Join Dave the Teen Librarian and the Dewey Decimal Sisters for this in-depth discussion about the importance of local history. Guest Borrower, L. Mac Whatley, the Randolph County History Librarian at Asheboro Public Library has spent years writing books, recording, filling in the gaps and teaching local Randolph County History. We discuss the importance of local history, the context it provides and the identity and self-awareness that genealogical research can lend to those willing to plummet into the rabbit hole of family history. Mac also regales us with some events from local history as well, shedding light on the dusty pages of local Revolutionary and Civil War history as well as what it was like to work in one of the local textile mills, death and funeral rituals and the power of local newspapers for recording detailed local history.
L. McKay Whatley is a Randolph County native and lifelong resident. Born in Asheboro in 1955, he graduated from Asheboro High School and Harvard University. Whatley is the author of The Architectural History of Randolph County, published in 1985 and the book Randolph County, North Carolina. He is the County History and Genealogy Librarian at Asheboro Public Library. He's also head of the Randolph Room, the county library system's history and genealogical archive. "Mac" served as mayor of the town of Franklinville for 20 years.
He is also the author of the blog, "Notes on the History of Randolph County, NC", an archived and ongoing publication that he has worked on diligently since June of 2007.