Together with our partners at the Museum of Haywood County History, DigitalNC is proud to announce the addition of six new scrapbooks! This collection exemplifies the grand variety of content that can be found within scrapbooks, covering American news during the second world war, postcards and souvenirs from across the world, and the operation of home demonstration clubs. This astonishing array of subject matter and material from across the world exemplifies the increasing global awareness of North Carolinians throughout the mid-twentieth century, reflecting the growing perception of Americans as global citizens. And, as is typical for many of Haywood County’s scrapbooks, some are beautifully bound in engraved local leather.
Cover of the Morning Star Club scrapbook from 1976, a beautiful example of the leather engraved covers found on many scrapbooks from Haywood County
Perhaps the most colorful example of global citizenship within this batch is the scrapbook of Mrs. Maggie Ellen Morgan, a world traveler that collected a vast array of postcards during her travels across Europe, America, and Africa. Each postcard has a beautiful illustration or photograph of the sights seen by Mrs. Morgan, along with occasional notes on her travels. These postcards not only reflect post-war tourism, but are in many cases historical artifacts that portray important cultural and historical sites during a time of reconstruction and reinterpretation.
You can discover these colorful (and oftentimes whimsical) postcards, along with the other new scrapbooks, online at DigitalNC’s website here. Interested in learning more about Haywood County history? Find our collection online here, or visit our partners at the Museum of Haywood County History at their website here.
In collaboration with our partners at the Museum of Haywood County, we are pleased to announce that four new scrapbooks from Haywood County are now available on our website! Set in Western North Carolina, these books combine newspaper clippings, photographs, booklets, and other assorted materials into one cohesive work. All of these different materials form a gestalt that allow the reader to glimpse into the author’s lived experience. What could be better than dozens of primary sources wrapped up into one?
Two of these scrapbooks are massive, leather-bound books that collect a comprehensive record of Haywood County’s home management clubs. These societies were formed and managed by local women, and would meet to raise funds for local organizations, provide education for new homeowners, and host dinners and functions for the entire community. Both of these scrapbooks were created in the sixties and reflect the traditional expectations for women during the period, including newspaper columns on attracting potential husbands and raising a family. Near the back of each book are sections on state and national events, including advertisements for polio drives, plans for the North Carolina state fair, and detailed programs on a convention for mental health.
Another scrapbook in the new batch was written by a Haywood local during his time at UNC Chapel Hill. Penned by Mr. Hanna, the book encompasses his time at the university from 1916 to 1919. Hanna, like many freshman college students, focuses his book on the many football games and parties he attends (while including a written report for accruing too many absences). Also found in this book are freshman resources including the Carolina Handbook, a train and class schedule, and a carefully notated map of the campus. Throughout these resources, Hanna writes opinionated notes on his experience in college.
We were also pleased to include a vintage photograph in this collection, taken by Hugh Morton and depicting the Old Well in Chapel Hill. Morton was a prolific photographer, conservationist, and alumni from UNC Chapel Hill. Born and raised in North Carolina, Morton was responsible for the creation of Grandfather Mountain, a state park located in Western North Carolina. You can view this photograph, alongside all of the new scrapbooks, here. If you want more Western North Carolina history, you can visit our partners at their website.
Thanks to our new partner Museum of Haywood County History, a batch containing four new scrapbooks have been added to our website.
These scrapbooks contain newspaper clippings of club announcements like meeting time and place, upcoming community events, winners of annual awards, the election of officers, along with various accompanying photographs and other ephemera. These scrapbooks give insight into what life was like for some women, families and communities in the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s.
Thanks to our partner, Haywood County Public Library, a batch containing new issues of yearbooks from Bethel High School, Canton High School, Pisgah Senior High School, Waynesville High School, Tuscola High School, Clyde High School, and Crabtree Iron Duff High School are now available on our website. This batch includes yearbooks from the years 1943 to 1970.
The Mountaineer 1962 cover
To learn more about the Haywood County Public Library, please visit their website.
For more yearbooks from across North Carolina, visit our yearbook collection.
‘Dan’, the First Registered Plott Hound. Haywood County Public Library
Haywood County is home to the Plott family, the original breeders of the Plott Hound, North Carolina’s official state dog. The first Plotts (and hounds) came to North Carolina from Germany in the mid 18th century. The dogs were similar to hounds already in the colonies, but had larger heads and proved to be especially fierce fighters. When it was discovered that the dogs could hold their own against wolves and bears, they were in high demand among farmers who used them to protect their livestock.
In the 20th century, Plott Hounds were common in the mountains of western North Carolina and Tennessee. They gained national attention in the early 1930s when Life magazine ran a feature on the dogs, and then in 1946, when the United Kennel Club recognized them as a separate breed.
The Plott Hound was recognized as the North Carolina state dog in 1989, but the breed really hit the big time in 2008 when the first Plott Hound appeared in the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.
Group of Plott Hounds. Haywood County Library
Henry Vaughn ‘Von’ Plott with Plott Hounds. Haywood County Public Library.
The Cape Fear and Deep River profile and its story are DigitalNC’s first additions to provide insight into North Carolina’s inland navigation system, though this information is complemented by several photos of the Cape Fear river on our site. The Deep River, along with the Haw River, is a tributary of the Cape Fear River. The two rivers meet just south of Jordan Lake in Chatham County, near Moncure and Haywood, North Carolina. The Cape Fear and Deep River Navigation Company was organized in 1849 in Pittsboro, NC, to enable steamboats to traverse the rivers. The company ensured navigation of the rivers by building dams and locks as a slack water system of navigation. To learn more about the company, visit Wade Hadley, Jr.’s history of the organization from 1980.
This batch of materials also includes nearly 100 new photographs of twentieth century Chatham County. Several showcase local high schools, activities at the Gilmore Hunting Lodge, dam construction, the Carolina Power and Light Company, churches in Mount Vernon, and other subjects.
When it comes time to take on your Thanksgiving turkey tomorrow, here’s hoping things turn out better for you than they did for “Turkey George,” shown here in a photo from the Haywood County Public Library. According to legend, “He got the name of ‘Turkey George’ because he also hunted a lot of turkeys. One time he placed a pen over a hole he had dug in the ground. He also dug a little ditch out from under the pen and scattered corn in the ditch, into the hole under the pen. When the turkeys went in they couldn’t figure out how to get out so they were caught. Turkey George crawled in to get a turkey or two and the brood flailed him with an inch of his life. Thus his name.”
To learn more about the Haywood County Public Library, you can visit their website.
It looks like paying your taxes used to be a little more straightforward. Here’s J. A. Turner’s tax bill from 1905, from the Haywood County Public Library.
This photograph of an outdoor baptism is one of my favorites from the Haywood County Public Library photos available on DigitalNC. Click on the photo to get to the full version, where you can zoom in to see the fascinating details.
This blog is maintained by the staff of the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center and features the latest news and highlights from the collections at DigitalNC, an online library of primary sources from organizations across North Carolina.
