Recent Articles

ROCHESTER, NY--Bennie Goodman Brodie, the son of the late James (Jim) and Ilene Brodie of Louisburg, NC, departed this life on July 18, 2024 at Park Ridge Hospital in Rochester, NY. Bennie worked as a foreman at Clean Sweep in the city of Rochester, New York until retirement.

Louisburg, NC--Funeral services for Oscar "Flossie" Fogg, age 83, who died on Sunday, August 4, 2024, will be held 11 a.m., Saturday, August 17 at the Richardson Funeral Home Chapel in Louisburg with Rev. Dr. Thelma McClean officiating. Burial will follow in the Mitchell Church Cemetery.

Zebulon, NC--Russell Colen Briggs, 77, of Zebulon, died early Saturday morning, August 10, 2024 at Rex Hospital.

HENDERSON, NC--Geneva Elizabeth Woodlief Harris, 88, of Henderson, died on Monday, August 5, 2024 at Duke University Medical Center in Durham.

West End, NC--Della Kay Dennis, 64, of West End passed away peacefully on Sunday, August 4th, 2024 after a short but courageous battle with cancer.

BUNN -- Safe to say that Morgan (Pearce) LaRoque has spent her entire life around the Bunn High School volleyball program -- and don't look for that trend to change any time soon.
LaRoque's mother, Jamie Richardson, was BHS' head spike coach in the early-1990s, and it helped having a slew of teenage girls available to babysit during the Ladycats' matches.

LOUISBURG -- Prior to acknowledging a state probe into its animal shelter, Franklin County management announced a new hire and an expanding program to, among other things, bolster pet adoptions.
The county's current budget includes $50,000 to put toward its goal of spaying and neutering all adoptable animals in the shelter.
Also, county commissioners set the value of the voucher to cover the full cost of altering animals at participating veterinary clinics.

LOUISBURG -- The state fined Franklin County $1,000 and issued a notice of warning, alleging staff mishandled cats and broke state law when it needlessly jumped the gun to euthanize a dog.
The employment status of the shelter's director remains a mystery and an assistant county manager has been tasked with running the department in her stead.
And, at the county's prompt, the state will conduct a Facility Program review in an effort to correct the violations and address allegations of mishandling animals.

LOUISBURG -- The impacts from Tropical Storm Debby were expected to hit North Carolina late Wednesday, bringing with it between five and nine inches of rain ... plus damaging winds.
What does that mean for Franklin County?
"You can expect trees to fall and power lines to fail and flooding to occur," Franklin County Emergency Management Director Nicholas Thorpe said in a message to residents.

LOUISBURG -- The equine industry has a $2.9 billion impact on North Carolina's economy, according to the North Carolina Horse Council.
For the 28th year, the Franklin County Cooperative Extension's Regional Horse Farm Tour sought to bring attention to that fact, taking more than 100 equine enthusiasts on a trek to a variety of horse farms.
"I personally thought it was one of the best tours yet ... with both live demonstrations and educational talks at all the stops," said tour organizer and Cooperative Extension Agent Martha Mobley.

Silvia Kramar put on a horse-riding demonstration.

Andrea Wright takes an opportunity for an up-close visit with a horse at Tami Taft's Three Dog Farm during the tour.

Horses graze in wide open spaces at Martin Manor.

RALEIGH -- The state Court of Appeals upheld a Franklin County superior court judge's ruling in a wrongful death -- keeping a $40 million judgement on the books.
Susan Renee Chappell, 51, was killed in a Sept. 18, 2020 head-on collision on U.S. 401 -- three miles south of Louisburg, not far from the county's airport.
According to the State Highway Patrol and court documents, Chappell was heading north on the two-lane highway that evening when the driver of a vehicle heading south was attempting to make a pass in a no-passing zone when he crashed into Chappell.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County will look toward an old hand to guide its tax office, at least temporarily.
Marian Cascone was sworn in as the county's tax administrator in February 2022, replacing Dan Williams, who retired.
Cascone resigned her position in Franklin County and her last day was Aug. 2.
She was announced as Nash County's new tax administrator on Monday night, replacing the retiring Doris Sumner.

Albany Thomas-Hopper and Charlena Lee

Sgt. Dylan Moore, center, hands out backpacks to Brielle Lynch and Arielle Williams.

Recently retired but never far from the job Louisburg Police Officer Shari Brinkley hands out goodies to, from left, Kady Santiago, Javier Blandin, Imelda Cervantes, Asiel Moxthe and Aremy Santiago in the background.

Some of you may find this a little surprising. Or, maybe even shocking.
I know I did.
But when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency seems to provide a sliver of hope to solving Franklin County's long-standing water shortage, it would be wise to jump on it.

Dear editor:
It has come to my attention that, once again, Franklin County Animal Control has come under fire. No surprise to me as one who has run Animal Control in the past.

Dear editor:
I am writing to express my concerns regarding the recent developments in Franklin County that have raised questions about transparency and public access to government proceedings. There are three significant issues that deserve immediate attention and scrutiny.

BUNN -- Town commissioners approved changes to a zoning district on Monday that better defines how residential and commercial development will fit together.
They also agreed to adopt an ordinance that will more safely move traffic through town.
And they approved improvements to a business that's intended to mitigate flooding damage.
The town's planning staff had proposed changes to the town's Village Mixed Use district to better define densities and setbacks in the district.

LOUISBURG -- One person died following a a head-on collision on Tuesday afternoon.
According to scanner traffic and emergency management authorities, the crash occurred on Trinity Church Road near Moulton Road.
At least five people were transported via ambulance to area hospitals.
Emergency helicopter crews could not fly on Tuesday because of the weather.