Helen Boyd Dull was dedicated to the town and community of Southern Pines. She was a member of the Boyd Family of Weymouth Woods. She came with her family to from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania in 1904 when they decided to make Southern Pines their winter residence. She immediately became involved as a civic leader. In those early years of Southern Pines history the town was struggling to grow beyond the unsightly remnants of living prevalent in a small town going from the nineteenth to the twentieth century.
In 1907 Mrs. Dull was promoting the town improvement and out of that the Southern Pines Civic Club was born. Without fanfare she announced to the town council and in the newspaper on January 4th:
The ladies of Southern Pines are thinking of forming a Civic Club to aid in making the town more attractive in many ways. A meeting will be held at the King's Daughters Hall, Friday January 11 at 4pm. All ladies are invited to be present. It is expected that an organization will be formed.
There were 46 ladies joined the club at that first meeting.
A few days before this meeting Mrs. Boyd Dull and a small committee (who became the first Board of Directors) met at Weymouth to prepare and lay the groundwork for a true club to be born. They wrote the club constitution and bylaws, and the Club's purpose. The purpose was defined as:
To improve the sanitary conditions of the town
To foster the love for the beautiful
To educate the children in good citizenship
To welcome winter guests and to enlist their interest in making Southern Pines more attractive.
Once formed, the group of women now known as the Southern Pines Civic Club, started to work to set up four departments to achieve these objectives:
The Municipal Department - for public health
The Educational - public education
Forestry and Town Improvements - plantings and parks
Social - welcome newcomers and invite them to the club
The first Board of Directors were:
Mrs. A.P.L. (Helen Boyd) Dull - President
Miss Anna Jenks - 1st Vice-President
Mrs. H.E. Ross - 2nd Vice-President
Mrs. Joseph Gregory - Treasurer
Miss Elizabeth Schwarberg - Secretary
The Club was careful to work with the town commissioners, they also were fully supported by the local newspaper. Less than a month after the inception of The Southern Pines Civic Club the ladies announced their first project would be a public clean up day that was paired with the day the dump opened. The editor of the newspaper (The Pilot) reported:
"The town commissioners, acting upon the suggestion of the Civic Club, has appointed a cleaning up day, and tomorrow is the day...It is understood the the ladies are to see that the results of the clean up are carted to the proper dumps and that they will be out, in full force, to lend such aid as they can.
This became a regular scheduled event, as this was prior to the municipal garbage pick up. The Civic club even picked up the cost when the towns funds were short."
The club still holds true to the original purpose today.
The same year the club helped clean up the railroad station grounds and beautified them with plantings.
Some of the important town-changing upgrades, funded by the Southern Pines Civic Club are as follows:
Purchased a chemical fire engine for town use
Street signs were installed
Twelve Magnolia trees were planted along the railroad tracks
The park was curbed
Vacant lots were cleaned and fixed up as parks
Twenty-five benches were purchased and put about town
Fifty dollars was given for landscaping a school grounds
Garbage collection throughout town was inaugurated with the town later took over
Playground equipment was installed in the park.
An additional two hundred Magnolia trees were planted along the railroad and in other parts of the town
An Audubon Society was started at the school
A drinking fountain was put in the school yard
The Club held Social Tea meetings in members homes as fundraisers to fund these projects.
In May 1917 the Club voted to buy two lots on Pennsylvania Avenue and build a clubhouse. At that time, incorporation papers were signed stating the Southern Pines Civic Club was organized to promote civic, social, educational and charitable activities. Annual dues were set at $1.00.
Following the passing of Helen Boyd Dull in 1924, her sister, Mrs. H.B. McCormick, developed the grounds around the clubhouse in honor of her unselfish interest in town and home beautification. She used native plantings, as the club did with all their projects.
The building Committee was appointed in 1925 consisting of; Tracy Mudgett, Anna Hayward, Cady and E.M. Hayes. The building was projected to cost $8,000, with the final cost being $10,000. A.B. Yeomans was the architect, S. Burgess, the contractor and C.P. Everest the electrician.
In 1933, as the building fund grew, 100 additional feet was purchased on the corner of Ashe Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. The Club accepted a generous offer of 100 trees and plants to be planted on the new grounds.
The chairs for the clubhouse use, cost $4 a piece, and the silver flatware and tea service, still being used today cost $76.
What a proud day when the new clubhouse was decorated with flowers, all the lights were turned on and the doors were opened to the public.
Those were the days of new women's organizations being formed following women's suffrage. Our club like many others filled a great role in heading up the training of relief, first-aid and Red Cross workers.
The Civic Club continues to be loyal to the interest of the town and served as hostesses for a variety of interests of the winter visitors. During WWII the character of the Club changed. The U.S.O. took over the use of the clubhouse for use as the local canteen, Following the end of the war, 1949 the clubhouse was once again returned to the hands of its members.
If you have any photos or news articles that date prior to 1985 we would love to see them.
Please email us at [email protected]
In 1907 Mrs. Dull was promoting the town improvement and out of that the Southern Pines Civic Club was born. Without fanfare she announced to the town council and in the newspaper on January 4th:
The ladies of Southern Pines are thinking of forming a Civic Club to aid in making the town more attractive in many ways. A meeting will be held at the King's Daughters Hall, Friday January 11 at 4pm. All ladies are invited to be present. It is expected that an organization will be formed.
There were 46 ladies joined the club at that first meeting.
A few days before this meeting Mrs. Boyd Dull and a small committee (who became the first Board of Directors) met at Weymouth to prepare and lay the groundwork for a true club to be born. They wrote the club constitution and bylaws, and the Club's purpose. The purpose was defined as:
To improve the sanitary conditions of the town
To foster the love for the beautiful
To educate the children in good citizenship
To welcome winter guests and to enlist their interest in making Southern Pines more attractive.
Once formed, the group of women now known as the Southern Pines Civic Club, started to work to set up four departments to achieve these objectives:
The Municipal Department - for public health
The Educational - public education
Forestry and Town Improvements - plantings and parks
Social - welcome newcomers and invite them to the club
The first Board of Directors were:
Mrs. A.P.L. (Helen Boyd) Dull - President
Miss Anna Jenks - 1st Vice-President
Mrs. H.E. Ross - 2nd Vice-President
Mrs. Joseph Gregory - Treasurer
Miss Elizabeth Schwarberg - Secretary
The Club was careful to work with the town commissioners, they also were fully supported by the local newspaper. Less than a month after the inception of The Southern Pines Civic Club the ladies announced their first project would be a public clean up day that was paired with the day the dump opened. The editor of the newspaper (The Pilot) reported:
"The town commissioners, acting upon the suggestion of the Civic Club, has appointed a cleaning up day, and tomorrow is the day...It is understood the the ladies are to see that the results of the clean up are carted to the proper dumps and that they will be out, in full force, to lend such aid as they can.
This became a regular scheduled event, as this was prior to the municipal garbage pick up. The Civic club even picked up the cost when the towns funds were short."
The club still holds true to the original purpose today.
The same year the club helped clean up the railroad station grounds and beautified them with plantings.
Some of the important town-changing upgrades, funded by the Southern Pines Civic Club are as follows:
Purchased a chemical fire engine for town use
Street signs were installed
Twelve Magnolia trees were planted along the railroad tracks
The park was curbed
Vacant lots were cleaned and fixed up as parks
Twenty-five benches were purchased and put about town
Fifty dollars was given for landscaping a school grounds
Garbage collection throughout town was inaugurated with the town later took over
Playground equipment was installed in the park.
An additional two hundred Magnolia trees were planted along the railroad and in other parts of the town
An Audubon Society was started at the school
A drinking fountain was put in the school yard
The Club held Social Tea meetings in members homes as fundraisers to fund these projects.
In May 1917 the Club voted to buy two lots on Pennsylvania Avenue and build a clubhouse. At that time, incorporation papers were signed stating the Southern Pines Civic Club was organized to promote civic, social, educational and charitable activities. Annual dues were set at $1.00.
Following the passing of Helen Boyd Dull in 1924, her sister, Mrs. H.B. McCormick, developed the grounds around the clubhouse in honor of her unselfish interest in town and home beautification. She used native plantings, as the club did with all their projects.
The building Committee was appointed in 1925 consisting of; Tracy Mudgett, Anna Hayward, Cady and E.M. Hayes. The building was projected to cost $8,000, with the final cost being $10,000. A.B. Yeomans was the architect, S. Burgess, the contractor and C.P. Everest the electrician.
In 1933, as the building fund grew, 100 additional feet was purchased on the corner of Ashe Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. The Club accepted a generous offer of 100 trees and plants to be planted on the new grounds.
The chairs for the clubhouse use, cost $4 a piece, and the silver flatware and tea service, still being used today cost $76.
What a proud day when the new clubhouse was decorated with flowers, all the lights were turned on and the doors were opened to the public.
Those were the days of new women's organizations being formed following women's suffrage. Our club like many others filled a great role in heading up the training of relief, first-aid and Red Cross workers.
The Civic Club continues to be loyal to the interest of the town and served as hostesses for a variety of interests of the winter visitors. During WWII the character of the Club changed. The U.S.O. took over the use of the clubhouse for use as the local canteen, Following the end of the war, 1949 the clubhouse was once again returned to the hands of its members.
If you have any photos or news articles that date prior to 1985 we would love to see them.
Please email us at [email protected]
105 S. Ashe St., Southern Pines, NC 28387