Are Armadillos Heading to Rugby?
Rugby is known for its diversity of nature and critters. But we may have a new critter soon. Be sure to read Linda's Nature Notes below about one of nature's strange creatures which appears to be migrating towards Rugby.
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| Image by: Hollingsworth, John and Karen - USFWS |
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| One of the homes open at Pilgrimage - Ingleside |
41st Pilgrimage of Homes Planned for Sept. 29
On SEPTEMBER 29, visitors to Rugby will have the rare opportunity to tour approximately a dozen of the village's private residences.
As Rugby founder Thomas Hughes said in 1880 as the colony opened: "We hope that from the first, visitors will carry away from this place the feeling that we here have understood something of what homes should be... simple and even rough in materials and construction... (but) sightly and good in form and proportion."
Rugby's 1884 Handbook observed: "The houses of the residents... are, with few exceptions, very substantial, roomy and elegant, and surrounded by well tended lawns and gardens..."
Come see for yourself if these descriptions apply today!
The event is Rugby's 41st Pilgrimage of Homes.
Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern/9-4 Central. Admission is $12 for adults & seniors, $6 for kids through high school age, and $10 each for groups of 12 or more with advance reservations by calling 1-888-214-3400 or 423-628-2441.
Five of the homes are original to the 1880s. The rest are contemporary additions all carefully designed to fit in with Rugby's original architecture in its woodland setting, following the original 1880 town plan.
Included will be tours of the historic public buildings and a special interpretation of Uffington House, the founder's mother's home.
Welcome Shirley and Wallace
Some of you may have
noticed the camper that has been parked behind the garage at Linda Konig’s
residence on Hwy. 52. Shirley and Wallace Hughes from Crossville have been staying
there recently. And they are currently
in the process of buying a home in Rugby!
They are working out the details to purchase Calla Lily Cottage, the
home of Fred and Deanna Oliver in Beacon Hill.
Shirley attended the Rugby Garden Tour
in June and mentioned that she missed being involved with Rugby as she used to
be more frequently, including having a booth at Spring Festival for several
years.
So with the help of Boyd Mitchell she
and Wallace were able to park their camper in the village as they looked at
prospective homes.
Welcome back to Rugby!
Friday is History Night in Rugby
Rugby Bachelors and the Dyer
Family
By Linda Konig
Which early Rugby bachelor
has a bridge named for him in Sydney, Australia? Which two Rugby bachelors
worked for Thomas Edison and invented the process for micanite insulation,
which is still used today in electrical equipment? And did they profit from it?
Whatever happened to the Dyer family after Thomas Hughes' mother died? For the
answer to these and other questions, come to the Rugby History Night
presentation this Friday, Sept. 14.
The meeting will be held in
the Friendly House (behind Rugby’s Christ Church) at 7:30 p.m. Eastern/6:30
Central. Everyone from anywhere is welcome. There’s no membership, no charge
and no obligation! There are usually light refreshments.
Grey Gables Harvest
Dinner
By Linda Brooks Jones
Grey Gables Bed 'n
Breakfast Inn is having its annual Harvest Dinner on Saturday September 22 at 7
p.m. Eastern. For the past 21 years we have held our Harvest Dinner with
entertainment.
Irving Martin
suggested the pairing of food and wine, thus began the cooperative venture of
Highland Manor Winery and Grey Gables cuisine. Today proprietors Butch and
Gertie Campbell marry the wine with the menu selected by Linda.
Marc Simpson musician
and composer will bring the band Serendipity to perform jazz, Dixieland,
Big Band and American Song Book Standards. Don’t miss this evening of Gourmet
Food and Exceptional Music. Five course dinner with wine $30 per person plus
tax and gratuity. Reservations -- 423-628-5252
Jody’s Mother Fights Off
Attacker
On a recent Tuesday at high
noon in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in a Wal-Mart parking lot, an 83-year-old woman
parked 4 cars from the front door had an unlikely passenger in her back seat.
As she concluded her
shopping, she put her groceries in her back seat, took her cart back to the
shopping cart return, took her umbrella down and put it in her back seat.
She then got in her car and
started her car. At this point a man, in
the back seat, put to her throat a hunting knife with a jagged edge and hook on
the end. He said, "Drive, drive and I will not hurt you." But this lady knew that if she left the
parking lot, "There is no telling what he would do to me."
Because she had taught
self-defense to seniors 15 years ago, she thought fast. With her right hand she put her hand on the
knife handle, her left hand on the blade, and her left elbow on her horn.
At the same time a young
graduate student at the University of Alabama, saw what was happening and ran
to her car. The 19 year old attacker fled the scene, dropping the knife in her
lap.
She cut all of the fingers
on her left hand, requiring stitches on her ring finger.
She feels that the graduate
student certainly played a large part in saving her life. The grad student from
Puerto Rico had only been in Tuscaloosa for 4 months.
The 19-year-old offender
has been apprehended.
A first reaction to the
story is, "You go girl,” sort of humorous. Then it turns to one of horror
and terrorism.
This story has been in the
newspapers several times and on the local TV station with her identity
anonymous. But we know who she is: SHE is my Mother.
Rugby Week
If you have any current
news or photographs about Rugby we would very much appreciate your
submissions. Please email your articles and
photos before 5:00 p.m. on Sundays.
BIRTHDAYS
Sept. 10 - Robert Walton
Crabtree
Sept. 13 - Ted Chrisman
Sept. 17 - Terry Martin
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| Butch and Doug at the Cafe |
Rugby is in the Eastern time zone, just barely.
Friday, Sept. 14 – History
Night – Rugby Bachelors and the Dyer Family – 7:30 p.m. EDT. Friendly House
just behind Christ Church.
Friday, Sept. 14 –Music
Night at the Café – Butch and Doug performing
| Friday, Sept. 21 –Music Night at the Café – 3-D Dulcimers
performing
Saturday,
Sept. 22 – Harvest Dinner at Grey Gables - Five course dinner with music and wine
$30 per person plus tax and gratuity. Reservations
- 423-628-5252
Friday, Sept. 28 –Music
Night at the Café – Gerald Hanwright performing
Saturday, Sept. 29 - Historic Rugby
Pilgrimage – This tour is the only time this year that some of some of
Rugby’s private homes are open to visitors. Guests will visit a dozen private
historic and new period homes, historic museum buildings and lodgings. Come
enjoy Morris dancing, music and period demonstrations.
Saturday, Oct. 6- Annual Christ Church Michaelmas Festival 10 am -4 pm. Admission to festival is free. Cream tea is served at 12 noon and 2pm. $10. For reservations call 423-628-1282 or emailgrannymcbrayer@gmail.com. Crafts, homemade goodies, music, English dancers. |
Quilters’ Group - Wednesdays and Saturdays, 2–4 p.m. Eastern, at the Friendly House behind Christ Church
Rugby Yoga – Wednesdays, 8:30 a.m. Eastern, at the Friendly House.
Christ Church Episcopal -- Sunday morning services, 11 a.m. Eastern, year round; all are welcomed.
Historic Rugby Workshops
White Oak Basketry Workshop -September 14-16
This
very popular 3-day workshop teaches the art of White Oak basketry from tree
selection, splits, rims and handles to weaving a beautiful traditional basket.
This is an experience not to be missed even if it does require "hand
strength." Fee is $130. Please make advanced reservations. For information
about the instructors, go to whiteoakbaskets.com
Victorian Holiday Ornaments Workshop - September 22
Victorian Holiday Ornaments Workshop - September 22
Use fabric, lace, paper, ribbon and reed to
create charming Victorian ornaments. At the end of the day, take home 6 to 8
ornaments, plus many creative ideas for later! This workshop will be led by a
dynamic group of instructors: master basket maker Beth Hester, skilled heritage
craft instructor Joyce Lantz and Jody Hester, who is known for her quilts and
decorating. Hester has also helped outfit half of the village of Rugby in
Victorian costumes she helped make. Fee is $25.
To register for workshops, call toll-free 1-888-214-3400 or 423-628-2441. Lodging may be available at 1880 Newbury House or Rugby's cottages at a 10% discount to students. Food service is available at the Harrow Road Café.
NATURE NOTES
Armadillos Seen Near Rugby
Armadillos Seen Near Rugby
By Linda Konig
I usually only write
about plants or animals that we have on the Cumberland Plateau, but if we don't
already have armadillos (Spanish: little armored ones), we may soon have. They're
definitely in West and Middle Tennessee already. Just last week a photo of a
dead one from someone's garden appeared in the Jamestown newspaper (only 18
miles from Rugby).
Their expansion into the
southeastern U.S. has been phenomenal. Already they're as far north as southern
Illinois and moving forward at the estimated rate of 5 to 8 miles a year. They
surely can't get much farther north because they can't survive if the ground is
covered with ice and snow for a long time. However, two things I read this past
week make me wonder if we will have them to any great extent on the Plateau.
They're reported as
definitely preferring limestone country over sandstone.Maybe it's harder to
burrow into sandstone. They burrow a lot. Also scientists believe one reason
they've been able to expand so far is that their predators in the Midwest have
largely been killed off. Traditionally, their enemies were wolves, BEARS,
mountain lions, coyotes and bobcats. So it will be interesting to see if we
have many here or farther east in the Smokies.
Armadillos are loners. Most
of the year they're nocturnal. In fact, most people have seen them only as road
kill. One reason armadillos are often hit by cars is that they have very poor
eyesight. Add this to the fact that they usually come out at dusk to start
foraging, when visibility is poor for humans as well as armadillos. Usually the damage to cars is to the
undercarriage or front fender, the reason being that armadillos have the odd
trait of jumping straight up into the air about 3 feet when startled. How they
can do this with short legs and heavy bodies, I don't know. One reason they're
getting into the roads is that part of their diet is carrion.
If you get on the web
and look for armadillos, you'll be astounded at the amount of intriguing
information you'll find. These prehistoric-looking creatures aren't your
average mammal. Medical science has found them to be invaluable. For instance,
armadillos are the only other animals besides humans that can contract leprosy.
Add that to the fact that armadillos have weak immune systems, and you see how
scientists were able to develop a leprosy vaccine for humans with their aid.
This Week’s Editors: Rick Murphy and George Zepp
