in the war efforts at home.

Cash & Carry Super Market on North Broad St. operated in the early 1940s.

Food rationing and increases in gardening did have a negative impact on some businesses.  In April 1943 Cash & Carry, a popular Brevard grocery store closed after just over two years of business.  It was believed that effects of the war were partly responsible for its closing.

Next week Picturing the Past will look at the business that replaced Cash & Carry.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 x 242.

Below:  Book 4 stamps had military symbols on them.  When using Book 4 stamps customers were able to receive "change" for purchases that were less than the value of the stamp.  Previously they forfeited any extra value.  The "change" consisted of red and blue cardboard tokens, valued at one-point each.

Recycling Prevalent During WWII

Although the idea of recycling seems new to those who have grown up in the age of mass production and disposable goods it is not a modern concept.  The practice of reusing and recycling has ebbed and flowed throughout history.

Difficult economic times of the 1930s, followed by the high demand for goods during WWII led to increased conservation and recycling efforts.  Citizens were asked to help through scrap drives. 

Before the United States even entered WWII an aluminum drive was organized in Transylvania County.  The Boy Scouts of Brevard initiated an informal contest between town and county residents.  The Girl Scouts and Junior Missionary Club joined in collecting items from town residents.  In the county, 4-H and Grange Clubs gathered the items.  Together they collected approximately 300 pounds of aluminum during the first week of August 1941.

A load of scrap metal for the war effort, October 19, 1942.

A statewide scrap metal drive sponsored by North Carolina newspapers in October 1942 offered prizes for largest poundage collected.  Transylvania County placed 2^nd with a total of 2,491,031 pounds.  The county was awarded a $500 war bond or a cash equivalent to be used for public good.  

The Salvage Committee opted for the cash prize of $375.  The money was donated to the Monroe Wilson Post of the American Legion, local schools, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts.

On the county level $25 war bonds were given to the business or individual reporting the largest poundage, the school with the highest per student amount and the junior organization and women’s organization with the largest contributions.

Ecusta was the largest industrial contributor in the county with 879,883 pounds. The school prize went to Pisgah Forest School.  They collected 467 pounds per student.  No women’s organizations participated so the 2^nd place school, Brevard High, was awarded a prize as well.   Harry Straus donated Ecusta’s $25 war bond prize to the 3^rd place school, Little River.  The Junior Commandos won the prize for junior organizations.         

In addition to providing valuable resources to the government scrap drives offered citizens a means of contributing to and aiding in the war effort.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 X242.

Gaging stations

Rosman Gaging Station

Gaging stations are facilities used by hydrologists to monitor streams, rivers, lakes or other bodies of water.  Instruments at these stations collect information such as water height, discharge and water chemistry and temperature.

The US Geological Survey has gaging stations at thousands of locations across the United States.  Measurements from these stations are useful for flood prediction, water management, and recreation and navigation purposes. 

Transylvania County has gaging stations on the French Broad River at Rosman and Blantyre.  There was also a gaging station on the south side of the French Broad River at Calvert until 1955.  On the Davidson River there is a gaging station located downstream from Sycamore Flats.

Calvert Gaging Station

The small concrete structures at Calvert and Davidson River were constructed using WPA funds in 1934.  The buildings are quite small, about 3 feet square.  Both have an art deco look to their poured concrete exteriors.  They contain vents with slats or louvers and narrow metal doors.  A small window allows some light into the Calvert structure as well.

The Rosman station was built in 1935 but is much plainer.  The small frame structure, with a simple wooden walkway, is raised on a cinder block foundation.  A trapdoor in the foundation provides access to the measuring panel.

The Blantyre station is a cinderblock building constructed in the 1950s.  Access is from metal ladder attached to the bridge and then across a wood and metal suspension walking bridge.

Measuring sticks or staff gages, which were basically giant rulers, measured the height of the water above a fixed point.  Stage values could be converted into discharge values for the stream.  The old gages would have been read manually.

Flood stage at Rosman is 9 feet.  The highest recorded stage was 14.95 feet on October 4, 1964.  The drainage area covers nearly 68 square miles. 

Blantyre Gaging Station

At Blantyre the drainage area is 296 square miles and flood stage is 16 feet.  The record at Blantyre is 27.10 feet on July 16, 1916.

The drainage area for the Davidson River site covers 40 square miles.  Flood stage is 9 feet, with the highest recorded stage at 12.08 on August 17, 1994.

Today measurements are computerized.  Data is recorded at 15-to-60-minute intervals and transmitted to USGS offices every 1 to 4 hours, although it may be more frequent during critical events.  Information is available online at waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/rt for the Blantyre, Rosman and Davidson River sites.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 x242.

BC 1960s

When Emmett K.  McLarty became president of Brevard College in the summer of 1957 he saw the need to strengthen academics, particularly the science, music and arts departments.  Within two years he had begun a capital campaign to build additional classrooms and dorms, a new gym, administration building, library, dining hall and student union.

By the start of the 1965 fall term three new buildings were open, new athletic fields were in place, streets had been paved and renovations for the music department were nearly complete.

The Bryan Moore Science Building opened in August 1961.  It housed the math, chemistry, physics and biology departments.  The building was also home to the Chelf Gem and Mineral Collection featuring over 700 specimens from the U.S. and foreign countries.

The Cary Boshamer gym was completed in 1962 and its indoor pool opened in January 1963.

The new administration building was completed in 1965.  It was named for Grier Beam, a college Trustees and strong supporter of the building expansion program.  It provided space for offices formerly located in the Campus Center.

This allowed for renovations of the Campus Center for the music department.  Renamed Dunham Music Center, it offered classroom space, teaching studios, a music reference library and offices all under one roof.  Previously it had been scattered throughout the campus wherever space was available.

Construction of the new library in 1967.  The old library, before it was
expanded into the Student Union is to the right of the construction site.

By the fall of 1966 the new Lena Sun Beam Dorm had opened and the new library was under construction.  Beam dormitory originally housed 180 girls in private and double rooms built as suites.

The new James Addison Jones Library, which opened in May 1967, had three times the book capacity of the former library.  It also had seminar rooms, group study rooms and a faculty research area. 

Myers Dining Hall opened in 1968.  It had a large dining room and two private dining rooms available for student or faculty meetings and special occasions.

The completion of the library and cafeteria allowed for renovations to their former spaces.  The Music Department expanded into the old cafeteria in the former Campus Center building, now Dunham Music Center.  The former library would be remodeled and expanded as the new student center.

In 1970 the McLarty-Goodson Classroom Building on the campus quad was opened.  It was named for President McLarty, who worked tirelessly to build both the campus and the student body.  He had died suddenly in 1968.  Kenneth Goodson was a college trustee and Methodist Church bishop in Birmingham, Alabama.

This mid-1980s photograph show Jones and Beam dormitories behind the library.
On the right are the Moore Science, Beam Administration and
McLarty-Goodson buildings.

When the Sims Student Union opened in January 1971 it completed McLarty’s plan to build excellent physical facilities at Brevard College.  It offered a lounge with a large color television, the Tornado Room with a grill, billiard and table tennis rooms, a mail room and a book store. 

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 X242.

BC after WWII

Following WWII there was renewed sense of growth at Brevard College.  Enrollment rose to record numbers. The increased number of students and improved economic conditions combined to start a much needed and long dreamed of building boom on the campus.

In late 1947 a new cafeteria opened.  1948 saw the construction of a library, an infirmary and a new classroom building for the sciences.

The Mary Frances Stamey Memorial Infirmary was dedicated on July 10, 1948.  It was named in honor of a former student, who had died two years earlier.  Funds donated by her family financed the project.

On April 10, 1948 the new library was dedicated.  Named for benefactor and trustee James Addison Jones it contained 40,000 volumes and could accommodate 120 people.  

The third new building was a wood frame building constructed by the government to temporarily meet the college’s need for a science building.   It was used for physics, chemistry, biology and home economics until the Moore Science Building was constructed in 1961.

Also during the fall of 1948 two double tennis courts were constructed near the veterans housing, allowing the tennis team to hold home matches.

As Brevard College approached the centennial of one of its parent institutions in 1953 various alumni chapters came together to create the Centennial Gateway.  Constructed of brick, the entrance gate is directly across from First United Methodist.  In 1953 it offered easy access to the church from Dunham Hall which was the heart of the campus at the time.

The gateway is 36 feet wide and 14 feet high with an 8 foot wide entryway.  Marble plaques recognize Rutherford College (1853), Weaver College (1872), Brevard Institute (1895) and the merger into Brevard College in 1934.

Much needed new dorms were constructed in the 1950s for both women and men.  Annabel Jones Hall opened in 1953 and was expanded in 1958.  In 1957 a new men’s hall opened replacing the veterans’ housing.

This aerial photograph of Brevard College was taken in the early 1960s.  It shows Boshamer Gym and the Moore Science Building constructed in the 1960s.  Through the center of photograph are Annabel Jones Hall, Stamey Infirmary,
the first James Addison Jones Library (across from Stamey), the Campus Center building,
the old Dunham Hall, Green Hall and Taylor.

The following year, 1958, the long awaited Campus Center Building was completed.  It included a cafeteria and kitchen, student and faculty lounges, the campus post office, an auditorium that could seat over 500 and a book store.  The book store also featured a soda fountain.

The 1960s and early 1970s saw continued growth on the college campus.  Next week’s Picturing the Past will finish up the series of articles on Brevard College with a look at the McLarty era.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 x242.

BC Started During Great Depression

Brevard College got its start during the Great Depression.  Although times were tough the institution had big dreams.

Almost immediately there was a need for additional space.  Plans included a new women’s dorm, a science building, a library and an infirmary.

Construction of the Brevard College rock wall in 1937.

One of the first building projects was the stone wall along the west and south sides of the campus.  Students collected the river rock and WPA funds were used to hire workers.  The wall created a boundary along the football and baseball fields.  

The school's first gymnasium, located east of the athletic fields, was completed in 1939.   As mentioned in a previous article, this was built with mainly student labor.

The old Breese home, known as Virginia Lodge, and the Little Biddie Coop were used to house girls for several years beginning in 1935.   

In early 1941 Brevard College had an enrollment of approximately 400 students but the facility was considered sub-standard.  It was believed that Brevard could not meet the need for upgrades and investment.  Relocating the junior college and converting it to a 4-year college designed on a self-help model where students were trained and worked in industry and agriculture was proposed.  

The Western North Carolina conference of the Methodist Church agreed instead to develop the Brevard location.  The citizens of Brevard, Transylvania County and surrounding counties began a campaign to raise the funds required.

As the U.S. entered WWII and large numbers of young men entered into military service Brevard College made changes to assist with training citizens.  In September 1940 a Civilian Pilot Training Program was created.  In 1943 the program was renamed Civil Aeronautics Administration War Training Service.  It included 240 hours of ground school study.  Flight training was held at Meyer Flying Service in Hendersonville.

With fewer male students enrolled, the girls were now able to use Taylor Hall as a dormitory.   This provided temporary relief for the housing shortage on campus.  The 1944 annual lists just 56 seniors, only six were boys.  

Brevard College housing for WWII veterans.

By 1947 enrollment had boomed to nearly 500, including a small number of post-graduate students and a class of pre-college students.  Approximately 50% of the student body consisted of veterans.  As boys returned to college in record numbers temporary housing was built.  Four new two-story, barracks style dorms of wood construction were erected to house 200 men.

By the late 1940s, with enrollment back up, growth was on the horizon.  Next week’s article will look at the college’s building boom begun in 1948.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 X242.

Brevard College Has Undergone Transitions

In April 1933 the Women’s Missionary Council of the Methodist Church, South, decided to close Brevard Institute after 35 years of operation.  Brevard Institute had grown out of Rev. and Mrs. Fitch Taylor’s school for girls established in 1895.  Within a few years it was providing accredited high school education for both girls and boys, along with religious, moral and physical training.

Also in 1933, the Western North Carolina Methodist Conference had been looking for a site for a new junior college being created by the merger of Weaver College and Rutherford College.  In July it was announced that the Brevard Institute property was donated to the conference for this purpose.

Brevard College map, drawn by T. McNeil, Oct. 11, 1939.

The Minutes of the Forty-Fourth Session of the Western North Carolina Annual Conference held November 15-20, 1933 in Charlotte included an itemized list of Brevard properties.  Included were “about 106 acres of splendid farm land in a high state of cultivation with about sixteen acres in an apple orchard”, as well as buildings.

The oldest building on the campus was Taylor Hall.  In a 1906-07 Brevard Institute catalog it was described as “new, modern in design, and contains over fifty large well lighted, well ventilated rooms.”  It had a furnace, electricity and running water on each floor.

From left:  new Taylor Hall, Spencer Hall, West (old Taylor) Hall.

By 1933 the building was in poor condition.  Brevard Methodist Church pastor Joseph West lead a crew of men to completely update and remodel it to serve as a girls’ dormitory, with a kitchen and dining hall.  At that time it was renamed West Hall.  The building served as the heart of the campus for many years until it was torn down in 1953 to make room for modern, up-to-date facilities.

The boys were housed in Ross Hall and a previously unnamed building that was renamed Taylor Hall.  Both were modern brick structures that had been constructed in the 1920s.  Taylor and Ross Halls, along with the barn, are the last remaining original buildings from the Brevard Institute era.

The barn had been built shortly before Brevard Institute’s closure.  It continued to be used for agricultural purposes until 1957 when it was converted into a gym.  Later it was used by the theater department for many years.

Spencer Hall was located between Taylor Hall and West Hall but faced west toward Hwy 64 (Broad St.).  It contained the administration offices, class rooms, laboratories and an auditorium that would seat about 250 people.  Built in 1914 Spencer Hall was renamed Dunham Hall in 1949.  In 1957 it became known simply as the Classroom Building.  It was torn down in 1971.

The value of the property was about $250,000.  Additional property was donated, leased or purchased from W. E. Breese, J.H. Picklesimer, C.W. Picklesimer, Mrs. Carrie Zachary, Miss Florence Kearn, the Brevard Building and Loan Association and the Town of Brevard.

In addition the Women’s Council and Brevard Institute donated or sold at very low cost farm implements, office equipment and dormitory furniture and fixtures to the college.  The Town of Brevard agreed to provide free water for the first 6 years.

The first Brevard College annual lists 39 members in the Class of 1935.  There were also 264 freshmen, 40 members of a commercial class and 11 preparatory students that first year.

Next week Picturing the Past will cover the struggles and growth of Brevard College’s early years.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 X242.

James Was First Coach At Brevard College

When Brevard College opened on September 17, 1934 Ralph James became the first Director of Physical Education.  James was the coach for football, basketball and baseball for the first two years.

A Brevard News article on the first football game refers to the team as the “Brevard College Blue Devils.”  A later article calls them the “Blues”.  Throughout November they were called the “Jamesmen”.  The first mention of “Brevard College Tornadoes” was found in two November 29, 1934 news stories, although no mention of the origin of the name was found.

1941 Brevard College baseball team.  Front, left to right:  George Gordon,
Myatt Johnson, Wiley Comer, Gil Coan, Kirby Kirkman, R.W, Norman.
Back, left to right:  Coach Beatty, Harold Stallcup, Kenneth Proctor, Robert Elliot,
Harry Bryan, Wayne Kernodle, Frank Wellons, Julian Reeves, Richard Gauldin,
June Keeter, Jimmie Scott, Clyde Cleetwood, Coach Bradley.

Overall James’ teams were successful during their first season.  The football team finished with a record of 5-2-2 and shared the conference championship with Mars Hill College.  The basketball team was 6-7 and the baseball team was 8-3.

The school’s first gymnasium was completed in 1939. Students designed and built much of the building which stood the test of time for over 20 years until a larger facility was needed.  It was used for athletic events, dances and student body parties.  The gym was located just beyond the end of the stone wall on East French Broad Street.

Brevard College girls' flag football game, 1950s.

Women were also required to participate in a physical education program.  Activities included archery, bowling, calisthenics, tennis, track and tumbling.  Intramural teams competed in basketball and softball.

Intercollegiate women’s teams began in the mid-1940s with a basketball team that competed against teams from Lees-McRae, Pfeiffer and Wingate, as well as industrial league teams like Ecusta and Enka.

Boshamer gymnasium and natatorium was constructed in 1962.  The gym housed a basketball court with seating for approximately 1200 spectators, training and class rooms, showers and offices.  The natatorium opened on January 4, 1963 after a delay because the 75 foot long pool was three quarters of an inch short.  Although the swimming pool was closed and filled in several years ago the gym remains in use today.

The football program at Brevard College was suspended following the 1950 season.  A new era of Tornado football began in 2006.   

 

In 2009 the cycling team won their first National Championship as a team.  They continue to add team and individual honors in mountain and road biking, as well as cyclo-cross.  Cyclo-cross combines grass, mud and sand courses with man-made obstacles.

Today Brevard College offers the sports of baseball, basketball, cheer and dance, cross country, cycling, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, tennis, track and field, and volleyball.

Beginning next week Picturing the Past will feature a series of articles on the history of Brevard College,  

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 X242.

Baseball Standouts Grew Up On These Diamonds

Baseball grew in popularity throughout North Carolina following the Civil War.  By the late 1800s most towns, colleges and high schools had teams.  Transylvania County has been home to town teams, industrial league teams and Major Leaguers since the early 1900s.

In 1903 the Brevard Baseball Club played 28 games against other town teams, including Hendersonville, Tryon and Spartanburg.  They finished the season with a 17-11 record.  Newspaper articles boast of defeating their archrivals, Hendersonville, several times.

Within a few years other Transylvania communities and the Brevard Institute also had baseball teams.  Information on these early teams is limited to scattered reports in local newspapers.

In 1931 the Sylvan Valley League in Transylvania County consisted of teams from Lake Toxaway, Penrose, Pisgah Forest and Rosman.

Can you help identify these 1941 Ecusta ball players?

Industrial or textile league baseball was popular from the 1930s through the 1960s.  Local teams began forming in 1934.  The Gloucester CCC Camp, Pisgah Cotton Mills, Rosman Tannery and Transylvania Tanning all had teams.  Ecusta formed a baseball team in 1940.  Their first game was against Brevard Tannery on April 27, 1940.  Ecusta won by a score of 6-4.  The team finished their first season in 5^th place but won the WNC Industrial League pennant in 1941.



Gil Coan came to Brevard College to play baseball in 1941.  Coan worked for Ecusta in the early 1940s before signing to play professional baseball with the Washington Senators.  His first major league game was April 27, 1946.  Over the course of an 11 year career he also played for the Baltimore Orioles, New York Giants and Chicago White Sox.  Coan had a .254 batting average with 39 home runs and 83 stolen bases in 2877 at bats.

This Brevard team made up of mostly African-American players
played teams from Western North Carolina and upstate South Carolina.
Back, l to r:  William Mills, Eddie Moss, Jake Smith, Charles Whitmire,
Joe Lewis Norman, Dolphus Robinson, Arthur Robinson, Johnny Whitmire
and Lewis Howell.
Front, l to r:  Willie Bussey, Herbert Avery, Charles Gardin, Charles Whitmire, Jr., 
Hugh Whitmire, Lawrence Mills, Dennis Robinson and Walter Mall Benjamin.

Transylvania County native Art Hefner played baseball in the Negro Leagues for five years.  Hefner played minor league ball for the Nashville Black Vols in 1945 and the Asheville Blues in 1946 and part of 1947.  On the Major League level he played part of 1947 and 1948 with the New York Black yankees and 1949 with the Philadelphia Stars of the Negro National League.  Few Negro League statistices survive but Hefner did hit .273 with the Stars.






Next week Picturing the Past  will feature athletics at Brevard College.  A short series of articles on the history of Brevard College will begin on October 26.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 x242.

Locals Play Golf For More Than 100 Years

It is generally accepted that modern golf developed in Scotland in the 15^th and 16^th centuries.  The earliest U.S. golf organization dates to the late 1700s but it was not until the late 1800s to early 1900s that the popularity of golf erupted across the U.S.

The first golf course in Transylvania County was at Lake Toxaway.  “Extensive Improvements and Additions for Lake Toxaway Hotel Property” were announced in the Sylvan Valley News on November 6, 1911.  This included a 9-hole golf course and a 20 room clubhouse for guests at the Toxaway Inn.  That course, which was located near present day Lake Cardinal, closed in 1916 when the dam burst ending Lake Toxaway’s tourism boom. 

In the 1960s the dam was rebuilt and the lake restored.  The new Lake Toxaway Country Club included an 18-hole golf course.  The old Moltz mansion, with its pool and tennis and croquet courts, served as the club house.  Since that time improvements have included new clubhouses, a new pool and tennis courts, as well as major renovations to the golf course and croquet lawn.

In 1912 a man-made lake was built in the Seeoff community with the intention of creating a resort that would include a golf course.  In 1921 plans were made for a summer resort with a lake and golf course in the Blantyre community.  Neither project was successful however.

A group of golfers at the Hunter home which served as the original Club House
for the Brevard Country Club.

Plans for the Brevard Country Club and golf course, a half miles northwest of Brevard, were announced in 1925.  The first 9-holes were opened the next summer with the Hunter Mansion serving as the temporary clubhouse.  Original plans were for 18-holes, a residential development and a large hotel. 

A 1929 tourism brochure states, “For scenic grandeur the Brevard golf course can hardly be equalled anywhere.  Part of the course is located in the wide valley of the French Broad River, but the most fascinating fairways are situated on rolling plateaus that command a view of the entire links with distant mountain peaks in every back-ground.”

Miss Barbara Talley at the Ecusta's 3-hole practice course at
Camp Strauss, July 1953.

Although the Brevard Country Club never grew as planned it did serve the community for about 40 years until the communities of Lake Toxaway (1965), Glen Cannon (1966) and Sherwood Forest (1967) built golf courses.  Connestee Falls golf course opened in 1974.

Today nearly 50% of the golf courses in the world are in the US.  In Transylvania County there are currently four golf courses—Burlingame Country Club, Connestee Falls, Lake Toxaway and Sherwood Forest.

Visit the Smithsonian’s Museum on Main Street exhibit, “Hometown Teams” at the Library through October 24, 2015.

 Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library.  Visit the NC Room during regular library hours (Monday-Friday) to learn more about our history and see additional photographs.  For more information, comments or suggestions contact Marcy at marcy.thompson@transylvaniacounty.org or 828-884-3151 X242.