Photo By: Joy Warren
Long-time White Lake resident, artist, and community activist Cathy Kinlaw, has released a book that chronicles the history of a local town. White Lake – A Historical Tour of the Nation’s Safest Beach, travels through decades of life on White Lake with archived articles, never-before-seen photographs, anecdotes, and researched documents.
The book is a companion for the video documentary White Lake – Remembering the Nation’s Safest Beach, which appeared on the University of North Carolina Public Television in June. The documentary was written and produced by Kinlaw’s son, Robert.
The two amassed volumes of information while collecting stories and researching records for the video documentary. “Robert’s video project had a time frame limit of 43-47 minutes,” explains the author. “After the success of the video, we began to talk about writing a book to include the many other interesting facts and stories we had gathered about the Lake.”
Consequently, the book is 130 pages of pure White Lake history, featuring laugh-out-loud stories, 90-year-old photographs, and historical articles from as far back as the 1930’s.
“In the book, you can read an article about the Lake from The State magazine, published in 1936, see a photograph of party-goers at the President Roosevelt’s Birthday Ball in 1942, or read an account published in the Bladen Journal in 1931 about the ‘drinking and carousing’ at White Lake,” remarks Kinlaw. “With over fifty contributors to the book, there are so many wonderful stories!”
The book includes popular White Lake landmarks such as the 4-H Camp, the Plantation Restaurant, the Crystal Beach movie theatre, and Sam’s Place. You may remember the two waterslides built in the 1960’s or the beloved Lakeside Sunday School.
“On June 30, 1968, a record 822 people attended Lakeside Sunday School, at the end of Carolina Avenue,” states Kinlaw. “I remember being excited because my Sunday School Class met on the end of a pier!”
Water skiers who participated in the White Lake Ski Heels will remember the bathtub story at Wrightsville Beach, the skiing gorilla, and the hang gliders on the Lake. Some will remember the polio outbreak, the soldiers at the FFA Camp, and the fire of 1957.
“There is so much in the book,” describes Kinlaw. “I have tried to capture the memories of as many people as possible and weave their stories into a chronological history of the Lake. I am honored to give this gift to our community.”
Kinlaw is an artist, who has organized and painted murals in the children’s hospital environments including Duke University Medical Center, UNC-Hospitals, the Cumberland County Health Department, and the Bladen County Health Department. Her watercolor and gouache wildlife art has been used by the NC Wildlife Resource Commission for fund raising.
She water skied with the Walt Disney World Water Ski Team in the 1970s, and was instrumental in taking the White Lake Ski Heels across North Carolina to perform at festivals and special events, including the NC State Fair.
In recent years, she has written and secured grant funds for the county of Bladen in excess of $2,000,000.
Kinlaw is passionate about life at White Lake. “Ours is a simple life, she remarks. “Every morning on the lake is a beautiful gift, and every season has its unique personality.”
Books are available from the author, online at www.whitelakebook.com, online at Barnes & Noble, and online at Amazon. Autographed and gift wrapped books may be requested for Christmas or other gift-giving opportunities. For more information, contact the author at910-876-2403.
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