CityView Magazine

the river rose while the Yankees were leaving town. It was fol- lowed by the Populist Freshet in 1895 and the Prohi- bition Freshet of 1901. As the rains drenched the area, people reacted much as we do today when an ominous natural disaster is impending; they rushed to Huske Hardware to buy boots, um- brellas and eggs. Boats normally used for lei- surely fishing were secured tightly in the an- ticipation of their becoming the only mode of transportation once the floodwaters came. What did come that late August of 1908 was beyond anyone's expectations or fears; ac- cording to the Fayetteville Observer, the Cape Fear River crested at "the phenomenal height of 71 feet." In the newspaper's recounting: "The flood extended east of the river as far as the eye can see, and west one and one- half miles, to the heart of town." It was estimated at the time that two-hun- dred homes were surrounded by water. Any sense of adventure soon vanished. The Fay- etteville Observer reported, "The novelty of using boats as a means of transportation through the streets, and to homes, has about worn off and it is now looked upon as a mat- ter of course… Several accidents in this mode of transportation have happened, but all more or less of a ludicrous nature, especially where some clumsy citizen shiſts too near the side of a bateau and turns it over, sending its occupants into the water." Humor did prevail despite the flood waters run- ning through the city, as humidity hung in the air. It was reported one family was amused that one of their turkeys decided to become the "guard- ian" of the house and stood "proudly on top of the house surveying with dignified nerve, the flood around him." Eventually the flood waters receded, and the citizens of Fayetteville, having survived a yet another freshet, returned to the business of growing their city. The electric street cars came to town in 1911 and by 1919 the street car lines reached all the way up to Haymount Hill. In 1912, the first paved street in Fayetteville was Green Street, with its stately trees shading the new pavement. General Hospital, Highsmith and St. Lukes. Dur- ing this period two of the downtown churches built large structures; Hay Street United Meth- odist Church completed their Gothic Revival structure in 1908, and First Baptist Church completed their Roman Revival Brick Church in 1910. Three new hospitals were built, the Cumberland approximately 500," explained Daws. And March 7th, 1914 brought Fayetteville's baseball fans a moment in sports history they would never forget. A young 19-year-old named George Her- man Ruth, a rookie pitcher with the Baltimore Orioles, was at a training camp in Fayetteville. During his first professional game at the Cape Fear Fairgrounds, fans from Fayetteville wit- nessed history. Ruth hit his first major league home run that day, which amazed and daz- zled the crowd who had gathered on the chilly March day. Some there claimed the ball landed in a cornfield next to the baseball field while others say they saw it land beyond in a millpond. It was also in Fay- etteville where Ruth acquired his nickname — Babe — and began to cement his position as a baseball icon. In 1918, the Department of War made the deci- sion to locate a field artillery cantonment near Fayetteville. They named it Camp Bragg. "At the end of World War I the camp might as well have been 100 miles away from Fayette- ville," said Daws. "There just wasn't a good way to get there. The camp was growing and needed trades people to come and work. A rail system was put in for the trades people in Fay- etteville to ride to Camp Bragg," he explained. "From that time on the relationship between the town and Camp Bragg grew." of a hat box." Families grew along with the town, families such as the Poes, who lived on Bradford Avenue. Edgar Allen Poe (not the famous writer) was in the brick business, and his daughter, Lillie, kept a diary which gives us insight into life in Fayetteville during the early 1900s. Just like children today she cele- brated Halloween. (Modern day residents can partake in a Poe family Halloween experience by visiting the Historic Poe House this month, see page 71.) Her entry from Saturday Oct 31, 1903: "Fair and warm. Went to ride with Elisa- beth and France to get pumpkins. All the school children went over to Mrs. Morrow's Halloween night; we had a delightful time. We carried lanterns made Orange Street School, the first graded public school for African American children, was built in 1915. Two stories tall, it welcomed 853 children through its doors. "The attendance at the school daily was The first twenty years of the 20th century were a very active time in Fayetteville, a time when parades were popular, with cars and buggies decorated with flowers and pretty young ladies waving from them; a time of growth and of people unflinch- ingly facing their difficulties. Take a walk by the Stein building, Orange Street School, or through the downtown. Stop for a second and imagine the sound of the street cars or maybe a melody from one of the long ago spinet pianos playing, "Let Me Call You Sweetheart." But don't imagine Fayetteville was just a sleepy little town, the people who lived then were anything but idle. CV CityViewNC.com | 55

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