The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1963-05-02

route on foot and determined the
most desirable location for the
new roads before making his rec
ommendation to the Chief Engi-
neer and the Commission. In addi-
ton to making the surveys for
these highways, he had the prob
lem of securing the right of way
from the various owners, some
of whom met Getty with shotgun
in hand. These varied from the
il;itcratc owners of tiny hillside
farms to the heirs of the fabulous
Vanderbilt estate of many thousand
acres on which is situated the
huge mansion built in the nineties
by the late George w. Vanderbilt.
/ incidentally. il is said Mr.. Wander
bilt spent most of his fortune on
this enterprise Also included in
the territory traversed by some of
the North Carolina highways is
the Cherokee Indian Reservation.
Getty soon won the friendship of
the Indians, whose rights he
zealously protected. eventually
buying from them 1900 acres of
land for the Parkway.
OF great Importance to the state
of North Carolina is the monu-
mental Blue Ridge Parkway, eX-
tending from the Shenandoah
Park in Virginia to the Great
Smoky Mountain Park in North
Carolina and Tennessee. President
Roosevelt's Secretary of the In
| terror. Harold l.. IckeS, appointed
a committee composed if Messrs
| Camerer. Mcdonald and United
| States Senator Radcliffe of Mary
land, who planned to build the
Parkway through Tennessee on a
route which more careful and OBJ
iective surveys indicated would be
much less desirable and less
scenic than one through North
| Carolina. The only man with power
! to reverse this committees rec
ommendation was the cruSty, iras-
chile Secretary Ickes himself. II
| he could be convinced that the
more desirable route lay through
North Carolina, then that change
might be approved. Armed with
huge maps, profiles and pictures
showing the advantages of the
North Carolina route-material
representing many days of rugged
hiking. surveys and collection OF
data by the Chief Locating Engi-
neer and his staff, a delegation
from North Carolina appeared be-
fore Mr.. Ickes and Getty, speaking
for the delegation, pointed out sc
forcefully the superiority of the
North Carolina route that even the
Secretary was convinced and his
approval of the Parkway as il
stands today was secured. AL
though he located and SUPERVISED
the building of hundreds of miles
of other highways throughout the
state. the Parkway, which extends
for 253 miles through North Caro-
lima, was the longest, most scenic
and most impressive, and consumed
much of Getty's time and atten
tion-so much so that he properly
regards it as the croWning achieve
ment of his career. 1t therefore /!
not surprising that when he final
" retired from the State Road
Commission. at the age of Y, sever
years beyond the normal retire
ment age, the State government
Immediately secured his service
to complete some features of thu
Parkway which it was felt he wa
SO eminenUv fitted to handle. Hav
ing finished this work, Getty a
the age of "a retired from Stat
service.
During his forty years in MORT
Carolina Getty became the advise
of governors and other official
concerned with highway construc
ton and served with distinction
on various highway and relate
commissions. Some time previou
to his retirement, the State c
North Carolina honored him b
naming one of the highest peak
in the Great Balsam range, wit
an elevation of 61lO feet above Sc
level, Browning Peak
, 1t seems quite fitting. althoug
perhaps little unusual, that tn
three Browning sons followed thei
father into the engineering fielC
all graduating from North Care
lima State College with degrees i
engineering. Getty, Jr., the eldes
r civil engineer, is employed b
the Army Engineers in Washing
ton. d. c. Charles, an clcchics
| engineer, is tho president
, Aeronautical Electronics in Raleigh
and Robert is a consulting enginee
in Raleigh. engaged in gencr;
, civil engineering work. The onl
, daughter. Harriet, a graduate of tn
$ University of North Carolina.