Recent Articles

ZEBULON, NC - Barbara Ann Denton Wright, 82, of Zebulon, died March 7, 2021. She was the daughter of Madie Glen Medlin and Henry Kearney Denton and married to Julius Wright.

HOLLISTER, NC -- Funeral services for Nancy Williams, age 88, who died on Saturday, March 6, 2021, will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, March 13, 2021 from the Richardson Funeral Home Chapel in Louisburg with Rev. Robert Hedgepeth officiating. Burial will follow in the Pine Chapel Memorial Garden Cemetery in Hollister.

HOLLISTER, NC -- Funeral services for Zollie "Lee" Mills, age 75, who died on Saturday, March 6, 2021, will be held at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 10, 2021 from the Richardson Funeral Home Chapel in Louisburg with Rev. Thomas Richardson officiating.

LOUISBURG, NC -- Funeral services for Dorothy Ward Taborn, age 101, who died on Saturday, March 6, 2021, will be held at 12 p.m. Friday, March 12, 2021 from the homeplace of Judy Marshall at 547 NC Hwy 39 South, Louisburg with Rev. Jamal Brodie officiating. Burial will follow in the Cemetery on the Hill.

FRANKLINTON, NC -- Funeral services for Annie Lee Williams, age 63, who died on Thursday, March 4, 2021, will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, March 11, 2021 from the Richardson Funeral Home Chapel in Louisburg.

FRANKLINTON, NC-William Avery "Bill" Kearney died February, 26, 2021. William was the son of the late Arthur and Mattie Kearney.

Charles Leamon Holloway, 80, of Franklinton, passed away in Rocky Mount, on February 16, 2021. He was born in Elba, Alabama on April 11, 1940 the youngest child of the late William and Katherine (Foxworth) Holloway. Along with his parents, he was predeceased by his sisters: Louise, Nell, Mary and Helen.

ZEBULON --- Evelyne Stallings Horton, 91, passed away Sunday, February 28, 2021 at her home with her loving and caring daughter by her side. She was born March 4, 1929 in Franklin County to the late Herbert Edward Stallings and Oma Pearce Stallings. Evelyne was a devoted wife and loving mom.

Eleanor Schubart Betts was born to George and Lillian Gladys McComb in East Orange, New Jersey on February 28, 1927. She went to Berkeley Secretarial School and worked in several offices over the years. In Louisburg, she was a legal secretary in the offices of Davis & Sturges in the early 1970s.

FRANKLINTON, NC-Michael Leon Tabron died February 23, 2021. Michael was the son of Loretta P. Tabron Egerton and the late James C. Tabron.

FRANKLINTON -- Funeral services of Lester Wilder are slated for Sunday, March 7, at 3 p.m. at Faith Baptist Church in Youngsville.

GREENVILLE -- Vance-Granville Community College student Rolando Rosado of Louisburg was recently accepted into the Honors College at East Carolina University, starting in the fall of 2021.
Rosado is one of just 10 students who are the first ever admitted into the competitive honors program while transferring into the university.

RALEIGH -- The State Democratic Party named its new chair, concluding Black History Month by naming its first African American as leader -- Franklin County resident Dr. Bobbie Richardson.
Richardson, a former state legislator and previous vice chair of the state party, was selected to lead the party as chair on Feb. 27.

Lester Wilder -- often referred to as "Mr. Franklinton" -- passed away this week at 71 following a long illness. Wilder, who was a popular coach, mentor and community leader was a Franklinton native who came home to teach, coach and play a huge rule in the lives of countless students, both athletes and those who didn't play sports. Funeral services are slated for Sunday, March 7, at Faith Baptist Church in Youngsville.

LOUISBURG -- The Franklin County Board of Commissioners issued a special use permit that will allow a boat and recreational vehicle storage site that's bounded by residential neighborhoods on three sides.
The county's planning board recommended denying the permit and a handful of residents opposed the project.

LOUISBURG -- Family, friends and the law enforcement community lifted a local state trooper in prayer as he battles COVID-19.
James "Brent" Montgomery has battled coronavirus for weeks.
Most recently, his wife, Heather, posted via social media that he remains stable.

LOUISBURG -- The Franklin County Board of Elections agreed to move their offices into the county's newly renovated office space.
Last summer, the county agreed to a $10,937.50 per month lease for 35,909 square feet of the old Walmart building on Bickett Boulevard, using it for office space.
In December, commissioners awarded Apex-based MLB Construction Services a $2.2 million contract to upfit the space for county use.

LOUISBURG -- When the United Way needed a place to operate a community garden, MAE Farm set aside some space at their Franklin County farm.
When the Cooperative Extension or other agriculture groups needed to show off some of the best farming techniques, the Jones family farm was often a tour stop.
When a school or anyone needed aid with a fundraiser, MAE Farm often lent a hand or a hoof.

NASHVILLE -- A 6-year-old Nash County boy was apparently accidentally shot by a teenager showing off a gun on Tuesday afternoon.
According to the Nash County Sheriff's Office, a 16-year-old boy and his 6-year-old brother were outside a home in the 5900 block of Maggie Road talking with some friends of the teenager. One of the friends, another 16-year-old, was reportedly showing off a gun when it went off and the shot struck the youngster.

Thirty years!
Seems impossible to believe, but it was 30 years ago Monday, March 1, when I took a deep breath, clicked the ballpoint pen in my hand and signed on the line where the lawyers said I was supposed to sign.
In seconds, I became the new publisher/owner of The Franklin Times -- and completed my escape from "Corporate America" that had been my newspaper career for two decades.

Last year at this, time, this was the headline on the front page of The Franklin Times: "As Coronavirus Spreads, is Franklin County Ready?"
The subheads noted that county health officials were relying upon previous efforts to help them navigate COVID-19.
The other said the school system was vigilant and ready to act if necessary.
Man, if we only had a crystal ball.

Dear editor:
As you know, our mission is to revitalize northeastern Franklin County, especially economically. In doing so, we hope our efforts will ripple throughout the entire county. In recent years, the need for more water in the county has been well documented, studied, written about and discussed many times.