November Book Signing in Elizabeth City

If you aren't too busy Veteran's Day weekend, here's your chance to meet me and pick up one of my books: This signing is at Page After Page Bookstore on South Water Street in Elizabeth City:

Celebrate Veterans Day with THREE Author signings !!
Saturday, November 10th from 12pm-3pm,

Bill Ferguson will discuss and sign his new book, Laughter on the Rivers of Death - humorous look at experiences in the war in Vietnam -

David Naill Wilson established sci-fi writer will discuss and sign his newest books Defining Moments and the novel Ancient Eyes -

Mark Rainey - Will discuss and sign his latest book -Blue Devil Island a WWII historical dark fantasy - We will have his other books available as well –


We hope to see you there!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

TrailblazersNC 5k Run: Running in the Rain!

Despite the light rain on Saturday morning, the Trailblazers NC 5k race was, in my opinion, a success. The general attitude was very cheerful and the weather did nothing to dampen the spirits of either volunteers or those participating in the race; clothing did not fare as well in the dampening department, but hey -- it was RAINING!

We took off from Missing Mill park and turned down Old Edenton road toward the high school. We passed a "water stop" just before entering the King Street Cemetery, but as you can imagine, few of us stopped to take advantage of it. We raced through the central lane of the cemetery to Market Street, ran past my house (where the family, believing we were smart enough to come in from the rain) didn't even notice us passing.

The next turn was left through downtown, and then out Church St. to the "S" bridge, which we crossed, rounded a traffic cone, and recrossed before taking the last turn on Grubb St.

There were some exceptional times turned in - the winner was in under 17 minutes. I finished with a 26:20 - my best time this year by more than five minutes! My son Billy finsihed in a little over 22:00 - also his best recorded time (though I've seen him do it quicker).

Trophies were handed out to enthusiastic applause, and prize packets of Hertford-made goodies were door prizes...including some books by local authors, a hand-stitched wall hanging, and a very cool hand-carved walking stick.

Participants came from all age groups, and from all over Hertford, as well as from as far away as Charlotte. If I can convince them to do it again next year, we'll help get the world out and see if we can't bring in a few hundred runners to join the fun!

In the meantime, here are pictures of the very cool medal each participant received as they crossed the finish line:








Hopefully there will be a story in the Perquiman's Weekly - we'll be watching. If the photos I saw someone taking become available (or if that person reads this and will contact me) I'll try to get them here to share.

Until next time,

DNW

Break-ins on Market Street Continue

I wanted to take a moment to mention an on-going problem that we need a solution for in Hertford. That problem is almost nightly ransacking of private property and vehicles up and down the three or four main streets in town.

Recently someone broke into our garage. The idiots stole a broken chain saw, took my weed whacker and a rusty old battery charger - in other words, they didn't take a lot of money worth of things, but they took things that were mine. I've needed every one of those things since then, and some kid, or drunk, ran off with them, leaving me high and dry. None of that stuff was going to bring them enough money to buy anything...but I'll promise this. I have new alarms on the garage. Cameras are going in. Trip wires may even be set. In case any of those who think that Market Street driveways are a shopping mall read this, you're going on camera, and you're going to court. If I catch you at it in the middle of the night, you should keep in mind that I won't hesitate to "detain" you for the police by whatever means works.

This morning I got the lovely surprise of finding my car door open. I'm pretty careful about locking up, but this one time I got out and had to mess around in the back seat, and I left the door open. My $15 (brand new price)CD/Tape deck that I use to listen to audio books? Gone. Probably had the last tape of one of my audio books in it too, which was worth more than the tape deck, since it makes the entire book worthless.

Same morons once stole a big, cassette tape audio book from me (a library book) I'm one hundred percent certain they didn't rush back to enrich themselves with a best-selling literary masterpiece...probably tossed it in the trash when they figured out they couldn't do anything with it. That cost me, and it cost the library, and in that manner cost all the other folks who might have enjoyed that book after me.

Here's the point. Robbing my car, garage, and house is not worth the trouble it's about to become. We, as citizens in Hertford, need to stand up and stop this - I'd say before it gets out of hand, but it happens so often that I'd have to say it already IS out of hand. Maybe that corner down at the end of Market St. where they stand and have dubious dealings every day needs to be reached by an Internet webcam. I guarantee you boys, I can make that happen. I also guarantee that one house-worth of Market Street is going to become the biggest mistake of your thieving lives if you come back again.

I live here, you know? The stuff isn't great stuff, but it's MY stuff.

As a warning to other concerned citizens, my mom saw a sort of gray sedan - lights all turned off and motor running - on the street very early the morning our garage was broken into (I forgot to mention that they stole my kids' bikes again). When they saw her they took off (being the cowardly sort they are) but I'm guessing they were watching the road and playing "get-away" car for the five dollars and change worth of crap these guys usually get away with. If you happen to be up late, or get up early, and you see a car with primer on it, or any car, for that matter, engine running and lights off, parked on the street...keep in mind they might be there for the wrong reasons.

If we work together, we can stop this...if not, well, they won't be getting away with it at my house any more, so next they may rob you.

End of rant, and I'm sorry. It isn't my intent to give a wrong impression of Hertford, but truth is truth. We've been robbed three times just this year. I think it's about time we got together and did something about it.

See you all at the 5K race this Saturday, 8:00 AM at Missing Mill Park.

DNW

Quick Notes...

The "S" bridge has a new sign up that states the causeway will remain closed through the second week in November. Not sure yet what this means for the Trailblazers NC 5k, but I've sent a note to the race coordinator to ask.

Meanwhile, I'm a bit disappointed that no one has entered anything at the new site. If you are from Hertford, and you know about your town, here's your chance to help preserve its history..

http://www.historic-hertford.com

Also, if you want to write a note, or article about Hertford, any subject, send it along to us via the e-mail contact link on the page. We'll get it into the Dismal Swamp Gazette.

David

The "S" Bridge Causeway Repairs

Most of you who live in or around Hertford know that the business leg of Highway 17 is closed coming in and out of Hertford. The causeway leading up to the bridge dropped about eight inches a week or two ago, and they closed it for repairs. Apparently the road coming in is concrete built on a metal framework with pavement over the top of all of it. Efforts are underway to reinforce the lower structure - I know this first hand because while out running in preparation for the upcoming 5K, I crossed the bridge and came face to face with a hole in the road...a big one...with river water at its base.


Anyway, I took some pictures. One is just the gorgeous old bridge - which has a cornerstone dated 1928 - and the other two are showing the depth and seriousness of the causeway repair. I'm glad to see the work being done, because bar none, that bridge is the finest, most beautiful bit of Old Hertford left, and it's important that it be preserved. I've said it before, and it's still true...driving in across that bridge and thinking of the Andy Griffith Show was the first thing to make me fall in love with Hertford. First impressions are important, and that bridge always makes a good one.

Pictures from the Waterway 5k

I wanted to post these while the race wasn't too far in the past. I'm planning on posting more house pictures on the www.historic-hertford.com site in the next day or so...and possibly beginning the three next phases. I'm going to list people by surnames so they can be tied together with the homes and businesses, and I'm going to post inputs for local churches, and graveyards. I know that having accurate records of a graveyard can be of great help to folks who do genealogy. We will accompany both with pictures and as much information as possible...

Soon I'll be getting more people involved, also, and things will start growing with greater speed. Anyway...here are the pictures. Me first, then Billy, and then Stephanie...I came in last in my age group - but I expect to do better in the Hertford race on the 27th of October.







Onward!

The Waterway 5k and Early Morning Fog

Well, Billy, Steph and I made it through the 5k on Saturday - not in the championship form we hoped for, but hey...for Billy it was the first race ever, and Steph only intended to walk...fun was had by all. I got a 31:27 and Billy came in somewhere around 27 minutes. Next race? Hertford, 27 October. If you haven't signed up, and you are at all inclined to do so, you should sign up now. You can do so at the Trailblazers website: Trailblazersnc.org. They have an online registration system, as well as contact info. Billy and I signed up already, so we'll see you there - the race starts at the tennis court right around the corner from our house.

This morning I had a good run, two miles in 18:26 - which makes me wonder what happened on Saturday. The fog was so thick you couldn't see half a block ahead of you, but it was great weather for running.

The web site - Historic-Hertford.com - is coming along well. I've added the functions to allow local organizations to put up their contact information, local events to be recorded and presented, and an announcement board. More to follow. Today I begin the tedious task of making the pages of the site pretty and uniform - adding that professional touch. Hope to see you on the site where we can watch the history of our little town come to life.

DNW

Elizabeth City Waterway 5k Run/Walk

This seems to be the season for road racing. Two of our household will be running in both the Elizabeth City Waterway 5K and the upcoming 5k in Hertford in October. In the first one we'll be representing my company, VectorCSP - wearing our company colors proudly. In Hertford, we'll be racing only a few blocks from our house, and will likely be a bit more casual. I also expect to announce the Historic-Hertford.com site at that race and hand out some flyers, hoping to get people involved in filling in Historic data, making suggestions, and improving the site.

Anyway, you can visit the site for the Waterway 5k (this Saturday) by clicking the picture below - it's linked to the race site. It's an image of last year's race. Just imagine a really fast runner in there and plaster my face on him ...

In reality, it's my son Billy that has the best shot. He's run miles as fast as 6:05 in preparation...

You can read about the Perquimans / Hertford race at Trailblazers NC's Website

See you on race day. And if you run across this and have time - please check out the growing site over at: The Historic-Hertford Home Page

Dave & Family

Burning HIstory - The Thomas B. Walters Home Gone

The Thomas B. Walters home, a tall, worn old Colonial Revival home that has guarded the mouth to Skinner's Creek since the 1800s, was burned tonight. It didn't catch fire from careless kids, or catch a stray bolt of lighting after all the years. It was burned on purpose by the local fire department with several local luminaries looking on.

This saddens me in ways I can't describe. Sometimes it seems as if the only people interested in preserving the history of our town, our state, and even our country, are people who have moved in way after the fact. This house needed a lot of work. It had some issue with fiberglass, I'm told, that made renovation expensive and difficult...but let's be serious. The land it stands on was bought by developers from out of town. They intend to plaster the bank of the river with million dollar waterfront houses, and the old Walters house was just in the way. They had the money, time, resources, and everything else necessary to fix it - and they chose to tear it down. It's the way things work. It's the way we forget the lessons we should remember, and disappoint generation after generation of our forefathers.

This home belonged to a prominent farmer near the end of the nineteenth century. It was two stories with tall square columns out front. It had a smokehouse and was backed up against the river. I think the developers missed the boat. At whatever cost, the best thing they could have made of that old home was a gateway - the offices, whatever -- the first thing people saw on the way into the new waterfront houses. People come to live in places like Hertford because they are quaint, historic, and filled with history. The more of that history they bulldoze and burn, the faster this whole town will shrivel up and become a memory.

I intend to do what I can to prevent it from happening. The new site is semi-live at:
Historic Hertford

Check it out...drops us a line, or a comment. Help us fill in the data and make it something to be proud of. Help us remember our past before that's all it is. Before it's too late, and there's nothing to save.

Here's to you, Thomas B. Walters. I'll be researching you, and I'll be writing more on this soon.

Until then...keep the memories alive.

If you know anything about Thomas B. Walters, or that house, I'd love to hear from you.

--David

An Exciting New Hertford Site is Underway

I've begun piecing together the website I hope will begin collecting the history, stories, memories, and facts about Hertford, NC and recording them so they are never forgotten. To keep the explanation simple, I'm using skills learned at my day job to create an interactive history. Currently, all that exists is a database and a couple of pages that link to it. There is a form where you can input certain information about Hertford Houses. This data is stored and presented on another page, along with a link. We will build the links one at a time - each to another house in Hertford, with historical information, a place for people to enter photos, stories, and comments, and links to the people who lived there, designed the building, and interacted with it. Next will be a database for people, but I want to start by getting the city in place.

When I'm done, I expect to put up a map of the area, broken up into lots. There will be links on the side, and you'll be able to enter a year - press a button, and only the houses that existed in that year will populate the map. It's ambitious, but I think history is important...so there you go.

Interested readers can check out my progress by watching here - and by checking the following link: The Hertford Houses Web Page

Onward!

DNW

What's in a Name? A few from Hertford

I've been trying to memorize the names from the historic homes along my run in the morning, and a few have stuck. George Major. Hattie Darden. Dr. Thomas S. McMullan. Guy Newby. The historic district in town seems to break off into distinct periods of growth. There are a few very, very old homes, but the majority of historic homes seem to have happened late 1800s - then another burst in the 1920s - and then a burst around 1940/50 that still got signs...some of those are businesses.

When my database begins to grow, I think I'll create a map. With the information from the database, I should be able to break the map up into plots, and then - using the dates homes were built or destroyed - the hope is that you'll be able to choose a decade, or even a year, and the map will populate with Hertford as it was at that time. It's only an idea at this point, but my way-too-active mind tells me that from a programming sense, it's not outside my ability to create...

In any case, still running every morning, and looking forward to both the Waterway 5k in Elizabeth City - 22 September - and the race being sponsored by www.trailblazersnc.org - in Hertford - a 5k being held on the 27th of October, a day before my birthday.

Until next time,

DNW

The Guardian of the Yard...Rocky the Magnificent

I thought, since there was no morning run to comment on, that I'd bring you an image of our Malty-Poo (I hate that name) Rocky - Rocket Man - Rock-Star - whatever. He's about ten pounds of fluff and bone and thinks he's a T-Rex. He considers himself the guardian of our yard. Keep in mind, that he is not too bright. He guards us from such things as the neighbor's trash cans when they've been rolled to the street. He can't see most of the time above the level of the ground, so any sound makes him hop in circles and whuff. Trish has determined that he keeps himself in the dark on purpose, because when it comes time to beg at the dinner table he has no trouble at all tossing his head back to show his feed-me eyes. (It's his one super power, and as super powers go, it's not much).



He chases leaves and garbage because they make noise - not because he can see them.

His nemesis is a Mocking Bird that dive-bombs him constantly to get him away from the tree where its nest resides. He never sees the bird. He hears it ... occasionally it comes close enough to ruffle his fur with its wings...but he usually ends up hopping in circles and barking at the air where it used to be...funny stuff, but as a guardian he's no great shakes.

If you happen to wander down Market Street, odds are you'll run into him eventually, pacing up and down his post and looking ridiculous.

DNW

The Morning Run

I've been running lately, every morning just after 6:00. It's funny how much of a town you notice at different times of day. In the morning you see the branches that are down, the houses for sale...you notice the animals. Huge V-shaped squadrons of Canadian Geese were honking overhead this morning. A couple of folks were out with their dogs...early in the morning dogs show little interest in runners...I've yet to be chased, except by Rocky - our Maltese, who THINKS he could run two miles but is probably good for about two blocks before I'd have to carry him (which I'd gladly do, he's a fuzzy white warrior) but it's not in the morning plan.

Down by Missing Mile Park I take a turn past the water on a wooden walkway that runs parallel to the river. Sometimes there are turtles or snakes on the walk, but not today. Today, there were spider's webs stretched across, catching night bugs, I suppose. I broke through, but I know they'll be back again tomorrow.

I'm going to start posting regularly here again - notes from the morning run will be big on the list.

One thing to point out. I have a new book out, and another due by the end of the month. Both can be purchased at Carolina Moon Books - which I pass every time I run. The first is "Defining Moments," my new collection, which features two stories set in the fictional town of OLD MILL, NC - which is loosely based on Hertford and Winfall. This is a collectible edition - only 167 were ever printed by the World Fantasy Award Winning SAROB PRESS in the UK. It's a bit pricey at $50, but is gorgeous. "Ancient Eyes," my new novel, will be in stock soon - it's $45, but an absolutely GORGEOUS signed limited edition book. There are 300 copies of it in existence. Several of those reside at Carolina Moon - and I'd be happy to run by and personalize them.

Checking in from the outskirts of the Great Dismal Swamp...

David Niall Wilson

PS - Welcome to Steve & Family - Go Chargers!