Recent Articles

Despite the chilly winter-like weather, the fishing has been pretty good at the public fishing hole in Owens Park

LOUISBURG -- Leanna Anderson often moved through the Franklin County Courthouse like a tornado, helping the public, attorneys, judges and colleagues with fervor.
But, at the end of 2020, 30 years in the clerk's office were over -- just like that.
"... You don't know what tomorrow holds, so I'm going to take it while I can get it," Anderson said of her retirement.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County schools presented commissioners with a facility needs survey that outlined nearly $70 million in facilities improvements over the next 10 years.
The report doesn't require a financial commitment from the county right now, only that it acknowledges receiving and reviewing the survey.
The survey does, though, inform the school system's budget requests, said system Chief of Auxiliary Services Larry Webb.

BUNN -- The cannons have gone silent in Bunn.
And, so, apparently, have the buzzards.
School system staff had a propane cannon installed atop the roof of the Bunn High School gymnasium, hoping the intermittent sonic sound it created would keep the birds of prey from continuing to destroy the roof.

Bunn HS girls hoops fan VonTray Holmes

DURHAM --  Congressman David Price, whose constituents include Franklin County residents, is opening a consolidated district office in Durham for the new Fourth Congressional District.
The new office takes the place of the previous offices located in Raleigh and Chapel Hill, which are no longer operational.

Happy New Year and here's hoping -- really hoping -- for a better 2021 than 2020.
But the mere fact that we're still here means that the virus hasn't gotten us -- at least not yet -- and because many, perhaps most, Franklin Countians are following science, using common sense and wearing masks, means that we're not nearly as bad off as some sections of the country.
Now, with two vaccines in the chute, we should start seeing more vaccinations and the danger will begin to ease off in a few months, although that remains to be seen.

In my more than 30 years of driving, a couple of months ago, I saw a warning message on my car that I've never seen before -- transmission hot.
So, I pulled over, let it cool down and, then, drove it home.
I took it to a shop a few days later, had a repair made and hoped that would be the end of it.
I wasn't so lucky.

Dear editor:
I am a tax-paying property owner in this county of 25 years who started an agriculture business in 2013 farming gourmet mushrooms for farmers markets, restaurants, and CSA's. Providing classes to the public, with the help of our local Agriculture Department, I was making a name for myself and my business.

LOUISBURG -- A Louisburg man is slated to appear in court on charges of practicing law without a license.
Johnny C. Clifton Jr. is also charged with obtaining property by false pretense.
According to the case file, the State Department of Insurance (DOI) accused Clifton of representing himself as an attorney, attempting to help a Raleigh family resolve an automobile accident claim in the spring of 2018.

BUNN -- Bunn High School's greatest girls basketball teams of the past 25 years were all blessed with the same ability -- to score in transition from just about anywhere on the court.
But that's a trait that has been missing from BHS hoops since the graduation of Butterball Cooke three years ago.

FRANKLINTON -- A strange season dotted with extended breaks, postponed matches and limited practice time has transformed into a one-week proposition for the Franklinton High School volleyball squad.
FHS will wrap up the crazy campaign this week with a trio of matches, and it's almost a certainty that the Lady Rams need to win all of them in order to qualify for the Class 3-A State Playoffs.

LOUISBURG -- If the Louisburg Lady Warriors are indeed able to hang a Northern Carolina Conference Volleyball Championship banner from this season inside the LHS Gymnasium, it will certainly be one of the most interestingly obtained in school history.
Like so many other schools in the area, Louisburg has had to deal with a variety of adverse circumstances during the 2019-20 spike campaign.

JACKSONVILLE, FLA. -- North Carolina State University wrapped up its 2020 football schedule last Saturday with a 23-21 loss to Kentucky in the Taxslayer Gator Bowl.
The Wolfpack fell behind 13-0 at halftime before rallying after the break -- only to come up short.

(L to R) Bunn's Kaitlyn Adams and Louisburg's Amya Milon attempt to bring in a rebound during Tuesday evening's Northern Carolina Conference girls basketball matchup at the Bunn Dome. The host Ladycats were 56-20 winners in the showdown.

HOLLISTER--Funeral services for Pastor Wilson Battle, 79, who died on Monday, Jan. 4, 2021, will be held on Sunday, Jan. 10, 2021 at 2 p.m. from the Pleasure Hill Baptist Church in Whitakers, with the Rev. Kenneth Richardson officiating. Burial will follow in the Shiloh Church cemetery.

CLAYTON--Visitation for Alexus Dominique Woodard, age 27, who died on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2020, will be held on Thursday, Jan. 7, 2021 from 5 until 6 p.m. in the Richardson Funeral Home in Louisburg.

WOODBURY, NJ--Shirley Anne Bunn Fletcher, 85, Woodbury, NJ, went to her heavenly home on January 3, 2021, due to complication of Coronavirus. Born in Justice, NC on December 23, 1935, she was the daughter of Rufus Bunn and Helen Adair Mitchell Bunn, who preceded her in death. Shirley was born into a family of farmers and she learned about hard work in the tobacco fields her family worked.

LOUISBURG--Susan Nobs Vargesko, 67, of Louisburg, died in Rocky Mount on Thursday, Dec. 31, 2020.

LOUISBURG--Terry Lynn Bryant, Sr., 54, of Louisburg, died at his home on Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2020.

CASTALIA - Peggy Brady Davis, 87, of the White Level Community, died Tuesday night, Dec. 29, 2020. A graveside service was held 11 a.m. Saturday at White Level Baptist Church cemetery.

FRANKLINTON--Bettie Green Person, 79, died Wednesday, Dec.30, 2020 at her home. Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, the family will schedule a memorial service at a later date.

LOUISBURG - Thomas Wayne Wheeler, 62, of Louisburg, died Friday afternoon.

LOUISBURG -- Veteran Louisburg High School volleyball coach Erica Wammock wasn't sure quite what to expect from the 2020-21 season -- and not just because of natural COVID-19 concerns.
Wammock was also set to roll out the youngest roster of her 15-year tenure at LHS -- and it was unclear how so many newcomers would develop on the varsity level.