NORTH CAROLINA

Dec. 23: An Arrest Over Anti-Slavery Materials On December 22, 1859, the sheriff of Guilford County arrested Daniel Worth for circulating literature that denounced slavery.

Born near Greensboro in 1795, Worth was likely educated in a school led by Levi Coffin, the reputed “conductor” of the Underground Railroad. Like many other Quakers in the region, Worth moved to the Midwest, settling in Indiana in 1823. In 1857, he returned to North Carolina as a missionary. He preached across the Piedmont, distributing antislavery materials at public gatherings. Newspapers denounced him and called for his arrest.

Worth’s offense was punishable by one year in prison and, at the discretion of the court, a whipping. He was tried and convicted in the spring of 1860 in Asheboro. He also lost upon appeal in Greensboro. Released on a $3,000 bond, he jumped bail and made his way to New York where in May he denounced North Carolina as a “den of slavery.”

He made the rounds in abolitionist circles, including a stop at Henry Ward Beecher’s church, where the famed minister, brother of Harriet Beecher Stowe, proclaimed himself unworthy to unfasten Worth’s shoes. Worth soon returned to Indiana where he died in 1862.

Dec. 23: Inventor and Ax Man John Council of Bladen County.On Dec. 23, 1929, inventor and machinist John P. Council died.

A native of Bladen County, Council showed an interest in all things mechanical from an early age. He translated that interest into the Council Tool Company in 1884 after trying his hand at several other enterprises and studying the turpentine industry in Georgia.

John P. CouncilThe company steadily grew, moving from a small blacksmith shop near his home to Lake Waccamaw in 1902, where a local railroad line established a stop specifically to transport his goods. Council tirelessly worked to improve his product, trying out a variety of materials, but continued to focus on tools specific to the turpentine industry. His company also stood out for its focus on only employing local people and making them profit participants in the business.

By 1910, Council Tool controlled 90 percent of the trade in turpentine-specific tools. To this day, it is owned by the Council family and focuses on the manufacture of tools for forestry and fighting fires.

In 2008, an ax made by Council Tools was featured on the History Channel’s Modern Marvels episode about the history of the ax.

Dec. 23: Bald Head Island Lighthouse Lit for the First Time. On Dec. 23, 1794, the Bald Head Island Lighthouse was lit for the first time. The lighthouse, planning for which began in 1783, was the first one authorized in North Carolina (the second was Ocracoke for which plans began a year later). In 1789 Benjamin Smith, who recently had acquired the island, promised the state ten acres for use as a site for a lighthouse.

Congress appropriated funds for the lighthouse in 1792. The state legislature levied a tax to help fund the beacon. Around 1812, the lighthouse was damaged beyond repair due to the effects of soil erosion. Congress appropriated $15,000 for a replacement. Daniel Way accepted the contract in July 1816 and finished the new lighthouse the following year. Use of “Old Baldy,” as it is known, was discontinued in 1835.

The oldest lighthouse on the North Carolina coast, it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. “Old Baldy” is distinctive for its eight-sided design. Modern restoration efforts have returned the lighthouse to its nineteenth century appearance. A reproduction of the 1850s keeper’s cottage stands alongside the sentinel.

NATION AND WORLD HISTORY

Dec. 24, Astronauts orbiting the moon read from Genesis on Christmas Eve. On Dec. 24, 1968, the Apollo 8 astronauts, orbiting the moon, read passages from the Old Testament Book of Genesis during a Christmas Eve telecast.

Dec. 25, George Washington crosses the Delaware. On Dec. 25, 1776, Gen. George Washington and his troops crossed the Delaware River for a surprise attack against Hessian forces at Trenton, New Jersey, during the American Revolutionary War.

Dec. 26, tsunami kills hundreds of thousands in Asia. On Dec. 26, 2004, more than 230,000 people, mostly in southern Asia, were killed by a 100-foot-high tsunami triggered by a 9.1-magnitude earthquake beneath the Indian Ocean.

Dec. 27, Soviets forces seize Afghanistan. On Dec. 27, 1979, Soviet forces seized control of Afghanistan. President Hafizullah Amin (hah-FEE’-zoo-lah ah-MEEN’), who was overthrown and executed, was replaced by Babrak Karmal.

Dec. 28, U.S. Afghan war formally ends. On Dec. 28, 2014, the U.S. war in Afghanistan, fought for 13 bloody years and still raging, came to a formal end with a quiet flag-lowering ceremony in Kabul that marked the transition of the fighting from U.S.-led combat troops to the country’s own security forces.

Dec. 29, Texas statehood. On Dec. 29, 1845, Texas was admitted as the 28th state.

Dec. 30, Lenin proclaims establishment of the USSR. On Dec. 30, 1922, Vladimir Lenin proclaimed the establishment of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, which lasted nearly seven decades before dissolving in December 1991.