Recent Articles

Softball player Maycey Buchanan

LOUISBURG -- When he became Louisburg High School's head coach before last season, Dontae Lassiter inherited a young offensive line group that was one year removed from one of the best units in school history -- albeit loaded with senior veterans.
And when that core graduated, the Warriors were left with a huge void up front -- and Lassiter went to work building the confidence and skills of an
inexperienced group.

LOUISBURG - Evangeline May Williams Strickland, 92, died Saturday, July 23, 2016. Funeral services were held Monday, July 25, at Lancaster Funeral and Cremation Services, 804 N. Bickett Blvd., Louisburg, with the Rev. Leo Bennett officiating. Interment followed in Lancaster Memorial Park.

LOUISBURG - Kirby Ruffin Tharrington, 67, of Louisburg, died Saturday morning.

EFLAND - Lucy Adel Day, age 3, of Efland died at home on Friday, July 22, 2016. Her death was brought on by causes related to the inherited disorder, GM 1 Gangliosidosis. A memorial service will be held at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Mebane Ward, 150 Asbury Blvd., Mebane, on Tuesday, July 26, at 2 p.m. with visitation to follow. A private graveside service will be held Tuesday morning.

HOLLISTER - Funeral services for Rethella Richardson Alston Davis, 85, who died Friday, July 22, 2016, will be held Wednesday, July 27, at 12 noon at Pine Chapel Baptist Church in Hollister, with the Rev. Thomas Richardson officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.

FRANKLINTON -- From a statistical standpoint, Jessica Harris' numbers have gotten progressively better during her three seasons as a member of the Anderson University volleyball squad in South Carolina.
That fact certainly bodes well for Harris' upcoming senior campaign as the former Franklinton High School standout prepares to close out her collegiate spike career.
It seems like only yesterday when Harris was starring at middle hitter for the Franklinton team that would start the overall program surge that the Lady Rams are still enjoying today.

ZEBULON -- The Frederick Keys bested the Carolina Mudcats 10-3 on Monday night.
And while Joshua Merson's name won't show up anywhere in the box score, he was the real winner.
The Louisburg youngster was the guest of honor as Make-A-Wish Eastern North Carolina set up an opportunity for Merson to throw out the first pitch, meet the players and grab some goody bags.

YOUNGSVILLE -- Town staff is less than two weeks away from sending out bids for renovation work at the new town hall and police department.
At the end of June, the town closed on the purchase of a 7,500-square-foot building on U.S. 1-A that will be home to both.
During the board's July 14 meeting, Police Chief Daren Kirts, who has a background in contracting, notified the board that he is putting the finishing touches on the renovation project and expected it to go out to contractors within two weeks.

LOUISBURG -- Two long-pending downtown Louisburg projects took steps toward reality Monday night ­-- and the town council heard a renewed pledge of cooperation from the county's economic development staff.
The two projects, converting the former Shell gasoline station on Main Street (across from the Post Office) to a landscaped parking lot and upgrading the parks and recreation building at the entrance to River Bend Park, are well on their way after Monday's meeting.

LOUISBURG -- Some of the harsh reality of life in 21st Century America slipped into the Louisburg Town Council meeting Monday amid warnings that tragedies that have happened in Dallas and Baton Rouge could happen here.
Town Council member Christopher Neal referenced the murder of eight police officers in two high-profile ambush attacks and said, "we should pay more attention to the process of community policing and developing a dialogue between police and citizens."

YOUNGSVILLE -- In life, Jeff Fields was about his family, the fire department and guiding younger members.
Even after his December 2013 death, those three things continue to be lifted up through his legacy.
During a meeting of the Youngsville Fire Department on Monday night, the fire department and his family presented a junior member, Coleman Lancaster, with the first Jeffrey L. Fields Memorial Scholarship -- donated funds designed to give a younger firefighter the boost they need to become better at their job.

Louisburg resident Debranique Hubbard

COMMUNITY APPROACH. Louisburg Police Det. Cliff Stephens gives Laura Calamaco a couple hot dogs at Joyner Park last Saturday.

LOUISBURG -- The county's board of health is in the midst of a second search to find its next health director.
The board fired Dr. Chris Szwagiel in January after nearly seven years on the job, citing issues with his personal conduct related to personnel issues.
The board immediately began soliciting candidates for the post and expected to have a permanent director in place in the spring, but that didn't happen.
"... What it boiled down to," said Board of Health Chairman Eddie White, "is we did have good candidates who came in for interviews [and] as a result of those interviews, we did offer the position," he said.

TO THE GROUND. A firefighter removes two gasoline cans from the porch area, keeping the accelerant from feeding a house fire at 105 African Violet Lane near Franklinton. Franklinton and area crews put out the fire the morning of July 15 and no injuries were reported but the house was a total loss. Immediate attempts to contact fire investigators were not successful.

LOUISBURG -- The Perry's School Alumni Association presents a $500 scholarship annually to a deserving student who is a descendent of someone who attended the former Perry's High School of Centerville.
This year's recipient is Breyana M. Gifford, the daughter of Shawn Gifford and Terrell Manley, and the granddaughter of Charles and Geraldine Manley.
Criteria for the scholarship are: a descendent of someone who attended the former Perry's High School, scholastic achievement, exemplary conduct, extra-curricular activities, community involvement, and acceptance to a four-year institution of higher learning.

LOUISBURG -- Police arrested five teenagers, charging them with breaking into a dozen cars in town.
The evening of July 14, officers arrested three 16-year-olds, a 15- and 14-year-old, charging them with break-ins first reported on July 5.
The last three break-ins were reported on the day of the arrests, in the 900 block of N. Main Street, the 300 block of W. Noble Street and a vehicle parked in the parking lot of Louisburg High School on Allen Lane.

YOUNGSVILLE -- A quick moving storm, county public utilities staff said, caused a sewage spill over the weekend.
Staff said the July 16 storm dumped more than 2.5 inches of rain, overwhelming a gravity sewer line and pump station in Youngsville.
Staff estimated that about 5,000 gallons of untreated wastewater entered a tributary of Richland Creek, which is located in the Neuse River Basin.
Franklin County Public Utilities staff were notified of the spill by SCADA monitoring equipment and responded accordingly.

The United Way ofFranklin County has kicked off its annual drive to collect school supplies and backpacks to support Franklin County students. The drive will run until August 20. Supplies will be collected at Walmart in Louisburg and the United Way office at 105 Market Street in Louisburg. Additional drop off locations will be listed on the website, www.uwfc.org.

Chef Alex Lee (center with bow) cuts the ribbon to the Asian Garden Restaurant in Louisburg that he and his wife, Shaly Lee, (to his right, holding ribbon) operate. The restaurant is in the new shopping center just south of NC 56 at the intersection of U.S. 401 and is open every day except Sunday and Monday for lunch and dinner. The ribbon cutting was sponsored by the Greater Franklin County Chamber of Commerce and attended by a number of local officials, dignitaries and interested citizens. The restaurant's address is 505 Retail Way, Number 102.

The September 29, 1950, edition of The Franklin Times contains a lengthy obituary for Hilliard Mitchell, "one of the last former slaves of Franklin County."
The article, which was contributed by an anonymous writer, contains interesting information about the end of the Civil War in the county as well as Mitchell's family background and later life.
Whether Mitchell deliberately misled people about his age and status at birth is unknown, but census records reveal that he was born in 1870 and thus was not a slave.

LOUISBURG -- Two area restaurant chefs, Chef Michael Ward with Michael's Showside Grill in Spring Hope and Chef Aaron Talbot with Michael's Getaway at Lake Royale, are networking with the Franklin County Extension office to prepare and serve up delicious summer dishes utilizing local produce available from the Farmer's Market.
The six cooking demonstrations and tastings will be held on Tuesdays at the Market, beginning July 26 through August 30.

ZEBULON -- A couple narrowly avoided disaster when a bullet hit the couch they were sitting on.
Franklin County sheriff's deputies responded to a home in the 100 block of Brantley Town Road the evening of July 8 after getting a report that a shot was fired into a home.
When they arrived, they found a bullet lodged in a couch that a husband and wife had been sitting in.