This past weekend was a fun one at Henry’s for 6 FPI members who volunteered their time to do repair work on the outbuildings around the house. We would like to thank Jim and Evelyn Mink, Phelps and Sharon Forrest, Gregory Gilgo, and Rudy Austin for all their hard work. They replaced the roof on
Henry’s shed and repainted the shed, made new steps for the summer kitchen, fixed the door on the outhouse, and did some work on the dock. We appreciate the Park providing large containers to haul off the old lumber, roofing, etc. We look forward to our next work project in the spring. If you would like to be involved, please contact Rosanne Penley at Rosanne.Penley@gmail.com or 828-439-5424.
Portsmouth is Open!
We’re happy to report that Portsmouth Village is open after last week’s flooding. You won’t be able to get across the tidal flats from the beach, but the village is open via ferry and/or boats. No damage reported!
No Portsmouth Update Yet
We have had no update on Portsmouth after the heavy rains and high tides that affected the area due to Hurricane Joaquin that remained offshore. All of Cape Lookout National Seashore remains closed, and we are waiting for them to reopen and assess any damage at Portsmouth. Ocracoke remains flooded with no ferry access. We will update you as soon as we know something.
Heads Up – Homecoming Room Reservations!
We have learned that motel rooms at Ocracoke are booking up fast Homecoming weekend due in part to the Ocracoke Invitational Fishing Tournament being held April 28-29. Homecoming is April 30. If you plan to stay the Thursday/Friday night before Homecoming or Saturday night, we encourage you to call and make reservations right away. For first-timers, google “Ocracoke NC Lodging” and you will be able to find listings of motels, bed and breakfasts, condo units, and cottage rental agencies. The Sand Dollar Motel has graciously agreed to extend a discount to FPI members for homecoming reservations, but it is first come-first served. We are making our reservations now and hope you will do the same!
Fall Meeting Report
Thanks to all who came out to our meeting at the Train Depot on September 19! We had 52 people in attendance, along with special guests Connie Mason and Patrick Kenney and his staff members BG Horvat and Steve Neshkoff. Superintendent Kenney gave us a great update on the Park and Portsmouth Village, the church in particular. Connie Mason gave us her history with FPI and Portsmouth and told us some wonderful stories about the people there. We finished up with lunch and lots of visiting and talking. Thanks to all who attended!
Homecoming 2016
“The Families of Portsmouth” – April 30, 2016
All FPI members will be receiving a letter from the Homecoming 2016 committee this week. The committee is hard at work to make this a very special homecoming, and we need your help – especially if you are a descendant! The Homecoming Committee will also be updating us at the fall meeting on September 19.
More details to follow, so please check back!
Fall Meeting -September 19 – Morehead City
Join us on Saturday, September 19, at the Train Depot in Morehead City! The Train Depot is located at 1001 Arendell Street. We will begin at 10:00 AM. Connie Mason, our speaker, will be familiar to many FPI members. She is a Down East historian/folklorist/entertainer who is also a charter member and past president of FPI. Connie has conducted many oral interviews of Portsmouth natives and is well versed in Portsmouth’s history and its people. We also welcome Pat Kenney, Superintendent of Cape Lookout National Seashore, and his staff, and look forward to an update from the Park. We will have a new batch of Portsmouth t-shirts at the meeting as well. These will not be available again until Homecoming, so get yours now! Please come out and visit with us and consider joining if you have not already. We look forward to seeing you!
Doctor’s Creek Journal
Members should be receiving their Summer 2015 newsletter any day now. In it you will find a wonderful article on Kenneth Burke, who we honored at our Spring meeting at Ocracoke. Also in this issue are a report on Henry’s House, a Homecoming 2016 update, an article on The Aleta mailboat, and the notice of our Fall meeting in September. Make sure to keep your membership dues up to date so you don’t miss any issues of the DCJ!
HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!
We would like to wish all our members and visitors a very happy and safe 4th of July! A special thanks to our military and veterans for keeping us free!
Spring Meeting and Work Days Update
We are happy to report two successful work days at Portsmouth and a well-attended spring meeting as well. It has been a busy time for the FPI board of directors, members, and volunteers.
On Thursday and Friday, May 14 and 15, a hardy group of volunteers descended on Portsmouth Village to begin some fun work! Our projects were a deep cleaning of the interior of the church, painting of the Visitor’s Center porch and trim, and the repair and painting of the Babb Cemetery fence. We were also able to accomplish cleaning windows at the lifesaving station and some painting of the McWilliams/Dixon house fence and porch railings. Special thanks go to Ernie Penley, Kathy McNeilly, Gregory Gilgo, Ann Shipstedt, Suzanne McWilliams, Jim Mink, Evelyn Mink, Phelps Forrest, Sharon Forrest, Keith Webber, Jean Webber, and Nancy White for all their time and efforts. We appreciate Captain Rudy Austin getting us over and back two days in a row, and VIP’s Ed and Rene Burgess who helped us organize, served us lunch on Friday and made sure we didn’t run amuck…
On April 28 and 29, work projects, repairs and “spring cleaning” were accomplished at the Henry Pigott house by Richard Meissner, Marjorie Spruill, Dallas Spruill, Pat Austin, and Rudy Austin. We can’t help but think that Henry and Lizzie Pigott would be very pleased. Thanks to these folks and to Ed and Rene Burgess as well. Henry’s House continues to be an ongoing project dear to the hearts of all of us.
Our spring meeting at Ocracoke on May 16 was attended by 50 people and a good time was had by all, despite a delay due to a malfunctioning oven. A highlight of the meeting was a special presentation to Kenneth E. Burke, Jr., who has done important historical research on Portsmouth, including his 1958 “THE HISTORY OF PORTSMOUTH, NORTH CAROLINA, FROM ITS FOUNDING IN 1753 TO ITS EVACUATION IN THE FACE OF FEDERAL FORCES IN 1861.” We were honored to have the Burke family in attendance as we presented a special plaque to Mr. Burke and we enjoyed his remarks very much. In addition, Glenn and Brenda White, Portsmouth volunteers, shared their Portsmouth photos and experiences at Portsmouth. We thank them for their time and efforts! Steve Neshkoff, VIP Coordinator for Cape Lookout National Seashore, represented the Park in his remarks and update on Portsmouth. We had a lot of first-time attendees and added some new members. Special thanks to so many people who helped us in many ways – Nancy White, Sharon Forrest, Phelps Forrest, Evelyn Mink, Marjorie Spruill, Leonard and Johanna Huber, Ann Shipstedt, Suzanne McWilliams, and those who helped prepare food for the brunch. Everyone’s love for Portsmouth has been very evident the past few days, and we feel good about things to come as we continue partnering with the NPS to preserve this special place.