Sesquicentennial to feature student elected officials

By Lynn Hotaling

"It's an effort to get teenagers involved in the sesquicentennial activities," said Jackson County Recreation Department Director Jeff Carpenter, chairman of the Sesquicentennial Committee.

Smoky Mountain High will choose students to serve as a commissioners' chairman, three commissioners and the mayors of Sylva, Dillsboro, Webster and Forest Hills. Blue Ridge High will select one county commissioner, a sheriff, register of deeds and chairman of the Cashiers Community Council.

"I appreciate that they want to get kids involved," said SMHS Principal Kenny Nicholson. "We used to do that years ago, and I think it's a great idea."

Jackson County's celebration of its 150th birthday officially kicks off this Saturday, Sept. 29, with Western Carolina University's annual Mountain Heritage Day. (See story page 1A.) Sesquicentennial Committee members will sell souvenir magnets and commemorative sections at the event in Cullowhee.

The first feature event, the Sesquicentennial Heritage Parade, will be Sunday, Oct. 7, at 2 p.m. in Sylva, and will consist only of horse-drawn vehicles, horseback riders and walkers.

"A Day in Webster, Jackson County's Hometown" is the title of the second main event to be held at the Family Resource Center (old Webster School) Friday, Oct. 19, the eve of Sylva's downtown celebration. It will open with walking tours led by Webster Historical Society President Joe Rhinehart from 4 until 6 p.m. The resource center will sponsor a fund-raising supper at 6 p.m. The Ginn Brass Band is scheduled to perform during the meal.

A 7 p.m. program that night at the historic Webster Methodist Church will feature Asheville Citizen-Times columnist and Sylva native Bob Terrell reminiscing about his boyhood days in Jackson County. Traditional music from the Deitz Family of Sylva and dulcimer specialist Susie Beckwith of Webster will also be included.

The culminating event will be the all-day Oct. 20 downtown festival, which will include the 4 p.m. Sesquicentennial Parade. Local churches, schools, businesses, Scout troops and others are encouraged to assemble floats and participate. County commissioners will serve as grand marshals, and commercial floats will not be included. Vintage cars and trucks (1969 and older) are welcome. Those wishing to join the parade may call Betty Foxx at 586-2512 or 586-6777 for information or to register.

An eclectic lineup aimed at pleasing all ages and musical tastes will provide the sound track for the festival. Performers scheduled during the day at the culminating sesquicentennial event include the Donnie Cray Band, the Fiddling Dills Sisters of Cullowhee, the Willing Servants of Sylva, the Queen Family of Caney Fork, Susie Beckwith of Webster and the Smoky Mountain Dulcimer Club.

Taking the stage at 6 p.m will be Steve Weams and the Caribbean Cowboys, a popular regional group that plays a wide variety of music - everything from classic rock'n'roll and Jimmy Buffett favorites to bluegrass. The Cowboys will perform during and after Sylva Partners in Renewal's traditional pig roast, which will begin at 5 p.m.

Other activities during the downtown festival will include the presentation of an official county flag and checkers and other "old-timey" games and contests. The day will also feature music, food and craft vendors.

Ladies of all ages should be readying their best 19th-century fashions for the Sisters of the Swish fashion show.

Drawing its title from the name given to local women who dressed in period costumes when Jackson County celebrated its centennial in 1951, this year's fashion show will be among the events set for Oct. 20.

Fashion show entrants are asked to model clothing representative of that worn during the 1850s and will be judged in three categories: Home life; Social/courting; and Church. Prizes will be awarded in four age classifications: Adults, age 40 and up; Young Adults, age 20-40; Teens, age 13-19; and Children, age 12 and under.

All women and girls who enter the fashion show will take part in the 4 p.m. Sesquicentennial Parade later that day.

For entry forms or information about the fashion show, call Irene Hooper (293-5456), Amy Garza (631-4587) or Gail Cooper (497-9664).

Other sesquicentennial events include a Saturday, Oct. 13, youth performance night in Sylva. Scheduled performers include the Suzuki Fiddlers under the direction of Cathy Arps, and several young solo performers. A musical program featuring the Western Carolina University Brass Quintet will be Sunday, Oct. 14, at the Jackson County Recreation Park in Cullowhee. The Cashiers Community Center will hold a fish fry for the southern end of the county on Saturday, Oct. 6.

Another musical event has been added to Jackson County's monthlong sesquicentennial celebration. Sylva First Presbyterian Church will present a program of Stephen Foster songs on Sunday, Oct. 21, at 4 p.m. Carol Lynn and Balfour Knight will perform along with guest musicians. Foster composed many songs during the period of Jackson County's inception, and most celebrations during the 1850s featured performances of Foster's music. Foster is remembered for tunes such as "Camptown Races," "Oh, Susannah," "Old Folks at Home," "My Old Kentucky Home" and "Jeannie With the Light Brown Hair."

Commemorative T-shirts featuring the official sesquicentennial logo are currently on sale for $10 each and are available at Jackson's General Store, Blackrock Outdoor Co., the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce and the Jackson County Recreation and Parks Department. Proceeds from T-shirt sales will help fund the downtown celebration.

Volunteers are needed to help with all aspects of the monthlong celebration. Anyone interested in serving on a committee or helping at one of the planned events is asked to call Jeff Carpenter, recreation department director, at 586-6333.

Jackson County was formed in 1851 from Macon and Haywood counties. Its government was organized in March 1853 during a two-day session at the Daniel Bryson homeplace in Beta. A monument was erected last fall along U.S. 23-74 near the Cope Creek intersection to mark the site of the county's first courthouse.

Back to Archive: 09/27/01.