August 15, 1930 – May 12, 2014
Resided in Ferguson, NC

Monday, May 12, 2014, marked the passing of Edith Ferguson Carter, a loving mother, art educator, community leader, conservationist, historian and friend. She made her home in Ferguson at her grandfather Captain Lindsay Ferguson’s home place. Ms. Carter passed away at Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem after recently being diagnosed with cancer.

She was born on August 15, 1930, in Caldwell County to T.W. Ferguson and Edith Kyles Ferguson and eventually moved back to the Ferguson family farm “River Plains Farms” in Ferguson, N.C. From an early age, Edith expressed interests in the visual arts as well as in farming. She attended college at Southern Methodist in Dallas, Texas, The Art Students League in New York City, RPI ( now Virginia Commonwealth University) in Richmond, Virginia and Appalachian State University where she earned her BS degree in art education. She worked for many years as a graphic designer. In the 1950’s she illustrated the story of Tom Dooley, a story which fascinated her for the rest of her life. She has illustrated stories from North Carolina history and made them into discs for public school use. She has also illustrated several books. Ms. Carter taught art in the Wilkes County and the Caldwell County School system. She retired from West Caldwell High School in Lenoir. In the 1960’s she was director of art for the Lenoir City Schools. Three times she was named teacher of the year in the Caldwell County School system.

Ms. Carter was an active and lifelong member of the Beaver Creek Advent Christian Church in Ferguson, helped in teaching Sunday School and at one time directed the youth programs. She also played organ and piano for services. She helped organize the Ferguson Fire Department and was involved with the Ferguson Community Organization and also the Ferguson Homemaker Extension Club. Following in her father’s footsteps, she wrote the Ferguson Community News column for the Wilkes Journal-Patriot for decades. She served on the Wilkes Telephone Membership Corporation and the N.C. State Grange Insurance Company Boards. Ms. Carter has been active as a Wilkes Chamber of Commerce leader. In addition, she taught private art classes and was involved with the operation of running a farm with her husband of 54 years, G. Hill Carter.

One of her life passions started when she began “collecting” old buildings and moving them to their farm. Before long, she had established Whippoorwill Academy and Village where she created an educational experience for thousands of school children and a draw for tourism with visitors coming from all over the world. Weddings were, and are continuing, to be held at the farm. Her favorite day of the year was the Daniel Boone Day Event, a celebration of this pioneer who lived at three different home sites in Ferguson. The event also focused on the talents of local artists, crafts people, dancers, and musicians which gave visitors the opportunity to experience weaving, blacksmithing and farm life from a long time past. She provided a place where local people could sell their jams, jellies and pickles. Admission to the event was always canned food to give to a local charity kitchen and money donations for a children’s home.

Edith Carter wanted one more building to be added to her village and a memorial fund has been set up for making her final wish a reality. Her daughters, their husbands and children plan to keep the village operating.

Mrs. Carter also helped establish the Over Mountain Victory Trail Association and the Daniel Boone Heritage Trail and served on the Wilkes Heritage Museum board. She received the Paul John Barringer Jr. and Sr. Award of Excellence from the N.C. Society of Historians in 2011. Several years ago, she was also honored by the Daughters of the American Revolution for her contributions to preserving history.

In the 1960’s, Edith Carter began an exhibition opportunity for artists and craftsmen in Blowing Rock. This event became known as Art in the Park. She directed these shows for nearly thirty years. In the early 1960’s, Edith Carter became one of the founders of the Wilkes Art Gallery in North Wilkesboro. She was the last living founder of this wonderful art organization. Edith Carter was active with the Wilkes County Democrat Women’s Organization.

Her honors included being chosen as the N.C. State Grange Woman of the Year and Grand Marshal for the Wilkes County Christmas Parade. She was the Grange Arts and Crafts Director for 25 years. In 2012 she was chosen as the Rotary Citizen of the Year in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina.

When she married G. Hill Carter, they moved to the Captain Lindsay Ferguson home in Ferguson, N.C., where they reared two daughters: Margaret (also an art educator) is married to Dick Martine and Sharon (a Family Consumer Science educator) is married to the Reverend Roger Underwood. Mrs. Carter was blessed with three grandchildren: Maggie Minton, Caleb and KT Underwood; two bonus grandchildren, Joe and Jennifer Martine; and also two great grandsons, Maddox Marley and Gavin Martine.

One of the things that Mrs. Carter was most pleased about was preserving the Ferguson family farm, which has been in the family since the 1700’s. She put the farm in a farmland preservation and conservation easement program to protect the land from future development. She was very concerned about the loss of farmland in North Carolina.

Family friend, Tony Deal recently wrote a short story about Edith Carter in which a character said: “There is no way we could explain to you who Edith was. Words simply won’t work. You have a better chance of describing a sunset to a blind man or helping a deaf person feel the passion of Doc Watson’s guitar than you have of limiting Edith Carter to one page, online obituary… and that one will never know how to describe Edith Carter until his life is touched by an Edith Carter.”

Family and friends will gather at the Ferguson family cemetery in Ferguson on Friday, May 16, 2014 at 3:30 across from the Beaver Creek Advent Christian Church on highway 268. The Reverend David Blythe will officiate the service. The family will receive friends following the service at the Whippoorwill Academy and Village. Pallbearers will be Allen Finley, Cam Finley, Rocky Mackintosh, Tom Mackintosh, Jim Mackintosh, Buzz Mackintosh, Andy Mackintosh, Paul McCabe, Chris Privette and Willie Underwood.

Memorials may be made to: Whippoorwill Academy/ Building Fund, PO Box 458, Ferguson, N.C. 28624 or to the Beaver Creek Advent Christian Church Cemetery Fund at PO Box 268, Ferguson, N.C. 28624