USA > North Carolina > Randolph County > Why Not, North Carolina : a history of the Why Not Academy, the Why Not Memorial Association, the Why Not community, and the Fair Grove Methodist Church > Part 2
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counties. As Luther's letter shows, the Randolph soldiers fa- vored Leach, the peace candidate, over his opponent who was a pro-Confederate and war candidate.
Riley Luther was captured at Hatcher's Run on March 31, 1865, and sent to the large Federal prisoner of war camp at Point Lookout, Maryland. On April 30, 1865, Riley Luther died of 18 "dibility" at the prison camp.
Page's toll house, a station for collecting tolls on the plank road, was located about a mile north of Why Not
few hundred yards north of the present-day Seagrove School) and
fourteen miles south of Asheboro. James and Martha Shamburger Page operated the toll house until it closed in the Reconstruc-
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tion years.
During the Civil War, Mr. Page served as doorkeeper for the Confederate House of Representatives in Richmond. His son W. J. Page served for a time as the doorkeeper of the House of Repre- sentatives in Raleigh. Mrs. Page, with the aid of the family's twelve slaves, managed the toll house and a large farm, and reared her seven children in the absence of her
husband. Jane, one of her daughters, received a superficial wound in a wartime incident when some deserters shot into the Page's house. On
March 7 and 8, 1865, the following citizens who were travelling
along the plank road were arrested by Confederate troops sta- tioned at Page's toll house: Warren Auman, Hillary Auman, Jacob Auman, W. H. H. Bolling, and A. King. No doubt they were arrested on the suspicion that they were either deserters or 19 aiders of deserters. All were released within a week.
The Civil War finally came to an end in the spring of 1865,
but the inner Civil War between pro-Confederate and anti- Confederate factions continued for about two years in many parts of North Carolina, including the Randolph County area. Assault,
arson, murder, and court proceedings were used to settle wartime
animosities. By 1868, the two factions had carried their strug- gle into the political arena as Republicans (the old anti-Confed- erate crowd) vied with Democrats (the old pro-Confederate crowd)
for political control. By 1876, the Democrats had gained politi-
cal ascendancy in the state, and thereafter, the old wartime grudges gradually faded away.
The Reconstruction years were ones of poverty as well as
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civil and political strife in the Randolph County area. But in the decades after the war, the people of the Why Not area, through hard work and sacrifice, gradually forged a new life for themselves. In the mid-1890s, two events of great importance occurred in the community that signaled the advent of a new era: the founding of Why Not Academy in 1892, and the building of the Aberdeen and Asheboro Railroad in 1896.
The Page family of Moore County organized and directed the construction of the Aberdeen and Asheboro Railroad. In the fall of 1896, the tracks were completed from Asheboro to the Why Not community where a depot was to be built. But the depot site was located a mile west of the Why Not Post Office -- a fact that bode ill for the future growth of Why Not itself. The Pages named the new depot after Edwin Seagroves, one of their civil engineers. Due to the poor judgement of a sign painter, the final "s" in Seagroves was dropped when he ran out of space on the station signs placed at each end of the depot.
Thus was born Seagrove, a community destined by the chance location of a depot to preempt Why Not in population growth and commerical development in the twentieth century. But Why , Not retained one asset that Seagrove could not diminish -- Why Not Academy . Why Not Academy was a combination public and private
school. During the public school season (mainly during the winter months) the academy served as a free public elementary school, but year-round it offered commercial and secondary educa- tion courses to tuition paying private students. Why Not Academy would maintain the community's name as a place of note until the academy building burned down in 1916. (The history of Why Not
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Academy is presented in depth in Chapter Two. )
After the destruction of Why Not Academy by fire in 1916, the community began to revert to its antebellum state of a rural crossroads community. Why Not's halcyon days were over: Why Not's beloved academy was gone; soon the public schools would have preempted the need for it anyway when the high school was added to the educational system. Why Not's days as a stop on the plank road was but a quaint memory; state highway 705 follows the old plank road route between Seagrove and Robbins, but it is minor commercial artery. Why Not's Fair Grove Methodist Church dwindled in membership until it was abandoned by the Methodist Conference in 1935;
nearby churches, notably the Methodist ( founded in 1922) and Christian Churches in Seagrove, attracted Fair Grove members to their congregations. Why Not's post office closed in 1905; neighboring Seagrove, with its general stores, business operations, and railroad depot, became the post office address of Why Notters.
But Why Not refused to die. In 1936, the Why Not Memorial Association was founded, and in 1951, the Fair Grove Church and lands were deeded to the Association trustees. The Why Not Memorial Association (incorporated in 1973) is dedicated to the safekeeping of the Fair Grove Church and cemetery, and to the preservation of the history of the Fair Grove Church, the Why Not Academy, and the Why Not community at large.
In the middle decades of the twentieth-century, Why Not experienced new growth. Phil and Nell Graves established a candle business at their home called Graves Candle Company. The
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Macons operated an upholstery business for a number of years, but it is now defunct. In the 1950s, Alfred Spencer, Ivey Luck, Clay Presnell, and others, established Luck's, Inc., a canning and food processing business that has been a great financial success. Luck's, Inc., is located in the Old Gap midway between Why Not and Seagrove. The nationally famous Cole pottery sustains a folk craft business that has existed in the community for five genera- tions now. And, in recent years, a new Wesleyan Church was built in Why Not.
Why Not became the focus of statewide attention in the early
1970s. The Carolina Population Center declared that, according to 1970 census data, Why Not was the nearest inhabited community to the exact center of the state's population. With over five
and one-half million people in the state, this made Why Not seem like a crowded place. But not so. One can drive fourteen miles in any direction (and much farther than that in most directions) from Why Not and see nothing but beautiful farm country, dotted here and there with a village or a small town.
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ENDNOTES FOR CHAPTER ONE
1
Jas. S. Dunn to E. J. Hale & Sons, January 8, 1863, Gover-
nors Papers, Zebulon Baird Vance, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh. Hale & Sons were the editors of the Fayetteville Obser ver, a large and influential newspaper.
2
For an account of the capture of William Owens, see the Fayetteville Observer, April 25, 1864. Buren Garner, who lives in the old Christian Union settlement, told me about the hanging of Owens. William Owens, age 33, enlisted in Company B, Fifty- second Regiment North Carolina Troops in March 1862. Two months later the company muster roll listed him as absent without leave. Thus ended his military career. See Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers from North Carolina, Fifty-second Regiment North Carolina Troops, Record Group 109, National Archives, Washington, D. C. (microfilm). 3 Capt. D. C. Green to Col. McAlister, March 27, 1865, Alex- ander Carey McAlister Papers, Southern Historical Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. 4 On the court-martial of private Walters, see "Proceedings of a Military Court Commenced at Asheboro . ·
. and Special Orders No. 11, March 28, 1865, Alexander Carey McAlister Papers, Southern Historical Collection.
5
Thomas Settle to Z. B. Vance, October 4, 1864, Hampton L. Carson Collection, Rare Book Department of the Free Library of Philadelphia. The State Archives in Raleigh has a copy of this letter filed in the Thomas Settle Letters (1863-1864) . 6
D. Curtis to M. S. Robins, January 9, 1865, Marmaduke S. Robins Papers, Southern Historical Collection. 7 1860 Federal Census, Randolph County, North Carolina, Popu- lation Schedule, State Archives. 8
Riley Luther, age 24, farmer and blacksmith, volunteered in March 1862, to serve in Company F, Forty-sixth Regiment North Carolina Troops. See Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers from North Carolina, Forty-sixth Regiment North Carolina Troops, Record Group 109, National Archives, Washington, D. C. The records of all Confederate soldiers discussed below come from this source.
All the letters quoted below from Riley Luther to his wife are from the originals located in the Riley Luther Papers, Manu- script Department, Perkin's Library, Duke University. 9 Martin Auman (1827-1873) was the son of George Auman, and the grandson of Andrew Auman and Barbara Luther. He was raised at Auman's Hill (present-day Asbury) . Martin Auman resided
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during his adult years in Why Not. He was the first person buried in the cemetery at the Fair Grove Methodist Church. In the 1860 Federal census, Martin Auman was listed as a farmer, age 32, with a wife named Lydia (age 27), and four children named Francina, Louisa, Jefferson, and Alson. 10
Jesse D. Tucker enlisted in Company F, Forty-sixth Regi-
ment North Carolina Troops in March 1862. He was promoted to sergeant. in August, 1863. The records make no mention of him after that. 11 John Latham, age 17, farmer, enlisted in March 1862, in Company F, Forty-sixth Regiment North Carolina Troops. He died of disease on July 24, 1862, at a hospital in Petersburg, Virginia. 12
Noah Graves, age 24, farmer, enlisted in March 1862, in
Company F, Forty-sixth Regiment North Carolina Troops. He was the son of Richard and Nancy Graves and the husband of Mary Jane Graves. Noah Graves died of disease on August 13, 1862, in a hospital in Petersburg, Virginia.
13
Enoch Garner, age 20, enlisted in May, 1862, in Company F, Forty-sixth Regiment North Carolina Troops. He served until December, 1864, when he was furloughed for 60 days because of illness. Alfred Presnell enlisted in April, 1862, in Company F, Forty-sixth Regiment North Carolina Troops. He was promoted to sergeant in April, 1863. Alfred Presnell was killed in the Battle of the Wilderness on May 5, 1864. His parents were John and Sarah Presnell. 14
Jesse Spencer, age 29, enlisted in March, 1862, in Company F, Forty-sixth Regiment North Carolina Troops. He was wounded in the hip on December 13, 1862, in the Battle of Fredericksburg. Jesse Spencer died of his wound on December 26 in a hospital £ in Richmond.
15
Nathan Spencer, age 27, farmer, enlisted in March, 1862, in Company F, Forty-sixth North Carolina Troops. He was promoted to sergeant on April 1, 1863. Nathan Spencer was killed on October 4, 1863, in the Battle of Bristow Station, with wounds in the breast and knee.
16
Elijah Luck, farmer, age 21, enrolled in March, 1862, in Company F, Forty-sixth Regiment North Carolina Troops. He de- serted twice and was court-martialed in January, 1864. He was sentenced to do three years hard labor at the Confederate pris- oner of war camp at Salisbury, North Carolina. Elijah Luck died of pneumonia at Salisbury on November 1, 1864.
17
John Hancock, Jr., farmer, enlisted in March, 1862, in Company F, Forty-sixth Regiment North Carolina Troops. In April, 1864, he was in a hospital in Richmond with pneumonia. He re- turned to duty in May, 1864. No further mention was made of him in the records. Allen Presnell enlisted on July 4, 1863, in
21
Company F, Forty-sixth Regiment North Carolina Troops. He died of typhoid fever on May 13, 1864, in Jackson Hospital, Richmond, Virginia. 18
Today, Point Lookout is a National Military Park. It is located on the southernmost point of land in Maryland where the Potomac River empties into the Chesapeake Bay. A large monument to the Confederate dead is located near the entrance of the park. The name of Riley Luther, among the names of hundreds of other Confederate dead, is chiseled on it. 19
List o£ prisoners captured by Detch. Cook's & Lane's Brig ., No 1, Alexander Carey McAlister Papers, Southern Histori- cal Collection.
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CHAPTER TWO:
HISTORY OF
FAIR GROVE METHODIST CHURCH
INTRODUCTION
IN 1958, the History of Fair Grove Methodist Church by
Minnie Spencer Stuart was published by the Why Not Memorial Association. The members of the Historical Committee of the Association decided to include the late Mrs. Stuart's history as a chapter in this book. But for a few changes and dele- tions, mostly minor, the original text has been followed.
ORGANIZATION OF THE CHURCH
The church was organized about the year 1859, and erected near the historical plank road -- leading from Winston-Salem to Fayetteville -- near where the Seagrove School now stands.
The structure was built of logs and was called Mt. Moriah
Church. Zachary Lineberry was the first preacher. This building was burned during the Civil War.
Services were then held temporarily in a building on the
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A. L. Yow land, near where Worth Yow, a descendant, now resides. An arbor, which was not uncommon for churches in that day, was built on grounds where the present church stands. Rock pillars were constructed on each side of this arbor, and it was customary for a fire to be built on top of them to give light during worship services. Candles were used in the pulpit.
FIRST CHURCH BUILT ON CHURCH PROPERTY
In 1870, Mr. and Mrs. William Tucker gave land to build a church. It was erected under the supervision of Martin Auman, Henry Auman, Silas Presnell, William Tucker, and others.
The church was named Fair Grove, I have been told, because of its location in a grove of oak trees where the ground was covered with glossy stones, and because of the beautiful scenery surrounding it. The first pastor was the Reverend W. C. Kennett (1870-72).
The timber for the building was cut from the farm of Martin Auman and hauled by his two sons, Jefferson and Alson, to a mill at Sugg Creek where it was sawed into lumber. Men for miles around gave of their time to erect the church. Material for the ceiling was dressed by hand.
It was 1871 before the church was finally finished and pews added. Up until this time plain benches were used. A. L. Yow make his own pew and always sat in it during services.
The last window was installed in the church on a Saturday,
and James P. Boroughs, who later became the first headmaster of
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Why Not Academy, started a private school there on the following Monday. From that time on,
the community was deeply interested in education.
Furnishings for the interior of the church were added from
time to time. I remember the first wood-burning stove had a drum-like apparatus on top. That stove really kept the church
warm. Mrs. Lydia Auman took pride in keeping the stove polished and shined as long as she lived.
Among church leaders at this time were my father, E. L. Spencer, A. L. Yow, J. W. Trogdon, Henry Yow, J. A. King, Jeffer- son Auman, and others. The building served the community for almost thirty years (until 1900). During those years, the church met Conference requirements as well as did most churches its size.
CLASS MEETINGS
Class meetings were held in the church once a month when I was a child. Class leaders were elected. A book with the names of the members of the church was known as the "Class Book." As each name was called from the book, that person was supposed to say a few words. Usually they spoke of their Christian
experiences and often asked for prayers that they would
continue to live true Christian lives. The first class meeting I remember was when my uncle, Addison Spencer, of New Hope Methodist Protestant Church, was in charge of the service. I considered him such a devout man that this particular meeting made a lasting impression on me.
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REVIVAL MEETINGS
In the years of my childhood, I remember that when the time for revival meetings came, some member would take a load of straw and spread it upon the floor. At that time we had a "mourner's bench" near the altar. When the call was given, the penitent ones would go to this bench and kneel. The Christian people would talk to them and pray for them. There was much shouting and praising God in those days. Three services were held each day. People would bring cooked food from home. Fires would be built on the church grounds so coffee could be made, and real Christiam fellowship prevailed.
Churches were always built near a spring as a source of water for the preacher while in the pulpit and for members of the congregation during the week-day and protracted meetings which lasted all week or longer (depending upon the interest shown),
and for meals which were spread picnic fashion upon the church grounds and, in later years, on tables erected for the purpose. The spring near Fair Grove Church is still in use and continues to be referred to as "the church spring" by older residents. It is on a part of the land my father left his three daughters, Minnie, Hattie and Conie. In seasons of drought it has not "failed." It is now the source of water supply in the home of my youngest granddaughter, Mrs. Vern Ann Stuart Joyce and family.
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"I REMEMBER"
The first singing I remember was when the preacher would
read two lines -- then the congregation would sing. He would continue by reading two more lines, which the congregation would follow in song, and this would continue until the verses were finished. Someone who could sing short or long meter (whichever the song called for) would lead.
The first song books I remember were Christian Harmony and Tribute of Praise. Later, my husband, Charles E. Stuart (after our marriage on May 15, 1892), using became song leader, a "tuning fork" to pitch the tune. This method of starting a tune was continued until an organ was bought for the church.
Among the unusual
incidents I remember happening in
connection with the old church was in my early childhood, when revival services were in progress. One night, when services were dismissed, a young girl by the name of Carolina Parks did
not arise from the "mourner's bench." People were amazed! She could not speak, and they said she was in a "trance." I was mere child, but recall they would sing and pray, and they said she would be converted when she awoke. She was removed to our home
for the night, since we lived near the church. The next morning several people were there. I distinctly remember someone saying, "She is conscious." She had moved one of her feet. The last thing I can recall about the incident was her conversion at the church that day.
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FAMILIES I REMEMBER SO WELL
Among the families I remember so well are: Mr. and Mrs. Eleazer Cox and daughters, Elma and Hannah; Mr. and Mrs. Henry Auman; the Pages who lived in the area -- Martitia, who married Joe Steed, and Jane, who married Dr. Hancock. "Miss Jenny," as she was called, was a member of our church and lived in the community and taught school for many years after Dr. Hancock's death. Mrs. Minnie Hancock Hammer and the writer are the only persons left in this area who went to her school. Mrs. Hammer, who lives in Asheboro, is the widow of United States Congressman William c. Hammer.
Incidentally, in speaking of Mrs. Hammer, my thought is that she has retained much of her resemblance of former years, for I remember when my late brother, B. L. Spencer of Texas, was present at our annual service a few years ago, when he viewed the crowd assembled and said, "I see Minnie Hancock Hammer. We joined this church on the same day."
ORGANIZATION OF A SUNDAY SCHOOL
In 1867, a Sunday School was organized, and the following names were recorded as taking part: Silas Presnell, A. L. Yow, Edmund Tucker, Eleazer Cox, Noah Richardson, J. W. Trogdon, Jefferson Auman, Lydia Auman, Mary Ann Lowdermilk Cox, Elma Cox, Susannah Auman, Martitia Yow, Lou Tucker, Letha Vuncannon, H. J.
Cox, Sarah C. Cox, Delano Tucker, William Tucker, and Sarah Presnell.
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No literature was available, so questions from the Bible were dropped into a hat from which each would draw one and answer
on the following Sunday. Letha Vuncannon used the "Blueback
Speller" in teaching the primary class. She walked three miles to the church. Sunday School was held only six months of the year.
SUPERINTENDENTS OF SUNDAY SCHOOL
The first superintendent of Sunday School I remember was Dr. F. E. Asbury. I remember his appointing Janie Spencer and Elma Cox to see that no person was being kept away from church for lack of suitable clothing.
The next superintendent I remember was E. L. Spencer. He organized classes and used a small bell to call the classes to assemble. As I recall, we used Sunday School literature by then. J. W. Trogdon was superintendent when we observed our first Children's Day. He served until his death in 1889.
Graham Spencer was the next superintendent. He walked three miles to fulfill his duties. Among other superintendents on record are: Peter Vuncannon, J. H. Spencer, M. A. Cagle, J. A. Monroe, C. E. Stuart, H. D. Smith, Mrs. C. E. Stuart, L. A. King, M. C. Auman, J. E. King, and E. W. Auman.
Professor G. F. Garner (director of Why Not Academy) was a great help to this community and to the church. He was a member of the Baptist Church a few miles away, but we were fortunate to
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have him teach the adult class and give reviews of the Sunday School lesson after classes reassembled.
FOREIGN MISSIONARY WORK INTRODUCED
The first I remember about missions was during the second
pastorate of the Reverend W. C. Kennett (1882-84), when the Reverend J. C. Ogburn came to the church in the interest of foreign missions and gave us literature for our first Children's Day, which was held one month later. J. W. Trogdon, Sunday School superintendent, was in charge of the program.
Pleasant Hill Church held its first Children's Day in the
afternoon of the same day Fair Grove's was held. This was
a memorable day for the children of both churches. Autograph albums were given to Minnie Spencer of Fair Grove Church and to Hattie Caviness of Pleasant Hill. Each person who would give a
dime was permitted to write his name or a verse in their albums.
This is the first collection for foreign missions that I remember. Children's Day continued as an annual event for many years.
PARSONAGE BUILT
About 1893, a parsonage was built where the home of Lonnie A. King now stands. The Reverend, J. H. Stowe, during his first ministry to the church (1893-95), moved in before it was finish- ed, and he, with the help of Jefferson Auman and J. A. King, completed it. The Reverend Mr. Stowe and his family were a great
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help to the community. He was pastor two different times, stay- ing five years the second call (1910-14). A daughter, Miss Xannie Stowe, organized the first Christian Endeavor Society in the church. She and other members of the Stowe family are regu- lar attendants at Why Not homecoming and memorial services. This parsonage was sold about 1915, and later the building burned.
THE CHURCH THAT NOW STANDS
About the year 1900, a new church building was started. The Worth Lumber Company had moved into the area, and a boarding school was in progress. The old church building was sold and the pews purchased by the school . Services were held in the Why Not Academy schoolhouse while the new church was under con- struction.
Leaders at this time were: Messrs. "Billy" Page, who was
named treasurer of the building fund; J. H. Spencer, Noah Richardson, M. A. Cagle, Jefferson Auman, Charles E. Stuart, L. A. King, James A. King, Professor J. P. Boroughs, and others. The Reverend W. D. Fogleman was then pastor and remained for three years. Many who read this will remember his daughter, Carrie, and her interest in the church.
Some sections of the church's interior, a few years later,
were divided by curtains where the adult Sunday School classes met. Then two small classrooms were partitioned for the primary and intermediate classes. A Baraca class for senior and teenage boys and a Philathea class for girls of the same age were
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organized in the Sunday School a few years after the church was finished. These two classes gave several plays, and the members were very active workers in the church.
The Woman's Foreign Missionary Society, organized by the Reverend T. J. Ogburn, was followed by a Home Missionary Society. Plays were given, quilts made, cards sold, and members paid dues. Among other things, they purchased a communion set and a carpet for the church. Money was also sent to foreign lands.
The Reverend J. Clyde Auman, who was reared in the Why Not
community and was a member of the Fair Grove Church, graduated from Elon College, and then Westminster Seminary ( located in Westminster, Maryland) in May, 1921. He and his bride of two months sailed for Tokyo in December, 1921, where they were to
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