FMHM April 2016 Newsletter

Volume 2, Issue 5
April 2016
Fort Mill History Museum
NEWS
www.fmhm.org
FMHS Band Takes a Part of FM History to Normandy
When the Fort Mill High School Band
traveled to the American Military
Cemetery in Normandy, France, over
spring break in late March, they took
with them the spirit of Fort Mill and
their gratitude for the bravery and
sacrifice made by US soldiers along
the beaches of France in World War II.
Along with their talent and their
instruments, the band took a replica
of a flag which had strong connections
to Fort Mill and the History Museum.
The Army/Navy “Efficiency” Award
Flag was given to industries which
exhibited proficiency and efficiency in
the manufacture of products and
materials to aid in the war effort
during World War II. This flag (left)
is a replica of the one awarded to
Springs Mills at that time; it is now
on display at the Fort Mill History
Museum.
Band parents Celine Thiria and Glenda
Tennis made the replica of the ArmyNavy “E” service award banner to
Normandy American Cemetery.
At Normandy the band performed
selections of military music as well
as contemporary selections such as
the theme from the series “Band of
Brothers”. Under the direction of
John Pruitt, Director of Bands and
Ren Patel, Associate Director of Bands,
and an active and involved staff,
the award-winning band has traveled
to Hawaii and Dublin, Ireland on
previous occasions.
SCHOOL DAYS AT WALTER ELISHA PARK
Walter Elisha Park will resemble
a time machine in April when
hundreds of local eighth graders
will gather for the Fort Mill History
Museum School Days. Reenactors
will create realistic scenarios to
bring local history alive. “School
Days” runs from 9:00 am until
1:30 pm on Friday, April 15.
Presentations reflecting our early
history will include a potter showing
how the Catawbas, or River People,
created their distinctive pottery. A
flint-knapper will demonstrate how
native Americans created the stone
tools needed for survival.
Students will also have a
chance to observe the
customs of our early
Scots-Irish settlers, including
the work of a spinner who
uses a wheel to produce
yarn for clothing, and a
demonstration of how
the Scots-Irish cooked
their meals.
Local citizens of the day
stepped up to do their duty
when the colonists sought
their independence during
the Revolutionary War.
(Continued on page 2)
Reenactors bring history to life
during School Days. (photo provided by
Tommy Merritt)
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SCHOOL DAYS
(continued from page 1)
The New Acquisition Militia will
demonstrate the look and life of
Revolutionary soldiers in the
1770’s while reenactors from the
South Carolina 6th bring the Civil
War to life.
Actors in the clothing and arms
from World War I, World
War II, Korea, and Viet Nam
will be available to describe their
clothing and equipment.
Other exhibits include a large
model of the H. L. Hunley
submarine, the story of cotton
growing and the history of the
Fort Mill Manufacturing Company.
Students will enjoy period games
and have lunch at the park before
returning to their schools.
A Civil War camp as portrayed by History Days reenactors.
(Photo provided by Tommy Merritt)
Genealogy Notes
Never mind continental drift and the
like. Our ancestors have drifted so
much that now we need advanced
computer technology and constant
software upgrades just to keep up
with them. When I first began my
family research, I was not very
interested in the cities, towns and
counties involved. They were just
fields to be filled in, or not. But then,
as Ancestry.com became the megabase
it is today, I found a great deal of
detail in some of the “based on
location” fields.
One helpful field that I used to think
little of is Ancestry’s “Place your
ancestor might have lived.” This line
of inquiry proves to be very helpful
because, as we all know, everything
happened somewhere. Place
names are well documented in
cemetery data, battle records, birth,
marriage, census, and most other
human experiences.
Even before the United State was
formed, there were birth and christening records, colonial censuses,
marriage and divorce records, church
and cemetery records, and many,
many others. All of these records are
tied primarily to place.
Rootsweb.com, which is now a part of
the Ancestry.com family, offers these
“close to home” options that are
location specific for folks born in
York County. Copy and paste these
links into your browser to have a look:
York County, South Carolina,
Census Index, 1790 to 1850
York County South Carolina in the
Civil War - Rosters, Pension Lists,
Census and Maps
York County Genealogical & Historical Society - Historical Society
Magazine for York County, SC
York County SCGenWeb
South Carolina Genealogy - Online
South Carolina genealogy databases, births, deaths, cemeteries,
marriages, etc.
South Carolina Military Records Online records of South Carolina
military service
freepages.genealogy.
rootsweb.ancestry.com/
AncestralLocations Home Page
Do You Have
FEEDBACK?
Do you have comments,
suggestions or corrections
for the newsletter?
Please send them to
Michael C. Hill at
[email protected]
Newsletter Editors:
Mike and Cheryl Hill
(If these links don’t work for you,
email me and I will track it down.)
Have you googled your family names?
(Be careful what you wish for.)
Cheryl Hill
[email protected]
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People of Paradise: By Cora Dunlap Lyles
Beulah E. White Gilmore
Beulah E. White Gilmore was an
exceptional woman. She was born
in Fort Mill on April 1, 1886 to
Handy and Fanny White. She had
fifteen brothers and sisters. One of
her sisters, Molly White Harris,
was Daniel and Osby Watts’
grandmother. Beulah lived in Fort
Mill between 1886 and 1920.
Beulah White was exceptional
because she had the opportunity
to educate herself. Few African
American women in the South
were afforded this opportunity
at that time. The state of South
Carolina did not have compulsory
school attendance laws until 1915.
Most African Americans in these
areas at that time did not receive
any education past the eighth
grade. In addition, once they
were out of school, the work
opportunities were severely
limited to domestic servant,
laundress, midwife and farm
hand. Some were able to obtain
the scarce, noble and respected
position of a teacher.
A.B. (atrium baccalaureus)
degrees from Benedict College in
Columbia. Beulah and Rev.
Gilmore moved to Winston-Salem
where he served as pastor of the
New Bethel Baptist Church. Beulah
set up a first aid room for nurses in
the church during his tenure.
Their sons, Jerry C. Gilmore Jr.
and Mondell, owned and operated
Gilmore’s Funeral Home in
Winston-Salem. Their grandson,
Jerry C. Gilmore III, is currently
the president. Beulah E. White
Gilmore died on May 6, 1952.
She and Rev. Gilmore instilled an
exemplary work ethic and the appreciation of education in their
children. These family values have
been passed down to subsequent
generations. She was not only an
exceptional woman who was ahead
of her class, sex and race – she was
ahead of her time.
The members of the FMHM Board
are members of our community
as well. Ask how you can get
involved with museum through
membership, volunteerism or
donations.
Rick Dammann, Board Chairman
John Richard Carter,
Vice Chairman
Tamara Osborne, Secretary
Jason Ackerman, Treasurer
Mike Cookman, Member-At-Large
Tommy Merritt,
Member-At-Large
Rufus Sanders, Member-At-Large
Cindi Lightsey, Member-At-Large
LeAnne Burnett Morse,
Member-At-Large
Jim Camann, Member-At-Large
Charlotte Adkins,
Member-At-Large
Mike Hill, Member-At-Large
Brenda Honeycutt,
Member-At-Large
Henri Legendre, Member-At-Large
Beulah became a professionally
trained nurse. She attended the
Friendship Normal and Industrial
Institute which became Friendship College in Rock Hill. She
completed four years of high
school. She then studied nursing
at the Hospital and Training
School for Nurses in Charleston.
The school was the first hospital
in South Carolina established
specifically for training African
American nurses.
Beulah’s husband, the Reverend
Jerry Calvin Gilmore Sr.,
attended the Brainerd Institute in
Chester. He also attended Friendship College. He earned L.I.
(licentiate of instruction) and
FMHM
Board of Directors 2016
Kerry Mast, Member-At-Large
Bill Stallings, Member-At-Large
Billy White, Member-At-Large
Stephanie Devinney,
Member-At-Large
About Cora Dunlap Lyles:
Beulah is pictured with her husband, the
Reverend Jerry Calvin Gilmore Sr. and
sons Jerry Calvin Jr. (right) and Mondell
(left).
Photo Courtesy of Monica Lassiter of
Gilmore’s Funeral Home.
Ms. Lyles is a former Fort Mill resident who currently resides in Maryland. She holds a BS in Information
Systems Management and an MS in
Information Technology from the
University of Maryland.
Ms. Lyles is a member of the Fort Mill
History Museum and the York County
Genealogical & Historical Society.
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The old armory, at the corner of Unity and Leroy Streets, is now owned by the
Town of Fort Mill. (Photo by Cheryl Hill)
OLD NATIONAL GUARD ARMORY IS A
“DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH”
Fort Mill’s original National
Guard Armory was built in 1938
with funds provided by the
Works Progress Administration
(renamed in 1939 as the Work
Projects Administration or WPA)
The Armory was built to provide
a meeting place and exercise site
for the local National Guard unit.
The new armory was one of
over thirty local armories built
in South Carolina in the 1930’s
with WPA funds. It provided the
necessary space for the local
National Guard unit during the
important years before World
War II.
Local Guard in the 1950’s: E S. Parks (seated),
Bowser Bennett (left), Mike Bennett (right).
(Photo by Pete Armstrong)
Located at the corner of Unity
and Leroy Streets, the brick
building consists of a central
block with tall vertical windows,
two sections that flank the
unit, and two end sections.
This building is Fort Mill’s
only example of authentic Art
Deco style architecture, which
can be seen in the brickwork
and windows.
Fort Mill’s old armory was
added to the National Register
of Historic Places in 1992.
National Register of Historic Places
A National Guard soldier checks the radio
equipment in the armory. (Photo by Pete
Armstrong)
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of
the Nation's historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the
National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places is
part of a national program to coordinate and support public
and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America's
historic and archeological resources.
(Source: National Parks Service website)
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1776—1976
United States of America’s Bicentennial
(200 years as an independent nation)
The 1970’s:
Celebrations of National,
State and Local History
During the 1970s, there was much to be celebrated
about our town, our state of South Carolina, and the
United States. Anniversaries tend to make one reflect
on history. People certainly reflected around here.
Fort Mill citizens began to look for the old photos,
documents, and relics of our beginnings. Valuable
photos were gathered, copied and saved; new photos of
Fort Mill old and new were carefully taken. Stories were
retold and recorded.
We started looking at old buildings with nostalgia. (We
started looking at OURSELVES with nostalgia.)
The seeds of an idea were planted back then; our history
deserves a museum! After multiple attempts and the
work of hundreds of dedicated souls, the Fort Mill
History Museum opened its doors at the original site
on White Street on December 6, 2012.
Band Director Keebler Mills with his Bicentennial
Fife and Drum Corp, July 4, 1976.
1670—1970
South Carolina’s Tricentennial
(300 years since the founding of the first
permanent settlement in the state, near
Charleston)
Downtown Fort Mill,, early 1900’s
1873—1973
Fort Mill’s Centennial Celebration
(100 years of incorporation)
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Join the Fort Mill History Museum!
Please print and complete this page.
Annual Membership with payment due each year.
INDIVIDUAL MEMBERSHIP
Choose Level:
For:
Patron
35.00
Out of Towner
50.00
Contributor
100.00
Sustainer
250.00
Conservator
500.00
Benefactor
1000.00
BUSINESS MEMBERSHIPS
Please print member name (s) allowed in your
selected category as listed below.
Choose Level :
For:
Name (s) _____________________________________________
Leader
300.00
Address ______________________________________________
Partner
1000.00
City ___________________________________________________
Sponsor
3000.00
State: _________________ Zip Code _____________________
Telephone ___________________________________________
Name (s) for membership cards:
Email _________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
AMOUNT PAID _______________________
_________________________________________________________
Date Paid ______________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
Business Name ______________________________________
Please send your check with this
completed membership form to:
Telephone ___________________________________________
Fax ___________________________________________________
Email _________________________________________________
FORT MILL HISTORY MUSEUM
107 Clebourne Street
Fort Mill, SC 29715
Telephone: 803-802-3646
Email: [email protected]
www.fmhm.org
Website ______________________________________________
Note: Partner and Sponsor levels, please email
logo artwork in EPS or Hi-Res JPEG format to
[email protected].
For complete information on the benefits of
various levels of membership, please check
our website.
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Collections: The White Plant Steam Whistle
Look for the
FM History Museum at:
Earth Day, April 22
Anne Springs Close
Greenway, Fort Mill
SC Strawberry
Festival, May 6-7
Walter Elisha Park, Fort Mill
Booth 5
Heather Otis
Steam whistles are known
for their bellowing scream
that occurs when steam is
released into the whistle
bell. Often used in factories,
locomotives, and boats
from the 1830s until the
mid-1900s, the steam
whistle’s unique, highvolume sound was valued
for its ability to pierce
through all background
noise for miles.
For many factory workers,
such as those at Springs
Cotton Mills’ White Plant in
Fort Mill, the steam whistle
established the daily rhythm
for life in their community,
signaling the start of the
work day, the lunch break,
and the end of the shift.
Since Springs Cotton Mills
ran twenty-four hours a day,
employees often depended
on this whistle to get to
work on time for their shift.
White Plant mill whistle.
Fort Mill History Museum collection
When the lever is pulled with
a pull cord, the valve opens
and steam escapes through the
orifice and into the whistle bell.
The whistle’s pitch is determined by the length of the bell.
The donor, Jack Varnadore,
collected this whistle from
the White Plant in the 1970s
from Pug Howell, the plant
manager. According to Mr.
Varnadore and Mr. Howell,
the last time the White Plant
steam whistle was blown
was to celebrate the end of
World War II.
Regular Hours of
MuseumOperation:
How does a steam whistle
work?
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Wednesday thru Saturday
The whistle has three main
parts: the whistle bell, the
steam orifice, and the valve.
107 Clebourne Street
Springs Lancaster Plant steam whistle
blowing for the last time, 1958. (From
Springs Close Family Archives collection.)
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Do You Know?
These young men are sitting at the old
Fort Mill Bowling Alley, which was
located on the grounds of the Fort
Mill Golf Course near the current #18
green. The bowling alley was a center
for family recreation during the
1950’s and 1960’s.
The building had about a half dozen
bowling lanes with human pinsetters
and a couple of bumper pool tables.
While the lanes rumbled at night with
league and family bowling, during the
day it was often filled with kids fresh
from the nearby swimming pool, their
wet bathing suits dripping on the floor
as they bought frozen Reese Cups and
Zero candy bars.
Photo: Pete Armstrong
The men in this photo were from the
White Plant spinning room bowling
team. Can you identify any of
them? If so, let me know at
[email protected].
(No one identified all of the women in last month’s
Do You Know section. Left to right they are: Helen
Bradford, wife of Times editor Bill Br adfor d,
Kathleen Armstrong, an elementar y school teacher ,
and Mildred Harkey, a high school science teacher.
The fourth lady has yet to be identified.)
Join us at the
Fort Mill History Museum!
Fort Mill History Museum
107 Clebourne Street
Fort Mill, SC 29716
The Fort Mill
History Museum proudly
announces the release of the
new edition of
Fort Mill Women
in History
Visit the
J. B. Mills Gift Shop
at the Museum
Be sure to visit our gift shop
for great items related to
Fort Mill’s history.
Contact us for membership
information or with questions:
Phone: (803) 802-3646
Email: [email protected]
Hours of Operation:
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Wednesday thru Saturday
Admission Rates
Adult 19 and up - $5.00
Children 7 to 18 - $2.00
Children under 6 - Free
Museum Members - Free
*FMHM is an NARM Participant.
A second volume celebrating
the women of Fort Mill
and their stories.
AVAILABLE AT THE FMHM
GIFT SHOP IN APRIL
The museum shop has books
by local authors as well
as Fort Mill mementos
and gift items.
MEMBERS RECEIVE A
10% DISCOUNT!
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