Charles Futrell (0:03) This area that Washington. The editor of the paper,Suellyn Lathrop (0:06) this is an oral history interview with Charles Futrell by conducted by Suellyn Lathrop of East Carolina University. It's August 14, 2003 and we are in Plymouth, North Carolina. Mr. Futrell, if you would tell me a little bit about your family, your parents, your siblings, and what your parents did for a living and growing up in Greenville.Charles Futrell (0:27) Yes, I was born August the ninth of 1920 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, but came to Greenville in October of 1920 my father brought me here as a baby, and we settled in dream when my father became the first superintendent of public welfare in Pitt County in 1920 we lived on 1008 Johnston Street, two Two blocks across into college, almost at the intersection of Third Street and library Street. I lived in Greenville from 1920 until I departed for the service in the United States Army on June 2, 1942 graduated June one, left on june two for the service. My father was originally from Guilford County. My mother from Davey County, North Carolina, and we I did have one brother and one sister. I'm the surviving survivor, the only survivor of the family now in 2003 I've always been close to East Carolina, having lived across the street, so to speak, from the college, grew up with the college, knew most, most of the members of the faculty, taught by two of the original Members, and knew a third original member very well. I was student who attended Greenville High School, and along with a lot of other Greenville High School graduates, of course, went to East Carolina and the friends in Greenville that I had were Greenville at that point. Let me say was population. In population in 1942 was somewhere around 12,000 people. It was still a small southern town, but in terms of the college, when I entered East Carolina on the in the in the fall of 1938 the tuition was $33 a quarter, at which my father had to raise money to send me. He couldn't the job of a county employee. You did not pay a whole lot of money. But in 1938 I believe the enrollment of the school was somewhere around 1100 that can be checked out, but only about 110 or 20 boys, primarily a Girls College, but in living across the street from the school, I could walk back and forth to classes every day, and I knew most, as I indicated, I knew most of the faculty members. I knew Dr Wright, the first president, fairly well, because he would often leave his president's house and come up to Biltmore Street to watch the men on Biltmore street pitch horseshoes. And even as a young boy, I remember on one or two occasions pitching horseshoes with Robert H Wright. He always somewhere I have, if I could find it, a picture Robert H Wright standing and me standing next to him, eating up, eating watermelon. I hope I can find that. But having lived so close to the college, I knew so much about the college, and since my father could not afford to send me any other place, and East Carolina was was close, it was my destiny to go to East Carolina and graduate and going into the service, I had four I had basically let me think back. There were six boys that came out of high school that were fairly close together in terms of age, and we were close friends. There are three of us still living. I'll name those six because the one went the first close friend was John Johnston. Johnston street is named after his family. There's a huge brick house that's probably a part of the college today, probably a fraternity house that's next to the old rotor. Club on on Johnston Street. Well, John Johnston was a close friend, but he was killed. He was the first one of our friends killed in World War Two, flying P 47 Borneo, and then the second good friend was a fellow named Joe Staton, S, T, A, T, O, N. Joe lives at the corner of library Street and Third Street. Joe was a veteran of Iwo Jima, highly decorated. Was actually close to the raising of the Iwo Jima flag that's on your postage stamps. But Joe, Joe was died a few years ago of result of a bad injury. He received in Australia on a tour hit and run. Guy hit him, and he was never healthy after that. And Joe died the third person, as a matter of fact, I'm going is going to see this weekend in Bath. He's Warren parish. Warren Paris's father, Warren parish's father was the host for the horseshoe picking on Biltmore street that Dr Wright used to come down to. And Warren is a highly decorated native pilot flew off the Essex and the enterprise and close friend. He's my longest and oldest friend, because I knew him even before the other other two fellas. And then the other fella is John David Bridgers. John David grew up, I think, on Eighth Street behind the college. And John David's family was a part of the Whichard family, which produced the daily reflector. And John David's Grandfather, I believe it was David Julian. There's a lot of Whichard, and their names are so many names that sound the lake and Thomas Jarvis were probably the two men who had most to do with getting everything going to start. East Caroline. So he's a very knowledgeable fellow, John David and let me see who I'm missing. Here I'm missing Bill Harris, but Bill Bill left Greenville and went into the service. And I did, never saw much of Bill. After that, he was gone, and later ended up, I think, working for Johnson's wax. And I never saw much of him, except when he came back for reunions. You know, these were my boyhood friends that I trimmed around with, went to school with, and so on. And then I still some of my high school teachers of Greenville High School who worked closely with East Carolina, particularly critic teachers. Oh, I have to say that in 1941 I have to bring this in. I was, I majored in history and physical education to East Carolina, two majors. You had to have two major.Suellyn Lathrop (8:08) Oh, that was a requirement? Charles Futrell (8:10) oh yes sir. It was a state supported college called, they called it ECTC, and you had to have the two majors. So So I graduated with those majors in 1942 but in 1941 I was doing double student teaching in Greenville High School. I was teaching modern European history. At the same time I was teaching boys physical Ed. My critic teacher in high school was a man named Cunningham. I think it was CC Cunningham who had married the Greenville High School Band director's daughter, and my critic teacher in PE was Boley Farley. Oh, no, oh, I could talk a much on Bowley. Bowley Farley was my critic teacher and a close friend of my family, because my brother also went through Greenville High School and was a tremendous athlete. And every time I would go back to Greenville over those many, many, many years, I'd go by to see bully Farley and but in 1941 when I was doing the teaching Pearl Harbor came it was on a Sunday. I had been over to the library studying, and there was a Shell gas station across from me on Fifth Street. I always stopped to get a coke or something there, and the radio was on and it was coming in. Gives me gives me chills, Suellyn Lathrop (9:42) straight, yeahCharles Futrell (9:43) so I listened to it and went on home, and my father was there, and he was standing there with tears in his eyes, and he said, we're going to be in this war. Uh, but that was Sunday. But back to the school practice teaching. You must know that on the day of that attack in the school, the whole Trump was war, because everybody was going off the war had been going off to the war. So I did my practice teaching there, and I have great memories of those days and of people. And I occasionally look back, I bet, in my car out there right now. I've got a lot of yearbooks. I occasionally look back to those yearbooks tapering the years 1938 through 42 and recognize faces, and it brings back so many memories. I was pretty active in East Carolina as an athlete, and I played football and baseball. I was injured in football at the beginning of the 1941 season, and couldn't play. That was the undefeated season. John Christian Berry was the coach. Suellyn Lathrop (11:06) Tell me about him? Charles Futrell (11:07) Oh, what a man. John Christian Berry and I were inducted into the East Carolina Hall of Fame at the same time he had been killed in California in a explosion, but his daughter was there, and one look at his daughter's eyes, and I could see John Christian Berry's face. John was a Davidson man. He was a trick guy. His favorite quotation was, you've got to pay the price for success. And he broke down from Brevard, North Carolina. Some of he had formerly coached at Brevard Junior College where I live, incidentally, after that for a number of years, and John coached everything back then, but he was a great guy. I learned a lot from him, and I coached high school sports in Maryland for a lot of years, and I must say that some of the things John Christenberry taught me, I used, and just, just a fine person, never used any word of profanity. And when I was inducted into the Hall of Fame at East Carolina, if I recall, I had some real good comments to make about John Christian Berry and Boley Farley, who was there. Yeah, he was sitting there at my induction. So So I had great members of of both of those fellows. Boley Farley had roomed with Billy Werber, a fellow named Billy Werbach at Duke and Billy went to the majors and played a lot of years, and I was what I was thinking once, of writing when I was doing my master's degree, of writing, doing a thesis on baseball. I didn't but I remember meeting Billy Werber up in Maryland, where he lived and where I coached. And Billy I invited. I made him up in Maryland, and later I invited him to come to an athletic banquet. And first time I'd met him, he said, Well, understand Boley, Farley coached you. I said, Yes. He says, Well, I room with him at Duke. And he said, You ever go across to East Carolina and read his thesis? What I had gone across by that time. And I read his thesis, and he's and Billy Weber said, Well, how was it? I said it was great. Billy said it should be, because I wrote it. That was, that was the classic Billy lives. You may be still living it. So he'd be in his upper 90s, because Boley died. But Boley always for every member of my family. When any one of my family members died, Boley was there high school coach, you know. So I could talk a lot about both of these fellas and incidents of things over the years and so on. Suellyn Lathrop (13:51) But didn't he end up? Farley ended up at ECU coaches, I think my brain,Charles Futrell (13:58) they named that. There's a Harrington and Farley field or something. Then one of the athletic fields on the campus, it's got a name of city park. It's got the Farley in the name,Suellyn Lathrop (14:07) I think, I think later on, he ended up coaching over at ECU Charles Futrell (14:11) he coached me one year baseball at East Carolina with either 39 or 40. I'm beginning to think it was, it was, it had to be four day or 41 because we took a team up to the Norfolk Naval Base baseball to play, and the big battle ships that were sunk at Pearl Harbor were in Norfolk, and we went down and saw and I remember, though they said, I can't eat my breakfast on this navy base, there's too many beans. That's all we have. Is beans and beans. So we went somewhere and got a breakfast. I remember that, but we played the Norfolk. Let me get my story straight. That was spring of 1941, yes, well, it was coaching, and we played the Navy Bay. Now, wait a minute, we played them two years. Okay, okay. Played them in 41 42 Boley coached and in 42 the Navy, at that point in time, had taken in a lot of the major league All Stars into the Navy. Bobby Feller, pitcher for Cleveland, one of the Hall of Fame great guys. And I could name a lot of them that played on Navy base, but we East Carolina played them two games. We always played them two games in naval base, because the Navy, well, the Navy base team did come down in 42 and play every guy, Smith Stadium, yes, because I was playing first base, and former major leaguer named Sam Chapman from the field of Phildephia athletics stepped on my foot, and that ruined me. He'd been an All American football player in California. Anyhow, Boley was there and did Coach it to college.Suellyn Lathrop (15:44) That's what I thought later on, but I didn't know. That's why I recognized the name Charles Futrell (15:49) after all these years. Yeah, I've been out 60 years or so, if I think a little bit these things had comeSuellyn Lathrop (15:56) back and and I think too, I mean, you left in 42 and I think they suspended sports then for the duration of the war. And then I think he came in probably in 46 or 47 is when he starts.Charles Futrell (16:06) I must say this too, I was president of the varsity Club in 42 Yeah,Suellyn Lathrop (16:06) I was gonna ask about, tell me about the varsity. Charles Futrell (16:15) Oh, gosh, well, yeah, I was very active in all four years in the whole sports program I was, I think I have it out in the car. I still have from the varsity club, the old fashioned the old tea, yellow tea. It's, I keep it my trophy case in my home. It's a T says E and small e here, and a small c here and a big T, purple and gold. And of course, we all wore the yellow bars to pull over sweaters, heavy wool sweaters. But when you got to be a letter man, like starting to wear the two and three stripes, you had a white coat sweater. And some of the pictures probably show that I was the I was a second I think I was a treasurer in my junior year and present my senior year, but my vice president in the senior year was Billy green. And Billy Green hung on and graduated in 40 I think he graduated. Yeah, he had to in 1943 But Billy green ended up as a Rear Admiral in the Navy, and he's in the Hall of Fame. And he comes back to him. And Billy, at some point, I understand, was the commander of one of the top submarines the fleet had. And he always comes back to the reunions, and I understand he's now living somewhere down around Grimes land. I knew his wife real well, Virginia Cook, we saw she was pretty girl, and because Virginia Cook was in that class of math, I took when I didn't know anything about math matter why I took a court but Mariah Graham taught it, one of the original faculty members, and so yeah, the varsity Club was we probably had in the pictures, probably, and then you could count them in those years, probably had 16 or 18 members, and We sponsored certain functions like the varsity club, sweetheart dance, big thing on the campus, and the Techo echo paper and local papers really gave out a lot of publicity. We sponsored several dances during the year and several other functions to raise money. And when I was president of Varsity club, I used to have nice conversations with Dr Leon Meadows. And I knew Dr Leon Meadows very well, and I knew his son, Leon Jr, who was a super good tennis player, who always used to be tennis courts up there near the old dining hall. And Leon was always playing there, but the varsity Club was very active club, and every girl on the campus would have given every penny she ever owned to have become the sweetheart. And we never announced it until the night of the dance. Suellyn Lathrop (19:09) Well, and if there were 120 boys and the rest were girls, I bet that was a hard dance to get into. The girls,Charles Futrell (19:16) probably, probably, and I was so much into athletics. And I have to say this, most of people who, well, I guess most of the people in Newark. My high school days are gone. I was my superb in high school. Was the most bashful boy, and here I'm going to go across the street. College just got all these girls, and I was so serious about athletics that I did my best to stay away from the girls, and I don't think I had my first date until I was a junior, and I'd sit in the library and you surrounded with girls and but my friend Joe Staton there original one of the original boys who grew up i. Uh, Joe dated the girl from connected in New York, whose father was a Brain Surgeon and and her name was Bobby grossner, and she was, she was voted the best dress in the senior class Supernaturals. But Joe and I would chum around together, being close friends, and we always taking her out to the eating that kind of stuff. But I never got serious about any girls because I was too serious about athletics, and I think that did me a lot of good in the getting into coaching and get get me through school. I guess I might say, Yeah, but diversity Club is a great club.Suellyn Lathrop (20:38) Let's see. Do you remember growing up? Do you remember how ECTC or et ECTS changed in the ECTC and the changes, how they might have impacted the town, and how aware of you and your family of the activities going on over there before you were in college, did you attend functions and that sort ofCharles Futrell (21:03) thing? Well, as I say, the town had about 12,000 people. Main paper was the data reflector and the rather new than observer. And of course, anything that affected the college was highly publicizing those papers, but the Greenville citizens always supported East Carolina, and they had a great impact on the development of East Carolina, merchants, townspeople, people in the political theater. I watched the changes over all these years, and I used to read a lot of the history on East Carolina. You know, I knew, since it was my school, I was interested in history anyway. And since my uncle was the top historian in the state on state history, and he would often come down to East Carolina and talk to [savvy], to [savvy] Joyner Davis' North Carolina history class he worship Him, because at any rate, I watched the development and watched the addition of new buildings. I remember very clearly when the Flanagan building, I believe it is, it was, was built. The other new buildings, they didn't have a lot of new ones. Back in my days. I can't remember the year the library, which I think later became a Music Building Suellyn Lathrop (22:31) Whicard, that was done in the 20s, 25 I think,Charles Futrell (22:37) well, whatever it was, butSuellyn Lathrop (22:40) that was first built, 25 Charles Futrell (22:41) Well, I guess, I guess I noticed the change when they made it from the music building was a library of, yeah, anyhow, I noticed, I remember that change, Flanagan building. There was another, another building. Oh, gosh, they had an old model school Suellyn Lathrop (23:01) Did you attend that or did you go to greenville public school.Charles Futrell (23:04) I attended the Third Street, Evan Street. These the Evan street school, elementary school which burned down when I was in it. Suellyn Lathrop (23:12) Oh no,Charles Futrell (23:12) yes, in 19, I think it's 1928 in a winter day. And I attended that. And when it burned down, they, they put us into the Greenville High School and makeshift rooms down in the basement, everything while they build a new school out on Third Street to Third Street, Third Street Elementary School, which I went to, and then they had The Training School, which is now something else. It's it's out. Oh, it's out almost off campus, going towards, I'm trying to think back training school building still there. Suellyn Lathrop (23:56) Yeah,Charles Futrell (23:57) it's something else now, Suellyn Lathrop (23:59) well, they turned it into walcotes for a while, and now it's Messick Art Center. Is that the one you're thinking of?Charles Futrell (24:03) Yes, I knew Suellyn Lathrop (24:04) there's been two or three, Charles Futrell (24:05) and I knew both of the Miss coach taught me okay, and wall, Miss wall was a principal. Yeah, can't remember much in the way of buildings now, but I did follow the school its progress through the war by getting newspapers and letters from my parents and friends and and I was aware of all of the changes and the problems that East Carolina had over those years. And I knew, of course, I had known Dr Wright, and then Leah Dr Meadows, and then Dennis Cook came in there. I think he was the one who succeeded Meadows, after all the problems that Dr Meadows had, and I know all about all of those, okay, and then John Decatur Messick, he was a good he was a good man. He came, I was up in Maryland coaching. I spent a career coaching in Maryland, and he. Came up Dr Messick, to start an alumni chapter in DC, and I was a part of that. And Dr Messick my father, were very close friends and members of the same Methodist Church, Jarvis Memorial, but I followed the growth of the college, the changes, their problems always received their publications, so I kept pretty much in touch with it through a lot of years. Yeah,Suellyn Lathrop (25:28) you said you you lived home while you were in school. Did you ever visit the guys in the dorm? Oh, yes, so what? Because I mean it, we hear a lot about what it was like to be a girl in the dorms but not very much about the boys.Charles Futrell (25:42) So I have to say the boys, and I want to make sure I got my buildings named because you had, starting with Austin, you had Wilson, the old red buildings, they were still there. The one across from right behind what was the old library, was where the boy stayed down in the basementSuellyn Lathrop (26:00) is that Ragsdale?Charles Futrell (26:01) Ragsdale, okay. Right across from, yeah, right there, right across from what was a service station on Sheriff station. They now they had the dean of men. I can't remember whether it was Dr McInnis or Dr Rebar comes one of the other I know later on old buddy Jim Mallory came dean of man. But that was a lot of years later. But I'm not I would visit him over there, and I guess what I'm trying to say. I don't know how tight that the school discipline was there or what, but I never noticed. I never noticed any drinking. I'd never heard of drugs, and this was unheard of in those days, but a lot of the boys stayed out in town, roomed. I have a good friend still living in California who's a retired orthopedist of 45 years whose mother came up from Dukeland County and started the boarding house, rooming house for college boys. And we still his friend. We still communicate. I've known him since 1940 but a lot of them roomed out in town, and we didn't have many from out of state. But I remember, I have to say this. I remember my initiation into the varsity club as being very undisciplined, because the type thing they put us through down under the underneath Wright building, there was no faculty supervision of that to my memory, because what some of the things we did would never, never, never have been tolerated today,Suellyn Lathrop (27:34) little bit of hazing?Charles Futrell (27:43) a lot of hazing, I mean, belt Strapping, tough stuff. And we had some very outstanding people go through this college people don't even know about like when their article like Bill Shelton, that name, that name ought to be somewhere in the records, because Bill Shelton was one, if not the best all around athlete that school ever produced four letter a three letter man and played professional baseball, but the big thing in his life was becoming a pilot US Airforce and trained Francis Gary Powers cool to do the youth flight over the Soviet Union in that U-2 and Bill was for Many years the most wanted man in the Soviet Union. His wife, literally, his wife was Lillian, A, B, who lives, who lived in Greenville and went to school with me from grade one up. She was always first in the alphabet, A, B, double E. She married bill and for and when I come back to high school reunions, I'd always sit with Lillian, and she'd always tell me about their life during the service, and after they got back to Greenville, they always had CIA protection bill coached at North fifth High School, and he died, I think, shortly after he retired from coaching here, but he was an outstanding Fellow at East Carolina, and his name ought to be in the record somewhere.Suellyn Lathrop (29:20) i am sure they are. Let me check the tape room, Charles Futrell (29:24) because the single these notes here, because I've got a, I've got, I've got a thing here I call memories. Suellyn Lathrop (29:31) Okay,Charles Futrell (29:32) let me see where it starts. Here's one on, just coaches of East Carolina. Suellyn Lathrop (29:37) Okay,Charles Futrell (29:37) let me see where I got it. Oh, here's, oh, my goodness, Miss Barrett college Secretary, I learned flying airplane, and she was trying to learn that she didn't quite make it, waving at me, you take you want to? Suellyn Lathrop (29:58) Yeah, I was just checking to see what I'll, you know, make sure it didn't run out of us. We're in probably good tech.Charles Futrell (29:59) Is time? Any problem? With you on doing this. Suellyn Lathrop (30:00) When you get tired of doing this, we ran out of tape. Charles Futrell (30:04) Let me look at this thing. It must be on this yellow pad on, just memories,Suellyn Lathrop (30:08) okayCharles Futrell (30:09) let me see what I've got here. Oh, here's some more memories. Oh, I just, I just call this members memories, and I didn't jump these down until just a few weeks ago, so it's a lot of years past. So I think most of them are pretty accurate memories. The Saturday night movies held in the Austin building. They never turned they never turned the town kids away every Saturday night, the May pole ceremonies on the campus every spring colorful event, and I can still picture the girls in their white dresses and wrapping that may pole, knowing every player on the early men's athletic teams. I knew every one of them and attending all of their games. I'm quite sure I was the first Water Boy ever serve at East Carolina University. I was always around those teams. I loved athletics, and they were always behind their old training school. The football field was just a plain old field behind the school. Being one of the first water boys. I just mentioned that my student teaching at Greenville High, which I've indicated, having all of my class, having so many of my classes in Austin Building, most of them that was the classroom, though, the why store in the basement of the Austin building was where you got your cokes and the Hangout type places where no Smoking was evolving, or anything. The interview by Miss Morton, Dean of Women. Suellyn Lathrop (31:43) Now tell me about that.Charles Futrell (31:44) Miss Mormon, Miss more. Miss Morton was a stern disciplinarian, and every person who had a date had to be interviewed by the dormitory supervisor. She's happened to be the dean of allSuellyn Lathrop (32:04) Yeah, she was Dean of Women. Charles Futrell (32:05) Yeah, she was Dean of Women, but she also interviewed. Her office was in cotton cotton Hall, but she always interviewed the guys coming in for dates and the other dorm, what you call them moms or whatever they interviewed in their buildings, but she was she was stern, and I never dated, but I had interviews with her when I went in with my friend Joe Staton, because Bobby gresner was his girlfriend, and I was always with Joe and Bobby, so I was in on sort of the interview. But Miss Morton knew me and my family because my father was superintendent of public welfare and very highly respected man. And they so but she, I remember her as just a very stern person. My many meetings with Dr Leon Meadows Campus Police Chief, Chief Williams. He had one policeman on the campus, Suellyn Lathrop (32:51) yeahCharles Futrell (32:51) and he would walk every night. He had a little time box on heavy set phone, nice guy, Chief Williams. Didn't know his first name, but I can't remember. Suellyn Lathrop (33:05) I think it's James.Charles Futrell (33:07) James Williams was his name,Suellyn Lathrop (33:08) and they called him pop. Apparently, some people didCharles Futrell (33:11) it. Some some did. And I always called him Chief Williams because he had, he had a cousin named Joe who went to East Carolina, was a boxer on one of the earth a boxing town, the college Lake, beautiful lake down which was drained, I guess, I think they might have had a mosquito problem or something, but they drained it and never, never put it back in there. There are pictures in the old yearbooks of college lake, the concert by Risa Stevens and Alan Jones, Mr. Politics and opera stars. They came that they entertain the series. Every year they bring in some top people. They brought in, Eleanor Roosevelt, Amelia Earhart, sir, heard you heard sir. Hubert Wilkins, Arctic explorer, Metropolitan Opera, stars. And these are big events.Suellyn Lathrop (33:51) Did you get to go see Eleanor Roosevelt?Charles Futrell (33:54) Or, Yes, I was there to see that. As a matter of fact, I can remember that she was down there only a few weeks before Pearl Harbor, I think it was late October, early November, and she had a question and answer session. And Wright everything was in Wright, Wright building. And someone stood and said, Well, how close to war? How serious? How close to war are we? Do you think Mrs. Roosevelt? She says, Well, anything is possible, and we're doing the best we can to stay out of it, something like that. But I met her personally years later up in Washington, DC. It was arranged by one of the lawyers in the Nuremberg trials, Charles horsky, who was advisor to President the L.B. Johnson on district affairs. He arranged for me to meet Mrs. Roosevelt at some function, all of the memories, all of ours, the varisty games I was in and traveling on the busses, Mr. Rick's bus all over Carolina and up into Virginia. You may still have a bus service down there. I don't know all of the coaches from 1933 on. Starting with Mr. Beatty, who founded football at Easter, who was the first coach, right? He was a city manager in Greenville. My long friendship with Dr E.L Henderson, who died, I think he was 104 he was a close friend of my father, close hunting buddy. And many times I've been hunting with my father, Dr Henderson over here in the Roanoke hunting grounds, round a group and tell meSuellyn Lathrop (35:22) tell me a little bit more about him. Charles Futrell (35:24) Oh, what a man. Dr Henderson was head of the Department of Administration and Supervision. Dr Henderson taught education 325, which I think every student in East Carolina had to take, because it was a teacher's college called Principles of education. And Dr Henderson was a very strict professor and said what he believed. And this led to the great problem that arose between Dr Henderson and other professors and Dr Meadows. But Dr Henderson was a good teacher. I never made better than a C for him, and I didn't deserve better than a C, but I would. And when, years after, many years after I left East Carolina, when I got back, I'd always go by to see him in his house, he lived to be I think it was 100 40s, white wife lived to be 99 his name was Sula, and he's told me many times a whole Meadows story,Suellyn Lathrop (36:27) and what was his take on it?Charles Futrell (36:29) Oh, well, of course, the whole thing, I think, was that, Dr Meadows, I think you're got the funds of the college intertwined with his personal funds, and they could never seem to unravel it. And Dr Henderson, there were some other issues involved in the college. I'm sure that led to some differences of opinion between Dr Henderson and some and who the other professor, Dr Flanagan, Suellyn Lathrop (37:01) one of them was Barker,Charles Futrell (37:03) Herbert re Barker, there were several in there, and a little and a little, a little friction developed between that group of professors and Dr Meadows. And then the financial problem arose, and it all led to, of course, the trial with FC, Harding and judge Dunn as the attorneys for Dr Meadows. FC Harding had been on the Board of Trustees and was a friend of a colleague of Dr Meadows and so on. Anyhow, Dr Henderson, I have to tell you this how we, I say we, my friend Warren Parrish, which I'm going to see this afternoon, the friend I've known longer than of the others who live in Bath. We would always when I when, when we were together in a car, anytime we came to Greenville together, anytime I'd visit Warren and Bath, we'd go to Greenville to visit Boley, Farley, Dr Henderson, always those two last time I saw Dr Henderson, he was about 102 pulled up in his yard. There was a ladder up against the tree, and he was up on almost the top of that ladder. And I said he was already hard of hearing, so I said, Dr Henderson, what are you doing? And he couldn't hear us, but he planned down slowly. I said, What are you doing up at the top, on top of that ladder? He says, I got to kill the gypsy moths. So we went in and had a nice, long chat. And every time I ever went to see him, he did something, because his favorite expression was that something happened that tripped up Dr Meadows, and I can't remember what that was, but he Oh, he was always so proud of the fact that after he retired and became the oldest living ex professor, he was always so crowned that East Carolina honored him. Suellyn Lathrop (37:03) Well, that's good, because not being around when all of that happened and reading about it, it was almost like ECU kind of tripped over themselves when they realized that he was in town and that he was turning 100 and the administrators, it was kind of like, brought to them, and they hadn't been there when all that stuff had happened, and they didn't realize that they were like, kind of like, okay, do something quick, you know. And I always wondered if he was, you know, that was good. Charles Futrell (38:36) And probably nobody else remembers it like this, but he was so proud that they recognized him and his family. His wife had died, and his son, Kenneth was was a good friend of mine, but not one of my real close friends. He was very tough disciplinarian, and I remember him so well. Let me go on some of these other things, my friendship with Dr Messick, the Vesper services held late Sundays in front of the Wright building. As a young boy, I would I was often I played the high school band and the college band. Played a trumpet. I was always asked to play taps, to stand up on the top of the Wright building, overlooking the entrance, and play taps because they formed. Vesper group down around the circle there, and in that little circle area, I remember that very well. Suellyn Lathrop (40:05) and they did that every Sunday night?Charles Futrell (40:08) to my memory. And I did, I did a lot of times.Suellyn Lathrop (40:11) I wasn't aware it was everyCharles Futrell (40:12) the weekly chapel services in Austin, Suellyn Lathrop (40:15) okay,Charles Futrell (40:16) I think they were once a week, and you had an assigned seat, and if you missed twice, I don't you were severely disciplined, you better be in there for chapel services. Suellyn Lathrop (40:25) Now, when Wright was president, it was every dayCharles Futrell (40:28) yes, but I wasn't in school back right? Died in 1933 and I went to his funeral and was held in Wright building, which was not named for him. Suellyn Lathrop (40:36) Right? Charles Futrell (40:37) Memories of the CAA pilot training program. In the summer of 1941 we flew 65 horsepower Piper Cubs that were eight in the class. Most of them became military pilots, including the two I'm going to see this weekend. Suellyn Lathrop (40:53) Now, did you did you end up being a pilot? Charles Futrell (40:55) Or no, I was a physical training instructor in the in the Air Force. I went in. I went in to be pilot, but the eye problem kept me out of the neighbor, and they were with me. They wouldn't take me. But the Air Force, they were not as strict in their examination. The Navy was strict. So I went in, the Army, Air Force, and I went through, let me see. I went through four weeks in Nashville, Tennessee, and a holding program because so many people getting in, they had to hold them for a while before they placed them. Then they sent me to, I think it was either 10 or 12 weeks to Maxwell field, Alabama, and pre flight training, pre flight and this was all the tough military West Point stuff. It's tough. I never got into the demerits. I was a good student, and they put me in a room with two Greenville North Carolina boys, which I knew, Tom Wilson, whose father ran a clothing store, and Wilbur white, Wilbur, Wilbur Brown. Anyhow, I went through that. And then they sent me to Jackson, Mississippi to fly these, PT-17 steerman open cockpit airplanes. I've got all that. And this other thing on my life history, and I went through, I think, 60 hours flying those pyramid steerman PT, seven teens. He had civilian flight instructors in those schools, and then they sent me up to Bainbridge, Georgia. The steermans were 225, horsepower, and send me up to Bainbridge supply a heavy aircraft, low wing, Bolt 15 or something, volt, and I was almost ready to get out of there when they decided that they didn't think I'd make a good pilot yet. My Yeah, no, but I never had an instructor. I never had a family instructor, plus the fact that they had given me another eye exam. And I think the combination of the fact that I had a I still had a bad eye, I've got it right now, but macular degeneration, I think it was a combination of factors that they decided that I shouldn't for my military however, they wanted me to go to plains view, Texas and Fly Light planes, slower planes, to spot artillery fire for the field artillery. And I just told them I didn't want any part of it. So I so then they put me in physical training, where I stayed for the rest of the war, and I was in tremendous physical condition as a train, as a as a trainer, and I played baseball and the post teams in the service and all that. And then I became a coach when I got out. Okay, I've already mentioned Bill Shelton, who later became a U-2 pilot, the leadership of Mr. Tabor and Mr. Dittman, the Early College bands. The tennis match is held on the tennis courts between faculty members, particularly Dr Hayes. Dr Hayes, I think it was psychology or education, psychology and Leon meadows, Jr, the speed bumps the campus used to have. They had a lot of speed bumps hidden people from flying through the campus. Suellyn Lathrop (43:38) Now they've just closed all the roads theCharles Futrell (43:50) crowning of the varsity club sweetheart. I've mentioned that playing baseball against the Norfolk Naval base in the major leaguers. Mrs. La centers boarding house on Biltmore. Mrs. La Center's boarding house across from where the horseshoe pain went on. Many of the college professors would would come there for their night meal. He didn't board too many, but she fed a lot, and oh my gosh, I could name, oh, my goodness, so many of them who came there, including Mamie Jenkins, on the first faculty. See, I knew Mamie Jenkins, Mariah Graham, Sally Joyner Davis, Sally jordynne taught me history. Mariah Graham, math, and I was in Dr poses English class. I was not never maidens, going back most years to the Hall of Fame weekend, I still do that, watching the first varisty football game. And I can't remember who it was against. I think it was against the North Carolina State freshman. I'm not sure. But East Carolina lost the death of OD Andrews, the first East Carolina or. Student killed in World War Two. He was in Rocky Mount, a new OD, the old study hall located under Austin. You'd always study down there before you went up for your class. The old model school, they tore down and at one point to have an old bowling alley under the old dining hall. But I don't think it was ever too active. My friendship with Miss Agnes Barry, President. He was Secretary of several presidents. Agnes bears Suellyn Lathrop (45:25) six, I think at least six or, seven. Charles Futrell (45:28) Well, she was in the flying class with us, but she didn't make it. She see. She just, she was just never be a flyer. She used to send me yearbooks. I got a bunch of them in the car out there. Yeah, going back. Well, she wasn't, I don't think she was there in 1923 but I've got the 23 year book, The 33 year book, the 34, year book, and all yearbooks from 38 through 43 and I've got one or two that are up in this later years that Mrs. That Miss Barrett sent to me. I remember Miss alga Ross, the registrar, Dr ree Barker. My favorite teacher in the campus was a professor of history, A D Frank, and heSuellyn Lathrop (46:08) was there a long time. Charles Futrell (46:09) Oh yes, he was so he was always very interested in me, because he interested in me because I played sports. He was a World War One veteran, and I wanted to major in history, and he taught me several courses. The last time I saw Dr Frank, many years later, he practiced with the line. When I just told him my name, he started to cry. He was a great guy, and he thought, of course, on the course in history, World War One, of course,Charles Futrell (0:02) Hey, Dr, a D Frank was a fine professor, and he taught a class in on current news in in the auditorium in Austin, as a lecture on current news because, back in those days and didn't have television, and why the students didn't listen to much news on Radio. But you could it was a one hour one credit course, or something like that. Maybe, I think it's a one credit course. And he, he was good at that, and so I think I took even extra ones just to hear his lectures, the Armistice Day barbecues under Wright building. The big thing, yeah, because there were a lot of World War One veterans who were not too old in 1933 and 34 since the war ended in 1918 and I always went to them, the green will people were very much involved with college activities, and the college accepted them. They never turned us away from things. We were invited to everything. Walter Latham later a principal of Pitt, County of Pitt, North Pitt High School. Walter Latham unpaired virtually all the baseball games I was I played in in four years at East Carolina, I put in my minutes. Always thought he was a good umpire, because he always gave me good call. And when I was inducted into the Hall of Fame, he wrote a letter on my behalf. I remember him, and of course, I mentioned here John Christian bear, the Old North Pitt County Hospital on Johnson Street. It's a white building, and it's, I know what it is now, but at one point was the was the welfare office. But my father had an office in it. He was a superintendent. I remember that doing so well. Let's see now I'm skipping down here, some of these I've read. I'm skipping. I've mentioned some of these. The out I remember very well the algebra class taught by Ryan Graham.Suellyn Lathrop (2:05) Now, what was she like as a teacher, Charles Futrell (2:07) strict.Suellyn Lathrop (2:08) I think everybody. Weren't theyCharles Futrell (2:09) all, I don't believe I saw too many pictures of faculty members following when they were smiling.Suellyn Lathrop (2:15) YeahCharles Futrell (2:15) and I didn't see many pictures in my old yearbooks of many students who were smiling. You look in their hair book, everybody's stirring. They're stirring. Let me tell you, everything was tight ship. Some of these I've already talked about why I'm sticking through here again, when the city swimming pool on Fifth Street across from the old high school was in use. But when integration came in, the segregation came in, they closed. It paved. It made a parking lot, maybe a parking lot today they swim in there, but it was right where the on the edge of the campus walking, when you walk towards downtown, you'd walk right by it. Oh, and there was a little drug store named Pleasants drug store right on the edge of the campus, which the college students could stop and get a coke and going downtown to go to one of about three major women's stores. [Cee Be before's Cee Be before], blooms and Brent Harvey, they were where the girl got there clothes. The freshman class of 1933 had, and I guesstimated by looking at the picture, 75 students. That's probably about right. The freshman class of 2003 over 3400Suellyn Lathrop (3:43) no place to put them.Charles Futrell (3:45) The present president's house on Fifth Street was purchased from Red Young who ran a hotel and a store down on Dickinson Avenue. And my brother in Greenville, younger than me, David Red's daughter, and he used to go to the what's now the president's home. That's where they live. And the college bought that from from Red young and Dr met the French college president's house was right across from that main entrance of wooden house. I've been in there a lot of times. I knew the families of everyone living on Fifth Street, every family on both ends of Fifth Street, even the in the fifth West. Fifth Street passed downtown, going west. I knew them all. I grew up with Greenville. I knew everybody. The original woman's Well, I've got them that the original women's dormitories were Wilson, Jarvis, cotton Ragsdale and Fleming, did i miss any? Suellyn Lathrop (4:41) yeah,[inaudible] dorms . Charles Futrell (4:42) yeah. [inaudible] uhh I remeber The Philadelphia Athletics baseball team played came through in 1938 playing the Williamsport grades to play out against Miss Faden, but they came up to the college to use the college facilities. They. Name is Wright building to take a shower, but Wright building, I don't think they had showered. They had them. They didn't work but, but they didn't have adequate facilities to entertain the Philadelphia athlete, scoring, oh, I said my own case, scoring one part in a football game. I kept an extra point against Afro Latin once and already indicated, always hanging around breasted teams with a young boy. I could name them today. Oh gosh. Let me see what else. These were, just some of the memories. They're probably all kind of things in here that I'd have to big out, you know, but it might be I've even listed all of the old teachers I can remember. I just, I just wrote them down. I remember Dr Hildreth history, great teacher, Dr Flanagan, when he was economics. Miss Davis. I only joined Davis history, original teacher, Mr. EC holler. They always called him Dr Holly, but he was never had his doctor. But what school with high school with his son, daughter, he was a great teacher. He taught ancient history. Miss Greene. She taught me English twice. Miss Mary Greene Yeah, I understand later the year, she was burned up in a house fire in Greenville Suellyn Lathrop (6:19) Yeah, that is very tragicCharles Futrell (6:20) Yeah. Dr Meredith Neil Posey came from Texas. His first room was next to my mother and father's house on Johnston Street, and that's where I met him. Meredith Neil posing his wife was Lillian Ott, and she was related to the great baseball player, Mel Lott, who was an old time major league very famous player, Dr Hill Henderson, Miss Compton Education. Dr Brandt science, always holding a snake in his he was made with snakes and girls. I mean, he the girls always afraid of the snakes, but Dr Brandt was a little guy that good Auntie him ever taught me when I knew him very well. Dr, brown geography. Dr Adams, psychology, Dr Wilton, science. Miss Graham rather a frank Porter. Graham mayor, Miss Gorrell, piano. She didn't teach me, but I knew her. Dr remark to math. Oh golly, I could go on and on. ML Wright, I just quitted it. I have many memories of so many things. Oh, Mr. Here's some Mr. Brown geography professor, RC deal. Look his picture up in there. He looks like the old professor. He always had this glass with one eye, and he taught French. He was head of the French department. And I knew his daughter real well, Mary Agnes, who she majored in elementary she became an elementary teacher. Dr slay, science. Mr. Cummings. Suellyn Lathrop (7:46) What do you remember about Dr slide? Because he kind of, he ended up leaving and kind of just disappeared. And there's not a whole lot about him.Charles Futrell (7:55) Thing I remember most was that Dr Slade never had, I think, real good health. His son became the dean of man at Duke I never had the course under Dr slay, but I knew him real well. He was a great bird hunter. He and some of the other professors used to hunt birds, and they'd always start down there near the college power plant. And I guess he had bird dogs. They must have kept bird dogs down there somewhere or something. But I never knew a whole lot about Dr slay, except I remember his health was not good. Had a real red face. Oh yes, I did. He came in and lectured two or three times to one of my science classes, as I guess a distant teacher or something. Remember him. I remember him pronouncing the word duodenum or do I die him? And I never, couldn't, never, didn't know which way he pronounced it, but I never thought I was pronouncing that right. I remember he associate him with that word, but I did, you know, I didn't know him real well. You know, I'm just looking down, Suellyn Lathrop (8:55) okay, Charles Futrell (8:55) just sort of thinking.Suellyn Lathrop (8:57) But now you were in band, pretty much. Charles Futrell (8:59) I was only in band, mostly the first year, and then I got too deeply involved. Well, we had a band, and then the second year, I think, they started an orchestra under Mr. Ditmar al Dittmer.Suellyn Lathrop (9:09) Did you play a lot of concerts on campus? Did you tour any?Charles Futrell (9:11) No, we never toured anywhere. I remember when we got the first band uniforms, and I thought, I thought they were horrible looking. They had a little cloak. I mean, I felt so out of place. But I was pretty good solo. I was pretty good trumpet player. Trumpet player. I played first solo chair in high school. There's another good so good trumpet player named we have two good trumpet players. I would happen to be one of them. So they wanted me in the orchestra too well, but I gradually phased out. So into athletics. I've got, this is mostly stuff like military years. My career in Maryland was quite a good one when I got out of the service. I have, I think I tell people, I think God has blessed me in so many ways I can indicate things that just crystallize are crystal clear to me today. Uh, I have to be a Methodist. My people were Methodists. I'm going to a Methodist Church in Florida now, and I often do the prayer devotionals, and I've done some. I did one on my father and what he did for Pitt County. He probably has done more for Pitt County than any man ever did. I ever will do in helping the poor people in this county, that's a whole story itself, no matter what you ended up but I'm blessed to have a good family, good career, many good friends, longevity. I turned 83 sole survivor of the family, and I was blessed to have met in the service, Army medical doctor by the name of Howard a Rusk, r, u, s, k, who happened to be a close friend of Harry Truman from St Louis. Well, Dr Rusk was head. What was in, I don't remember the department he worked out of the Pentagon. I was stationed at bowling air base at one point adjacent to Washington, and I was in fit. I had shifted to physical rehabilitation from the regular physical routine, training routine, and this is why I think I'm blessed. Dr Rusk asked me he would come over to bowling, and he started pick me out, and he asked me to help him set up 286 rehabilitation hospitals do the not the book work, but the compiling of things needed in that program right there in bowling air base to be shipped all over the United States. Meanwhile, I got to know his wife and his two boys real well. One of the boys was a patient in the hospital I was attached to where Dr Russ became a good friend, and when time came for me to get out of the service, Dr Russ said, Would you like to come with me? Would you like to remain with me in this entire field of medical rehabilitation. He says, I can, I think I can put you in any veterans hospital in the United States you want to go to. He was Chief Consultant to the Veterans Administration and Chief Consultant to the Bellevue Hospital in New York. Often you see a piece on Reader's Digest written by Howard a rust I said, Dr Rusk, I call him, I call him. I call him. I never called him Howard. He's a full colonel. How was it? I don't know whether I can think of calling him, Dr Rusk. I said, Dr Rusk. I went to a teacher's college. I trained to be a teacher, but I want to be a coach. So he went his way, and I went mine. And for years we communicated, and I'm sure he's dead now, but it changed my life in terms of the fact that it put me into coaching, and I got into coaching and teaching, and stayed in it for entire career, and had some very highly successful football teams in Maryland, and even after I finished my first Iron Man contest, I've done six of those, and if they rated triathletes and senior triathletes in the world, I'd have to be one of the first three for men over 80 and and I've done over 350 road races, including marathons and right at 70 triathlons, including six in Calero corner. But taking the athletic path, it started me here and but in terms of going back to reunions, I I would be called back to Laurel High School, Maryland, where I coached for the high school reunions as the old coach, and they called me Back in 1993 in July, they had telephoned me make months early, and they still call me coach. And these guys are retired, whereas I prayed on my 49, 50 and 51 team, they still call me coach and asked me to come up. We wanted to have a day for me. And Laurel the mayor proclamation had a big thing in the city park, and they raised an enormous sum of money and handed it to me. So Coach, you never got paid for coaching high school football. It's a little late weigh us in. Thank you. And so that's he'll communicate with him. I get Christmas cards and I get letters from him and up and of the better 100 people who showed up for that first, I called it a celebration in the park. I sent everyone a full page cover picture of my finish line in the World Championship Iron Man in hamahi. So, so I've made a lot of friendships over the years that that's a real blessing, you know? So I saw, I'm I feel real blessed to be here good health, getting ready to do some big events, I mean, and hoping I can go to Portugal next year, do the World Championship. I'm turning down going to Queenstown, Queenstown, Australia, this decent, because I'm going to remain in Florida and do this Senior Games, because it might produce a major, major expanse, because they aren't too many men over 80 and. World doing this real vigorous stuff, and I know that the East Carolina athletic department has been in my corner. Yeah, no question about them, sure, yeah. But I do have so many memories of Greenville and East Carolina, and it's East Carolina is never too far out of my mind. That's good. And the athletic department, particularly the cross country. What's the coach's name? I forgot.Suellyn Lathrop (15:22) I don't know.Charles Futrell (15:23) Weldon. Anyhow, they always sending me nice shirts and such stuff.Suellyn Lathrop (15:30) Let me go back to ECTC.Charles Futrell (15:33) oh ECTCSuellyn Lathrop (15:35) It does according to the yearbook, you served as secretary for the class your junior year and ended up being president of the class.Charles Futrell (15:42) Oh, the Western club. Suellyn Lathrop (15:42) Oh, is that? What that? Charles Futrell (15:42) Yeah, the Western club. No, I've never a class president. Suellyn Lathrop (15:45) Okay, I misunderstood.Charles Futrell (15:46) I was only an average student and everything except the physical event history. Now make super grades because I like them. Suellyn Lathrop (15:54) Yeah, that makes a difference. Um, let's see what else I had on here. Just in case, visit. Well, it does, okay. Now it does say you refer to the International Relations club. Charles Futrell (16:06) Yes.Suellyn Lathrop (16:06) NowCharles Futrell (16:06) I don't remember a whole lot about the International Relations club, and I don't remember if you mentioned the name. I know the sponsor. Was it? Dr holler, Mr. Holler, or someone else their pictures and what these air. But yeah, I was never very too active and thatSuellyn Lathrop (16:20) kind of stuff. Okay, do you remember? Well, you probably do after Pearl Harbor. What was the mood on campus? Did the guys just get up and enlist, or did they wait?Charles Futrell (16:34) A lot of them did.Suellyn Lathrop (16:37) A lot of some of the teachers I knowCharles Futrell (16:39) left, yes, but I don't know what. I don't remember what teachers left. Some of them, I think, might have been in the military reserve and had to go, but those who were near graduation, they let them remain like me. And some of the guys were leaving like this, fellow OD Andrews from Rocky Mountain, he was one of the early ones that left, and he was first one killed. I The mood was very somber mood. I mean, everything changed. It's sort of like 7/11 seven, 9/11, everything changed. The mood changed. Then we would the the government was getting into rationing, food, rationing everything, because we knew that the college would be greatly affected, like no athletics during the war. And I don't know too much about what the curriculum was during the war, and how they changed that, I don't,Suellyn Lathrop (17:42) I don't know that it changed that much, like I said, I know they suspended athletics altogether. There just wasn't anybody, nobody meet teams. And it's really odd, because earlier, like in the 20s, in that girl, women's athletics was more prominent, and then it and then it kind of went away. Charles Futrell (18:04) Well, it wasn't more intramural. They didn't have any any skill. That's just the intercollegiate,Suellyn Lathrop (18:06) no, but they were more they had a basketball tournament every Thanksgiving, but it was all the girls, and so that kind of went away. They started the men's teams in the 30s and 40s, and then that one away, and then all the GIS coming back, got it all that started up again. Charles Futrell (18:24) I'll tell you another effect though the war, or the days of the war, had on it was service men based in camps like chair point or Jacksonville and Goldsboro. They eventually ended up marrying a lot of EC girls.Suellyn Lathrop (18:39) Did they come up on the weekends or anything? Yeah, like that.Charles Futrell (18:42) Could come up on weekends, or get three day passes, or whatever they did. Because I know in the early part of the war, even, gosh, even while I was still there, there were service guys coming to the campus, dating girls, coming from all these military places.Suellyn Lathrop (18:57) You told me what your favorite teacher was? What was your favorite class?Charles Futrell (19:01) AD, Frank, my favorite class. I can tell you the professor that taught me more than any other professor in one course was R L hildrf, who taught me one course in modern European history. He never used a note. He gave a pop quiz every single morning. He he knew his history. He was a family friend. I learned more history from him, on modern history than than I did from any others. And I liked him. Oh, of course. I enjoyed Sally Joyer Davis, and I enjoyed ad Frank and I enjoyed some of my other professors. They were the three basic ones. Sally taught simply North Carolina. Ad taught several histories, and Howard taught several different ancient, medieval, modern goes, but he's the one. That taught me the I thought, I thought he was the best teacher ever here, great.Suellyn Lathrop (20:05) Well, that's everything I had. There's anything else you want tosay? Charles Futrell (20:08) I'm just thinking, Yes, I'd like to certainly thank both of you for coming over here to interview me, because I do have a closeness and a fondness for East Carolina. I want to continue to go back to Hall of Fame weekends, because I get to see some of the real old timers, like Jimmy Johnson, four letter man, Billy green retired. These memories. These are people I've known and bring and of course, takes me back to those days when I knew them so well and so on. So again, thank you for coming over and spending spending the timeSuellyn Lathrop (20:47) with next time you over, come over the library and we'll show you some stuff in the archives.Charles Futrell (20:51) Yes, I know that's my uncle Hugh Thomas left for his books. He's his one wide volume history of North Carolina. Understand from is the only one ever written. They tell me it's always on the governor's desk, okay, but yes, I stopped in there. I have never been in the new Suellyn Lathrop (21:08) Oh it's gorgeousCharles Futrell (21:09) library. How many volumes do they have in there?Charles Futrell (21:12) Over a million, over a million, like 1,000,200,000Charles Futrell (21:17) I remember when UNC Chapel Hill only had a half a million.