My Father, History
and Minnesott
How progress won out al this chosen
.spot on (lie IN'eiiso River.
«I/
WILMA WYNNS
ing ilic red ponchos, march in for a
pretend haiilc. Then things arc brought
up to dale by asking the children.
"Who won the war?” and explaining
that we have a President, not a king
or queen, like England. All this is
done on their age level, and Cornelia
hopes it will develop deep regard for
the past and our country's history.
Along with the study of local his¬
tory. third grade school groups take
field trips to some of the places they
have studied. They tour the Mint Mu¬
seum, where gold was once coined
in Charlotte, the He/iah Alexander
Home, built in 1774 and the oldest
house still standing in Mecklenburg
County.
The book tells about the Catawba
Indians who lived near Charlotte, how
life must have been for settlers living
in a log cabin, in contrast to present
homes, what the early schooling was
like, about gold being found and
mined, all profusely illustrated with
black and white drawings. There are
color pictures of Queen Charlotte, the
Mint. Ilcziah Alexander's Home, and
a map showing where the old gold
mines were located. It is packed full
of things to excite even children whose
imagination has been whetted by tele¬
vision.
Model For Others
Adults are finding the book inter¬
esting too. Many newcomers to Char¬
lotte are being taught local history and
having landmarks pointed out to them
by their third grade child. Other adults
who buy and read the book for their
own pleasure like its briefness, the
facts simply stated and the condensa¬
tion of history.
Cornelia has been asked by teachers
in other counties to show them how
to go about researching, writing, and
teaching their local history. Another
unexpected outcome of the book is also
underway. When Dr. Frank Porter
Graham was asked to write a foreword
for the book, he wrote, in addition, a
detailed outline that will be printed as
a supplement to the book. Dr. Gra¬
ham's outline is for use by the teach¬
ers and for upper elementary students
in their studies of North Carolina his¬
tory.
The need to record, preserve, and
teach local history that Cornelia Hen¬
derson filled has reached further than
she ever imagined in those third grade
classrooms. Who knows where it will
lead?
to
My father. Naaman Hardison,
dreamed of being a lawyer. Hut his
meager savings would not stretch be¬
yond one year at Trinity College, so
he had to dream another dream. He
acquired a country store in the village
of Arapahoe, in Pamlico County. This
country store gradually expanded into
the sale of fertilizer and cotton gin¬
ning on the side.
Father also bought some farm lands
and other acres on the banks of the
beautiful Ncusc River. As the years
went by he managed to build a few
buildings on this river land and named
it Minnesott Beach. Here he found
much pleasure amid a profusion of
hickory, oak. dogwood and long leaf
pine trees. Here abounded trout, spots,
croakers and other salt water species
of fish. Here, one also had easy ac¬
cess to nearby creeks, the Pamlico
Sound and the Atlantic Ocean. Here,
to him. was a paradise that he wanted
to share w ith others.
Some Hard Years
This small beach survived the de¬
pression of the thirties, during which
time the last twelve miles of a muddy
road were paved. He had made so
many trips to Raleigh in the interest
of hard surfacing that he almost con¬
sidered these twelve miles of Highway
306 his very own. He also managed to
educate his three children during these
depression years. It was during the ter¬
rible hurricane of 1933 that this vul¬
nerable spot was struck, along with
many other coastal areas. The bridge
connecting Pamlico County with the
city of New Bern was completely de¬
stroyed. so that there was no mail ser¬
vice for a week.
But after the debris was cleared
away, boats recovered, repairs made
to overturned buildings and cottages.
Minnesott Beach continued in busi¬
ness. So, my father and his liny, in¬
significant beach bucked both the hur¬
ricane and depression and won.
This beach, during the turbulent war
years of the forties offered a recrea¬
tional haven for the many marines sta¬
tioned directly across the river at the
Cherry Point Marine base. Many fam¬
ilies of these marines lived at Minne¬
sott Beach during these years, and
Some hijtorio rcco/d ihoi Su Welle» Rolei^S’*
e»plorc>t come lo
о
bcoutilul river ond landed
"where Ihe ri.cr bendclh/' preiumobly ol
Wilkerjon’» Point which (shown here) i» locolcd
on Ihe Nome River ol Minneioll Beoch.
lasting friendships sprang up between
them and my parents. A deluge of
Christmas cards from far away places
still keeps my mother in touch with
these people.
Minnesott Beach survived several
hurricanes of the fifties, though it took
many beatings from those vicious
storms. After each storm had taken its
toll, the costly task of resalvaging,
remodeling and rebuilding took place.
It seemed an endless repetition and a
THE STATE. APRIL 15. 1969
