Watauga Democrat. [volume] (Boone, Watauga County, N.C.) 1888-current, 1925-07-23


the Greensboro Daily NeWs.)
The cornerstone ofa church was
laid here within the week, a church
with name whose origin runs far
back into the past century and with
history filled with ecclesiastical
and missionary achievement. 1t was
Bishop Stillman Ives in 1912 who
named it Church of the Holy Cross
at the same time that he gave the
name of Vale Crucis to the beauti-
full and fertile valley that it DOM
mated. Over the years the good
works of it's missionaries have gain
ed for it the spiritual domination f
the valley and the name Vale Cru
cis-Valley of the Cross-taken from
the configuration of the landscape
has from the lives of its people come
to be a living reality.
Among the hemlocks and oaks
where the first church was built the
new edifice is mounting. 1t is to be
beautiful little structure, of gray
stone taken from the mountain side
within half mile of its site, Gothic
in its lines, planned by cultivated
minds and built by skilled workmen
1t will face south, looking out over
the valley, with it's windows opening
east and west upon the highway to
Banner Elk. At its left are the build
ings of the school. Completed, it
will stand in impressive contrast to
that first primitive adobe house and
graphically represent the progress of
the Episcopal church in this field.
Prior to the laying of the corner
stone, morning prayer was held on
he do nf oil
its conclusion the congregation
marched in procession to the site of
the mounting church led by the
bishop of the Diocese of Western
North Carolina, in whose diocese the
church is located, the Right Reverend
Joseph Blount Cheshire, Bishop of
North Carolina, and the Right Rev.
erend Kirkman G. Findlay, Bishop
of upper South Carolina. The cor
nerstone service was read by Bishop
Horner, the visiting bishops assist
ing.
An unusually impressive feature of
the service was the participation of
four generations of the Townsend
family, all communicates of the
Church. Timothy Townsend, patr;-
arch of the family, placed the New
NTestament in the cornerstone box;
his daughter Mrs. Roah Mitchell, de-
posted the Book of Common Prayer;
his granddaughter, Miss Effie Town
send the Hymnal; his great grandson
Robert Edney, the list of cOmmuni-
cants of the church.
In presenting Bishop Horner, the
Rev. James Preston Burke, rector
hte church, recounted hte lives that
have had share in the development
of the church and of the school,
enumerating them by name. "The
emphasis in church school in my
opinion should be upon God and the
Church." observed Mr.. Burke "and it
has been my hope since coming here
to see a church erected on the site
of the original building, of dignified
construction and of equipment suita-
BILE 10 our needs. More than half
the necessary funds has been SUBJ
scribed and it is my earnest prayer
this morning that God will put it in
the hearts of others to help in rails
ing the remainder"
"When l think of Vale Crucis."
begin Bishop Horner, "two passages
always come to my mind. One is
from the writings of an older proph-
ct and from that passage the motto
of this diocese has been taken; The
House of the Lord upon the top OF
the mountains The other is And
a little child shall lead them,' for
when / think of this school, and our
other schools in western North Caro-
lima, l am thinking of the little chill
dren whose lives they are blessing
ard are determ;n ned to bless. The
~, rent innocence of their childish
Eo.ces lifted III prayer has often
times given me the inspiration have
not found in the greatest cathedrals
of our country, And from my know
ledge of them, l believe there are
MANY children in these mountains,
who, like those of the Holy Land, are
ready and willing to give their lives
to the services of the Lord and to
follow Christ"
"The more deeply tree pushes its
roots into the earth, the higher its
branches mount toward the heavens;
the greater the struggle and trial,
the greater the joy in the day Of
triumph. This is day of triumph
here at Vale Crucis and the greatest
measure of joy belongs to the bishop
of the diocese, Bishop Horner. l
think / may humbly claim Tor my
self second place in the poy OF the
day, for l have actually labored less
than brother Burke, ! have prayed
and hoped longer" Bishop Chesire
said.
"Bishop Horner, should say rep
resents the present; Mr.. Burke the
future, and the past. All l may
do is to train the microscope OF the
past upon our small beginnings and
reveal the great strides we have made
here.
'The first thought that must come
to anyone in contemplating the ac-
complishments here is of the gran
de,ff of Bishop Ives conception. The
fact that he was able to establish
here at a time that Morganton was
the nearest rail head, a school that
drew boys from as far east as Tar
ono of tho ,o,oct rpnqrk able