Historic characters begin appearing around New Bern

Historical characters — some specific and some generalized — are beginning to appear around New Bern as part of a public art project aimed toward the city’s 300th anniversary in 2010.

The project — painting city fire hydrants — is headed by Natalie Baggett and recently, 40 volunteer painters began arriving at the conference room of the Neuse River Foundation, where Baggett is a board member. It was her staging area for the project, and it looked much like a war room for an invasion – multiple maps with designated targets, individual packets of advance information on each site.

Armed with their materials and designs, volunteers, such as Sue McCarthy and Ruth Tucker, went to a downstairs storage room to receive their paints, brushes, gloves and other materials.

McCarthy and Tucker chose to work as a team and created a John Lawson fire hydrant, honoring the early 1700s explorer and author.

They attracted a good bit of attention at the corner of Pollock and East Front Street. Passersby stopped to chat, and offered words of encouragement. Questions came from open windows of cars at the stop sign.

Baggett and Jane Ann Blackerby have revived a project that dates to the city’s 1776 bicentennial celebration.

Baggett is pleased with the response this time.

“It’s generating lots of interest,” she said. “We will duplicate some designs in some places and we have others that we know we will do, but we don’t have designs yet.”

The characters will span the city’s history, from James Davis, who operated the state’s first printing press out of New Bern in the 1700s to Pepsi-Cola inventor Caleb Bradham in the 1800s, to modern figures such as Lee Morgan, the city’s first black mayor, and Bev Perdue, the state’s first female governor.

She said some volunteers are individuals, some are teams like Tucker and McCarthy, and others are groups, such as children from Trent Court and students from the schools.

There are currently 30 designs.

She said that plans call for a future link to the characters and their locations on the 300th anniversary Web site, as well as flyers at the chamber and convention center.

In 1976, and again this year, the character designs have been created by Marilyn Smith.

Baggett said Randy Quidley of Riverside Hardware and Paint has donated paint for the project, and Lowe’s provided brushes.

To volunteer, call 252-637-5643.

Charlie Hall can be reached at 252-635-5667 or chall@freedomenc.com.

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Decorative fire hydrant characters

♦ Capt. Cooke: Appointed to the cutter, U.S. Revenue Cutter, during tour by George Washington.

♦ James Davis: First printer publishing in New Bern under Gov. Gabriel Dawson.

♦ John Lawson: Explorer, author, and surveyor, who was killed by the Tuscaroras.

♦ James Reed: First Rector of Christ Episcopal Church, served under three governors, and was an advocate of free schools.

♦ Richard Dobbs Spaight: First governor to occupy the new state capitol building in Raleigh was from New Bern.

♦ Gov. William Tryon: The builder of Tryon Palace was the first colonial governor residing in New Bern, and was an advocate of Anglican churches and the post office.

♦ Caleb Bradham: pharmacist, inventor of Pepsi-Cola.

♦ William Gaston: Catholic jurist, orator, author of the state anthem. He was the son of Dr. Alexander Gaston, who was killed by the British in the American Revolution.

♦ Emeline Pigott: A successful spy for the Confederacy, imprisoned in New Bern until the end of the Civil War.

♦ George White: First black state legislator, 1897 to 1901.

♦ Union soldier

♦ Confederate soldier

♦ Gertrude Carraway: Historian and advocate for Tryon Palace reconstruction and preservation.

♦ Lee Morgan: First black mayor of New Bern.

♦ Bev Perdue: First female governor of North Carolina.

♦ Herbert Woodley Simpson: Significant architect of many New Bern buildings.

♦ Bayard Wootten: Daughter of educator Mary Bayard Clarke, pioneer of North Carolina photography, and an advocate of women’s rights.

♦ Fire chief, police chief, mayor, and sheriff