Topics Related to This Day in North Carolina History
James Edward Shepard was very successful in business, and very active in politics and education. In 1910, he opened what eventually become N.C. Central University. The school became a public institution and the first publicly supported liberal arts college for blacks in the country in 1923.
On October 6, 1963, “Bandon,” the beloved plantation home of author Inglis Fletcher, burned.
On October 6, 1967, three students graduated from Duke’s Physician Assistant (PA) Program and became the first PAs in the country.
When Dr. Eugene A. Stead, Jr., then Chairman of Duke’s Department of Medicine, established the PA Program in 1965, it was the first of its kind in the nation. A two-year course that trained students to practice medicine and provide health care services under a doctor’s supervision, the program aimed to address the problem of the physician shortage, particularly in rural areas throughout North Carolina.
On October 5, 1946, Marvin “Popcorn” Sutton, notorious moonshiner and cultural icon, was born in Maggie Valley.
Sutton, a gritty, spirited fellow, first learned how to concoct illegal alcohol from his father, whose Scots-Irish ancestors had been avid distillers in keeping with their cultural tradition. Sutton carried on the family legacy in Cocke County, Tenn., where he became famous not only for his liquor, but for his role in the manifestation of the moonshine culture.
On October 5, 1751, James Iredell, was born. Few men have had more influence on the modern American judicial system than lawyer, judge, and writer James Iredell. Originally a representative of the Crown, he challenged the colonial court system and was instrumental in the creation of its American successor. Iredell emigrated from England to Edenton in 1768. As he practiced law and worked as a customs comptroller, his personal convictions clashed with professional interests.
On October 5, 1909, the East Carolina Teachers Training School opened its doors with the mission of providing young men and women the training they needed to be able to teach in the public schools of North Carolina. Today, East Carolina University is the third largest school in the UNC system.
On October 4, 1986, Graham native Rachel Oliver-Cobbin became the first North Carolinian to be crowned Miss Black America.
On October 4, 1997, Jovian, the lemur that many television watchers came to know as Zoboomafoo, was introduced to the custom made sound stage at the Duke Lemur Center.
On October 4, 1777, Francis Nash, brigadier general of the North Carolina Continental Troops under General George Washington in the American Revolution, was mortally wounded by a cannon ball at the Battle of Germantown, near Philadelphia.
On October 4, 1856, Benjamin Hedrick, a professor of chemistry at the University of North Carolina, published his “Defence” in the North Carolina Standard, a Raleigh newspaper.