|
The recent arrival in the news room of T is for Tar Heel:
A North Carolina Alphabet, a new book of rhymes by Carol Crane
of Holly Springs based on the Old North State's geography and history,
made us realize that no one has written a similar primer for our county's
school children.
A Jackson County-specific alphabet book seemed like the ideal next project
in our still-in-the-planning-stages Jackson County geography series.
The word "alphabet" comes from combining the first two letters
- "alpha" and "beta" - of the Greek letter system.
In a Jackson County alphabet (an "Addiebeta," so to speak),
Beta is the second entry as well. Of course, local children are a few
steps ahead of the Greeks because they know it's pronounced "Beet-a,"
rather than the foreign-sounding "Bay-ta" preferred in Mediterranean
circles.
Doubtless it will take at least two installments to complete the project.
One roadblock we've already experienced (in addition to the fact that
some letters are downright difficult to match with an area name) is
that other letters have too many possible matches. Another is that we
don't think as quickly as we once did.
In this draft first installment of A is for Addie, we will include multiple
options for some letters - we figure we'll have plenty of time to settle
on our favorites before publication.
While Crane's book includes both simple rhymes for younger children
and detailed, expository text for older students, we intend to stick
to a somewhat-contrived, abbreviated couplet format for ours.
We'll do the first 13 letters (A through M, according to our calculations)
in this issue and then finish the alphabet next week.
A is for Addie:
A Jackson County Alphabet
A is for Addie, a stop on the way
From Sylva to Waynesville, in a bygone day.
B is for Beta, which is next to L.A.*
County government began there, historians say.
C is for Cullowhee Normal, the little school that grew
From high school to college to Western Carolina U.
C is for Canada, Jackson County's last frontier
With the advent of Centex, its development is near.
C is for Caney Fork, known for wide valley views
It's the home of Norma, who sends us the news.
D is for Dillsboro, known for its shops
The Jarrett House and Riverwood are popular stops.
E is for Erastus, back in the wood
Way up on Pine Creek, where a P.O. once stood.
F is for Fall Cliff, a steep, rocky hill
It once had a post office; a church is there still.
F is for Foster's Siding, where Frosty's often seen
Neither Addie nor Beta but placed in between.
F is for Fisher Creek, which gave water to the town
Of Sylva for years before TWSA was around.
G is for Glenville, Hamburg long ago
There's lots of lake traffic; you'll have to drive slow.
H is for Harris, C.J.'s the one
Who built most of Sylva before he was done.
I is for Isinglass (or mica) once mined
In most every valley, this mineral they'd find.
J is for Jackson, our county so true.
Named not for Stonewall but for President Andrew.
K is for Kings Mountain, a tall, stately peak
It separates Sylva and Webster, so to speak.
K is for Kaolin, a specialty clay
Mined once by Harris, it's still used today.
L is for Lily, of Cullowhee fame.
This pretty white flower gave the valley its name.
L is for Lovesfield, which is one word not two
Home of Ingles, the high school and Lee's Barbecue.
M is for Mountains, Jackson has quite a few.
From Hogback to Black Rock, we savor the view. (To be continued)
As we look to finishing up our local alphabet in next week's issue,
we welcome reader participation. If you have suggestions, either of
other places to be considered or alternate rhymes for locations mentioned
above, please send them in.
Feel free to send suggestions covering the entire range of the alphabet.
If we get more ideas for letters A through M, we'll include them next
week along with our own and others' ideas for N through Z.
You can e-mail suggestions for place names and rhymes to lynn@thesylvaherald.com,
mail them to P.O. Box 307 Sylva, N.C. 28779 or call us at 586-2611.
* Lower Addie
|
