A rhododendron blooms at historic Twin Oaks.
See Linda's story about pink spring flowers in Nature Notes below.
Photo by Rick Murphy
Rugby After the Storms
By Eric Wilson
Rugby received a share of Wednesday's storm damage. Just after breakfast time a strong gust of wind brought down several trees in the village - two very large ones along the cemetery road, three in the Boyle Woods development, one across the driveway of Jane and Steve Logan, one at Marilyn and Walter Young’s, etc. Most of these were oaks, not broken off, but blown over whole. Robin Sexton and several volunteers had a busy morning working with chainsaws to clear the debris. Fortunately, there did not seem to be any damage to any buildings.
Then late in the afternoon a second gust blew a tree down on the highway east of town, scattering the power and phone lines onto the roadway. This late afternoon storm brought rain that seemed as if it would never stop. It was a time to be glad that we are located on top of the Plateau.
Top left: fallen trees blocking side road near Boyle Avenue. Top right: tree damage in White Oak Circle area. Bottom right: Hemlock down at historic Twin Oaks. Bottom left: tree root ball seen along the road to the cemetery - Vi Biehl estimates it is 12 foot across. Photos by Vi Biehl and Rick Murphy
RUGBY ARTISTS’ EXHIBIT
The main exhibition room of the Historic Rugby Visitor Centre is currently featuring a display of works by eight Rugby artists. Included are paintings by Mara Trumbo and Butch Hodgkins, photographs by Jim McBrayer and Vi Biehl, nature art and repurposed vintage items by Donna Heffner and Annie Patterson, jewelry and florals by Ron Jackson, and clocks and boxes by Eric Wilson. In addition to showcasing the work of some of Rugby's many talented residents, this exhibit also serves as an added attraction for visitors. If you haven't already seen the display, stop by and take a look. The exhibition is not a sales event, but if you see things you like you can also visit the artists' own shops or the Commissary where their works are for sale.
Litter Removal Wednesday
Volunteers Needed
By George Zepp
We'll work this Wednesday, May 4, to achieve a litter-free Rugby! Calling volunteers: bring work gloves, bug spray and your work boots to meet at 10 a.m. Eastern at the parking area of the Harrow Road Cafe. We'll carpool down to the White Oak Bridge area to work our way up Highway 52 from there toward the west. If time permits in the couple of hours available, we may even reach the western part of town near Central Avenue and beyond.
Morgan County's "Clean Up Community" program will be furnishing pickup bags, a truck to haul them away, warning signs for motorists, etc.
Thank you for pitching in. We'll make the village more welcoming for our Spring Festival visitors and get stuff out of the not-so-tall grass before it gets chewed up by state mowers later in the season.
This year’s Historic Rugby gardening workshop is scheduled for Saturday, May 21 - 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. -"Small Space Vegetable Growing in a Raised Bed." Bob Washburn of nearby Pall Mall greenhouse fame (Wolf River Valley Growers) will be the guest expert. He'll show how to get the most out of the limited spaces for growing that many of us face today. ($15) To register for the workshop, call Historic Rugby toll-free 1-888-214-3400 or 423-628-2441.
Gardening expert Bob Washburn at last year's herb garden workshop.
UT MBA Class Studies Rugby
Presents Travel Destination Study Results
By Cheryl Cribbet
Last week Historic Rugby Board members, invited guests and I attended the final presentation of a University of Tennessee MBA team which has been studying Rugby. The eight-week program's recommendations provide ideas to further assist HRI in marketing Rugby as a tourism destination.
HRI was accepted last year to partner with UT on this consulting project for one of the university’s MBA graduate programs.
A very special thanks to UT and the five-member MBA team for a great job. Historic Rugby and the University of Tennessee look forward to working together again in the future.
Familiar faces here are Greg Reed (far right), Jim Meadows (Board member - back row far right), Mike Greene (Board member), John Hicks (Board member), Jane Logan (Board member - back row), Rick Murphy (Board member - back far left) & Cheryl Cribbet (Executive Director - front row left).
37th Annual Festival May 14-15
It’s British, It’s Appalachian, It’s Festival Time at Historic Rugby
Bluegrass featured, and much more
Join us for a celebration of our British Isles and Appalachian heritage. Saturday, May 14, will feature the first "PICKIN' AT RUGBY" Bluegrass competition.
Both days will have music and dancing, traditional arts and crafts, artisan demonstrations and sales, plus Maypole dances, tours of the historic buildings and delicious food.
Saturday's hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern. Sunday's are 10-5. Just $5 adults/ $2 K-12 students.
Call toll-free 888-214-3400 for special questions or lodging reservations.
Christ Church's Festival Activities
By Benita Howell
Christ Church will have the usual children's activities and booths in the churchyard during Festival, but we will not hold a rummage sale this year. Bishop Charles von Rosenberg will make the last visitation to the church before his retirement the Sunday of Festival. There will be a special reception after the Sunday service; all are welcome to attend the service and reception.
On Saturday, we will have a silent auction of the old front door of the church so that someone can give this piece of Rugby history a loving home. Check by the baked goods booth early on Saturday for more details, including the closing time for the final bids.
BIRTHDAY
May 6 - Kristin Schenning
CALENDAR
Rugby is in the Eastern Time zone, just barely
Wednesday, May 4 - Litter Pickup – Volunteers meet at 10 a.m. at Harrow Road Café to carpool to White Oak Bridge and work west on Hwy. 52. Bring gloves.
Saturday, May 7 – Community Potluck 7 p.m.
Sunday, May 8 – Mother’s Day Lunch at Grey Gables. Seatings 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. $12.50 per person plus tax and gratuity -$6.25 children under 12, plus tax and gratuity - RESERVATIONS REQUIRED. Call Linda Brooks Jones, 423-628-5252
Saturday, May 14 and 15 – Historic Rugby’s 37th Annual Festival of British and Appalachian Culture. Crafters and artisans demonstrating chair making, broom making, quilting, basketry, pottery, spinning, weaving, woodcarving, blacksmithing, lye soap and honey production and much more. Other crafters and vendors will have their wares for sale both Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in booths set up around Rugby's historic grounds. Also British Isles and Appalachian music, dancing, and historic building tours. A variety of British and Appalachian foods will be available at the Harrow Road Cafe and throughout the festival grounds. New this year is the first Pickin’ at Rugby competition on Saturday. For further information call 1-888-214-3400 or email rugbylegacy@highland.net or visit http://www.historicrugby.org/.
Saturday, May 14 – Rabies Vaccination Clinic outside Brooks Store, 2:30 p.m. Price is $10 for a one-year rabies vaccination. For qualifying animals, a three-year vaccination will be offered for $14, so bring proof of previous vaccinations.
Saturday, May 21 – Book Club – 7 p.m. We’ll discuss “Red on Red” a mystery written by a former New York City police detective, Edward Conlon. http://www.amazon.com/Red-Novel-Edward-Conlon/dp/0385519176. Meeting is at Walton Court. Please let Rick Murphy know if you are coming or if you have any questions - 423-319-7842 or rickmurphy1@aol.com.
Sunday, June 5, Cumberland Odyssey Celebration and Book Signing - 3 p.m. Rugby’s Johnson Theatre. Join author David Brill and photographer Bill Campbell for a personal journey through their coffee table book on the Cumberland Plateau. Bobby Fulcher will perform some of the old-time Plateau music described in the text. Proceeds from book sales support completion of the Cumberland Trail. Free.
Quilters Group - Wed. and Sat. 2–4 p.m. at the Friendly House
Think Pink!
By Linda Konig
Have you ever noticed that we usually don't get any pink wildflowers to speak of until May? I've come to associate May with pink wild flowers, especially since I have a quite a lot of Showy Evening Primroses blooming right against the front of my house. They are surely one of the showiest. May is also the month when you're most likely to see Gaywings along the Gents' Swimming Hole Trail (but they’re early this year). They always remind me of tiny bright pink toy airplanes. Sampson's Snakeroot, Wild Geraniums, Carolina Cranesbills, Deptford Pinks, Carolina Rose, Mountain Laurel, Pennsylvania Smartweed, Widow's Cross, Downy and Hairy Phloxes, Maryland Meadow Beauties, and Pink Ladies' Slippers are other pink glories we can expect now or very soon in the Rugby area.
The picture you see with this article is a Pink Lady Slipper growing downhill behind one of Rugby's original houses (photo by Carrie Thornthwaite). People who are fortunate enough to have Lady Slippers growing in the woods near their homes aren't usually too eager to let the world at large know about them. Too many people think they can dig these rare plants up and transplant them to their yards. This results in failure 99% of the time. Lady Slippers are one of those wildflowers that require certain specific symbionts in the soil, symbionts that aren't found just anywhere. Since Lady Slippers aren't common, we should leave them where we find them and just take photos.
Speaking of photos, an opportunity for taking wildflower photos is coming up soon in and around Rugby. Jack Carman is returning for his annual Spring Wildflower Walk, but this year it will be on Saturday, May 28. He usually comes in April, but we thought it would be fun to see different wildflowers from the ones we always have in mid-April. I'm working on an extensive check-off list of wildflowers we'll probably see. You'll also have the opportunity to buy his book, Wildflowers of Tennessee. This thoroughly useful book is quite sturdy, but my first one became awfully dilapidated after carrying it around for several years. Now I'm on my second one!
Historic Rugby’s Spring Workshops
May 21 - Small Space Vegetable Growing in a Raised Bed 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Instructor: Bob Washburn Fee $15.
May 28 - Spring Wildflower Walk and Picnic Lunch ~ 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. - attendees can take part in one of the most diverse wildflower walks in Tennessee, led by instructor Jack Carman. His book Wildflowers of Tennessee is a definitive guide. Jack leads field trips and photo workshops for the Gatlinburg Spring Flower Pilgrimage, among others, and has won awards for his wildflower photos. The fee is $25, including a plant list of expected sightings. The day will finish with a film presentation and book signing in the late afternoon.
June 11 - Imagery In Writing Workshop - 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. This workshop will focus on voice and imagery. Struggling to find a voice in writing? The student will produce writing a reader will listen to and read. Included are exploring subject matter, diction, point of view, syntax, grammar, and imagery to allow the voice of an author to be distinguished from that of others. Come prepared to write and bring along some work you have already begun. The instructor is K.B. Ballentine. She has attended writing academies in both America and Britain and has published in Alehouse, Bent Pin, Front Range, River Poets Journal, Touchstone and others. The fee is $28.
To register for workshops, call toll-free 1-888-214-3400 or 423-628-2441. Lodging may be available at 1880 Newbury House and local cottages at a 10% discount to students. Food service is available at the Harrow Road Café.
Historic Rugby’s website at http://www.historicrugby.org/ lists all workshops for the year.
This Week’s Editors: Rick Murphy and George Zepp
