Posted in From the Stacks, History, Just A Bite, Memorabilia Moment, Tar Heelia, Tar Talk on May 20, 2013 | 4 Comments »
President Taft’s visit to Charlotte on May 20, 1909 not only spawned the term “Taft rain,” it also served as occasion for debut of the “Mecklenburg March.” Our colleagues at the Charlotte & Mecklenburg public library have a 2009 recording of the march online (though it doesn’t seem to working right now). No doubt many [...]
Posted in Just A Bite, tagged humphrey bogart, raleigh nc, stefan kanfer, thomasville furniture, tough without a gun on May 16, 2013 | Leave a Comment »
“Bogart-themed bistros, taverns and bars sprouted up all across the United States, and even in Mexico. Most were unimaginative recreations of the ‘Casablanca’ set, replete with ceiling fans and waiters in rumpled white linen suits. But a few played up Humphrey’s image, among them Bogart’s American Restaurant in Raleigh, North Carolina…. “Thomasville Furniture unveiled its [...]
Posted in Just A Bite, tagged ambassador to new zealand, jonathan daniels, josiah bailey, robert e. lee, robert rice reynolds on May 13, 2013 | Leave a Comment »
“In 1943 Roosevelt asked Jonathan Daniels to serve as minister to New Zealand, [but] Senator Josiah W. Bailey blocked his appointment. A foe of Daniels in state politics, Bailey did not like Daniels’s reference to Robert E. Lee’s army as ‘largely composed of white men who were not only slaveless but almost as degraded as [...]
Posted in Just A Bite, tagged boston harbor, cinque, madison washington, more than freedom, nc fugitive slaves, stephen kantrowitz on May 10, 2013 | Leave a Comment »
“In the more closely monitored waters of Boston Harbor, individual fugitives had no opportunity to be Cinques and Washingtons [slaves who went free after revolts at sea], and their friends on the shore could do little to help. “In June 1841 John Torrence, a fugitive from North Carolina, was discovered on a Boston-bound ship, but [...]
Posted in Just A Bite, tagged nc sales tax, wall street journal on May 7, 2013 | Leave a Comment »
“The Attorney-General of North Carolina has ruled that passengers in railroad cars who are served a meal in North Carolina must pay the state sales tax even though they don’t finish the dessert until they’re in Virginia, which has no such tax.” – From “A Dangerous Ruling” in the Wall Street Journal (Nov. 9, 1954) [...]
Posted in Just A Bite, tagged daily beast, federal writers project, henry clay, ireland of america, john bernard, retrospections of america, rip van winkle state, stuart stevens on April 30, 2013 | Leave a Comment »
“….In many ways Mississippi is the Ireland of America. It’s a green place where literature and music are valued more than acquiring wealth (perhaps because we’ve always been better at the former than the latter). Drinking and fighting are accepted and often respected social endeavors, and defending one’s honor is still considered worthy if not [...]
Posted in Just A Bite, tagged charlotte architecture, michael graves, robert a. m. stern on April 27, 2013 | Leave a Comment »
“I came to Charlotte a day early to see old Charlotte. I wanted to see the original buildings, whether they’re 18th century or 19th century, whatever they are. Charlotte did, like so many towns, tear down its heritage and build modern skyscrapers. I didn’t go to any of them. I didn’t want to.” — Architect [...]
Posted in Just A Bite, tagged david menconi, durham pac, george jones, ovens auditorium, tommy tomlinson on April 26, 2013 | Leave a Comment »
“Early on during his Saturday night show at Durham Performing Arts Center, George Jones paused to offer up a bit of philosophy from The Gospel According to Jones. He allowed as to how he didn’t much care for ‘hot young country radio’ nowadays, especially the fact that it shies away from cheatin’ and drinkin’ songs. [...]
Posted in Just A Bite, tagged andy griffith, evan smith rakoff, los angeles review of books, mount airy nc, robert burns on April 24, 2013 | Leave a Comment »
“Is Andy Griffith our Robert Burns? One should argue Whitman or Poe, or even Frost, makes for a richer comparison. Certainly self-invented Whitman, who loved Burns, is the triumphant American version — yet the Whitman house in Camden, New Jersey, receives scant visitors. The same is true for Poe’s tidy home in Baltimore, now temporarily [...]
Posted in From the Stacks, Just A Bite, Memorabilia Moment, Tar Heelia, Tar Talk on April 18, 2013 | Leave a Comment »
The North Carolina Collection Gallery proudly announces the launch of Carolina Keepsakes, a digital collection of some of the Gallery’s most interesting and significant items. As the main photographer for this project, one of my favorite items is the shaving kit of David L. Swain, president of UNC and former governor of North Carolina. This [...]
