Celebrating 150 years of the National Grange and its impact
By Steve Herring
Published in News on October 22, 2017 1:45 AM
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News-Argus/STEVE HERRING
The P of H on this Grange emblem stands for Patrons of Husbandry. It is on display in the old Salem Grange building at Waynesborough Park.
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News-Argus/STEVE HERRING
This Grange songbook is on display in the old Salem Grange building at Waynesborough Park.
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News-Argus/STEVE HERRING
Grantham Grange members Linda Crawford, left, and Diane Mozingo look at a Grange flag on display in the old Salem Grange building at Waynesborough Park. Grantham Grange will sponsor daylong celebration in observance of the 150th anniversary of the National Grange from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Wayne County Fairgrounds.
The Grantham Grange will sponsor a daylong celebration in observance of the 150th anniversary of the National Grange from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at the Wayne County Fairgrounds, 2801 U.S. 117 South.
The National Grange, a fraternal organization for farm families, was founded in 1867.
The day will feature a lot of activities, all geared toward families, said Linda Crawford, co-chairman for the event.
For farm families, it will be something they can relate to, she said.
"For the people who don't know about farming, it is an event where they will be able to learn more about what Wayne County was founded on -- farming," she said. "They will be able to learn about that.
"All of the different communities basically had a local Grange. In the earlier years the Grange of course was all about agriculture and it was the voice for the farmer. It supported and helped the farmer in many, many areas. As the years have gone on it has turned to more of a community service organization."
That is what Grantham Grange has done, she said.
"We still very much support anything about agriculture and farming, but in addition to that we are working on a lot of community service," Crawford said. "We supports the schools.
"If there are any tragedies in our community like last year when the hurricane came through, we were involved in trying to support physically and monetarily as much we could to help those families who were devastated from the floodwaters."
A such Grantham Grange wanted to be a part of the 150 anniversary celebration and participate and do something special here in the area, she said.
The day will get off to a quick pace at 8 a.m. with a 5K run.
The celebration is not a fundraiser for the Grange, and all Grange-sponsored events are free including the entertainment under the pavilion starting at 10:30 a.m.
The Grantham Fire Department will open its fair booth and sell concessions. Vendor booths will be set up in the white building and will have items for sale.
The opening ceremony will start at 10 a.m. National, state and local Grange officials will speak.
The celebration will continue until 5 p.m.
Activities will include a corn hole tournament, farm equipment display, auction, art display, a chili cookoff, a mule drill team, motorcycle exhibit, antique cars and tractors, FFA and 4-H exhibits and a beekeepers exhibit.
Children's events will include a tractor pull and barrel train rides.
"We have a full day with something going on all of the time," said Diane Mozingo, co-chairman. "We are not planning for any downtime. We are planning for a constant day of events. In the afternoon we are going to have a flag retirement by the Boy Scouts, and we are accepting flags now from anyone who wants to bring them.
"They will have a static exhibit set up and someone there to accept them. We might not get to do all of the flags that day, but what we don't do that day will be done as a Grange event in the future because we are looking for a lot of flags."
Wayne County Cooperative Extension Service will have several exhibits including a mock farmers' market.
To register for any of the events or for more information, visit the Grantham Grange Facebook page or call Linda Crawford at 919-689-3135 or Diane Mozingo at 919-734-3333.
To learn more about the National Grange, visit, www.nationalgrange.org.