Recent Articles

Virginia "Ginny" Elaine Beasley, age 46, passed away on Tuesday, July 14, 2015.

George Edwin Robbins, age 76, of Rocky Mount, passed away on Saturday, July 18, 2015.

Annie "Ruth" Winstead, 89, passed away Saturday, July 18, 2015.

Ethel Gantt, 81, of Rocky Mount, passed away on July 15, 2015.

Funeral arrangements are incomplete and will be announced by the Rocky Mount location of H.D. Pope Funeral Home.

Judy Joyner Nelms Horchler, 73, passed away on July 15, 2015.

VIrginia Elaine Rack Beasley, age 46, passed away on Tuesday, July 14, 2015. Funeral arrangements will be announced by Wheeler & Woodlief Funeral Home & Cremation Services.

The first superintendent of the merged Nash-Rocky Mount School System is coming back to lead the system as its interim superintendent.
The Nash-Rocky Mount Board of Education unanimously voted on Monday night, following a two-hour closed session, to hire Dr. Travis Twiford as the interim superintendent.
Twiford was the superintendent in 1992, when the Rocky Mount City Schools merged with Nash County Schools, forming the Nash-Rocky Mount School System.

Nashville's Town Council voted last Friday to hire Leonard Barefoot as the town's interim Town Manager.
Barefoot is a resident of China Grove and most recently served as the interim city manager for Ayden. Nashville's interim post will be his fifth interim position since he retired as the City Manager of Sanford in 2007.
Barefoot will take the helm of Nashville as Preston Mitchell prepares to leave for a similar position in Reidsville. Mitchell has served as the town manager of Nashville for almost 10 years.

SUMMER READING - Nashville's Harold D. Cooley Library hosted a Summer Reading Kick-off on June 20 to get ready for its Summer Reading Program, which runs through the month of July. Because heroes is the theme for this year's program, the library hosted some heroes of its own at the kick-off event. Firefighters, police officers and farmers were on hand to show off their equipment and Community Services Officer Jennifer Bull painted youth's faces at the event.

Nashville police have arrested a Battleboro man in connection with wallets stolen out of purses at Wal-Mart.
Officers responded to a larceny of a purse at Nashville's Wal-Mart on June 29, where a female victime told officers her wallet was missing from her purse. While investigating, a second victime reported her wallet was also missing.
Credit cards, cash, debit cards, social security cards, drivers licenses and other personal items were missing from the purse as well.

Four people were killed and three others injured after an accident during a street race on Sunday.
Two of those killed and two of those injured are listed as Nash County residents.
The accident happened on Simon Road, near Buck Road in Johnston County, near the Nash County line on Sunday night.
According to the North Carolina Highway Patrol, the accident occurred around 10:30 p.m. when two cars were racing and one veered off the road and hit a crowd who had come out to watch the pre-arranged race.

My Sister's House is considering relocating to the former Nashville Library facility at Alston and Church Streets.
Nashville Town Manager Preston Mitchell told council members at the regular board meeting last Tuesday night that he had spoken with Cynthia Kornegay, the Executive Director of My Sister's House, about the organization renting the top floor of the former library building, which the town owns. Mitchell said it was initially proposed to rent the top part of the two-story building for $1,000 a month.

Nashville's Fire Department will soon be purchasing 22 self-contained breathing apparatus.
Nashville Fire Chief Randy Goodbrod said the department was notified last month that it had received an Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) totaling $150,700. Of that amount, the Town of Nashville has to contribute five percent, or $7,176.
The money will be used to purchase 22 new self-contained breathing apparatus, which will replace the current ones that are 13 years old.

Nash County Commissioners denied a request to reduce the required separation between Internet Sweepstakes Cafes and residences.
The request was brought to commissioners last Monday morning during their regular meeting. Joseph R. Bass, Jr. requested the current 500-feet separation distance be reduced to 385 feet.
Nancy Nixon, Nash County Planning Director, told commissioners that because the request was a text amendment, if approved it would be allowed throughout Nash County and in all zoning districts where Sweepstakes Cafes were allowed.

Three have filed to run for one seat on Nashville's Town Council.
On Monday, Michael Coleman joined Marguerite Bishop and James "Butch" Mull, Jr. in running for the unexpired term seat on Nashville's Board.
Coleman previously announced he had planned to run for the seat.
So far, no one has filed to challenge incumbents Charles Taylor and Louise Hinton or Mayor Donald Street, who have all filed for re-election
Seats in other municipalities also have incumbents filing without challengers so far.

Jerome Johnson, who resides on Robertson Road between Spring Hope and the Macedonia Community, said he didn't watch any fireworks on the Fourth of July, but what he saw when walking outside the morning after was just as exciting.
Upon stepping outside early Sunday morning, he found a large black bear on his property. "It was a picture perfect creature," he said, "I couldn't believe my eyes."

Nash County Commissioners approved a request from Sheriff Keith Stone to restructure the ranks within the sheriff's department.
Stone proposed a rank restructuring plan to commissioners, which was considered at their regular meeting last Monday. Based on the plan, the salaries of the employees will not change but the titles, or ranks, will.
Stone told commissioners he was trying to bring the department's rank system more in line with others.

Let me preface this column with there are ALWAYS two points of view to every situation.
If there has ever been a time for a governing board to address the public with specific reasoning behind its actions -- the time is now.
The eruption of anger and dissatisfaction regarding the recent decision to indirectly boot out the Nash-Rocky Mount School Superintendent, in my opinion, is mostly due to school board members leaving a huge window open for assumption.

LIFE, may have been TIME, once devoted a page or two in each issue to Milestones. Dying, having a birthday, or getting married were the most commonly reported milestones.
Getting a driver's license is a milestone. Back in the day, 99 percent of pre-puberty males in Pamlico County knew how to drive a car long before they enrolled in driver's ed. I learned how not to ride the clutch on Burton Farm Road. It was a dirt road then, under the radar of the highway patrol. Boddie-Noel purchased the land and the farm is now Arlington Place. Upscale homes and cottages have replaced tobacco barns.

Most of us are familiar with the old expression about eating oysters: it was a brave man who first had the idea to taste one. Oh, how he was rewarded. If you ever had steamed oysters or shrimp at the old Atlantis restaurant in Rocky Mount, you know what I mean.
But in contrast, one has to question the man who came up with the running of the bulls in Spain.
You've seen the film footage: a bunch of fools running through what appear to be already quite unsanitary and unsafe streets while being chased by what appear to be a herd of Schlitz Malt Liquor beer bulls.

A FISHY PROBLEM -- This photo was originally published in The Graphic June 16, 1981. David McIntyre, a seventh grader at W.L. Greene Middle School, and a friend, sixth-grader Rachel Sasser, were struggling with getting a seven-foot-four-inch papier mache Atlantic Mako shark into a Volkswagen so David could carry it home. The shark was made by Mr. Gall's seventh grade science class.

Nash County Planning and Inspections issued the following building permits from July 6 through 10.

INCIDENTS
A child abuse (non-assaultive) was reported on 7/6/15 at 104 E Green Street
A larceny (shoplifting) and aid and abet was reported on 7/7/15 at Wal-Mart, 1205 Eastern Avenue
An escape from custody or resist, obstruct or delay and obtaining money/property by false pretense was reported on 7/8/15 at Wal-Mart, 1205 Eastern Avenue

A breaking and entering and felony larceny was reported on 7/6/15 at 2335 Hermitage Road
A breaking and entering and larceny after a breaking and entering was reported on 7/6/15 at 3911 E Old Spring Hope Road
A felony larceny was reported on 7/6/15 at 600 S. Halifax Road
A felony larceny was reported on 7/6/15 at 4892 Crabtree Lane

A new face was added to the Nash Central High School Alumni Association's Wall of Fame.
Mary O. Evans, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin was inducted onto the Wall of Fame during the Nash Central Senior High School Alumni Association's annual banquet, held on Saturday, May 23.
Evans is a member of the Upper East Coast Chapter of the Nash Central Senior High School Alumni Association. Her induction on the Wall of Fame was based on several of her prestigious achievements over the years.