State

Denton's Fly-In For The Fourth ИЧ a combinaition thresher** re¬ union. aiirplaiu» rifle, music* fesl. and enmp-in at Denton I nlern;it ional Ain* port. By ROI4DA TICKER Twelve years ago. a volunteer res¬ cue squad in a rural Piedmont county was given permission to use a privately owned airstrip to sell airplane rides in exchange for small donations to their organization. This year, the rescue squad, along with other groups and in¬ dividuals. will host a crowd expected to number over 20.000 for the three- day festival that grew from the airplane rides fund raising project. It is Denton International Airport Annual Fly-in and Threshers’ Re¬ union. set for July 3-5. Airplane rides are still popular, but visitors also come for country and western and blucgrass music by top stars, wheat threshings and other demonstrations of steam- powered engines, family camping, an operating moonshine still, local crafts, and the wheat threshers' dinner, ‘‘a platter of down home vittles guaran¬ teed to stick to your ribs.” Brown l.oflin. co-owner with How¬ ard Latham in the airport and 90-acre showgrounds, explained how he and his neighbors have managed to lure such large crowds away from profes¬ sionally operated tourist attractions. "Folks around here think big and cooperate with one another." he said. "I guess we’ve just kept some of the old traditions, such as hospitality, and people appreciate that." Loflin said the location of the event, in southern Davidson County, is ideal for drawing visitors from Greensboro. High Point. Winston-Salem. Charlotte and other populous Piedmont cities. It is reached from Highway 49 or High¬ way 109, both intersecting with in¬ terstate highways. Antique Engines Looking around the airport, which is home to a maximum of two small airplanes, one wonders why it is called Denton International Airport. Loflin just shrugs, when asked about the name. He is serious about the project and his dedication to steam engines. The fly-in is billed as “the greatest steam, gas and antique farm machinery THE STATE, JUHI 1111 show in the southeast." and last year's statistics seem to attest to the claim. More than 500 antique engines were on display at the airport during the July 4 weekend of 19X0. They were lined up on the showgrounds and in the 100- foot -by-200-foot exhibition building. They were scattered about at demon¬ stration sites and moving throughout the fly-in area. Visitors enter by tram from a 20-acre grassed parking area. Lntering the heart of the fly-in through a tunnel under the airstrip, visitors see rows of tractors and a village of log buildings, including a house, barn, blacksmith shop corn crib and smokehouse. Even the modern restrooms arc contained in a log building. Old Store Moved In The old Jackson Hill Store and Post Office, along with the Methodist Church from the once-thriving nearby community, have been moved to the airport and refurbished with equip¬ ment and furnishings of the turn of the century. They are open to visitors, who can examine the merchandise and snack on soft drinks, soda crackers, and old-fashioned hoop cheese. Ser¬ vices are held in the historic church building on Sunday morning. The campground is set in a wooded area, which rings the showgrounds. There is a modern bath house for campers; no hookups are available. The moonshine still is on the nearby creek. Operated by local men who claim to have "experience." it is a popular display. No samples arc al¬ lowed. so those who develop a thirst will have to quench it w-ith one of the legal-type beverages sold at booths on the grounds. Hands Dandy Railroad The newest addition to the fly-in is the railway terminal, a reconstructed log building dating back to 1X60. Grading is completed for a lull-si/e 2.5-mile track on which the Handy Dandy Railroad will operate, carrying visitors around the showgrounds. A 1943 0-4-0 steam-powered engine will pull three converted passenger cars. The only known 1916 Type В Enc steam shovel is permanently head- 27