Civic Life

A candidate for Congress in perilous times.

Cleveland (Oh.) Gazette, 25 October 1902.

After George H. White left Congress in 1901, Democrat Claude Kitchin of Scotland Neck — organizer of the terror-dealing Red Shirts and leader of the 1898 Wilmington Massacre — was elected to represent the black-majority Second District. (Days before the massacre, he proclaimed in an rally: “We cannot outnumber the negroes … And so we must either outcheat, outcount, or outshoot them.”)

Kitchin stood for reelection eleven times, defeating all challengers, including Samuel H. Vick in 1902. With the overwhelming majority of black voters newly disenfranchised, and many of the remaining terrified to exercise the franchise, Vick garnered a paltry four votes, and Kitchin obliterated the field.

The Morning Post (Wilmington, N.C.), 29 November 1902.

Immediately after his re-election, Kitchin joined the call to remove Vick from his position as postmaster.

Newton (N.C.) Enterprise, 12 December 1902.

Lane Street Project: Barton Bulldogs do it again!

When I got the news that a landscape company had done a major cleanup at Odd Fellows Monday, I wondered if there’d be anything left for Barton’s student volunteers.

Apparently, plenty!

The Bulldogs came in two waves today to chop chest-high weeds, fell small trees, and haul debris, pushing further into Odd Fellows’ acreage than ever.

Lane Street Project relies on community, and we’re thankful that Barton is part of our village. Read their press release to learn more the College’s annual service day:

WILSON, N.C. — October 6, 2026 — Hundreds of Barton College students, faculty and staff served throughout Wilson on Tuesday, Oct. 6, as part of the College’s Day of Service and Engagement, continuing a tradition that has connected the Barton community with local schools, nonprofit organizations, churches, and community partners since 2008.

This year, Barton set aside the academic day for students, faculty, and staff to serve alongside organizations throughout the Wilson community. Students gathered through their academic schools and First-Year Seminar courses, allowing them to spend the day serving with classmates and faculty within their academic communities.

Students from the School of Business and Innovation and First-Year Seminar classes worked together to package 15,000 meals for communities facing food insecurity through Rise Against Hunger at the Kennedy Recreation and Intramural Center.

Barton’s ongoing partnership with Sleep in Heavenly Peace brought first-year students to Truist Stadium for an afternoon service project. Students assembled 30 beds to support the nonprofit organization’s mission of building and delivering beds to children in need. Sleep in Heavenly Peace works to ensure children have a safe, comfortable bed of their own, recognizing quality sleep as an important part of their health and well-being.

“It is incredibly rewarding to see Day of Service unfold across Wilson,” said Brenda Whaley, director of student activities. “From the first groups heading out in the morning through our final projects in the afternoon, students were serving in schools, parks, churches, nonprofit organizations, and community spaces across the city. They worked outdoors, supported local organizations, packaged meals, and built beds, each contributing to the needs identified by our community partners.”

Service sites included The Arc of Wilson County, Foundation YMCA of Wilson, Hope Station, Lake Wilson, United Way of Wilson County, Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park, Wesley Shelter, Wilson Area Habitat for Humanity, Wilson Arts, Wilson Botanical Gardens, and Wilson Education Partnership, among numerous other community partners.

“Day of Service is about more than the work we accomplish in a single day,” said Amanda Metts, vice president for enrollment, engagement, and athletics. “It is an intentional part of how we help students develop a commitment to service and understand their responsibility to the communities they are part of. The experience gives students an opportunity to learn from others, form meaningful connections, and carry those lessons with them beyond Barton.”

Barton first held Day of Service and Engagement on Oct. 22, 2008, as an opportunity to foster civic responsibility and service learning as part of the Barton Experience. As Barton marks 125 years, Day of Service reflects a guiding principle that has shaped the College throughout its history — a commitment to service rooted in its Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) heritage and its relationship with the Wilson community.

Photo courtesy of Castonoble Hooks.

Lane Street Project: have you ordered your roses?

White roses represent loyalty, honor, spiritual kinship, reverence, and new beginnings. Have you ordered yours yet?

Mine honor Baby Boy Henderson and his eighteen known aunts, uncles, and cousins buried in Vick Cemetery.

Order roses no later than October 10 at Braswell’s Flower Shop, (252)218-4265, (252)903-7241 or CashApp $gr480. Thank you!!

Lane Street Project: buy a white rose.

Even if you can’t make the ceremony, you can celebrate the occasion and honor the ancestors with flowers. Each white rose will be placed alongside a large floral arrangement at Vick Cemetery.

Please place your order — early and often — with Braswell’s Flower Shop at (252) 218-4265 or (252) 903-7241 or via CashApp $gr480. Thank you!

Lane Street Project: trespass.

Yeah. That’s exactly what you think it is. A car … all the way at the back fence of Vick Cemetery. This kind of trespass — and disrespect — continues to happen, though every vehicle that enters has to pass at least one granite pillar emblazoned with the cemetery’s name and climb a curb out of the paved parking lot. 

Vick Cemetery is a sacred space. Lane Street Project — and now the City’s Vick Cemetery Advisory Committee — are working hard to restore dignity to this place and raise awareness of its significance and history. We need the community’s help.