Farmville Magazine
Sources of pride: New library, event space, splash park spark excitement. Sesquicentennial: Happy 150, Farmville! Roger Kammerer comes to town; Paramount revival
new library of the DownEast Sculpture Exhibition. Publication Name 1“Bateball” by Dave Riemer is featured outside Farmville’s Magazine Nameas •part Year
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Table of
CONTENTS 4 Destination for Learning 12 Meet the staff 15 Sesquicentennial Celebration 20 Another New Life 26 Keeping the arts Paramount 35 Making history fun 43 Making a splash
From the editor
Welcome to Farmville Magazine. In this issue we have featured a few of the places, organizations and events that make Farmville a destination as a great place to visit and live. At the heart of the community is the $4.5 million, 17,000-square-foot public library that opened in April. Officials tell us that the library is bringing folks into town from all over. Meanwhile the town has added another new destination with its splash park, and community members are working to breathe new life into old buildings and revitalize cultural efforts based at the May Museum and the Paramount Theater that have been stifled by the pandemic. And the town is gearing up for one of its biggest celebrations of all when it marks its sesquicentennial in February. Happy anniversary Farmville! We hope you enjoy the magazine.
— Bobby Burns
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Outside the new Farmville Public Library
New facility improves library services, extends reach, strengthens heart of community By Donna Marie Williams On the corner of Walnut and Church streets sits one of Farmville’s greatest assets — its public library — which serves as a resource and learning center and a destination attracting visitors from all over. The Farmville Public Library got its start in 1930 when the Women’s Club of Farmville opened the town’s 4
first library on the second flood of the Town Hall. Nearly a quarter of a century later, resident Virginia Elizabeth Davis led the effort to create a separate facility. This facility would soon be located at the corner of Church and Walnut streets and housed more than 3,000 books. In 1997, John Barker and the Library Board of Trustees oversaw a renovation
and an expansion encompassing more than 30,000 books. Today, after four years of planning and building, the Farmville Public Library resides in a new state-of-the art facility that’s the pride of town.
MAKING A MOVE
The need for a larger library with more book and meeting space was evident as the library hosted
an increasing number of community events. To accommodate participants, library staff would have to rearrange furniture with functions in the middle of the adult fiction racks. “We had a couple of tables in the middle that we had to pick up and move to cram people in,” said former library director David Miller. “We also had the staircase directly in front of that
Lilly Moore was one of the first patrons to enter the newly dedicated library. She has a sense of ownership because she helped shelve books before it opened. “I like all the library books, from the biggest book here to the smallest ones,” she said. Behind her, she is oblivious to a tour taking place.
space, so we oftentimes just had people sitting in the stairs or standing behind the bookshelves kind of peeking around.” The library would need to relocate or be rebuilt. The decision to build new was not easy for the town, with some opposed to the demolition of the historical building. After a structural assessment revealed significant issues with the facility and its foundation, the town decided to abandon a reno-
vation plan of the two-story, 11,910 square foot facility. The assessment found sloping at the front entrance, exterior cracks in bricks, interior cracks, visual distress and movement occurring in the building. It also found building’s second floor load limit exceeded modern-day standards. Part of the problem was caused by an uneven foundation. The library once sat on property that housed a stable and a hotel. Parts of
Heather Harden, a librarian, had the daunting task of shelving books onto the new library’s book cases.
both facilities remained, causing an unlevel foundation when the library was first constructed. “During the technical investigation prior to the design of the new library we
found some debris ... and had a hunch that was part of the original problem the library had. After the demolition of the library we did six test kits out there spread across the footprint of the 5
The original Farmville Public Library building stood at Church and Walnut from the mid 1950s and was expanded in 1997.
new building, and in every test kit we found brick debris, chunks of concrete. On the east end we found a burned layer of soil with some bricks in it … We found a lot of debris. We found debris everywhere. It was like the original stables
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and hotel were just leveled and buried there,” said Carl Bonner of Terracon Consultants engineering firm. An abandoned storm drain from 1980 was also found on the property and removed. In October 2019, the library’s old building
was demolished and work began to complete the new facility on the same site. While work was being completed for the new building, the library relocated temporarily to the East Carolina Railway Depot at 3466 N. Walnut St. Owner
Phil Lewis renovated the building, which now serves as a premier meeting space and event center.
ROOM TO GROW
While some were opposed to the demolition of the former library building, many
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The new Farmville Library has an outdoor space next to Emmanuel Episcopal Church on Walnut Street.
were excited about the new library’s potential. More than 50 people gathered at a topping ceremony in February 2020 to celebrate the new building. The ceremony was the first of its kind for Farmville and was held to highlight the progress of
the library’s construction. Each participant signed their name to a steel gable. The beam was then hoisted to the top of the library’s ridge and attached with those names being sealed in time and becoming history itself. The new building, de-
signed by Smith Sinnett Architecture and built by Farmville-based Farrior and Sons, took 18 months to complete. In April 2021, on Library Founders Day, the day the original Farmville Library opened in 1954 on the same tract of land, the
Farmville Public Library once again opened its doors in its new home. The 17,000-square-foot facility provides both space and flexibility, allowing the library to adjust and accommodate growth. The new layout provides for more
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Farmville Town Comissioner Alma Hobbs and musician Rakiem Walker discuss the piano in one of the larger rooms at Farmville’s new library.
social spaces, including an 1,800 square foot auditorium, a maker space for
children and teens, meeting rooms and study rooms. Areas for children, teens
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and adults have new furniture, computer equipment and bookshelves, provided
through grant funding. Open shelving was selected to allow for more natural light and to improve sight lines. “We’ve nearly doubled our shelving throughout the whole library,” Miller said. “I feel like we can grow into this space for a very, very long time.” The expansion also allowed for the library to dedicate an entire room for genealogy research, he said. “At the old library, there was actually a little kind of a closet in the middle of the children’s area on the second floor that was repurposed for our genealogy collection. Some folks referred to it as our genealogy closet,” Miller said, laughing. “But it got used a lot. Genealogy is really important for patrons in
Farmville, so we wanted a really nice space.” The first floor features the lobby, children’s library, the teen area, maker space, children’s workrooms and a small conference room. The second houses two conference rooms, a larger meeting room, study rooms, adult books, multimedia and periodical selections, the genealogy room and computers. Outside the building, patrons can find a courtyard with a small lawn facing a white cast stone wall to show movies.
MORE THAN BOOKS
While the library serves as a resource and learning destination, it is more than books, said youth
Volunteer Mary Morrison Dixon and librarian Heather Harden organize stacks of books from the old library onto the the new library’s shelves.
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services librarian Heather Harden. “Libraries are about serving people and meeting the needs of our community,” she said. “Libraries are not just a place for people who like to read for pleasure. We are a living part of the community. We assist people with vital services every day.” Staff offers one-on-one assistance to people learning computer and technology skills and offers group computer classes; it provides internet and computer access; a free notary service, printing and scanning; and private meeting rooms to study or meet with others. “We want people to think of the library instead of just asking Google or Siri,” Harden said. “You can visit or contact the library to ask our trained and experienced staff who know your community and who can connect you with not only information but resources.” A 3-D printer is available for children, teens and many more to use in the maker space. Weekly programming ranging from story time to plant-swaps offered on a weekly basis. The library also offers patrons a range of information, articles, books, e-books, audiobooks and more on its website. “We want to make connections with the people, so they feel this is their library. We want to know what programs they want to see 10
and hear about book and materials to carry,” Harden said. Programs are designed with patrons in mind and are tailored to be informational and fun. “Our slogan since we entered the new library is ‘Welcome to your library.’ We want to show people we are a living part of the community and not a place that only houses books,” Harden said. “When we say ‘Welcome to your library, it’s also about letting our community be a part of the library. Whether that’s borrowing materials like items from the library of things, which includes exercise, cooking and camping equipment, participating in a children’s, teen or adult program, learning from each other during programs like the Spice Club, accessing digital resources like the Libby e-book app, or meeting library staff at an outreach The sculpture ‘Bateball’ stands outside the Farmville Public Library. event-like the StoryWalk at Oliver Murphrey Park.” and to our programs. discovering all the shops The Farmville Public With this new building, I and businesses that make Library and its community think the possibilities are Farmville worth the drive. programs and resources endless to reach people,” We want to be a part of the have served many from far Harden said. community and to help and near for many years. “When they come to showcase all that Farmville With the new facility, staff the library, they area also has to offer.” and town members have already seen an increase of visitors coming from all DESTINATION over. The Farmville Public Library “We keep hearing from 4276 Church St. people we are a destiMonday-Thursday 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. nation library. We have Friday: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. people from Greenville, Saturday: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. all over Pitt County and farmvillelibrary.org | 252-753-3355 Wilson come to the library
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Eager to serve Meet the staff at the Farmville Public Library By Donna Marie Williams The staff at the Farmville Public Library say they are eager to assist patrons with all their needs.
ANGIE BATES: DIRECTOR
Bates joined the staff Aug. 5. She’s from the once-small town Speedway, Indiana, and is excited to return to a place like it in Farmville. “I grew up in a place very similar to Farmville. It was a farming community. Just the feel of the people and the community, it’s wonderful. I know that from what I can tell, it seems like a very family orientated place and I’m very excited about it,” Bates said. “It’s known now as the 500, but it didn’t used to be so big and metropolitan as it is now,” she said of Speedway, home to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “Most of my family is from Kentucky. We spent most of our summers there. It’s really nice to be back in a place like this.” With a degree in elementary education from Perdue University in Indiana, her career began in teaching and for more than 25 years Bates taught across the country. In 2009, she transitioned careers. “I decided I wanted to start teaching kids how to love to read instead of learning to read,” Bates said. 12
“If you catch somebody when they are young and you are able to tap into the interests that they have personally, they will continue to be learners the rest of their lives. They don’t have to love to learn to read novels or short stories or poems. If they just love to read in general it will spark information and knowledge from other places besides just a book they can find in the library ... Once you taught them to learn to read they will seek out information and they will be able to gleam what is true and what isn’t true.” She received her master of library sciences from N.C. Central University and discovered her passion for working in public libraries. “During library school I was able to get a part time job in a public library and I realized I really wanted to work in a public library rather than be in school media,” she said.
“I worked my way through every position in a library from page to a library assistant, youth services librarian, youth director, adult services. I worked with resource sharing cataloging to assistant director.” In 2020, Bates and her husband decided to move to Colorado — a dream of theirs — and Bates left her position with the Wake Forest Community Library to work with Colorado’s Bureau of Land Management as a cataloger. Her husband’s health necessitated a move. It was then she discovered the Farmville Library post vacated by David Miller. “I really wanted to be in a small town. I wanted to make a difference in a town where the library could really be a part of the town. I found from researching Farmville Library that it really is a major part of this town. It is involved with Parks and Recreation Department, the Farmville Arts Council the Chamber of Commerce.
It’s very well viewed and visited by the citizens and I really wanted to be a part of a place where the library was a vibrant part of the community,” Bates said. “I also was familiar with David Miller from a previous position I had in Vance County and a lot of the initiatives he had started here. I had admired those and wanted to be able to continue those.” As director, Bates wants to continue the initiatives already set in motion. “I want to continue all the many partnerships with the Farmville Chamber of Commerce, Farmville Arts Council, Parks and Recreation. I would really like to develop more partnerships with Vidant so we can have more health initiatives here,” she said. “I would really like to be involved in any of the new growth opportunities. I would like to get involved with the school systems. Once COVID is over
it would be nice if we could be more a part of things there and possibly bring programs into the schools.” Bates is also excited to be a part of the Farmville community and is grateful for the response she has received since being named as director, she said. “I love the town. I love how vibrant Main Street is and how there are so many things to do locally here in town. You don’t have to go to Greenville or somewhere else. Everything you need is here. The people talk so highly of the town,” she said.
read. We get to know our patrons and know what their reading tastes are. We know if they like mysteries, nonfiction, and just interacting and finding out what people like and dislike and filling that need,” Widney said. “I love doing reference work. … If someone asks a question it’s fun to get into the resources and try and find an answer to that question.” The relationship between the experienced staff and the patrons helps set the Farmville Public Library apart from others, she said. “I think we really have staff on the front CONNIE WIDNEY: the line to help the patrons. ADULT SERVICE Some libraries have their circulation desk where LIBRARIAN people check out books, Widney has a been a and those people maybe member of the staff for nine don’t have the kind of years and enjoys the relatraining that a regular tionships she is able to build librarian will have. They with the patrons. don’t always interact the “I really enjoy helping way a regular people find the books librarian they want to
would. They might not have the knowledge that a trained librarian has,” Widney said. “But at the Farmville Public Library we do a great job of having front line staff that also have library skills and are readers. We are interested in what our patrons are doing and reading.” Widney said she particularly enjoys reading books by Louise Penny, a Canadian author. “She writes wonderful mysteries,” Widney said.
HEATHER HARDEN: YOUTH SERVICE LIBRARIAN
Since joining the staff at the Farmville Public Library, Harden has held many titles including interim director, youth service librarian and adult service librarian. Her favorite part of the job is “working with the people,” she said.
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“I love serving and meeting people’s needs, from searching for a book to read, helping them attach a document (to an email). Libraries aren’t just about books. We help so many people in many different ways,” Harden said. Harden likes that the library is rooted in community. It makes the library a unique and exciting place to
work, she said. “It’s the community. So any people in the were invested in helping us get into the building and being regular patrons, being supporters through the Friends of the Library and I think we have a passionate staff that truly loves what they do,” she said. While currently reading books on natural disaster,
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Harden’s favorite adult genre is World War II fiction and her favorite child author is Ezra Jack Keats.
CANDIS WILLIAMS: TECHNICIAN AND ADULT SERVICE LIBRARIAN
Willliams is coming up on
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her five-year anniversary. Along with library technician and adult services, she also serves as a public notary. Her favorite part of her job is working with patrons. “I really enjoy helping people,” Williams said. “I like helping people with reference questions and with researching things.”
We are The Farmville Group.
The 1954 Farmers Day parade celebrated the harvest. The sesquicentennial parade on Feb. 12 will celebrate the town’s progress over 150 years.
Sesquicentennial
Celebration
Events leading up to anniversary full of community pride The planning for Farmville’s sesquicentennial celebration began well over a year ago. I knew there were several events that I was hoping we could include in the celebration, and it looks like these events will be a part of the celebration. I’m really excited about the plans that are falling into
place, thanks to the committee of volunteers who stepped up. I am looking forward to bringing back some events that have been popular in Farmville’s
history. In recent years, the annual St. Patrick’s Day Auction was a well-attended fundraising event that was organized in part by the Farmville Chamber John Moore
of Commerce and orchestrated by the very capable Michael Cable of Woodside Antiques. Michael is a valuable resource for the auction that has been planned to kick off the 150th year celebration on Oct. 9. The committee is working diligently to plan events and features of interest
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Photos from 1965 show downtown bustling with business. (Archival photos courtesy of ECU Digital Collections at Joyner Library.)
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A photo from 1915 captured a busy downtown Farmville 43 years after the town was incorporated, although the streets had not yet been paved.
to the entire community. They hope to reveal a 150th Anniversary cookbook, a compilation of recipes from Farmville cookbooks published through the years. The cookbook is one of the fundraisers for the celebration. Another unique fundraiser is the commemorative plaque created by Just Write Laser Engraving. The North Carolina shaped
plaque has space for 150 names. This is a chance to have the name of your family, your business or your name engraved on the plaque, which will be displayed in the Farmville Public Library. Ghost tours also are planned to get into the spirit of ghost stories in the area as Holloween approaches. As Christmas nears, plans
are in place for the annual Christmas Tree Lighting and A Taste of Farmville. Our annual Christmas parade is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on Dec. 11. The Christmas parade is a longstanding tradition that I look forward to every year. An added event for our Christmas season is Pray for Farmville, which will be led by Jeffrey Fields.
Jan. 7, 2022, is First Friday in Farmville. We are hoping our merchants will be open for extended hours, offering special deals like 15 percent discounts that evening. After shopping and dining in our historic downtown, everyone will be encouraged to stroll down to our beautiful town common and be treated to a fireworks display celebrat-
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Although several industries grew in Farmville, the tobacco market, shown here from the 1950s, and tobacco processing drove the town’s economy for decades.
ing the coming sesquicentennial. I think the event I am most excited about is the Black-Tie Ball on Jan. 15. To my knowledge, there hasn’t been a formal event like this since Dec. 31, 1999, which rang in the new year of 2000. This is an opportunity to get dressed up, dance and mingle with friends old and new. This is an opportunity for us to invite friends to Farmville to see what One Farmville is about. Then comes the big finale on Feb. 12. The day will begin with the Sesquicen18
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tennial Parade, chaired by Brenda Elks. Parade participants will be encouraged to create floats that nod to Farmville’s rich and diverse 150-year history. By the way, there will be prizes for the best entries! More events are being planned for the weekend, so keep your eyes open for more information as it becomes available. Farmville is special and unique. Our proximity to Greenville, Raleigh and other cities is attractive because ease of access to major highways and airports. Our public schools are truly unique with four schools on one campus — drop them off at kindergarten and pick them up from high school, all on the same street. The presence of Pitt Community College and East Carolina University only adds to the unique opportunities for education in Farmville. We are fortunate to have a safe community with a dedicated police force watching over us. Another unique quality of Farmville is our downtown area, which has seen a recent surge in revitalization and addition of new stores and the reopening of Bonnie’s Café, a longtime favorite of Farmville residents and visitors alike. As a lifelong resident of Farmville, I’ve seen it change from an agricultural town to a diverse community with a range of businesses, educational facilities, a focus on the arts and a new commitment to improving the quality of life for our citizens and visitors. Everything seems to be falling into place, coming together, and strengthening our goal of One Farmville. I think all of this will be on full display during the Sesquicentennial Celebration. John Moore is mayor of the Town of Farmville. 19
Another new life Photos by Willow Abbey Mercando
Building renovated by Phil Lewis served as a makeshift library. Now it’s a bookable event space. By Ginger Livingston A native son has joined the effort to bring new life to Farmville’s historic buildings. Phil Lewis, who owns an insurance business and opened the May-Lew Farm wedding and event venue in 2014, has now renovated the former East Carolina Railway Office and Freight Station and transformed it into an event space. Before it opened as an event space, it served for nearly two years as the temporary home of the Farmville Public Library while the town built a new library building that opened this year. “They were looking for something big enough to house what they had,” Lewis said. As part of the agreement the town made improvements to the building’s parking lot and Lewis let the town use the 20
Phil Lewis restored the East Carolina Railway depot in Farmville to create a space for events.
building for free. While the library has occupied its new facility, the community can still use the parking lot as long as an event isn’t taking place, he said. Lewis said a combination of factors motivated him to purchase and renovate the building. In recent years a group of Farmville businessmen undertook an effort to revitalize the former tobacco town’s downtown buildings and attract new businesses. “They are working every day to make Farmville better and they sold me on coming over here and doing some things. I love old buildings and they’ve got me hooked on it,” said Lewis, who lives in Greenville and operates his business there. He already had experience in giving new life to old properties.
Lewis is a Farmville native. His father was a tenant farmer who worked at May-Lew Farm, located about three miles from downtown Farmville. Eight years ago, Lewis bought MayLew Farm’s main house, which was built in 1830, several outbuildings and approximately three acres. He renovated the house and hosted his niece’ wedding at the location. During the reception, Lewis said he looked around at how the site was decorated and thought, “I could recreate this.” He eventually bought a total of 108 acres surrounding the home. He found an old cypress barn and, working with engineers, had it dismantled and rebuilt on the farm with a few modifications to serve as the main event space. He also brought in several former tenant houses that can serve as a retreat for members of the bridal party, an old office building to serve as restrooms and built an outdoor fireplace
In 2019, the depot building began its tenure as the temporary home to the Farmville Public Library.
and swimming pool. May-Lew Farm’s only drawback is the cypress barn doesn’t have air conditioning, so it can’t used from late spring through early fall, Lewis said. But for 23 weeks out of the year it hosts weddings, corporate events
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Lewis also renovated the circa 1830 May-Lew farm in Farmville, restoring the original house and adding a barn and several period buildings to create a wedding venue.
is said. “It was neat because it was concrete, brick and timbers. It also wasn’t so dilapidated so I could work on it.” Lewis envisioned the space as a civic center-type facility similar to the Washington (NC) Civic Center, which is housed in a renovated Atlantic Coast Line depot. Lewis said one of the building’s drawbacks was it had few windows so the interior was very dark. The exterior walls were lined with multiple sliding metal doors that brought in plenty of light when open. Lewis said even before he hired an architect, he knew he wanted clear garage doors that would allow light 22
in and roll up so people and supplies can move in and out. The original sliding metal doors were pushed aside but remain as an architectural detail. Lewis brought in Olive Architecture out of Raleigh and Green Power Construction of Greenville to do the renovation work. Along with installing the clear garage doors, interior walls that created separate storage areas were removed to create open spaces. The concrete floor was polished and wood from the former Red’s TV and Appliance building was used to create architectural detail along with windows from the former Davis Hotel. While the Farmville Library moved into its new facility in April, it continued storing some items at the depot until July, Lewis said. Now that the space is fully vacant, Lewis is working on a plan to market the space. That includes selecting a name for the venue. “Do you like the Freight Station?
The East Carolina Railway was a short-line railroad that ran from Tarboro to Farmville between 1898 to 1965.
May-Lew Celebration Station? With COVID I don’t feel like I need to get in a big rush,” he said. The Boy Scouts have already hosted its Citizen of the Year banquet in the space. The building is booked for the town’s sesquicentennial gala early next year. Lewis also sees the depot playing
a role in future Dogwood Festival events. He envisions opening all the clear garage doors and transforming the space into a food hall. Along with the depot, Lewis renovated the former Harris building, located at the corner of Main and Wilson streets, and it now houses the offices of a financial firm.
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He currently is working on renovating the old Beaufort Elementary School building in Carteret County. The 76,000-square-foot structure includes a gym, cafeteria and classrooms.
Once complete, there will be 32 condos in the classroom buildings, a commercial space in the cafeteria and an event space in the gym. “If we don’t renovate is anybody ever going to appreciate our heritage and
what happened 100 years ago if we don’t keep these old buildings?” Lewis said. “I just think we have to do better. “The old buildings were built without engineers, without architects. The old
cypress barn, there was no engineer, it was a local farmer who did it himself,” Lewis said. “This time we had to get architects and engineers involved to get it moved. It’s preserving history, that’s how I see it.”
DESTINATION The East Carolina Railway depot will be opened for regular event rental in the future. The 1830 May-Lew Farm is open now. 5130 W. Wilson St. 252-2580-0571 | maylewfarm.com Bill Clark, Rick Vernon and John Moore, from left, share a laugh during a banquet on Aug. 9 that was the first function held at the facility.
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Keeping the arts Paramount
Photos by Willow Abbey Mercando
Volunteers, upcoming renovations aim to energize Farmville’s premier artistic venue By Kim Grizzard It was a sign of the times in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. Closed theaters with no movies to advertise got creative with their marquees, displaying phrases like, “Now Showing Nothing Starring Nobody,” “When Harry Met Sally on Zoom,” “The Chronicles of Corona” and “To Be Continued.” During that time, the Paramount in Farmville, which has not functioned as a movie theater in more than four decades, chose for its marquee mes26
sages that had meaning for the community. One wished a 102-year-old a happy birthday. Another congratulated the local high school’s state championship basketball team. While theaters across the country have reopened, it will be a while before marquee at the Paramount is used to advertise an event that’s happening inside. The theater, where the Farmville Community Arts Council has not been able to host audiences at a live event since March 2020, remains closed for renovations. With $250,000 in grant funding, gallery space is being added and restrooms remodeled to make them accessible to people with disabilities. The Arts Council hopes to raise an additional $140,000 for construction of a kitchen, galley and meeting room. Renovations are expected to take six to eight months. Programming, which resumed in May with a virtual concert series,
The Paramount Theater on Main Street has played host to theatrical performance, art exhibits and community events for 40 years.
will continue this fall with events including art exhibits, a ghost walk
and a concert. But all will be hosted at different venues in town while the
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Paramount is closed. “With COVID it was always a challenge,” said Cheryl Patterson, who serves as volunteer chairwoman of council’s programming committee. “But we feel like by doing these events we’ll still keep the sense of the mission of the Arts Council, which is to provide exposure to the arts to everyone. “I don’t know if we’ve peaked with delta (variant), but with this construction, it buys us some time before we have to figure all that out,” she said. “We’re looking forward to being able to welcome folks into the facility and moving those curtains.” The Arts Council has been welcoming people to
Farmville’s Paramount Theater as it appeared in 1960. The 100-year-old theater has been owned by the Farmville Community Arts Council for four decades. (Archival photos courtesy of the ECU Digital Collection)
the Paramount since the movie screen went dark in
the late 1970s. The theater, constructed in 1920
as the Rialto, became the Paramount in 1931, with
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The Vines Sisters were the first African-American group to perform at Farmville’s Paramount Theater. This past spring, current members of the group were part of Farmville Community Arts Council’s Music in May virtual concert series.
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A majorette marches by the Paramount during a Christmas parade in 1964.
While the Farmville Community Arts Council has not hosted live events during the pandemic, it has rented out its Main Street marquee for announcements.
then-owner John I. Morgan giving the front its Art Deco appearance in 1937, said historian Roger Kammerer, director of the May Museum. When the theater closed in 1977 (some say “Star Wars” was its last featured film), Morgan allowed the newly formed Arts Council to use the building, later transferring the deed to the organization for $1. Former Arts Council President Randy Walters said some people were not sure the council needed to own the theater at any price. Walters, who today owns Farmville Furniture Company, had moved to town with his wife in the 1970s after being part of
an attempt to start an arts council in another community. “I left a town several times the size of Farmville that was trying to start an arts council, and I felt like we were pulling teeth,” Walters recalled. “I came to Farmville, and I have never seen as many talented, gifted people, willing to give of time and financial resources. This was a place that absolutely embraced the arts in the early ‘70s beyond anything you could possibly imagine.” The opportunity to own a facility so early in its development was a rare one, although not without risk. While Arts Council members wanted to preserve the
architectural landmark that had been the town’s theater, there was concern over whether or not the council would be able to afford to keep up the facility. “We had mixed emotions about accepting the building to start with,” Walters said. “It pretty much put us in theater arts business right off the bat, which was not necessarily where we were headed. “We weren’t sure exactly how it was going to play into our overall program,” he said. “Obviously it has worked very well for 50 years. It was a leap well worth it.” Barbara Owens, who served as the third executive director of the Arts
Council, a position she held from 1983 to 2003, said that creating a performing arts space in a former movie theater has provided numerous benefits for the town. The Paramount has been the place where many schoolchildren watched their first live performance and where numerous others have taken the stage themselves. “You don’t have to go to Raleigh to see a play,” Owens said. “You don’t have to go to Raleigh to see an art exhibit.” Still the theater where she watched actor Lash LaRue and “Gone With the Wind” as a child needed quite a makeover to go from screen to stage. In its 31
early years, the Arts Council received a $250,000 grant, which it used to acquire annex space that houses the dressing rooms. The council also sold a one-story classroom and exhibit building donated by the Farmville Arts Society and poured the $50,000 in proceeds into refurbishing the Paramount. Among other things, the movie theater needed new seating, which the Arts Council funded by selling seats to members of the community, who could then have their names engraved on them. “It was a grassroots approach to renovation, actually, and just had tremendous support,” Owens said. “People came in and washed floors and scrubbed. “This is all about the people,” she said. “It wouldn’t have happened without them. It would still be a rundown old theater.” While Owens no longer serves on the board, she admires the efforts of Chairman Kenny Patterson and his wife, Cheryl, who have worked along with other members throughout the pandemic to keep the Paramount’s doors from having to close permanent-
ly. With no current executive director, the chairman has been the one climbing a ladder to change the iron letters on the marquee, which the Arts Council has sometimes rented to help raise funds. Over the last 18 months, Owens has enjoyed seeing changing messages on the marquee, which she has viewed as a sign of life during the pandemic. “Those lights are just like a pulsing beat,” she said. “Even now, even though the theater is not open, with that marquee on, every time you come to the corner up there by the Town Hall, you look down to see what’s on the marquee. It’s just a shining light to me that says, ‘We’re here.’” Cheryl Patterson is eager for the day she will once again see the marquee reflect what is going on inside the Paramount. She has heard it said that if the lights on the marquee are working, it’s a sign that Farmville is working. “That’s pretty much true,” she said. “If you’ve got something going on at the theater, Farmville’s in good shape.”
DESTINATION Paramount Theater Farmville Community Arts County 3723 N. Main St. (252) 753-3832 | farmville-arts.org The facility is undergoing renovations and will reopen post pandemic
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is not boring’ New Museum director Roger Kammerer, a Pitt County artist and historian, sits on the back porch of the May Museum. (Photos by Willow Abbey Mercando)
Artist, historian offers colorful stories as new May Museum director By Kim Grizzard Inside the oldest home in Farmville’s Historic District, the May Museum boasts some 10,000 artifacts and 20,000 photographs to put the town’s
The May Museum and Park showcases and preserves the history of the Town of Farmville and the surrounding areas of western Pitt County in the May family’s 1850s home and grounds.
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history on display. But a significant recent addition to the museum may be found out of view behind a desk in the museum office. Artist and historian Roger Kammerer, a popular guest lecturer at May Museum, took office in August as its new director. Kammerer, 64, serves a dual role as a genealogy researcher at Farmville Public Library’s Emily Monk Davidson Local History and Genealogy Center. Town Manager David P. Hodgkins said Farmville is fortunate to have such a noted area historian as head of its museum. “The May Museum is a historic gem here in town,” Hodgkins said. “We were thrilled that he was interested in coming to work
Kammerer sits in the drawing room of the home, surrounded by family photos and artifacts.
with us. Mr. Kammerer obviously brings to Farmville a wealth of knowledge. I would consider him an expert on Farmville fami-
lies and genealogy for the Farmville area and probably all of Pitt County.” So how did a Nebraska native who came to East
Carolina University to study art end up with such a knowledge of eastern North Carolina history? Kammerer credits his research
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Kammerer stands in front of a gallery of historic places featured in the museum.
skills to his high school mentor, but his love for history dates back even further. The first-born son of a Marine Corps family, Kammerer moved from California to Swansboro in 1962, where he spent much of his early life with his grandmother while his mother worked and his father served in Vietnam. A quiet child, he was an avid reader who sometimes hid behind a chair to be left alone with an encyclopedia. Even at a young age, he often preferred conversations with grown-ups to childhood games. “When the adults all got together, all the kids had to leave; all the kids had to go outside and play,” Kam37
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merer recalled. “I’d stand in the doorway and if I was really quiet I could sit in Mama’s lap or Daddy’s lap (to listen). “I wanted to suck in everything and I remember those stories,” he said. “My siblings who were around at the same time don’t remember so many things because they didn’t care. Luckily, I was a weird child that loved all that stuff and remembered it.” By the time he was a teenager, Kammerer had a passion for the past that extended beyond family stories to family trees. Historian Tucker Reed Littleton, for whom the Littleton
Collection in the North Carolina State Archives is named, introduced Kammerer to genealogy, and the rest is history. Kammerer, who came to Greenville in 1974 as an art student, spent much of his time drawing information from historical records at ECU, assisting in Littleton’s research. Long before ancestry.com helped to popularize genealogy, the mother of a college friend asked Kammerer to help trace her ancestry, which planted the seed for his interest in Pitt County family trees. In 1984, he became a founding member of Pitt
County Family Researchers, a local genealogical group, later serving as editor of its award-winning quarterly journal. In 2020, Kammerer was inducted into the Servire Society at ECU in honor of his service to the university and the community. He has written about a dozen large genealogies for families of Pitt County, including a Tyson-May book that includes the original owners of the home that later became the May Museum. “I am very much interested in everybody’s family,” he said. “It’s (like) Sherlock Holmes. You’ve given me a
mystery to work on. It’s like people doing their puzzles every day. (If) you give me a new mystery every day, I’ve got something to look forward to. Let me see if I can find the answers, and, generally, I can.” For decades, he wrote a local history column for the Greenville Times, and in 2006, he and historian Tom Painter co-authored “The Forgotten Tales of North Carolina.” The book is a collection of outrageous but true stories from across the state, including one about a man in Currituck County who traded his wife and kids for a fishing net, and another 39
about “Gar-Gar” Edwards, a 3-year-old who was hooked on cigars. “History is not boring,” Kammerer said. “History can be so fun and intriguing. A lot of kids never get that. (They think) it’s just names and dates. When you start talking about sea monsters and UFOS and all these other things, ghosts, it’s just fun.” In his popular talks, Kammerer loves giving his audience a taste of little-known stories such as “the great Doritos tide,” which happened along the Outer Banks. In 2006, a nor’easter caused a shipment container full of the snack chips to fall overboard into the ocean, spilling bags of Doritos that washed ashore at Cape Hatteras, where locals flocked to collect them. “It’s legendary,” Kammerer said, laughing. “Those people down there will be telling their children and their grandchildren the funny tale about finding Doritos on the beach. “Great, weird stuff happens all the time,” he said. “It happens in modern times, too.” Kammerer, a member of the Pitt County Historical Society, also serves on the board of the Eastern Carolina Village and Farm Museum. He has led walking tours of historic areas of downtown Greenville and is working on a script for a walking tour of Farmville in conjunction with the town’s sesquicentennial celebration events. 40
Kammerer is researching former homeowners to be able to point out more interesting details than simply dates and architecture. “Here are all your names and dates but then I try to say something about them (the former homeowners),” Kammerer said. “Why is that house interesting? (Maybe) they fought in World War I or she had the prettiest flowers. I want to tell a fun, interesting story that makes it a little bit livelier.” He already has such stories about the former occupants of what is now the May Museum. The collection of tales ranges from a murder there in 1919 (“They say her ghost is still here; I haven’t heard her yet”) to Tabitha Devisconti’s swayback horse, Baby, that is said to be buried on the property. (A wall mount on the museum’s back porch pays tribute to Baby.) “I think she just wanted to save him because somebody was going to put him down,” Kammerer said of the horse, which he described as resembling one used in a “Three Stooges” comedy film. “We need to find out where he’s buried and put a tombstone.” While he has never served as a museum director before, Kammerer’s historical paintings, oil portraits and mural projects have helped others as far away as Primghar, Iowa, to tell the stories
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from their history. Having previously produced artwork for May Museum brochures, he now is working to put his stamp on the place in a different way. For now, he is spending time preparing for his first temporary exhibit, which he plans to use to showcase early maps of Farmville. He believes that even some longtime residents might be surprised to chart the town’s growth or see how
the names of streets have changed through the years. “I just got myself immersed in it, and I know a lot more over the years than most people know about Farmville,” Kammerer said. “Now I’m trying to get stories out there.” He frequently shares information and images on the Facebook page “You Know You Grew Up in Farmville, NC If ...” not only as a catalyst for conversation about the May Muse-
DESTINATION May Museum & Park 3802 S Main St. | (252) 753-6725 Open by appointment Visit facebook.com/maymuseumfarmvillenc for events.
um but about former times that some Farmville folks may have forgotten. “I love this place; it’s a wonderful place,” Kammerer said of the museum.
“It’s a wonderful resource. I enjoy all this and I hope I can exude that enjoyment. I want others to feel it. I want others to enjoy it also.”
A line of antique watering cans stands at the ready in case the gardens are dry.
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Splashing New waterpark has visitors smiling By Donna Marie Williams
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Since opening in July, Farmville’s Community Splash Pad has brought thrills and delight to residents in town and beyond. The splash pad was a long time in the making, with the town staff and
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The park’s bucket drop has proven to be its most popular and surprising attractions.
about to enjoy,” said Farmville Parks and Recreation director Diane White. “It’s been very popular, and I think it’s a great feature and asset to the community. It’s a great way to bring the community together and have fun. For some, it takes them back to their childhood of running through a sprinkler.” The park opened in July, in time for the town’s annual Independence Day celebration, offering children and adults the opportunity to cool off from the hot summer’s heat. The splash pad is located at J.Y. Monk Park in the former location of the town pool. Since opening, it has received a steady stream of 44
children and adults eager to make a splash. “It’s been nonstop. We originally just thought about opening for the July 4th celebration and to see how everything goes. Since that first day, we haven’t closed,” White said. “I think the community has been using it a lot, and even people outside of Farmville will call and ask when its open and if there is a charge. We just tell them to come on.” The splash pad was designed with all ages in mind and is accessible to disabled visitors, White said. It was also designed with the future in mind. The splash pad consists of 1,880 square feet of
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Farmville Parks and Recreation Director Diane White said kids and kids at heart have been enjoying the new park.
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water-filled fun but there is room for expansion. “This is a base to start with. With the land and area we have, we are looking to add different features,” White said. “Years down the road we can decided to extend the splash pad, add more playground equipment or add more seating.” The location also allows for families to engage and enjoy more than the splash pad itself. With picnic tables and playground equipment for children, J.Y. Monk Park keeps the fun going. The pad currently features an aqua drop, aqua arch, parasol, water weaver, two tower sprays and Charlotte’s Webs, which create a widespread, circular pattern of water reminiscent of a spider weaving its web. A favorite has been the wa-
ter bucket drop, White said. Operated on a timer, the water bucket drop allows water to be collected in a bucket placed high in the air. Once the bucket fills, the water is then dropped on anything standing below. “A lot of times people don’t know what is going to happen. “One family pushed their mom underneath it not knowing what was going to happen. All of a sudden, bam, the water poured down on her, which the kids loved,” White said with a laugh. Currently, there is no charge to visit the splash pad, but this could change in the future, according to White. “Right now this is something new and we want the community and everyone to be able to enjoy it,” White said.
DESTINATION Farmville Community Splash Pad J.Y. Monk Park, 3433 Park St. 10 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Monday-Saturday; 1-6 p.m. Sunday. June through September (Subject to change)
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Schedule a Community Conversation Today!
Parent voices create
BRIGHTER FUTURES.
What are Community Conversations? • Parents share praises and concerns about Pitt County Schools with PPS-PC trained facilitators. • PPS-PC facilitators take anonymous parent voices to key decision makers for Pitt County Schools. • Parent voices are heard. Schools are stronger.
Who Can Participate and Where Do They Take Place? • Conversations are held with school groups, community groups, neighborhood groups, anyone can participate. • Conversations are open to all community members, not just parents.
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