inside this edition fall/winter

1 Slice of Smithfield

Inside this edition•Isle of Wight’s own boat builder•Rocks as inspiration•Gwaltney house duplicated•Smithfield loves bricks

Fall/Winter

3 Slice of SmithfieldSlice of Smithfield 2

Slice of Smithfield 4 5 Slice of Smithfield

Editorial

John B. EdwardsEditor and Publisher

Diana McFarlandContent Editor

Ryan KushnerStaff Writer

Stephen FaleskiAllison T. Williams

Contributing Writers

Advertising

Wendy KantsiosLead Advertising Executive

Brittany PhilpottAdvertising Executive

Tyler MaloyAdvertising Assistant

Production

Diana McFarlandDesign

Jameka AndersonDaniel Tate

Graphic Designers

October 2016“A Slice of Smithfield”

is publishedthree times a year by The Smithfield Times,

PO Box 366, Smithfield, VA 23431www.smithfieldtimes.com

(757) 357-3288Advertising rates and

information available upon request.

[email protected]

6 Inspiration on waterBen Major loves turning mahogany planks into graceful speed boats that glide across the water.

9 A eccentric house revealedDr. Rae Parker once ran his medical practice from his home at the corner of Main and Mason streets.

13 The WarraskoyacksThe original native peoples that lived in what is now Isle of Wight County have left little traces behind.

16 Smithfield's got bricksIn addition to ham and pork, Smithfield also loves bricks — a fact revealed when Main Street was renovated in the 1990s.

18-19 What to do in SmithfieldCheck out this guide to what and where to see when visiting downtown Smith-

field.

20 Hamtown HalloweenSmithfield goes all out for Halloween, with candy, costume contests and elabo-rately decorated houses.

22 A sit down with SantaThe Smithfield Kiwanis’ annual Break-fast with Santa gives families a chance to visit with ol’ St. Nick and get a hardy breakfast too.

23 Christmas in SmithfieldHamtown abounds with Christmas ac-tivities this year, culminating with the annual Christmas parade down Main Street.

25 Rockin' Isle of WightNewcomer Bridget Singleterry decided to start a new trend in Smithfield using rocks, paint and sheer inspiration.

36 Victorian icon replicatedAn architect’s plans for Smithfield’s iconic Gwaltney house were also used to make similar mansions as far away as Wyoming.

30 Master NaturalistsA team of citizen scientists and vol-unteer conservationists and educators aim to maintain and preserve the area’s natural resources.

Inside this edition

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Slice of Smithfield 6

Story and photos by Diana McFarland

Ben Major Jr. is in his 80s and moves around most of the time with

the help of a wheelchair. But that doesn’t stop the

octogenarian from building boats.

Major is currently working on a 23-and-a-half foot wood-en runabout, that, when fin-ished, will include a planked mahogany exterior.

“It’s strictly a pleasure boat,” said his son, Ben Major III.

For Major, building boats is a pleasure that he has in-dulged in since he was a boy.

Major started building boats alongside his grand-father, William Snadecki, in Battery Park. Snadecki, a dashing character who also raced boats, built mostly

Inspiration on water

Ben Major's mahogany speed boats are planked to reduce water drag. Inside, the wheel and control console (left).

Boat builder Ben Major holds a photo of his grandfather, William Snadecki, a boat builder and racer.

Editor’s note: Ben Major Jr. passed away Sept. 30 after a long illness and just as “Slice” was going to press.


cruisers, but sometimes repaired or crafted boats for local watermen.

“I caught the boat-building gene from him,” Major said.

Major spent several years working in the model shop at Newport News Shipbuilding and graduated from the ap-prentice school as a designer in 1958.

One of Major’s recent cre-ations sits front and center in his Quonset-hut style work-shop near Benn’s Church. The workshop is cavernous, and a bit dusty, with boats of all types in various states of repair. Major works with his son, Ben, 56, a retired Virginia Marine Resources Commission officer, who now repairs and refurbishes boats, as well as help his father create new ones.

The latest boat was at the stage of construction that shows off its “skeleton” to

the best ad-vantage.

The “skele-ton includes a glued plywood keel and oak ribs. The ribs of this partic-ular boat use white oak that once grew on the property.

The wood had to be green and it was the best they could find, Ben III explained, adding that white oak is strong and doesn’t rot easily.

Major built a long wood-en steambox to make the ribs pliable. The oak ribs are steamed in heat for two hours and then quickly moved over and bent around the frame of the boat on each side of the keel.

The ribs are clamped in place and left for a few days before being per-manently fastened in place.

Once the frame is completed, the Majors will begin applying the mahogany

in a series of angled planks — a technique Major learned from his grandfather.

The angled planks help the boat move faster in the water by holding air and reducing water drag, Major said.

Major estimated the boat would take about 400-500 man-hours to complete and be priced at about $120,000. It will have a center console and is about eight feet wide.

“It’s really more for show … look what I’ve got,” Major said.

In the back of the shop is another custom-made ma-hogany boat designed with waterskiing in mind, with a cutout stern around the 200 horsepower Mercury out-board engine.

Major also works with fiberglass, but prefers wood.

“There’s nothing as pretty as a mahogany boat on the water. If you had a grand piano, you wouldn’t want it to be fiberglass,” he said.

"There's nothing as pretty as a mahogany boat on the water. If you had a grand piano, you wouldn't want it to be fiberglass." — Ben Major

Major starts with a set of plans drawn on paper and builds on that.

Major’s shop near Benn’s Church.


By Stephen Faleski

When Collin Norman and his wife Aman-da purchased the three-story house at 203 Main St., they did not expect to find

many artifacts from the time of Dr. Rae Parker Jr., who operated a private medical practice out of the home’s basement from 1948 through the late 1970s.

The house had been picked clean during an auction in 1997 shortly after Parker’s death in Richmond, and underwent a large renovation in 2000. The only artifact the Normans were aware

of at the time of pur-chase was a deactivated 1940s-era X-ray machine, which triggered a flurry of questions from the bank when it was listed under appliances that convey with the property.

“We had to assure them it was just a dis-abled antique,” Norman said. Since then, the Normans have found additional remnants of Dr. Parker’s era in the

basement, including an antique pill bottle, two solid wood black doors la-beled “Dr. Parker – Private,” and a concrete wall with “1802 1933 A. Parker” written on it.

“It's caused some confusion since the dates — if the numbers are dates — don't line up to any particular times, and there was, as far as I know, never a Parker here with an ‘A’ name,” Norman said. “A bit of a mystery, that part.”

Norman had researched the life of Dr. Parker prior to purchasing the house in late summer 2015, but has since had descendants and rela-tives of Parker as well as some former patients contact him with additional insights into one of Smithfield’s more eccentric characters.

According to Norman, Dr. Parker Jr. lived a relatively normal life on the outside until the 1970s when he stopped cutting his hair and shav-ing. He was always seen with a different attrac-tive girl on his arm when walking around town, and started collecting taxidermy and displaying them in the windows.

“He went from that rather handsome clean shaven guy toward the 70s to long hair, long beard and long fingernails. He was the full-on Howard Hughes of Smithfield,” Norman said.

Parker also had a penchant for buying furni-ture.

“He would place all sorts of furniture orders

with an eccentric pastHouse

Dr. Rae Parker Jr.

The Parker house is located at the corner of Main and Mason streets.See House, pg. 17

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Besides ham and bacon, Smithifeld is also known for its many stately, historic homes, including this one on South Church Street, the King-Atkinson house. Built in 1795, it was owned by Revolutionary War ensign Thomas King and later by Capt. Joseph Atkinson, who served in the War of 1812. Today the home is owned by Sam and Joan Earl. See this home and more during the Christmas in Smithfield Antiques Show and Historic Homes Tour, Dec. 2-4. For more information visit christmasinsmithfield.com.

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By Stephen Faleski

“Near here, where the Pagan Riv-er empties into the James River stood the small village of Mokete

of the Warraskoyack Indians,” reads a Virginia state historical marker des-ignated K244 located in Carrollton in Isle of Wight County. This marker and a display in the Isle of Wight County Museum in Smithfield are seemingly all that remains of the county’s indigenous Warraskoyack population, who disap-peared from all English colonial records by 1650.

More than 100 years before Smithfield founder Arthur Smith IV would con-struct his Windsor Castle homestead, the land that is present-day Smith-field served as the site of one of three Warraskoyack villages. Very little is known of the day-to-day lives of the Warraskoyack, save for a general con-sensus among historians that they were relatively peaceful, and the first-hand accounts Captain John Smith and his men reported upon encountering the Warraskoyack in the early seventeenth century.

In September 1607, with only 18 days worth of food left for the starving Jamestown settlers, Captain John Smith

sailed southeast down the James River to fish and map the shoreline of what would eventually become Isle of Wight County. It was during this voyage that he first encountered the Warraskoyack, who traded with Smith for the provi-sions he so desperately needed.

Later in 1608, Smith returned to the Warraskoyack in search of the chief Smith referred to as Powhatan, with whom the Warraskoyack were loosely aligned. Not yet perceiving the English to be hostile, they welcomed Smith with open arms and allowed him and his men to spend several nights at their village, where Warraskoyack Chief Tackoneki-naco warned Smith to forego his search for Powhatan.

“Captain Smith, you shall find Powha-tan to use you kindly, but trust him not, and be sure he have no opportunity to seize your arms, for he hath sent for you only to cut throats,” Tackonekinaco is reported to have told Smith.

Relations between the English and the Warraskoyack soured in 1619 when the English encroached on War-raskoyack territory to construct the first permanent English settlements in Isle of Wight County. By 1622 the

Little evidence remains of Warraskoyacks

A painting at the Isle of Wight County Museum depicts how trading may have occurred between the indigenous tribes and early European settlers.

See Warraskoyacks, pg. 14

Painting by Gail Duke

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Warraskoyack had come to view the English as a hostile invasion force and retaliated by attacking the settlements and killing 53 colonists.

In the fall of 1622, Sir George Yeardley retaliated further by commanding a mission against the War-raskoyack and Nansemond, during which he and other colonists burned villages, cut down cornfields and killed as many Native Americans as they could find.

Though a few Isle of Wight County residents claim to be descendants of the War-raskoyack, most historians agree that most if not all of the population likely per-ished during the attacks of 1622 and the subsequent An-glo-Indian wars throughout the seventeenth century.

“They [the English] pretty much wiped them all out,” said Isle of Wight County Museum Curator Tracey

Neikirk.More information on

the life and history of the Warraskoyack can be found at the Isle of Wight County Museum at 103 Main St., Smithfield. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Segar “Sig” Cofer Dashiell

is best known as the historian for the town of Smithfield. She wrote “Smithfield: A Pictorial His-tory,” originally published in 1977, with two to follow in 1978 and 1996. The book chron-icles the families and goings-on of the 300-year old seaport town. She also wrote a history column for many years for The Smithfield Times and the Newport News Times Herald and Daily Press. She was born in Smithfield in 1901 and spent many years with her husband, Harry, on their farm in Moonefield.

In addition to her historical pursuits, Dashiell was also part of the group that established the first public library in Smithfield. Dashiell later returned to the house she was born in, located on North Mason Street, until her death at age 100 in 2001.

Significant Smithfieldians: “Sig” DashiellWarraskoyacks, cont. from pg. 13

A depiction of eastern wood-land Native Americans by artist John White.


Soak up local history with a vari-ety of books available at the Isle of Wight County Museum, now

celebrating its 40th year. Topics range from cookbooks — such as “The Ham Book,” to fiction stories by local authors Doris Gwaltney and Verne Edwards. Be sure to check out Smithfield’s and Isle of Wight County’s role in the Revolutionary and Civil Wars with titles such as, “The Militia are Coming From All Quarters: The Revolution in Virginia’s Lower Coun-ty, 1781,” to “The Battle of Smithfield.” Other titles include “A History of the Smithfield Ham Industry,” “Zoo-Nye: A Story of a Village,” to the much revered by local historians, “Historical Notes on Isle of Wight County, Virginia” by Helen Haverty King. The Isle of Wight County Museum is lo-cated at 103 Main St. in downtown Smith-field. For more information call 356-1223.

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For the love of bricks

Chilhowie, Baltimore bricks in SmithfieldBy Stephen Faleski

One turn off of South Church Street, situated between two Victorian houses, lies a short,

narrow stretch of uneven road paved almost entirely in bricks, most of which are branded with the inscrip-tion “Chilhowie.”

It looks more like a scene tourists might expect to find in Europe rather than in small-town America.

But according to Smithfield Town Manager Peter Stephenson, the single-lane street, known as Jericho Road, is actually the last remaining example of Smithfield’s once-numer-ous brick-paved public streets, which were first paved in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

“Most public streets went from dirt to gravel then brick then asphalt over time,” Stephenson said.

“Other streets in the historic district such as Main Street that were brick-sur-faced at one time simply got paved over.”

Stephenson also mentioned that many of the brick pavers that used to line Main Street were salvaged during the historic district renovation in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and re-used to create the crosswalks. However, most of these bricks are branded “Baltimore Brick,” indicating that they were made by a different company than the bricks on Jericho Road.

The “Chilhowie” inscription on the bricks lining Jericho Road indicates

that these bricks were forged in the small town of Chilhowie, located west of Roanoke in Smyth County.

Kiln-fired Chilhowie bricks were extremely popular paving materials during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, in part due to the increas-ing popularity of automobiles, which were ill-equipped to handle Virginia’s then-mostly dirt roads. According to VDOT, many dirt roads in Virginia would become muddy and impassible during rain or winter thaws.

Many Virginia towns were paved with these bricks, and Chilhowie bricks have even been found lining the streets of Paris, France.

According to the Smyth County See Bricks, pg. 17


through Bobby Little at Lit-tle’s Supermarket,” Norman said. “But every week he was buying furniture. He also installed shag carpet on the walls, mirrors in almost ev-ery room, and maroon sinks and toilets.” “His cousin told me about visiting the house, probably in the 50s, and starting to notice how it was collecting mail everywhere,” Norman continued. “Trey [Gwaltney] later told me about a desk that was in the basement that was falling apart — but wouldn't fall over because it was held in place by mail stuffed into it.”

During the 1960s, he began painting the exterior of the house with aluminum paint, which he understood would act as a preservative. It quickly became the “silver” house on Main Street.

In the late 1970s, Dr. Parker abandoned the house and

several other properties he owned in Isle of Wight County.

“He just left it all to rot,” Norman said.

“Eventually the town of Smithfield got upset and told him that because this is a contributing structure for the historic district, he had to do repairs.”

The dispute led to the Isle of Wight County court case, Harris v. Parker. Harris stood for the former town manager, Elsey Harris Jr.

“As far as I can tell, any time a historic district in the U.S tries to go after a home, it is usually the case that is referenced,” Norman said.

The Normans are continu-ing to restore and renovate the house.

Museum of the Middle Appalachians, Chilhowie’s brick industry began shortly after the Civil War when a man named Minter Jackson opened a pottery shop with wares made from the abun-dant clay deposits through-out the county in 1879.

Later, the Virginia Paving and Sewer Pipe Company, built by George Palmer, start-

House, cont. from pg. 9

Dr. Parker’s X-ray machine, right, with a ghoulish touch added by the Normans.

Bricks, cont. from pg. 16ed operations in 1890.

Both of these small busi-nesses paved the way for more extensive manufactur-ing operations in Chilhow-ie, including the Virginia Vitrified Brick and Paving Company, which is likely the manufacturer of the bricks used on Jericho Road, and later the Southern Clay Man-ufacturing Company.

Clifford L. Smith, 88, was out before 8 a.m.

on a day expected to reach 100 degrees, armed with his tool kit.

Known locally as “Smit-ty,” Smith was finishing up repairs to the brick side-walks along Main Street in downtown Smithfield. He’s been fixing the bricks for the past five years.

“It’s something I enjoy doing,” said Smith, who of-ficially retired from Smith-field Masonry in 2011.

“I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t enjoy it.”

Smith has been laying bricks since he was a teenager.

“It doesn’t matter what time of year, if I see bricks in need of laying, I’ll try to be out there doing it.”

Smith moved to Smith-field with his family in 1953 and has been working with bricks ever since. Smith’s handiwork is all over town.

He built the brick wall at Historic St. Luke’s, as well as numerous other proj-ects.

As for the brick side-walk on Main Street, “I need to make sure all the bricks are evened out. I don’t want anyone trip-ping or getting hurt. It’s a pleasure, but’s it’s also a responsibility, Smith said.

Smithfield’s own brick mason

Clifford “Smitty” Smith


Safe Trick or Treat a ham-town tradition

When it comes to Halloween, Smithfield doesn’t hold back. The fun starts with Main Street

merchants and residents handing out candy, followed by a costume contest for all ages on The Smithfield Times gazebo stage.

Babies, toddlers and on up are invited to show off their creations and compete for prizes.

Pumpkin carvers can also compete in the Jack-o-lantern contest.

The parade of costumes up and down Main Street creates quite a sight and has become a favorite among locals and beyond.

As the festivities wind down on Main Street, little ghosts and goblins typically make their way to Grace Street, where residents have created pirate ships, haunted houses, talking pumpkins and more.

Streets are closed for added safety. Smithfield’s Safe Trick or Treat is

sponsored by The Smithfield Times and the Smithfield Police Department.

Safe Trick or Treat is Monday, Oct. 31 beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Main Street in downtown Smithfield.

ween in SmithfieldHall 21 Slice of Smithfield

The Isle of Wight County Chamber of Commerce hosts a Run4Beads10K and 5K run in February. Participants are urged to don Mardi Gras costumes as part of the fun. Last year the run attracted more than 365 runners for a course that wound through downtown Smithfield and Windsor Castle Park. Finish-ers were treated to strands of beaded necklaces — like those seen at Mardi Gras in New Orleans.

Touch of Mardi Gras in Smithfield

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By Allison T. Williams

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.The beloved, jolly

father of Christmas is mak-ing an early holiday stop in Smithfield on Dec. 10, where he will eat pancakes — and get up-to-date wish lists — from hundreds of children.

Over the last 15 years, the Smithfield Kiwanis Club’s annual breakfast with Santa has become a magical tradi-tion for families to kick off the Christmas season, said Amy Musick, the organiza-tion’s past president and one of the event’s organizers.

“It’s always a fun event to work … because the children are the focus,” Musick said. “It really gets you in the Christmas spirit.”

And until this year, Break-

fast with Santa was a prelude to the Smithfield Christmas Parade. For many local families, it was a tradition — breakfast first, then the parade. This year the break-fast will go it alone due to scheduling conflicts.

Hours before the event, de-voted Kiwanis Club members are up decorating, cutting up fresh fruit and cooking stacks of hot pancakes to serve.

The breakfast, which will be held from 8-10 a.m. at The Smithfield Center, typically draws about 400 people. Tick-ets are $5.

After breakfast, each child gets a little lap time with Santa, Musick said. Rather than having a professional photographer take pictures, parents are given the op-

portunity to take their own pictures using cameras or cell phones, she said.

“It’s a good opportunity to see Santa in our area without having to wait in long lines

at malls or paying high pric-es for pictures,” said Musick. The breakfast also gives

Smithfield Kiwanis members dish up a hearty breakfast of pancakes, fruit and more before the children sit down with Santa Claus armed with their Christmas wish lists.

Pancakes, then a sit down with SantaSmithfield Kiwanis Breakfast with Santa popular with parents, grandparents and children

Santa confers with a young fan about her Christmas list.

See Santa, pg. 28


ChristmasIn smithfield

The Smithfield Christmas parade is Saturday, Dec. 17, 10 a.m. along Main Street in downtown Smithfield.

The Smithfield Woman’s Club Christmas Tree lighting is Friday, Dec. 2, 5 p.m. in front of The Smithfield Times building on Main Street in downtown Smithfield. Enjoy carols and refreshments to celebrate the beginning of the season.

The Smithfield Evening Christmas Market is Saturday, Dec. 10 3 - 9 p.m. on Main Street. Craft and gift vendors, food and more.

Other downtown Smithfield Christmas events include •Christmas in Smith-field Historic House Tours & Antique Show, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 2-4 •Holiday Toy Train Display Dec. 3 – 17, varying hours, at the Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce •Smithfield Farmers Market’s “Christmas Craft and Food Market,” Saturday, Dec. 3, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. •Sundays at Four presents a The Tidewater Cello Ensemble, Sunday, Dec. 4 at 4 p.m., Christ Episcopal Church •The Isle of Wight County Museum presents “An Eve-ning with St. Nick” Friday, Dec. 9, 5 - 9 p.m.


The Smithfield High School Packers celebrate homecoming with a parade down Main Street followed by the game at Packer field. This year, the Packers were to take on the New Kent Trojans. Parade goers get to enjoy includes floats and the award-winning Smithfield High School band.

Homecoming in Hamtown


She’s rockin’ Isle of Wight Story and photos by

Ryan Kushner

When most people look at rocks, what they usually see is,

well, rocks. When Bridget Singleterry

looks at rocks, she sees a chance to spread positivity.

Toward the end of August, Singleterry, who moved to Smithfield last year with her husband, started paint-ing rocks and leaving them scattered around Main Street in the middle of the night. Along with the rocks, she left a small note with details about her project’s Facebook page—a page she called “Isle of Wight County is Rockin’.”

Within two weeks, Single-terry’s Facebook group had over 700 members.

The beauty of the project

is in its simplicity, according to Singleterry.

It goes like this: A person paints a unique design or writes a small message on a rock and hides it around Isle of Wight County. When a rock is found, people are encouraged to document the discovery on the project’s Facebook page, and then hide the small, painted treasure in a new location.

“I think that, generally speaking, everyone likes to find stuff,” said Singleterry. “It’s almost like Easter egg hunting.”

Singleterry said that the goal of the “Rockin’” project, which she had first learned about from a friend in her hometown in Texas, is to use creativity to add a little brightness to someone’s day.

“It’s just a little pick-me-

After moving to Smithfield, Bridget Singeterry got busy with her inspirational project called “Isle of Wight County is 'Rockin’.”

Just a few of the rocks and messages created by Singleterry.

up, just something to make people smile,” said Single-terry. “Even if it’s just for a second, it may change their whole day.”

Because Singleterry changed her sleep schedule to match her husband’s, who

works night shifts at Lang-ley Air Force Base, she is typically out hiding rocks at around 2 a.m. most nights.

“There’s bound to be secu-

See Rocks, pg. 33

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By Allison T. Williams

The Gwaltney Mansion – the elegant, Victori-an-era home built by

Smithfield ham magnate P.D. Gwaltney Jr. in 1901 — is a one-of-a-kind showplace in historic Smithfield.

But several almost identi-cal houses still exist around the United States, includ-ing the Queen Anne Bed & Breakfast in Keokuk, Iowa, and the Ferris Mansion Bed & Breakfast in Rawlins, Wyoming.

All three of the Queen Anne-styled homes were built using modified ver-sions of the same house plan, which was designed by renowned architect George Franklin Barber.

Barber practiced archi-tecture in Knoxville, Tenn., from 1888 to 1913, according to Massachusetts architect Christopher R. DiMattei, a Barber historian who has spent several years docu-menting Barber-designed homes. He has identified more than 2,000 Barber homes in North America, including 52 in Virginia.

Two are in Smithfield – the Gwaltney Mansion, at 304 S. Church St., and the Berryman Mansion, at 345 S. Church St. Frank Berryman built his three-story Colonial Revival as a wedding gift for his wife, Cora Gwaltney Berryman, daughter of P.D. Gwaltney Sr., around 1900.

DiMattei estimates that Barber designed more than 20,000 homes in the United States and Canada built during his 25-year career.

Barber achieved success by advertising and selling pattern books that contained sketches and floor plans of his designs, DiMattei said.

“Barber used his pattern books as marketing tools and as a portfolio of what was possible, should a potential client decide to hire him as their architect,” DiMattei

said. “He went to great lengths … to customize each and every house he designed, even though they may have been thousands of miles away from each other.”

Once a client picked out a design from the pattern book, he and Barber would communicate by mail until a customized set of architec-tural plans was produced, DiMattei said.

Barber would then send finished plans to his clients, who would hire a local build-er to construct the house, DiMattei said.

That process was not uncommon at the turn of the 20th century, said Patricia Spriggs, an architectural his-torian from Norfolk. It was particularly true in smaller towns, which may not have had a local architect, she

added.After several years on

the market for more than $1 million, the Gwaltney Mansion and an adjacent lot recently sold at auction to a retiring military couple from Hampton for $478,000. Until then, the house had belonged

Stylish Smithfield icon repeated

to Henrietta Gwaltney, granddaughter of the home’s builder.

“The Gwaltney house is very special,” said Spriggs.

“They don’t build houses like that anymore … which makes it even more import-ant to preserve them.”

Architect George Franklin Barber designed the Gwaltney Mansion, as well as the Berryman Mansion, across the street on South Church Street in downtown Smithfield.

The Ferris Mansion Bed and Breakfast in Rawlins, Wyoming.


parents and grandparents an opportunity to visit with neighbors, she added.

This year, for the first time, children will be able to do a little Christmas shopping for family members during the breakfast, Musick said. The Smithfield High School Key Club will operate a store where children, using money from their parents, can buy inexpensive gifts for their family. The high school students will help each child shop and wrap the gifts, she said.

As one of the organiza-tion’s largest fundraisers, the Kiwanis’ Breakfast with Santa also provides money to put presents under the trees of 150 local children in need, Musick said.

Every year, the Smithfield Kiwanis spend $14,000 on its Toy Store program, Musick said. The Isle of Wight De-partment of Social Services

provides the Kiwanis with a list of children, ages 12 and under, whose parents aren’t financially able to buy Christmas gifts for their family. The program allows parents to put presents from Santa under the tree, Musick said.

The Kiwanis buy each child three gifts from wish lists provided by the parents,

Musick said. The club also gives each child two books.

The organization gives a lot of board games, Mu-sick said. Video games and electronics are not allowed, largely due to their costly price tags, she said.

Parents usually pick up the gifts during the second or third week in December, Musick said.

Distributing the toys is al-ways heart-warming for the Kiwanis members, she said.

“The parents are so grate-ful … and often, they hug you and want to tell their sto-ries,” Musick said. “It breaks your heart … but knowing you have helped another fam-ily have a better Christmas feels good.

“It’s pretty special for us.”

Santa, cont. from pg. 22


Historic Southside Master NaturalistsCitizen scientists, volunteer educators, conservationists

Master Naturalists show off and interpretive sign of the types of wildlife at the Airfield Conference Center in Wakefield. A group of master natu-ralists put together a wood duck box, while another checks on bluebird nests, hoping to find a nest of babies, right.

The 2016 bluebird monitoring effort yielded a survival rate of 85 percent.


Historic Southside Master NaturalistsWorking

with nature in mind

The Historic Southside Master Naturalists are part of a state-wide organization of

volunteers dedicated to providing education, outreach and service to aid the management of natural resources in areas within their communities.

The Historic Southside chapter has mem-bers from Smithfield, the cities of Franklin and Suffolk and Isle of Wight, Surry, South-ampton and Sussex counties.

Volunteers undergo 40 hours of basic training that includes courses on ornithology, forestry, entomology and more. Those wanting to become certified must complete 40 hours of volunteer work a year plus additional hours of advanced training.

The Virginia Master Naturalists program is jointly sponsored by the Virginia Cooperative Extension, Department of Conservation and Recreation, Foresty, Game and Inland Fisher-ies, Museum of Natural History, Department of Environmental Quality and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science. For more informa-tion, visit wmnhistoricsouthside.org.

Above and below: Volunteers in-stalling fishing line recycling cen-ters in the area. Right: A southern leopard frog monitored as part of a national amphibian program. Other projects include a pollinator garden behind the Isle of Wight County Courthouse.

What are they?


Winter in SmithfieldBeing a southern town, win-ter doesn’t always mean snow, but when it does, local

residents have a few favorite sledding destinations. The hills along Hill Street are one

favorite. Another is North Mason Street, where the town sometimes closes the street.


rity footage showing me placing them,” Singleterry laughed.

Singleterry said she has placed rocks with small messages of gratitude around the Smithfield police and fire de-partments, both of which have respond-ed to the rocks on the “Rockin’” Face-book page with the project’s hashtag, #isleofwightcountyisrockin.

“They really appreciated it,” Single-terry said.

Singleterry said that she has seen everyone from young children, to teen-agers, to retirees participating in the activity.

“There’s really not an age group that hasn’t been affected,” said Singleterry.

Though Singleterry now spends time painting on a daily basis, she does not consider herself an artist.

“I have lots of ideas … but my hands miss the message,” Singleterry said. “I’m excited that other people are paint-ing rocks now and it’s not just me.”

Singleterry added that the “Rockin’” project had a lot of similarities with the recent Pokemon Go craze, and road on the wave of interest created by the popular mobile gaming app.

“Everyone’s out and about anyway,” said Singleterry. “Why not do something where you’re not just staring at elec-tronics?”

Singleterry said that if the initial popularity of the Isle of Wight County is Rockin’ dies down, her hope is that creative project might linger in schools and youth groups, which could continue designing and relocating the rocks to children hospitals or nursing homes.

“For those patients who don’t have anybody who comes to visit them, that could be some little something that they can look at and say ‘hey, somebody thought of me,’” Singleterry said.

For now, however, Singleterry’s

initiative is in high demand, and she has received requests for her cheerfully covert rocks from people in Newport News, Hampton, Suffolk, Chesapeake and Ivor so far.

As a new resident still just figur-ing out her way around Isle of Wight County, Singleterry encourages people everywhere to take up the enterprise and start painting.

“Soon I’m going to take a little poll on Facebook page and ask if anybody wants to get together and do a little community activity where we all meet and we can just sit and paint and get to know each other, share ideas … because I’m running out.”

Rocks, cont. from pg. 25

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