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Touchy contractor has Kinston police eject Caswell Memorial
historic site director from grounds of Caswell Museum A recent incident at the Caswell Neuse Historic Site in Kinston involving a threat by the Kinston Police to arrest historic site manager Eugene Brown, two of his staff and members of the press, underscores the pitiful situation Raleigh has allowed to develop concerning the relocation of Kinston's Civil War artifact the CSS Neuse. What is left of the old ironclad had been cradled under an open shelter in a swamp near the Neuse River at the Caswell-Neuse Historic Site in Kinston since a group of private citizens removed it from its watery grave in 1963. Known locally as the "Gunboat," the CSS Neuse had remained for 96 years beneath the waters of the Neuse where her crew scuttled her as Union troops advanced on downtown Kinston in 1865. After shelling the Union troops with grape and canister shot, the gunboat's captain ordered a charge placed under her bow and set her afire to prevent capture by the Union. The explosion blew an eight foot hole in her port side, sending her unceremoniously to the bottom of the Neuse. In 1996, flood waters resulting from Hurricane Fran soaked the artifact again, causing irreparable damage. Archaeologists warned Raleigh that unless moved and placed in a climate controlled building, the CSS Neuse would deteriorate in a few years. The last section of the gunboat's hull was being pulled from its shelter in the swamp on the afternoon of Wednesday, July 29, when Kinston Police Capt. Mike Perry and two other officers were called to the park by Daniel Craven of Craven Construction. Craven is the contractor Raleigh hired to move the remains of the gunboat to an alleged "temporary" site in the middle of the park which was originally built to memorialize Governor Richard Caswell. Caswell was one of the founders of Kinston and North Carolina's first constitutional governor. State archaeologists claim that his remains and the remains of his family are buried somewhere in the park. Craven called the police because he was angry at me for taking pictures of his work that he did not want taken. He had strung a spider web of yellow construction tape all over the park and had been threatening to charge with trespassing anyone who crossed those tapes. Craven claimed he was forced to put up the tape because of his insurance. He said he didn't want anybody suing him if they got hurt. He was so adamant about maintaining his no trespassing zone that he even banned Brown and his staff from entering the taped off areas. Craven's no trespassing zone was laid out in such a manner that his construction work could only be photographed from too far a distance to snap decent pictures. Earlier in June, the entire roof system of the barn Craven was building to shelter the CSS Neuse came crashing down, causing an estimated $50,000 in damage. Lucky for the old ironclad, it had not yet been relocated there. Craven claimed that the roof collapsed because of a sudden storm that hit the park. His spokesman described it as an intense squall with high winds and heavy rains. However, The Eastern Carolina Times Inquirer of Goldsboro reported the incident differently. That newspaper reported that local meteorologists and the National Weather Service had no record of severe weather in Kinston on the evening of June 9 and the morning of June 10 when Craven's work collapsed. Frankly, ever since Craven's work came crashing down under circumstances that were questioned, he has behaved like a petty tyrant, threatening with trespassing members of the press who crossed his yellow tape. That was the case when he called for the Kinston Police that Wednesday afternoon. By that day, Craven had successfully rebuilt the barn's roof system and had managed to move two thirds of the old wreck into it, ironically, with little or no press coverage. Before noon, members of the press, including myself, received word that Craven was about to move the stern of the gunboat out of the swamp and into the barn. It was the last section of the old wreck to be moved, and it was a newsworthy event. I arrived at the park shortly thereafter and crossed under one of Craven's yellow tapes which established a wide perimeter around the barn. Craven was standing near the barn, and I intended to ask him for permission to take pictures. As I approached the barn, one of Craven's workers stepped in front of me. He told me that I was on "private property" and instructed me to immediately move back behind the yellow tape. I repeated my request to be allowed to take some close-up pictures. Craven's man gave me an emphatic "no" and warned me that if I didn't immediately leave, he would have me arrested. After returning to my office, I called Raleigh and voiced a complaint with Jackie Ogburn, media spokesman for the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources. I asked Ogburn by what authority I was being denied reasonable access to photograph the historic move. She told me it was an insurance matter, that it was the contractor's call, and that he could even deny her boss, Betty McCain, access to the site if he chose to do so. I asked Ogburn who Craven was accountable to if no one was allowed on the site. She said she didn't know. Later I returned to the park, hoping to get pictures of the last of the boat's hull being pulled out of the old shelter and up the hill to its new home. Soon after I arrived, several other members of the press showed up. We gathered behind one of Craven's yellow tapes near the old shelter in the swamp to wait for the move to begin. Ironically, as soon as the cameras appeared, all of Craven's men suddenly decided to take a break. They sat down. It appeared to become a waiting game. We waited, and they waited. Finally, as the clock ticked closer to knock-off time, the workers began to stir. The engine of an old truck grunted. The wheels under the heavy stern began to turn inching it out of the shelter and onto a dirt road. Kinston Free Press Photographer Charles Buchannan of the and I noticed an opportunity to get a better angle for pictures. We had both spotted an area that Craven had missed stringing with his yellow tape. Buchannan and I entered the area and split off into different directions. He went up the road on which the wreck was to be pulled, and I crossed into the picnic area. When Craven spotted me crossing the road, he began waving his arms and shouting for me to leave or be arrested. Being comfortable with the fact that I was on public land and had not crossed any yellow tapes, I ignored Craven's ranting and continued taking the pictures. After about a dozen shots, I followed Buchannan up the road and onto the hill to the back porch steps of the Richard Caswell museum. It was one of the few areas not wrapped with yellow tape, and other members of the press and the staff of the historic park had already relocated there. Within minutes, Capt. Perry and two other police officers arrived. Capt. Perry went directly to Craven and spoke with him. He then turned and approached the porch. He instructed the group to leave the area. Then, he turned to me and asked me why I was causing trouble. He told me I should be happy Craven was moving the wreck out of the swamp and that I should leave the contractor alone and let him do his work. Of course, I held my position long enough to argue that I was on public land and had crossed none of Craven's yellow tapes, and I had a right to be there. Capt. Perry shook his head indicating that he was in no mood to hear explanations. At that point, Brown tried to introduce himself to Capt. Perry as the director of the site. Capt. Perry either did not hear the introduction, or he simply ignored it. He continued his eviction, Brown and staff included. Brown was so angry about the way the incident had been handled that he filed a complaint with the City of Kinston. The tyrannical behavior of building contractor Craven was an unwitting illustration of the provincial mind set of Raleigh in its dealings with the interests of Kinston and its people. Never mind the fact that Raleigh has desecrated a once attractive memorial to Richard Caswell, one of Kinston's founding fathers, a patriot, a Revolutionary War hero and the first constitutional governor of North Carolina, by sticking a big ugly pole constructed barn in the middle of Kinston's Revolutionary War park. Never mind the fact that the ugly barn may have been built on top of the graves of Richard Caswell and his family. No one knows for sure. Never mind the fact that the Civil War wreck CSS Neuse has absolutely no known historic connection to the Revolutionary War or Richard Caswell. Never mind the fact that Kinston's gunboat (at least what is left of it), the CSS Neuse, is one of only three like it in the world and if it's not properly housed, it will fall apart within 10 years. Never mind the fact that Kinston's elected officials have requested that Raleigh relocate the CSS Neuse back to downtown Kinston where it was originally stationed and scuttled during the Civil War. Never mind the fact that if a proper museum to house the old ironclad was located in downtown Kinston, it would draw an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 tourists a year to the center of town, spending out of town dollars as they come and go. The imperial government of Raleigh has spoken. And the people of Kinston "should be happy" and content that Raleigh has decided to throw a few crumbs toward Kinston by "at least moving the wreck out of the swamp." 
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