"Bone Creek"

Bone Creek

Take seven local blues musicians. Put them under lock and key in the Caswell County jail. Add one pretty ingénue photographer on a mission to preserve the rural South before bulldozers turn it into a strip mall. Mix in one crusty old moonshiner, a spirit woman, a guitar player on the lam from the law, revenuers and dramatis personae of assorted raffish characters.

The result is “Bone Creek,” a new feature film from broadcasting and cinema professor Dr. Emily Edwards that mixes music with drama and magical realism.

Ten UNCG students were involved in various aspects of production, from script supervision to costume design and acting. One of the stars of “Bone Creek” is noted folk artist and musician Lorenzo “Logie” Meachum, a doctoral student in the English Department.

The film will premier later this year.


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Rotary Club of Yanceyville Presidents

Rotary Club Presidents

1937 Mr. Sam Bason
1938 Mr. Clyde Cole
1939 Mr. Erwin D. Stephens
1940 Mr. Holland McSwain
1941 Mr. Clyde V. McKinney
1942 Mr. E. Fred Upchurch
1943 Mr. John 0. Gunn
1944 Rev. Joyce V. Early
1945 Mr. W. Richard Grey, Jr.
1946 Mr. J. Burch Blaylock
1947 Mr. Thomas J. Ham
1948 Rev. H. J. Womeldorf
1949 Mr. Leon F. Lyday
1950 Mr. William L. Gunn
1951 Mr. Earl J. Smith
1952 Mr. George A. Holt
1953 Mr. Bill R. Murphy
1954 Mr. C. Lee Price
1955 Mr. C. L. Pemberton
1956 Mr. Herman L. Gunn
1957 Mr. Thomas H. Whitley
1958 Mr. Luther T. Hicks
1959 Mr. H. V. Massengill
1960 Mr. William E. Niven
1961 Mr. Norman S. Upchurch
1962 [Mr. Fred Patterson, photo missing] (part of term)
1962 Mr. Dalton Proctor (part of tenn)
1962 Mr. James Foster (part of term)
1963 Mr. J. E. Foster
1964 Mr. Hines Hatchett
1965 Mr. J. Neal Watlington
1966 Mr. Ryland Farmer
1967 Mr. W. Henry Hicks
1968 Mr. Layton J. Everitt
1969 Mr. C. C. Jernigan
1970 Mr. Buford B. Pearson
1971 Mr. Tom McPherson
1972 Mr. Millard Q. Plumblee
1973 Mr. Ben W. Gentry
1974 Mr. Tommy P. Davis
1975 Mr. Tony W. Wolfe
1976 Mr. W. Willard Woodard
1977 Mr. 0. B. Watlington
1978 Mr. Tommy Florence
1979 Mr. J. D. Gwynn, Jr
1980 Mr. Ed Meadow
1981 Dr. Allison Page
1982 Mr. Tommy P. Davis
1983 Mr. Danny Lentz
1984 [Mr. Marty Allen, photo missing] (part of term)
1985 Dr. Allison Page (part of term
1986 Mr. Neal Watlington
1987 Rev. William W. Newman
1988 Mr. David Emmett

Photographs may be seen at the Caswell County Photograph Collection.

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Charles Iverson Graves (1838-1896)

Charles Iverson Graves (1838-1896) was the son of John Williams (1792-1847) and Martha Hinton Graves (1798-1862) of North Carolina. Sometime before his birth, his parents joined relatives living in Newton County, Georgia, among them John Graves's cousin, Iverson Lewis Graves and Martha's brother John Hinton. John Graves's brother, Calvin Graves remained at Locust Hill in Caswell County, N.C., near Yanceyville. Calvin often advised his nephew Charles after the death of John Graves.

Charles attended the U.S. Naval Academy; served as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Navy until 1861 when he became an officer in the Confederate Navy; taught school and operated a vegetable farm near Rome, Ga.; spent three years in Egypt as a lieutenant-colonel in the Egyptian army, 1875-1878; and worked as a civil engineer on construction of the Georgia Pacific, and Memphis & Vicksburg railroads, 1881-1884. He married Margaret Rockwell Lea in November 1862. They had five children: Charles Iverson, Jr., William Lea, Mary Hinton, Robert William, and Anne Parke.

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John Bentley Page (1896-1959)

John Bentley Page was born near Yanceyville on March 14, 1896. His father, Ludolphus B. Page of Caswell, married Miss Parthenia Hodnett of Mt. Airy, Virginia. His grandfather, James Bentley Page, was a soldier in the Confederate Army. This grandsire did valiant service during the War between the States, and fought with much bravery for the Southern cause until he was taken prisoner in one of the fierce battles around Richmond and was sent to Point Lookout. Here he was held a prisoner of war until Lee's surrender. His grandfather, John Hodnett, was a Confederate soldier who went into the army from the state of Virginia.

It will be interesting to record that our young soldier was a great, great, great grandson of Starling Gunn, who fired the first gun at York, Pennsylvania, in the Revolutionary War, and who also had the very remarkable experience of being an eye witness to the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown. It will perhaps be of further interest to record that this same ancestor lies buried in the family burying ground near the present home of J. L. Murray, about two miles north of Yanceyville. Our young soldier attended the public schools of Caswell County, doing high school work at Yanceyville, after which he did work in the farm life school near Asheville, after which he was a student at Mt. Hermon, Mass, and also at Lincoln Memorial University.

On April 28, 1918, he was called by his local board, and sent to Camp Jackson, South Carolina, later transferred to Camp Greenleaf, Georgia, and still later to Camp Greene at Charlotte, North Carolina. He was a member of Motor Company No. 10, and Battalion No. 4, of the Motor Group in the Medical Corps of the Army. He remained in service from April 27, 1918, until January 10, 1919. The armistice putting an end to military activities, he did not go overseas. However, he remained in service until January 10, 1919, on which date, from Camp Greene, he was discharged from Military Service.

Source: Caswell County in the World War, 1917-1918: Service Records of Caswell County Men, George A. Anderson, Compiler (1921) at 129-130.

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Caswell County World War II Deaths

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Will of Zenas Bush (1776-1836)

WILL OF ZENAS BUSH, Montgomery Co., Tennessee

I, Zenas Bush of the County of Montgomery and State of Tennessee being of sound mind and having the due exercise of my rational powers, but knowing the uncertainty of human events, and of human life do ordain and make this my last will and testament in form following viz,

Item 1st It is my will that all my just [debt] be paid.

Item 2nd It is my will that all the property that I give shall be kept together for the benefit and use of my wife and children and that my executor shall in no case be compeled to sell my property what ever unless in his judgment it may be to the interest of my heirs to do so.

Item 3rd It is my wish that my wife Martha Bush shall have the direction and control of my property so far as it respects the use she may make of it in supporting herself and in supporting and educating my children during her widowhood but should she marry it is my wish that she shall have a life estate in one-fourth part of all my property of every description whatever.

Item 4th It is my wish that my executor shall have the power to sell or dispose of in any way any lands or other property belonging to my estate whenever in his estimation the interest of my wife or heirs may be promoted thereby -- and that he shall have power to purchase any lands or property which may benefit Him and he shall have powers to make or receive deeds for the same

Item 5th It is my wish that at the death or marriage of my wife that the property shall be equally divided among my children

Item 6th It is my wish that my son Howard B. Bush be my executor.

Under my hand and seal the 26th of December 1829

Zenas Bush (Seal)

Test

L. C. Taylor ___ April Term 1830

Copy of will made at the Tennessee Library & Archives, Nashville, TN, and transcribed by me (Cathy Palm). Zenas Bush was my brother-in-law's ancestor.

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Russell Carter Watlington

By Leigh Carter


Leigh Carter/Caswell Messenger Caswell County artist
Russell C. Watlington shows his latest work, framed and
displayed for visitors in his Yanceyville home. Each of
Watlington's pieces are done from Caswell County subject
matter including rural scenes and portraits.

Jul 08, 2008 - 11:24:23 pm CDT
Staff Writer

Rows and rows of pen and ink, charcoal and watercolor pictures line the walls of Caswell County artist Russell C. Watlington's home, many pieces displayed representing more than 220 hours of hard work.