2025 — The year in review | Archives

HENDERSON — Now that 2025 has come to a close, we look back at the most interesting and impactful stories in the city and county.Small town, big figuresIn last year’s Black History Month series, the Dispatch looked at various Black figures in Henderson who may not have been given proper recognition. We are proud of the story on Ruth Anita Hawkins Hughes, who did much of the legwork in her published work “Contributions of Vance County People of Color,” and the conversations the Dispatch had with her living relatives.Eva Clayton continues to workIn honor of Women’s History Month, we were also proud to write about former U.S. Rep. Eva Clayton. More than 20 years after leaving Congress in 2003, Clayton continues the work she began during the Civil Rights Movement starting in 1968.A resident of Littleton for the last 54 years, Clayton was the first African American woman elected to represent North Carolina in the U.S. House of Representatives, serving the 1st North Carolina District from 1992 to 2003 — and the state’s first Black elected official since Rep. George White — who left Congress in 1901.Clayton continues to be active in agriculture, rural development and food security, serving on the board of Green Rural Redevelopment Organization (GRRO) started by Henry and Ardis Crews since 2020, and lending her name to create the Eva Clayton Rural Food Institute in 2022, which delivers healthy food to seniors.Remembering Andrea HarrisAlso in recognition of Women’s History Month, and now more than five years since she passed on May 20, 2020, the Dispatch thought it appropriate to further honor, recognize and remember Andrea Harris for her many contributions to the Vance County community and beyond.In a column for the paper, Eva Clayton wrote “We lost a giant of a person, a great leader housed in small stature who demonstrated her love for her community through service. Andrea Harris, a petite person, had a voice twice her size, an inquiring and demanding mind, and a heart and soul that embraced all humanity.”Gov. Roy Cooper, who appointed Harris to the VGCC board in 2018, paid tribute to her as well. “Andrea Harris was a trailblazer who never stopped fighting for social and racial equity in our state,” Cooper wrote. “When doors were intentionally shut, she broke through for women and minority-owned businesses to succeed, modeled excellence in advocacy and mentored scores of freedom fighters.”Vance County Jail closure, remediationAll at once, years of issues with Vance County Jail came to the public conscious when the state Department of Health and Human Services ordered the county to depopulate the facility on April 9, following an inspection that turned up numerous health and safety violations.Since that day, the Vance County Sheriff’s Office has taken a number of measures, keeping inmates in other facilities around the state. Work on rehabilitating the old facility continues as well. That project, as well as the quest to construct a new jail, and all their related expenses has presented the county with a significant financial hurdle.Where the creeks became riversThough a bit late being published in April of 2025, the Dispatch was pleased to speak with a group of four local firefighters who traveled to western North Carolina to assist emergency services in the area in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.Master Firefighter Charlie Mills and engineers Devin Sherrod and Payne Watson, alongside Colin Pruitt travelled out in October of 2024, spending six days and five nights on call working constantly to run calls on behalf of the beleaguered mountain folk.Henderson gave and gave generously in the aftermath of Helene, indeed.The City Council conflictAt the tail end of 2024, the city council voted 5-3 to offer then-city attorney Hassan Kingsberry the city manager position, which he took. Those three council members took issue with the swiftness with which the city hired Kingsberry.Then, over six months, the ostensibly amicable relationship between Kingsberry and Elliott deteriorated into frequent bickering. It came to a head at the June 9 regular meeting when a crowd of Elliott’s supporters came to heckle Kingsberry and demand his removal.Regardless of the circumstances, the feud became public, and many locals felt it gave Henderson a bad name. Indeed, the feud was on the minds of many voters when they went to the polls in October.Also noteworthy was the investigation into the mayor, which turned up nothing legally actionable, which she has been keen to point out. It did turn up allegations that she was creating a toxic workplace, however.In December of 2024, the Dispatch wrote in a piece similar to this one that the city had suffered much controversy over that year. That trend appears to have continued.Eddie McCoy recorded historyThe conference room at Thornton Library in Oxford was nearly filled to capacity in late July for a ceremony to celebrate and further distribute the oral history project created by James Edward McCoy. Better known as Eddie, McCoy is a retired businessman, researcher and former Oxford City Councilman who has been active with the NAACP, the Granville County Genealogical Society and the NC Black Leadership Caucus.Inspired in part by the lack of knowledge about his own family — McCoy set off on what would become a 36-year research project starting in 1980, eventually speak with 140 elderly Black residents of Granville County and recording 240 hours of information — with stories ranging from the Civil War and segregation to the Civil Rights Movement.These recordings were transcribed by UNC Chapel Hill into 30 bound volumes, which are housed at both the library in Oxford and Chapel Hill. And thanks to a 2024 grant to Thornton Library from the Council of Library and Information Resources, the transcripts were digitized and made available to all who may be interested in hearing the multitude of stories for themselves.Shuttering of the Vance Rescue SquadAfter more than 70 years of service, the Vance County Commissioners cut the contract with the Vance Rescue Squad in a 4-2 vote on Aug. 4. For years the county had considered what to do with the Vance County Fire Department. Then, the question became — what to do with the VRS?This decision sparked no small amount of anger among proponents of the VRS, though the debate quieted down significantly after that August vote. Some called the move overly hasty, others said it was better late than never. Others still said there were personal motivations at play.Regardless, the VCFD has since successfully outfitted itself to take over where the VRS left off.‘It starts on First Avenue’Much has been said, and much will continue to be said about housing in Henderson. And sometimes, the stars align. Henderson is in need of redevelopment, and here comes this project that seeks to add affordable luxury homes on First Avenue.In a welcome bit of good news, the project, a product of developer Home First Initiative, broke ground on Sept. 27. On the slate are nine luxury, rent-to-own homes at an affordable rate, packaged with lessons on home ownership.There’s something to be said about the developer, as well. It has a grassroots model, with investors who sign on in order to give back. Alex Carlton was inspired to bring the project idea to the city when he saw the 121 Motel closure on the news. He and his compatriots at HFI have a vision for a community of people with pride in place.The Henderson Fire Department had a hand in the project as well, burning blighted buildings that once stood in the area.Big T’s DinerTony Sanford and his wife Terry have created a ‘50s-style diner in the old showroom of Tony’s Auto on Raleigh Road. And while it won’t be open on a regular basis until sometime this year, it will surely be worth the wait after opening for just one busy day and night on Oct. 17, the day before the Car Show.The couple bought what became Tony’s Auto a decade ago to expand their Carey Chapel Road operation and sell some cars as well. But four years ago — when they started hosting Cruise-Ins for Christ to support Union Chapel Church in Kittrell — they began transforming the former showroom into what it is now.With room for 110, the dining area is complete with red bar stools, juke boxes and many pieces of memorabilia that make most who walk through the door nostalgic for those glory days gone by.

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