Remember Rockford

Remembering Rockford's Heroes

Special Guests Perform at Memorial Day Service in Rockford

Special guests educated and entertained the audience at the Rockford Preservation Society's annual Memorial Day Ceremony on May 23.

Nora Brooks, a Union County history teacher, presented a living history interpretation of scenes from the life of Mildred Childe Lee, the youngest daughter of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. Her character drew the audience into the happenings of the time with a sprinkling of humor befitting a Southern lady.

Dave Dobson, a Minnesota resident who has come to Rockford to research his family's history, delighted the audience with a performance of patriotic music using only a saw and a fiddle bow. He was accompanied on piano by Katherine McCormick, whose family now owns Dobson Hill, the old Dobson family plantation and family graveyard.

The indoor portion of the program was held in the 1914 Rockford Methodist Church. After refreshments, the ceremony moved to Rockford Cemetery, where flags were placed on the graves of soldiers dating back to the 19th century and Yadkin County re-enactors from Company I and Company F of the 28th N.C. Infantry performed a rifle-volley salute.

Photos by Jeanne Dobson

www.yadkinriverphotography.com

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Rockford Park Dedicated

Rockford Park, at the site of the historic Grant-Burrus Hotel, was officially dedicated and opened to the public Nov. 15, 2008. The park is one of three historic sites that are the focus of the "Remember Rockford" fund-raising campaign.

"Our goal of transforming the historic site into a place that people can enjoy has finally been realized," said Hannah Holyfield, president of the preservation society.

The program included remarks by Adam McComb, director of Surry County Parks & Recreation, Margaret Burrus Timberlake, and RPS board members Marion Venable and Hannah Holyfield. The Marshall Brothers provided musical entertainment.

The 'Remember Rockford' Campaign

The goal of the Remember Rockford campaign is to raise $385,000 to restore Rockford’s circa 1800 Masonic Lodge Building and circa 1830 York Tavern, and to complete the development of a historic park at the site of the circa 1796 Grant-Burrus Hotel.

This is the first capital campaign in the history of the 37-year-old preservation society, which has depended on small grants, donations and volunteer labor to improve its properties. Its restored sites include the 1900 Post Office, the 1850 Dudley Glass store, and the 1914 Rockford Methodist Church.

“While we have made steady progress over the past three decades, we recognize that to finish the job this organization was created to do, our restoration effort must have broad and sustained support,” says RPS President Hannah Holyfield. “We sincerely hope the entire community will rally around this campaign, which is being undertaken by folks who simply love Rockford and want to honor the families who over the past 200 years have made it such a special place.”

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