December 15, 2015

Dear Woodville family and friends,

Early this year, our State Historic Preservation Office denied a proposed cell tower adjoining Saint Frances , the northern border of our historic district. By law, all  cell tower applications/site studies  must be reviewed by SHPO to ensure towers don't breach criteria for historic properties via 1) 'altering a property's surrounding environment' and 2) 'introducing visual,auditory, or atmospheric elements out of character with the property'.  The tower was placed a mile away.

Liz updated our brochure, reflecting  changes made since the  2007  printing. Our website is also updated. We replaced a few windows in the Sunday School building, and Pattie installed blinds. It is 80% populated, and   I continue to slowly  add materials  to our History Center there - still sorting through  boxes of newspaper articles, magazines, photos, and letters  (they multiply) requiring labeling/placement.   Until it's completed, you can view all that is currently there -   many photos/maps/letters/artifacts from our rich 200+ year history are already placed.

Many of you  have  relevant items reflecting  Woodville  life from  the early 1800s on.   Their storage in your closets benefits no one,  so why not embrace the popular 'downsizing-cleanout'  trend, and safely - we have a security system - donate them?    Our collective history deserves to be under one roof , preserved, and accessible to all, and to future generations. Surely, I'm not the only person who has salvaged items, so please let me know what you can donate.  

After 19 years of directing HW, this History Center will be my final  project.   It   will remain a dormant  nonprofit until some angel becomes interested in directing its future.

Therefore,  this will be the final letter to Woodville supporters, and our final request for your financial support.   The Bazemore house still has maintenance needs -  insurance, minor repairs, and lawn care; we need to purchase display materials for the History Center  - binders, protectors,  labels, shelves, cases, +  costs of framing the many photographs.  Please consider, however small, a donation to provide the coming years’ costs.  

I owe a huge debt to all of you who have helped promote and preserve Woodville’s significance.  Our mostly unchanged landscapes and architecturally unique structures are a rarity in North Carolina. Similar villages near waterways and rail depots  dotted NC in 1800s/1900s, but are now  vanished or  unrecognizable.  That Woodville has so much left, with ample documentation  of its rich cultural history,  led to our prestigious National Register designation as one of only 5 in "Rural Historic Districts" in North Carolina.   I owe no less praise to Preservation North Carolina, and the State Historic Preservation Office for their 19 years’ guidance in preserving Woodville's unique character, and to Virginia Crilley (Rootsweb) for hosting this site.  

A gracious thank you, and Joyous Christmas to all.    

HISTORIC WOODVILLE
3104 Hillmer Drive Raleigh, North Carolina 27609
Phone: 919.833.4009 E-Mail murquharmears@gmail.com

Visit our website at Historic Woodville

* All donations/grants are tax deductible and 100% funded to our various projects – directors receive no compensation

Please send us your comments and questions.

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