A photo of the 1967 annual staff of the Stripes yearbook from the Martin Memorial School of Nursing
A new batch of yearbooks from Surry County are now digitized and available on DigitalNC, courtesy of our partner, the Mount Airy Regional Museum of History. Included in this collection are nearly two dozen yearbooks from schools across Mount Airy and Surry County, dating from the 1920s to the 1960s.
These yearbooks contain individual portraits, class photos, as well as photographs highlighting student activities and clubs, sports teams and events like Homecomings, faculty, and student activities. Some of the yearbooks also include class and school histories. Readers can also find in some of these yearbooks “last wills and testaments”, where the graduating class leaves behind objects, memories, and skills to the next class. There are also class prophecies, where the students imagined where they would be years down the road.
Follow the links below to browse the yearbooks from the schools included in this batch:
A 1958 photo of the Franklin High School football team in front of the school.
These yearbooks represent a valuable addition to DigitalNC, as they show what life was like across Mount Airy and Surry County throughout the 20th century. To see more from the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History, please visit their partner page, or check out their website.
A new batch of yearbooks courtesy of the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History are now live. These yearbooks are the first materials on DigitalNC from this partner and they are chock full of personality.
A very distinct staff page from the 1954 edition of Franklin High School’s Maroon and Grey.
These yearbooks span from 1939 to 1961 and encapsulate student life in Surry County through these decades. Schools included are Franklin High School, Pilot Mountain High School, White Plains High School, Dobson High School, and Copeland High School.
Copeland High School’s 1961 “Best Sport” superlative winners.
To learn more about Mount Airy Museum of Regional History, visit their website or partner page. Links to yearbooks are organized by school and listed below.
A May 1926 edition of the Mount Airy News. Articles include a local citizen celebrating their 90th birthday and information about Mount Airy High School
Twelve years and over 600 issues of the Mount Airy News have been digitized and added to DigitalNC, courtesy of our partner, Surry Community College. These scans are brand new, with DigitalNC now containing March 1917 through September 1929. While the Mount Airy News is now published six days a week, the newspaper was only published once a week at this point in time. The Mount Airy News services Mount Airy and Surry County, and joins fellow Surry County newspapers including the Chatham Blanketeer and the Elkin Tribune.
An article announcing a meeting between NC Governor Morrison and VA Governor Trinkle
Looking through the Mount Airy News today, we can learn a lot about what concerned the people of Surry County nearly a hundred years ago. In one October, 1922 issue, the main headline was a meeting between North Carolina Governor Cameron Morrison and Virginia Governor Elbert Lee Trinkle to talk about building roads between Mount Airy and the nearby towns of Sparta, NC, and Stuart, VA, sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Mount Airy. Looking through the pages, we can see praise for local teachers and school board members, an article about local farmers joining a cooperative association, and an editorial piece denouncing women who are uninformed voters, when they recently earned the right to suffrage.
Reading these articles gives us an idea of what life was like in Surry County and Mount Airy at the time, and it is invaluable to us. To browse through other materials from Surry Community College, take a look at their partner page, or check out their website.
Many North Carolinians are familiar with the story of the lost colony, a group of English colonists brought to modern-day North Carolina by Sir Walter Raleigh who mysteriously vanished. Perhaps fewer are familiar with the symphonic drama The Lost Colony, which has been performed in Manteo, N.C. since 1937. Thanks to our partnerships with Wilson Library at UNC Chapel Hill and the Roanoke Island Historical Association, we now have the souvenir programs (1937-2019) available on our site.
The Lost Colony, written by Paul Green, has been a cultural touchstone of the Outer Banks since the late thirties; several of our digitized newspapers from the area make references to it (you can read one blog post about The Nags Tale and another about The Dare County Times). Some sources say it is the longest running symphonic drama in the country.
Of the many notable figures who have participated in the annual play season, one of the most recognizable and beloved is actor Andy Griffith. Griffith was born in Mount Airy, N.C. and acted in The Lost Colony for seven seasons (1947-1953), starring as Sir Walter Raleigh for the later five. He may have been the subject of one of the souvenir program’s best covers (1952), which is reused as a dedication to him in 2013 just after he died. In fact, Griffith is buried on Roanoke Island.
What makes these souvenir programs even more interesting is that Griffith’s first wife, Barbara Edwards, was also in a starring role of The Lost Colony for several years. She played Eleanor Dare, mother of Virginia Dare (famously said to be the first English child born in the Americas). Edwards Griffith was the first native North Carolinian to play the female lead and was “the most successful actress to portray the difficult role” thanks to her “excellent voice and splendid acting ability,” according to the 1953 program.
The two were married in 1949, one of the years when they co-starred in the play. They also both seem to have left the production at the same time after the 1953 season. Afterwards, they adopted two children and stayed together until 1972. During their relationship, in 1964, Edwards Griffith apparently appeared in one episode of The Andy Griffith Show as the character Sharon.
You can see the full collection of The Lost Colony souvenir programs here. To learn more about the Roanoke Island Historical Association, you can visit their partner page and their website.
This week we have another 70 newspapers up on DigitalNC! These titles span 32 towns and almost as many counties! This batch also includes our first additions from the towns of Waco, Pores Knob, La Grange, Leaksville, Mount Olive, and Manson!
Over the next year, we’ll be adding millions of newspaper images to DigitalNC. These images were originally digitized a number of years ago in a partnership with Newspapers.com. That project focused on scanning microfilmed papers published before 1923 held by the North Carolina Collection in Wilson Special Collections Library. While you can currently search all of those pre-1923 issues on Newspapers.com, over the next year we will also make them available in our newspaper database as well. This will allow you to search that content alongside the 2 million pages already on our site – all completely open access and free to use.
This week’s additions include:
- Morehead City Weekly News (Morehead City, N.C.) – 1892
- Pearson’s Papers (Boomer, N.C.) – 1923
- Mount Olive Advertiser (Mount Olive, N.C.) – 1898-1900
- The Fool=Killer (Pores Knob, N.C.) – 1925-1929
- The Newton Enterprise (Newton, N.C.) – 1879-1918
- The Old North State (Salisbury, N.C.) – 1866-1868
- The Hendersonville News (Hendersonville, N.C.) – 1919
- The Littleton Courier (Littleton, N.C.) – 1892
- The Magnolia Advertiser (Magnolia, N.C.) – 1872
- The Morning News (Greensboro, N.C.) – 1887
- King’s Weekly (Greenville, N.C.) – 1901
- Farm and Fireside (High Point, N.C.) – 1872
- La Grange Vidette (La Grange, N.C.) – 1875
- The Davidson Record (Lexington, N.C.) – 1876
- The Home Companion (Manson, N.C.) – 1897
- The Morganton Star (Morganton, N.C.) – 1885-1889
- The Rural Chronicle (Waco, N.C.) – 1884
- Surry Weekly Visitor (Mount Airy, N.C.) – 1872-1880
- The Mount Airy News (Mount Airy, N.C.) – 1896-1914
- The Laurinburg Enterprise (Laurinburg, N.C.) – 1880
- Scotchman and Observer (Laurinburg, N.C.) – 1873
- The Madison Leader (Madison, N.C.) – 1888
- The Madison News (Madison, N.C.) – 1890
- The Mocksville Herald (Mocksville, N.C.) – 1912
- Mocksville Enterprise (Mocksville, N.C.) – 1917-1938
- The Lamp Post (Marion, N.C.) – 1881
- The Western Enterprise (Marion, N.C.) – 1862
- The Citizen (Murfreesboro, N.C.) – 1859-1860
- Albemarle Southron and Union Advocate (Murfreesboro, N.C.) – 1860
- The Trumpet (Lincolnton, N.C.) – 1886-1888
- The Lincoln County News (Lincolnton, N.C.) – 1919-1924
- The Weekly News (Louisburg, N.C.) – 1855
- American Eagle (Louisburg, N.C.) – 1857-1860
- Louisburg Union & North Carolina Miscellany (Louisburg, N.C.) – 1846-1847
- The Raleigh News (Raleigh, N.C.) – 1877-1878
- The Daily Call (Raleigh, N.C.) – 1889
- The Weekly Raleigh Register, and North Carolina Gazette (Raleigh, N.C.) – 1842
- The Argus (Lumberton, N.C.) – 1902-1903
- The Weekly Argus (Lumberton, N.C.) – 1903-1904
- The Lumberton Argus (Lumberton, N.C.) – 1904-1905
- The Asheville Register (Asheville, N.C.) – 1904-1905
- Asheville Citizen (Asheville, N.C.) – 1900, 1926
- Asheville Gazette (Asheville, N.C.) – 1900
- The Milton Gazette (Milton, N.C.) – 1892-1893
- The Milton Herald (Milton, N.C.) – 1898-1900
- The Milton Advertiser (Milton, N.C.) – 1886-1891
- The Leaksville Reporter (Leaksville, N.C.) – 1888
- Leaksville Herald (Leaksville, N.C.) – 1860-1861
- Dan Valley Echo (Leaksville, N.C.) – 1885-1887
- The Leaksville Gazette (Leaksville, N.C.) – 1883
- Herald of the Times (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1835-1836
- The Elizabeth City News (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1891-1894
- The Albemarle Register (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1874-1875
- The Weekly Transcript (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1867
- North Carolina Native Sentinel (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1856
- The Falcon (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1881-1890
- The Daily Courier (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1860
- The Gleaner (Fayetteville, N.C.) -1883
- Wide Awake (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1876
- The Cape Fear Banner (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1880
- Campaign Herald (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1876
- Solid South (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1894
- The Journal (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1888
- The Statesman (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1873-1874
- Dollar Weekly (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1886
- The Fayetteville Index (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1909-1914
- The Fayetteville News (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1866-1868
- North Carolina Gazette (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1873-1880
- The North Carolina Gazette (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1892-1893
- Evening News (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1886-1887
If you want to see all of the newspapers we have available on DigitalNC, you can find them here. Thanks to UNC-Chapel Hill Libraries for permission to and support for adding all of this content as well as the content to come. We also thank the North Caroliniana Society for providing funding to support staff working on this project.
This week we have another 60 titles from all over the state up on DigitalNC, including a little piece of North Carolina railroad history!
On the second page of the January 15th, 1833 issue of the Fayetteville Observer, you’ll find a list of all the legislation enacted by the North Carolina General Assembly during the 1832-1833 session. One of these acts is the incorporation of the company that built North Carolina’s first functional railroad: The Experimental Rail Road Company of Raleigh.
Fayetteville Observer, January 15, 1833
The one and one-quarter mile rail line extended from the Capitol Building, which had burned in 1831, to a quarry just east of Raleigh. When the horse-drawn rail carts weren’t transporting the stone used to rebuild the Capitol, people could ride the line in “pleasure cars” for a 25 cent fare. The line cost $2,700 to construct, which would be roughly $91,000 in 2022.
Over the next year, we’ll be adding millions of newspaper images to DigitalNC. These images were originally digitized a number of years ago in a partnership with Newspapers.com. That project focused on scanning microfilmed papers published before 1923 held by the North Carolina Collection in Wilson Special Collections Library. While you can currently search all of those pre-1923 issues on Newspapers.com, over the next year we will also make them available in our newspaper database as well. This will allow you to search that content alongside the 2 million pages already on our site – all completely open access and free to use.
This week’s additions include:
- The North Carolina Prohibitionist (Bush Hill, N.C.) – 1886-1888
- The Progress (Enfield, N.C.) – 1908-1922
- The North-Carolina Journal (Halifax, N.C.) – 1792-1810
- The News Reporter (Littleton, N.C.) – 1897-1923
- The Franklin Courier (Louisburg, N.C.) – 1872-1874
- The Madison Enterprise (Madison, N.C.) – 1873-1874
- The Monroe Journal (Monroe, N.C.) – 1923
- The Iredell Gazette (Mooresville, N.C.) – 1880
- The Morganton Herald (Morganton, N.C.) – 1891-1901
- Surry Visitor (Mount Airy, N.C.) – 1874-1876
- Cherokee Herald (Murphy, N.C.) – 1874-1876
- Person County Courier (Roxboro, N.C.) – 1890-1892
- North Carolina Argus (Wadesboro, N.C.) – 1848-1876
- Mecklenburg Times (Charlotte, N.C.) – 1889-1897
- The North Carolina Whig (Charlotte, N.C.) – 1863
- King’s Dollar Daily (Greenville, N.C.) – 1904
- King’s Weekly (Greenville, N.C.) – 1894-1909
- McDowell Democrat (Marion, N.C.) – 1905-1909
- Marion Progress (Marion, N.C.) – 1909-1922
- The Stanly Banner (Albemarle, N.C.) – 1876
- The Stanly Observer (Albemarle, N.C.) – 1884
- The Stanly News (Albemarle, N.C.) – 1892-1893
- The Caldwell Messenger (Lenoir, N.C.) – 1875-1876
- The Semi-Weekly News (Lenoir, N.C.) – 1900
- The Weekly News (Lenoir, N.C.) – 1900-1902
- The Magnolia Monitor (Magnolia, N.C.) – 1873-1876
- The Duplin Record (Magnolia, N.C.) – 1874-1875
- The Weekly Record (Magnolia, N.C.) – 1876-1877
- The Central (Lexington, N.C.) – 1876
- Lexington and Yadkin Flag (Lexington, N.C.) – 1855-1856
- The Lexington Herald (Lexington, N.C.) – 1915-1917
- The North State (Lexington, N.C.) – 1904-1908
- Murfreesboro Enquirer (Murfreesboro, N.C.) – 1876-1878
- The Albemarle Enquirer (Murfreesboro, N.C.) – 1878-1881
- The Hornets’ Nest (Murfreesboro, N.C.) – 1812-1813
- Carolina Chronicle (Murfreesboro, N.C.) – 1827
- Milton Intelligencer (Milton, N.C.) – 1819
- Milton Spectator (Milton, N.C.) – 1832-1839
- The Milton Chronicle (Milton, N.C.) – 1841-1888
- Milton Gazette & Roanoke Advertiser (Milton, N.C.) – 1824-1831
- The Milton Spectator (Milton, N.C.) – 1854
- The Lincoln Democrat (Lincolnton, N.C.) – 1895-1896
- The Lincoln Journal (Lincolnton, N.C.) – 1898-1901
- The Lincoln Courier (Lincolnton, N.C.) – 1891
- Lincoln Transcript (Lincolnton, N.C.) – 1836
- The Western Whig Banner (Lincolnton, N.C.) – 1840
- Lincoln Progress (Lincolnton, N.C.) – 1873-1882
- Economist (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1903
- The Weekly Economist (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1903-1905
- Daily Economist (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1905-1907
- North Carolina Advocate (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1833
- The Intelligencer, and Nag’s Head Advocate (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1840-1841
- The Elizabeth-City Gazette, and Public Advertiser (Elizabeth City, N.C.) – 1808
- Fayetteville Observer (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1833
- The Public Spirit (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1876
- The News (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1865
- The Fayetteville Daily News (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1865
- The Weekly Courier (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1860
- Fayetteville Examiner (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1880-1883
- Daily Telegraph (Fayetteville, N.C.) – 1865
If you want to see all of the newspapers we have available on DigitalNC, you can find them here. Thanks to UNC-Chapel Hill Libraries for permission to and support for adding all of this content as well as the content to come. We also thank the North Caroliniana Society for providing funding to support staff working on this project.
The following microfilmed newspapers were selected for digitization in 2017-2018. Thanks to supplemental funding from the State Library of North Carolina, we were able to complete more reels than in previous years. Reels were chosen from nominations according to our Criteria for Selecting Newspapers to Digitize from Microfilm.
| Title |
Years |
Nominating Institution |
| Alamance Gleaner (Graham, N.C.) |
1927-1947 |
Alamance County Public Libraries |
| Carolina Indian Voice (Pembroke, N.C.) |
1977-1995 |
UNC Chapel Hill |
| Carteret County News-Times (Morehead City, N.C.) |
1948-1960 |
Carteret County Public Library |
| Charlotte Post |
1971-1987 |
Johnson C. Smith University |
| The Cherokee Scout (Murphy, N.C.) |
1944-1988 |
Murphy Public Library |
| Duplin Times (Warsaw, N.C.) |
1962-1985 |
Duplin County Library |
| Enterprise (Williamston, N.C.) |
1934-1942 |
Martin Memorial Library |
| Farmville Enterprise |
1942-1947 |
Farmville Public Library |
| Franklin Press and the Highlands Maconian (Franklin, N.C.) |
1943-1960 |
Fontana Regional Library |
| The Franklin Times (Louisburg, N.C.) |
1925-1944; 1963-1969 |
Louisburg College |
| Hertford County Herald (Ahoskie, N.C.) |
1914-1923 |
Chowan University |
| Journal-Patriot (North Wilkesboro, N.C.) |
1947-1950 |
Wilkes County Public Library |
| Mount Airy News |
1917-1929 |
Surry Community College |
| News-Record (Marshall, N.C.) |
1976-1988 |
Madison County Public Library |
| Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, N.C.) |
1944-1989 |
Perquimans County Library |
| Pilot (Southern Pines, N.C.) |
1948-1965 |
Southern Pines Public Library |
| The Roxboro Courier (Roxboro, N.C.) |
1927-1935 |
Person County Public Library |
| Smithfield Herald |
1901-1911 |
Johnston County Heritage Center |
| Transylvania Times (Brevard, N.C.) |
1933-1940 |
Transylvania County Library |
| Watauga Democrat (Boone, N.C.) |
1950-1963 |
Watauga County Public Library |
| Waynesville Mountaineer |
1952-1956 |
Haywood County Public Library |
| Winston-Salem Chronicle |
1997-2016 |
Forsyth County Public Library |
