Information from Brenda Irwin Frizzell about her father’s World War II mess kit that was found on a Belgian battlefield and returned to him 47 years after it was lost. We shared this article with the Alleghany News, an important partner of AHGS.

Printed in 1981, by the United States Library of Congress, this book  features,

“An essay from the Blue Ridge Parkway folklife Project conducted by the American Folklife Center in cooperation with the National Park Service in August and September 1978”

It was edited by Lyntha Scott Eiler. Terry Eiler. and Carl Flelschhauer and includes many photos of Southwest Virginia and Northwest North Carolina.

We love it because it contains stories and images of Alleghany County.

The Sparta Restaurant  –  Sparta, North Carolina

Town and Country Barber Shop  –  Sparta, North Carolina

Click the photo to see the entire book in PDF format.

BlueRidgeHarvestBook_sm

Here are transcripts of letters from “the War to End All Wars,” sent home to the Blue Ridge and printed in the Alleghany Star, 100 years ago during World War I. They were clipped and saved by the Irwin Family and are part of Minnie Lou Irwin’s papers. John Irwin brought them to us, after he found the articles in his mother’s papers. The Alleghany Star evolved into the Alleghany News, and we are posting the letters from their “Somewhere Over There” series here, with their permission.

to S. O. Edwards from his son Private Carper E. Edwards

to I. O. Reynolds from his son Walter

to Mrs. A B Taylor from her son Corpl James Luther

to Mrs. Lulu Landreth from her brother-in-law Jno M. Landreth

Here are outside views of the building we are purchasing. It will be the new home of the Alleghany Historical Museum on Main Street in Sparta, NC.
If you’d like to help, donations can be made here.

Our mailing address is PO Box 817, Sparta, NC 28675
AHGS is a certified 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. Donations are tax-deductible.

From the spring of 1945 until 1948, Thelma O. Davis owned and operated Thelma’s portrait studio on Main Street over the Belk’s Department Store, at the corner of NC18 and US21 (where Alleghany Historical Museum is located, today.)

After completing a course in portraiture at New York Institute of Photography and working for a time in other studios, Thelma returned to Sparta to venture out on her own. She and her assistant did all types of portraiture from 2 x 3 wallet size to 8 x 10 family groups and the like. All printing, mounting, etc. was done in the studio except for Kodak rolls, which were sent out for developing.

Color portraits were not available at that time. If anyone who wanted a color portrait, it was done by hand, using Marshalls Photo Oils.

A display case, on Main Street, featured the “Portrait of the Week.” Many families were able to obtain memorable keepsakes as a result of this business.

Help support the Museum this summer by entering our raffle for this beautiful Pie Safe Cupboard! Tickets will be available, soon at the Museum and are reasonably priced at just $5 each or 6 for $25.

The Pie Safe was made by local craftsman, John Wayne Edwards, who has selflessly built and donated pieces for the Heart Fund and, most recently, the Walter Frank Osborne Jr. Detachment 1298 Marine Corps League.

It is on display at the Museum, open Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 10am to 5pm. The drawing will be made September 16th, Mountain Heritage Day, but you don’t have to be present to win.

Alleghany Historical Museum is a project of the Alleghany Historical – Genealogical Society, Inc., a certified 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. EIN 561316245.

The Historical Museum opened March 30 with a colorful exhibit called Country Collections.

Lucy Roe (in the photo, lower, right) and part of her whimsical clown collection.

Some pleasantly pleased, portly porkers. -From Lucy Roe and Claire Halsey

Elegant glass baskets from Bonnie Vaughan.

6″ California Raisins Fingertronic puppet with vintage 1988 California Raisin figures that were Hardee’s give-away. Set of 5 figures includes: raisins with a trumpet, boom box, guitar, surf board and roller skates. 2″ to 2-1/4″ tall

The Bluegrass Boys in 1939, left to right: Art Wooten, Bill Monroe, Cleo Davis and Amos Garen.

Ever listen to Bluegrass Music? Well did you know that the father of Bluegrass, Bill Monroe hired an Alleghany County boy when he got started back in 1939? And did you know that young man was named Arthur Wooten?

Years ago, T.J. Worthington told me- as he might well have told you- about Fiddlin’ Art Wooten. T.J. posted a very interesting blog post about Art at his site, Waterfall Road. In it he talked about how Mr. Wooten played alongside the greats: The Stanley Brothers and the Clinch Mountain Boys; Flatt and Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys and Bill Monroe and his Bluegrass Boys.

Art Wooten is credited with helping to create some big hits. But you might not realize just how big.

One of the first hits from Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys- and arguably one of the biggest hits ever in the history of country music– was the Orange Blossom Special. Written by Ervin T. Rouse in 1938, it was recorded by Monroe and his band on October 2, 1941 in Atlanta, Georgia.

With Bill Monroe  on vocals and mandolin, Pete Pyle- vocals and guitar, Cousin Wilbur- vocals and bass and Art Wooten singing lead and playing the fiddle.

Listen carefully till the end when Art says, “Yeah Bill, where you gonna get off this train at?”
Bill says, “Yonder ’bout Atlanta, Georgia. Boy where’s you gwine?”
Art says, “I’m goin’ up ’bout Nashville, Tennessee. Where you goin’ Cousin Wilbur?”
Wilbur says, “I’m goin’ to Birmingham, Alabamy!”
Art: “What for?”
Wilbur: “Ain’t no ham like Birmingham!”
Art says, “Pete, Where you gonna get off at?”
Pete says, “Oh, I’m Memphis-bound, boys”

It could be argued that every version since has been a variation of that original session.

In a 1974 interview with country music historian Tom Wolfe, Bill Monroe said:

“Of course, Art Wooten was the first fiddler with me, from Sparta, North Carolina, and I found him in Asheville, got him in my group, come to Nashville. Art was a wonderful old-time fiddler, and he played numbers like the Mule Skinner Blues or Back Up and Push or Orange Blossom Special. The old-time fiddle numbers, he was hard to beat, man.”

A song written for the Alleghany County, North Carolina Centennial in 1959. It features the beard-growing contest and other fundraising efforts. It was written and performed by Ernest Joines and his wife Agnes, long-time Mayor Pro Tem of Sparta, Alleghany’s county seat. Lead singer Bobby Carpenter and Harmonica player, G.C. Crouse round out the decidedly “Hillbilly-Style” band.

This photo from a logging camp rail yard is from Irene Wagner’s family and was probably a contact print from a very well-focused, glass negative. We know it isn’t from Alleghany County, North Carolina, as Alleghany never had a railroad. The Elkin-Alleghany venture never made it up the mountain. It stopped at the base of the Blue Ridge escarpment at Doughton, NC in Wilkes County.
There are two more photos coming. One, we think, is of the engine at far right and the other is of the engine second from left.
Anyone have any ideas about time and place? Calling all old codgers, lend us your expertise!

The new exhibit at the Alleghany Historical Museum will feature images by local photographers. Poster photography by W. Ray Scott National Park Concessions, Inc.

Alleghany County was formed from the eastern part of Ashe County. It is bounded on the south by Blue Ridge and Wilkes county line, west by Ashe County, north by the Virginia line and east by Surry County line. The county is divided into two valleys, Peach Bot­tom mountain passing through the county from east to west, valley of Little River on the south, New River and tributary streams, Prather’s Creek and Elk Creek on the north.
“The surface is uneven, ridges and valleys along the streams of water, beautiful springs gushing and gurgling from hills and dales, forests of trees such as oak, pine, poplar, ma­ple, ashe, hickory, chestnut, abundance of granite and fine species of soap-stone rich mines of iron, and copper. The productions are wheat, rye. corn, oats, buckwheat. sorgum­ cane, flax, potatoes and garden vegetables of great variety that mature in luxury and per­fection, fruits, such as apples, peaches, pears, quinces, plums, cherries, blackberries, straw­berries, currants, whortleberries and grapes.”

-Aras B. Cox in his book Footprints on the Sands of Time, a History of South-western Virginia and North-western North Carolina printed by the Star Publishing Company in Sparta, North Carolina in August of 1900.

 

This is a roster of the first 199 men considered for service by the local board of Alleghany County, NC in World War I. The files are from the National Archives. Click the link or the image to open a  multi-page PDF file.

The Basin Cove Flood Centennial Commemoration is planned for Saturday, July 15, 2016, at the Primitive Campsite in Doughton Park. More info will be posted on the event’s Facebook page.

Get directions from the NPS Doughton Park Trail Map.