What happened in Fayetteville 50, 100 and even 270 years ago? We'll mark these events in 2024

The Fayetteville Observer
Updated ·10 min read
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As we embark upon a new year, let's take a look at some of the major events that happened five, 10, 20 and even more than 200 years ago.

In 2024 we'll celebrate the anniversary of Babe Ruth's first professional home run, which happened in Fayetteville, and the release of J. Cole's 2014 Forest Hills Drive album.

But we'll also mark anniversaries of much more solemn or even tragic occasions. Read on for a list of some of the major events that happened in Fayetteville in years past.

2019: 5 years ago

• Fayetteville's Segra Stadium, home of the Woodpeckers baseball team, opened. The Woodpeckers played their first home game at the stadium April 19, 2019.

People carry out a large American flag onto the field during Fayetteville Woodpeckers' opening day at Segra Stadium on Thursday, April 18, 2019.
People carry out a large American flag onto the field during Fayetteville Woodpeckers' opening day at Segra Stadium on Thursday, April 18, 2019.

• Hope Mills elected its first Black town commissioner, Kenjuana McCray, on Nov. 5, 2019. McCray won reelection in 2021 and 2023 and continues to serve as the town's mayor pro tem.

Hope Mills town commissioner Kenjuana McCray.
Hope Mills town commissioner Kenjuana McCray.

• The man accused of kidnapping, raping and murdering 13-year-old Hania Aguilar of Lumberton in November 2018 was indicted on May 6, 2019. Michael McLellan's case is set to go to trial in February.

Celsa Maribel Hernandez Velasquez , mother of Hania Aguilar, stares at Michael Ray McLellan, 34, during his first appearance for the kidnapping and murder of Hania Aguilar on Monday, Dec. 10, 2018, in Lumberton.
Celsa Maribel Hernandez Velasquez , mother of Hania Aguilar, stares at Michael Ray McLellan, 34, during his first appearance for the kidnapping and murder of Hania Aguilar on Monday, Dec. 10, 2018, in Lumberton.

2014: 10 years ago

• On March 20, 2014, the Army court-martialed then-Fort Bragg Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair on allegations he sexually assaulted a female captain who served with him in Iraq, the United States and Afghanistan. The captain testified of a tumultuous, three-year adulterous affair — illegal in the military — with the married Sinclair. It was carried out in three continents and two war zones. Sinclair pleaded guilty to the affair and other wrongdoing but denied the assault allegation. That charge was dropped in his plea bargain. He paid $24,160 in a fine and restitution to the Army, and he was reprimanded and demoted two ranks to lieutenant colonel upon his retirement in the summer of 2019.

Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair, center, along with members of his defense team leave the courthouse after sentencing at Fort Bragg, N.C., Thursday, March 20, 2014.
Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair, center, along with members of his defense team leave the courthouse after sentencing at Fort Bragg, N.C., Thursday, March 20, 2014.

• On April 2, 2014, a body found in the South River was identified as that of Danielle Locklear, a 15-year-old South View High School freshman. A former boyfriend confessed to killing the teen. Locklear had been reported missing weeks before. Hope Mills Police and volunteers searched for the girl, and balloon releases and other events to help bring attention to the case. Malloy was sentenced to at least 25 years in prison in 2016.

Danielle Locklear family members, (left to right) Karen McDonald, Darlene Heegel, Pastor Hester Fisher, Pastor James Simmons, Chena Simmons, Tana Bagget and Darcus Anderson at a Candle Light Memorial held in honor of 15- year-old Danielle Locklear on Wednesday, March 11, 2015, a year after she went missing. Family, friends and supporters met at the bridge over the South River in Autryville.

• In June 2014, the century-old Pinehurst No. 2 golf course was the site of the U.S. Open and U.S. Women's Open. A restoration three years earlier got rid of acres of emerald green rough and brought back its original rustic, sandy layout. The new, more eco-friendly look proved to be a worthy setting for the United States Golf Association's two premier events, garnering glowing reviews from players and organizers. More than 340,000 fans flooded the course and packed the restaurants and hotels of the Sandhills. What they saw was golf history.

Michelle Wie celebrates after sinking her final put on the 18th green of Pinehurst No.2 winning the 2014 U.S. Women's Open, Sunday, June 22, 2014.
Michelle Wie celebrates after sinking her final put on the 18th green of Pinehurst No.2 winning the 2014 U.S. Women's Open, Sunday, June 22, 2014.

• Same-sex marriage became legal in 2014 when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down all bans on such unions. On Monday, Oct. 13, 2014, Shay Davis and Emily Lenning became the first first same-sex couple to legally marry in Cumberland County

Dr. Emily Lenning gets married to Shay Davis in front of the Cumberland County Courthouse Monday, Oct. 13, 2014. They were the first first same-sex couple to legally marry in Cumberland County.
Dr. Emily Lenning gets married to Shay Davis in front of the Cumberland County Courthouse Monday, Oct. 13, 2014. They were the first first same-sex couple to legally marry in Cumberland County.

• Rapper J. Cole, who grew up in Fayetteville and graduated from Terry Sanford High School, released his third studio album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive album on Dec. 9, 2014. The album is named after his childhood home.

A fence has been built around the house rapper J. Cole owns on Forest Hills Drive, off of Cain Road in 2015. Fans had been climbing on top of the house to get pictures taken, to imitate a pose Cole did on the cover of his latest album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive album.
A fence has been built around the house rapper J. Cole owns on Forest Hills Drive, off of Cain Road in 2015. Fans had been climbing on top of the house to get pictures taken, to imitate a pose Cole did on the cover of his latest album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive album.

2009: 15 years ago

In a case that drew national attention, on Nov. 10, 2009, 5-year-old Shaniya Davis was reported missing from her mother's home in the Sleepy Holly Mobile Home Park off Murchison Road. Her body was found in a ditch 100 feet off N.C. 87. An autopsy would reveal the child had been molested and suffocated. The man who killed her, Mario Andretti McNeill, was sentenced to death in 2013. Her mother, Antoinette Davis, whom prosecutors said gave her daughter to McNeill as payment for a $200 drug debt, was sentenced to at least 17 years, six months in prison.

Grave site of Shaniya Davis at the Fayetteville Memorial Cemetery in 2010.
Grave site of Shaniya Davis at the Fayetteville Memorial Cemetery in 2010.

2004: 20 years ago

• More than 200 Fort Bragg paratroopers returned home Nov, 1, 2004, from a nine-week deployment to Afghanistan, where they provided security for the first open election in that country's history. The 222 soldiers of the 1st Battalion of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment were greeted at Pope Air Force Base by a cheering crowd.

• Michelle Theer, who conspired with her soldier lover John Diamond to have her Air Force pilot husband Capt. Marty Theer murdered in 2000, was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to murder on Dec. 3, 2004. The case generated national media attention in part because Michelle Theer fled to South Florida when she came under suspicion. When federal marshals tracked her down, she had recently undergone plastic surgery on her face and was living in a beach apartment at Lauderdale-by-the-Sea under the fictitious name Lisa Pendragon. Theer is serving a life sentence. Diamond was sentenced to life in prison without parole in 2001.

Michelle Theer was escorted to the magistrate's office Wednesday evening, Aug. 14, 2002, by Fayetteville Police Department's Lt. Mike Calfee. She was driven back to Fayetteville from Florida by sheriff's Deputy Dallas Tyree and Deputy Christy Booyer of the Fugitive Squad.
Michelle Theer was escorted to the magistrate's office Wednesday evening, Aug. 14, 2002, by Fayetteville Police Department's Lt. Mike Calfee. She was driven back to Fayetteville from Florida by sheriff's Deputy Dallas Tyree and Deputy Christy Booyer of the Fugitive Squad.

1994: 30 years ago

On March 23, 1994, what is now Fort Liberty suffered one of the deadliest accidents in its more than 100-year history. The 82nd Airborne Division suffered the greatest single-day loss of life since World War II’s Battle of the Bulge. Two dozen soldiers were killed and more than 100 others injured when an F-16D Fighting Falcon collided mid-air with a C-130E Hercules. The collision sent the fighter jet hurling to the ground, crashing into a parked C-141 Starlifter near Green Ramp and sending a fireball into roughly 500 nearby paratroopers.

A C-141 transport plane is shown on March 23, 1994 after an F-16 fighter plane hit the parked plane on the Pope Air Force Base flightline. Twenty three 82nd Airborne Division soldiers were killed in the accident and others died later from severe burns.
A C-141 transport plane is shown on March 23, 1994 after an F-16 fighter plane hit the parked plane on the Pope Air Force Base flightline. Twenty three 82nd Airborne Division soldiers were killed in the accident and others died later from severe burns.

1984: 40 years ago

On Aug. 5, 1984, a fire destroyed the abandoned Belk-Hensdale department store in downtown Fayetteville. Firefighters battled the blaze for more than two hours. At the time Fayetteville fire officials theorized that the fire was set by “derelicts” to cook food. The homeless sometimes used the building for shelter, although its doors and windows had been boarded up.

On Aug. 5, 1984, a fire destroyed the abandoned Belks-Hensdale department store on Downtown Fayetteville. At the time Fayetteville fire officials theorized that the fire was set by “derelicts” to cook food. The homeless sometimes used the building for shelter, although its doors and windows had been boarded up.
On Aug. 5, 1984, a fire destroyed the abandoned Belks-Hensdale department store on Downtown Fayetteville. At the time Fayetteville fire officials theorized that the fire was set by “derelicts” to cook food. The homeless sometimes used the building for shelter, although its doors and windows had been boarded up.

1979: 45 years ago

Fayetteville native Bill Curtis and his Fatback Band get credit from many authorities and sourcebooks for recording the first rap record of the hip-hop era. The release of that song, “King Tim III (Personality Jock),” on March 25, 1979, actually predated the Sugarhill Gang’s multi-platinum seller “Rapper’s Delight,” though the latter is often cited as the first commercially released rap song.

Bill Curtis, a percussionist with The Fat Back Band, rests on his congas between songs during practice with his band in a rehearsal space on Donaldson Street on Jan. 30, 2013.
Bill Curtis, a percussionist with The Fat Back Band, rests on his congas between songs during practice with his band in a rehearsal space on Donaldson Street on Jan. 30, 2013.

1974: 50 years ago

On Aug. 16, 1974, Dr. Jeffrey MacDonald recounted to a 23-member federal grand jury in Raleigh his story of what occurred the night in February 1970 when his wife and two daughters were slain at Fort Bragg. McDonald was indicted in January 1975. He's currently serving three life sentences at a federal prison in Maryland.

Jeffrey MacDonald, right, an unidentified woman and attorney Bernard Segal arrive at the federal courthouse in Aug. 1974.
Jeffrey MacDonald, right, an unidentified woman and attorney Bernard Segal arrive at the federal courthouse in Aug. 1974.

• In Nov. 1974, Fayetteville's Market House was dedicated as a National Historic Landmark by National Park Service official Roger Rogers.

• In the fall of 1974, Cumberland County Arena hosted concerts from legendary musicians including Dolly Parton, KISS and the Doobie Brothers.

Tom Johnston of the Doobie Brothers at the Cumberland County Arena, December 1974.
Tom Johnston of the Doobie Brothers at the Cumberland County Arena, December 1974.

• In Nov. 1974, Congressman Charlie Rose announced that the Department of Housing and Urban Development had approved a $461,388 grant for the Cumberland Redevelopment Commission to purchase land in downtown Fayetteville for the new courthouse site. The courthouse, located on Dick Street, is known as the Judge E. Maurice Braswell Cumberland County Courthouse.

Construction at the new Cumberland County Courthouse in 1976.
Construction at the new Cumberland County Courthouse in 1976.

1969: 55 years ago

• In 1969, the HBCU Fayetteville State College was renamed Fayetteville State University

An aerial view of what was called Fayetteville State Teachers College in 1960. In 1963 it was renamed Fayetteville State College and in 1969 it was formally renamed Fayetteville State University.
An aerial view of what was called Fayetteville State Teachers College in 1960. In 1963 it was renamed Fayetteville State College and in 1969 it was formally renamed Fayetteville State University.

• In 1969, Fayetteville's Quaker House was founded. Since its founding during the height of the Vietnam War, the Quaker House has been a steady advocate for peace. Quaker House became a place where people trying to get out of the service could go for advice. Some sought refuge there while their cases were being considered.

Original Fayetteville Quaker House on Ray Avenue in Fayetteville.
Original Fayetteville Quaker House on Ray Avenue in Fayetteville.

1964: 60 years ago

• In March 1964, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara announced the Special Warfare Center was renamed the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Center for Special Warfare. It later settles on its current name, the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School.

• In May 1964, 43 students became part of Methodist University's first graduating class. Originally Methodist College, it opened in 1960.

• On Sept. 12, 1964, 11-year-old Terry Westerfield and his little brother Alan, 7, vanished after being dropped off in downtown Fayetteville at the Broadway Theater on Hay Street. They were never seen again. The case shook Fayetteville and stumped police, Fort Bragg investigators — even the FBI. "We've checked every lead we've had and we're still up against a blank wall," Police Chief L.F. Worrell said in the days after the 1964 disappearance. The case was never solved.

Alan Westerfield, left, and his brother Terry, both went missing in 1964 and were never seen again.
Alan Westerfield, left, and his brother Terry, both went missing in 1964 and were never seen again.

• On Nov. 29, 1964, Fayetteville's 2,500 Catholics and the additional 5,000 at Fort Bragg heard a portion of Mass said in English for the first time in their lives. St. Patrick and St. Ann churches at Fayetteville joined Catholic churches around the world in effecting the first major change in the Mass in more than 400 years. The priest read the epistle and gospel, the opening portion of the Mass, in English. He also faced the congregation, another innovation.

• Capt. Hugh Donlon, a Fort Bragg soldier assigned to the 7th Special Forces Group, is the first soldier awarded the Medal of Honor for valorous actions in Vietnam. The award is presented by President Lyndon B. Johnson on Dec. 5, 1964.

Retired Special Forces Col. Roger H.C. Donlon, left, anwsers questions after speaking at the Special Forces Veterans Forum at the Airborne and Special Operations Museum in 2002. Donlon, a Fort Bragg soldier that was assigned to the 7th Special Forces Group, was the first soldier awarded the Medal of Honor for valorous actions in Vietnam.
Retired Special Forces Col. Roger H.C. Donlon, left, anwsers questions after speaking at the Special Forces Veterans Forum at the Airborne and Special Operations Museum in 2002. Donlon, a Fort Bragg soldier that was assigned to the 7th Special Forces Group, was the first soldier awarded the Medal of Honor for valorous actions in Vietnam.

1959: 65 years ago

Plans for a mammoth shopping center to be located on Raeford Road inside the city limits were announced in September 1959 by J.O. Tally Sr., Fayetteville lawyer and developer. Plans called for the Tallywood Shopping Center, which still exists today, to take up more than 20 acres and to have 30 spaces available for businesses.

1954: 70 years ago

• Fayetteville insurance salesman Don Clayton opened Putt-Putt, a miniature golf course, on Bragg Boulevard and Fort Bragg Road on June 21, 1954. It cost a quarter to play the 18-hole course, and if a golfer made a hole-in-one, he got a free game. Within a year, there were eight locations, and the business expanded into the national franchise known today as Putt-Putt Fun Center.

The first Putt - Putt Colf Course in Fayetteville, North Carolina in 1954. Don Clayton and his father Eugene Garland Clayton were the founders.
The first Putt - Putt Colf Course in Fayetteville, North Carolina in 1954. Don Clayton and his father Eugene Garland Clayton were the founders.

• Hurricane Hazel roared ashore in North Carolina on Oct. 15, 1954

A large tree lies balanced across the smashed rear of a new model automobile owned by Miss Bobbie Brewer, a Fayetteville Observer reporter. The car was parked at the Highway patrol headquarters on Lumberton Road, where Miss Brewer was checking patrol radio reports during Hurricane Hazel.
A large tree lies balanced across the smashed rear of a new model automobile owned by Miss Bobbie Brewer, a Fayetteville Observer reporter. The car was parked at the Highway patrol headquarters on Lumberton Road, where Miss Brewer was checking patrol radio reports during Hurricane Hazel.

1949: 75 years ago

What is now known as Fayetteville Regional Airport opened in 1949.

Piedmont Airlines planes at Fayetteville Regional Airport, July 27, 1960.
Piedmont Airlines planes at Fayetteville Regional Airport, July 27, 1960.

1924: 100 years ago

Seventy-First High School was built in November 1924. The school is named for the old Seventy-First township, which itself was named for the 71st Regiment, Highland Scots who battled with the British in the 1700s.

1914: 110 years ago

On March 7, 1914, Babe Ruth hit his first home run as a professional and earned the famous moniker “Babe″ during a month-long visit here for spring training. Ruth's homerun came in a Baltimore Orioles intersquad exhibition game at the old Cape Fear Fairgrounds off Gillespie Street. The field is long gone, and a North Carolina Department of Transportation facility is there now.

Photo of Babe Ruth while he was in Fayetteville.
Photo of Babe Ruth while he was in Fayetteville.

1879: 145 years ago

In November 1879, during a 100-year celebration of the state’s ratification of the U.S. Constitution, conductor John Philip Sousa, known as the “American March King,” conducted his Marine Corps band at the Market House, according to previous reporting in The Fayetteville Observer.

John Philip Sousa, in the 1880s, who for 12 years directed the United States Marine Band.
John Philip Sousa, in the 1880s, who for 12 years directed the United States Marine Band.

1794: 230 years ago

Fayetteville was the capital of North Carolina from 1789 to 1794, when it moved to Raleigh.

1789: 235 years ago

State delegates ratified the U.S. Constitution on Nov. 21, 1789, at the state house in Fayetteville, making North Carolina the 12th state to ratify the Constitution. The Market House now stands at the site of the former state house, which burned to the ground in 1831.

Drawing of the State House in downtown Fayetteville which was located where the Market House now stands. The state house stood from 1789-1831.
Drawing of the State House in downtown Fayetteville which was located where the Market House now stands. The state house stood from 1789-1831.

1854: 270 years ago

Cumberland County was formed in 1754 when it was separated from Bladen County.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Fayetteville anniversaries: Babe Ruth home run, Putt Putt opens