Old Cleveland County Courthouse

The old courthouse on the square in Shelby, NC

I went uptown in Shelby the other day and wandered around the square reminiscing about growing up in Cleveland County.  The old courthouse has been replaced by a new one and is destined to become the Earl Scruggs Museum.

The courthouse is being renovated to become the Earl Scruggs Museum.

Drawing on the region's rich history and music the Scruggs Center will enlighten, educate and celebrate the people, traditions and values of Cleveland County and the region and honor native son and music legend Earl Scruggs.

Earl Scruggs with banjo.

Earl Scruggs was born near Boiling Springs, NC and grew up in Cleveland County.  Scruggs is noted for perfecting and popularizing a 3-finger banjo-picking style (now called Scruggs style) that is a defining characteristic of bluegrass music.

In 1953, the small building on the square just east of the courthouse was the DMV office.  That's where I first got my driver's license.  The only thing I remember was that I had to parallel park on the street in front of the Central Methodist Church. 

In the 1950s, this was the driver's license office.  Appears to be vacant now.

Central United Methodist  Church east of the courthouse. 

Barbecue and More Barbecue

I'm visiting in Cleveland County now.  Cleveland County is known for its great barbecue, but last night there was Q and more Q at the Fairground's Hog Happnin'.  I usually eat barbecue when I'm in Shelby---either Red Bridges or Alston Bridges barbecue. This event allowed me to sample a lot of different barbecue.  My friend PJ, her granddaughter Kristen, and I went over to partake.

PJ and Kristen getting tickets for the tasting.

One of many vendors.

Clever signs of vendors.

Barbecued beef and chicken.

These ribs were delish!

Some of the trophies that one of the vendors had won over the years.

 I think I've had quite enough barbecue for a while.  Probably until I visit Cleveland County again.

Worshiping at the Sunset Drive-in, Shelby, NC Circa 1950s

Sunset Drive-in, Shelby, NC

 In Cleveland County recently, I saw that the old Sunset Drive-in Theater on Highway 74 is still in business.  It is geared more to families and open only on weekends these days.  But in the late 1950s the drive-in was popular among teenagers with access to automobiles.  It was ideal for dates.  The old drive-in evoked memories of my college days at Gardner-Webb College. 

The screen and the parking area for the drive-in.

Gardner-Webb then a two-year Baptist college in Boiling Springs, NC was just down the road from the Sunset Drive-in. Rules for girls on campus were strict.  Girls living on campus and dating on Sunday nights were required to attend, with their dates, the Sunday night service at the campus Baptist Church.  Since we had to be back in the dorm by 10:30 there was barely enough time after church to drive into Shelby for barbecue at Red Bridges's BBQ Lodge before returning to the dorm.

Cars drove through the entrance and paid for each person in the car.  Often people would hide in the trunks of the car to avoid paying.  Now I think they charge by the car and not by the person.

We usually managed to get around that rule.  Dating couples, including my roommate and me, would often meet our boyfriends at their cars in back of the church at the Hamrick Building, jump in the car, hide until we were off campus and head to the Sunset Drive-in, skipping church altogether. We referred to it as "worshiping" at the drive-in on Sunday nights. 

Cars would park by one of these stations where there was a speaker that would hang from the window of the car.  Now sound is acquired through the car radio, I think.

My roommate and I were never caught skipping church, but on one occasion many of our friends were.  College students, including dating couples, always sat in the balcony of the church.  The Dean of Women was on the program for the evening and was seated on the dais where she had a commanding view of the balcony.  She noticed only three or four couples in the balcony, but when she returned to the dorm she found that a dozen or more girls had signed out saying they were dating and were attending church. (Yes, when we left campus we had to sign out).  Many of my friends were campused for a few weeks because of this incident.  I was lucky, because I just happened not to be dating on that particular Sunday night.

Gardner-Webb is now a thriving university, and I'm not sure about the rules for female students, but I doubt that many spend their Sunday nights at the Sunset Drive-in Theater.