Rugby Geology Workshop Begins Season of Learning



Historic Rugby's first workshop of the season was led by State of Tennessee geologist Peter Lemiszki. Participants enjoyed a walk to the Meeting of the Waters discussing the rock formations along the way.
 

This Week in Rugby

 Thursday – Philosophy Night  

Philosophy Club meeting will be on Thursday, March 28 at 6:30 p.m. Eastern in the Harrow Road Café’s large dining room. The Café is now open each Thursday until 8 p.m. Eastern.

Friday – Music at the Cafe  

Doug and Butch Return 

Butch and Doug will be playing at Harrow Café this Friday night March 29 from 6:30 until 8:30 Eastern/ 5:30-7:30 Central. 

 

 

 

This Saturday – Museum Trip

Wayne County Museum in Monticello, KY

By Lavonne Gibbs 

Rugby's History Club is inviting everyone from Rugby to join us on a field trip Saturday, March 30, to the William Crenshaw Kennedy Jr. Memorial Museum of Wayne County, KY, at 75 North Main Street, Monticello, KY.  Their website is www.waynecountykymuseum.com - Tel. 606-340-2300. Meet at the Harrow Road Café at 9 a.m. Eastern for car-pooling.

This museum was awarded "Kentucky's outstanding Museum of the Year" in 2012. 

 The Museum is run completely by volunteers, including the director, and is well staffed Tuesday-Saturday and open other times by special appointment. It is free to everyone. Special emphasis is on children and those with questions about their local heritage.  It is funded partly by in-house publications of local family histories from local writers, which are compiled and printed in the museum. More than 50 print items are for sale. The first floor includes the Elizabeth Duncan Geneological Library, staffed by friendly volunteers. 

On the History Club's trip to the Mill Springs Civil War Battle Ground and the Museum 5 years ago, the museum had been open about 5 years and was limited to the first floor of the old Breeding Hotel, built in 1936 during the oil boom. In October 2011, Charles Gibbs' friend Bill Walden developed a Cave Exhibit in the basement and the staff opened all of the 2nd floor complete with a Victorian Parlor, Music Heritage Gathering Room and 8 more rooms with displays. Last year Lavonne Gibbs began developing a Children's Museum on the 3rd floor. 

Driving time to Monticello is about 90 minutes.  Also of interest, across the street, from the museum, is the Contented Quilters building owned by the Guild and recently expanded to the second floor, to include displays and quilt items for sale and quilting in progress. At the end of town is Kinnent's "Junk Store."  Ask Carman Roberson, or Butch or Cheryl Hodgkins, about Kinnent's. It is a fun place to shop. 

Ted Chrisman's photo of three pigs at Rita Myer's place

Critter Sightings in Rugby

By Rick Murphy

I am reading a new book called Nature Wars, by Jim Sterba, which tells about how all across the country people are interacting more with wild animals in their backyards. Since Rugby is surrounded by protected natural areas and parks, it is inevitable that we are going to see signs of critters from time to time. Last week was a big early Spring week for critter sightings. 

 

The best sighting was on Rita Myers' land at Horseshoe Bend near Rugby where Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency officials trapped three wild boar. Rita said the pigs had become a major problem, creating a mess rooting in the ground around her property. She said she is very relieved to have the big hairy creatures removed. The traps had been set and baited for several weeks before the pigs were caught. She said the wildlife people told her these pigs are very smart, but that did not keep all three from getting caught in one cage! Rita’s dog, Maggie, was very excited about the catch. Maggie is trained to track wild pigs and other animals, so she took credit for the successful outcome. Rita said TWRA has caught and destroyed quite a few pigs in the area. Wild pigs have become a problem all across the country. 

Steve Logan emailed a photo of a dead yellow-bellied weasel that was killed on Highway 52 recently. The photo and an article about this exotic creature is in Linda Konig’s Nature Notes below. It is native to Asia, but has made its way to North America and, apparently, is now in Rugby. 

Sheila at the Harrow Road Café said that her Allen hit a bobcat after leaving the Café recently – somewhere near Grey Gables. The bobcat did not survive the accident. She said something about the dead cat spending time in her unplugged freezer, but this article won't go there. The TWRA website says there are seldom any problems with bobcats interacting with humans.  http://www.tn.gov/twra/bobcat.html .  A website for Brentwood, a suburban area near Nashville, talks about how sightings of bobcats in their neighborhood are not uncommon and are only a danger to small pets. http://www.brentwoodhomepage.com/bobcats-a-danger-to-small-pets-not-people-cms-7157#.UU9k6yDD_IU

Meanwhile, on Saturday’s Geology Walk, the group had to step over the remains of what appeared to be a dead beaver. Beaver populations have grown dramatically around the country as they are no longer hunted/trapped the way they once were. We often see signs of damage to trees where beaver have been chewing on them down between the Gentlemen’s Swimming Hole and the Meeting of the Waters, but this is the first time I have actually seen a beaver (although there was not much left of him/her beyond jaw and guts). I will spare you a photo of the beaver, as it did not look very photogenic. 

Save the Date 

Appalachian Writer Series – Saturday, April 20 - 7 p.m. Eastern, for readings and book signing by author Wiley Cash.

 

Farm Fresh Eggs

Jodye Weiler wants everyone to know she has farm fresh brown eggs for sale.v$1.50/dz.  Contact Jodye at 423=628-5228

 

Spring Cleaning

Some of the folks who helped clean the Community Building and Uffington House to get them ready for the April Quilt Exhibit.  Shown are Gayle Minor, Dorcus McBrayer, Debbie Harris, Bethany Jackson and George Zepp

 

Birthdays    

March 27 - John Hicks

March 28 - Jane Logan 

Calendar     

Rugby is in the Eastern time zone, just barely

 

Thurs. March 28 - Philosophy Club meeting will be on Thursday, March 28 at 6:30 p.m. Eastern in the Harrow Road Café’s large dining room.

Sat. March 30 (Date Change) – History field trip to Wayne County Museum. Those wishing to attend the celebration for Kentucky soldiers returning from war of 1812-1813 need to leave Harrow Road Café Parking lot by 9 a.m. Eastern Program begins at Mill Springs at 11 with free community barbecue following. We will tour the Museum after lunch. You may follow the Gibbs and Bankston families up at 9 or meet at museum after lunch. Call Charles and Lavonne Gibbs if you want more details and plan to go.

Sun. March 31 - Easter at Christ Church - Easter Egg hunt begins at 12:10 p.m. Eastern for children 12 and younger and adults any age who wish to watch. Meet by 12:10 p.m. in the churchyard. Children are welcome to take part in Sunday School during part of church service beginning at 11 Eastern time, or come just for the egg hunt and potluck luncheon. We wish to include grandchildren and other visitors not usually in town. Please let Charles or Lavonne Gibbs know by Friday or Saturday if you are bringing children.

Sat. April 6 – Community Potluck, 7 p.m. Eastern/ 6 Central.

Fri. and Sat. April 12 and 13 – Rugby Quilt Exhibit and quilt play premiere

Fri. April 19 - History Night Dinner - call Grey Gables for reservations, 423-628-5252

Sat. April 20 - 7 p.m. Eastern time for readings and book signing with author Wiley Cash

June 29 – Rugby Independence Day picnic will be the Saturday before July 4 at John and Kathy Hicks’ house.

Nature Notes 

Yellow-bellied weasel at Brooks Store - Steve Logan photo

Pop Goes the Weasel

By Linda Konig 

I've recorded more than 100 species in my list of night creatures that can be found on the Cumberland Plateau. Even so, I learned about a new one the other day. Last Friday morning, March 22, someone ran over a yellow-bellied weasel on Highway 52 near the high bridge that links Morgan and Fentress Counties. They took it to Brooks Store and laid it on the porch for people to look at. Steve Logan took a picture of it on his I-Phone, and here it is. 

I'd never even heard of a yellow-bellied weasel before, but I looked them up on the web and learned some things about them. First, they aren't native to the U.S. They're originally from east Asia. They like to live in pine woods and are sometimes called mountain weasels. So how did they get here? Who knows? But probably someone slipped some into the country as pets since they're easily tamed.


In Nepal, people used to keep them inside to keep their homes free of rats and mice. They also trained yellow-bellied weasels to kill other animals for sport. The weasels kill by biting the necks of their victims.  

Since they're in the same family as other weasels, otters and ferrets, these are similar in many ways.  They're smaller than our native weasels, being only about 10 inches as adults and weighing about 3 pounds.  Of course they have yellow underbellies which distinguish them from other animals in the mustelid family. Like other weasels they love to kill and eat mice, voles, and other small mammals as well as birds, including chickens. They're most active at night, so enclose and lock up your chickens at nightfall!  

I hope to learn more about these creatures soon and I plan to talk to the folks at the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area ranger station to see if they have any idea how many are in our area, when and why they began to show up, etc. 

 

This Week’s Editors: Rick Murphy and George Zepp