PRAYERS ANSWERED One night after Supervisor John Roark suffered a stroke on Feb. 9th, a number of residents held a prayer vigil for him in front of Nottoway Court House including, from left, Roark’s daughter Dallas, Supervisor Daphne Norton and husband Glenn. Roark has made a remarkable recovery.
Here’s how we rank the top 10 Courier-Record news stories of the past year.
The past 12 months were so ‘newsy,’ we probably could do a “Top 25 of 2025.”
If you enjoy drama, ‘25 probably was a good year for you.
What are your top stories? Send us a letter to The Forum.
1. Significant tax increases. for the second straight year financially impacted more Nottoway residents than any other news story. Some residents’ personal property tax bills were nearly as high as others’ real estate bills. Nottoway residents today are taxed at a rate $4.75 per $100 valuation on vehicles. With millions expected to be spent at the courthouse and millions also needed by the school division… is there any end in sight?
2. Town Hall Drama. Shortly after Treasurer Brittany Morgan resigned with a vivid March letter alleging a hostile Town work environment and favoritism for some of the electeds — one of whom allegedly said “all you white girls look the same” — another hammer dropped: Mayor Ben Green was accused of sexual harassment by a Town Hall staffer. After three tumultuous weeks, Council in closed session on April 15th demanded that Green resign — or it would call a special meeting and publicly urge him to do so. Green, the Town’s 21st Mayor, quit four minutes after Council’s 2:00 p.m. deadline the next day (April 16th) and said he could not stand to serve a minute longer with the current governing body. Green admitted making an inappropriate comment about an employee but vehemently denied that it was as graphic as the staffer had reported. Green for several weeks demanded that Council pay his attorney’s fees. Council refused and accused Green or someone close to the ex-mayor of dropping in the Courier-Record mail slot a confidential internal report on the Town’s investigation. In May, Council appointed the Town’s first black mayor, Lafayette Dickens, who prevailed in what began as a field of six hopefuls. He won a special election unopposed in November with the most votes for Mayor (939) in town history.
BEN GREEN Leaves Mayor’s post
ulation was so intense that the Mayor of Crewe, Brenda Payne, publicly declared that it cannot be Supervisor John Roark because “Johnny Walker” was making posts while Roark was in the hospital recovering from his stroke. (Posts above were made in July).
3. Homegrown. After a 3-2 vote hiring her in May, Dr. Marcia Martin hit the ground running as the Division’s 9th Superintendent since consolidation in 1970. Dr. Martin has spent her entire career in Nottoway, and she’s the first Nottoway High School graduate to lead the division and already has branded it as “We are Nottoway — Committed to Excellence.”
4. The Comeback Kid: Supervisor John Roark suffered a serious stroke on Feb. 9th but was back in action a couple of months later and physically returned to the courthouse in May. In September, he posted a serious of Facebook Live addresses, saying he would be “leaving soon” for his health and then changing his mind, saying that not only would he finish his term but also seek reelection in 2027. Roark also had a term for some of his detractors: RDS — “Roark Derangement Syndome.” Roark also suggested he had a secret voice recording and that a “bomb” was coming. “Get your popcorn ready,” he said. 5. It’ll Always Be Pickett: Many of the same locals who were annoyed by the renaming of Fort Pickett as Fort Barfoot in 2023 rejoiced when the Trump Administration re-named it Fort Pickett, this time in memory of WWII hero Lt. Vernon Pickett of Louisiana and not the original “Camp Pickett” namesake — Confederate General George Pickett.
TO MAKE MORE NEWS IN 2026? Blackstone Town Council in December approved re-zoning for a planned Tractor Supply store on South Main Street.
6. Here Comes the Sun. Nottoway County relaxed its solar ordinance so that as many as 1,700 acres can be under panel countywide. Supervisors approved two small solar farms — for Mr. & Mrs. Shawn Haney and Mr. and Mrs. Don Knight. The heavyweight match, however, could come on Rocky Ford Road, where some 780 acres are proposed under panel.
7. The Armory. After more than two decades of debate, a 54-46% margin in a Nov. 2020 referendum, and $5.9 million worth of renovations, the Town of Blackstone re-opened its Harris Memorial Armory in September.
8. Bridge Re-opens. It “only” took two years, two months, but the Rt. 46 bridge linking Nottoway and Brunswick Counties re-opened in June, after having been closed in April 2023. Rt. 46 commuters don’t miss having to travel narrow Cedar Creek and Jonesboro Roads on their way to-and-from Blackstone.
9. Fatal Pursuit. For the first time in more than 40 years, police in August shot and killed a motorist in August after he led them on a high speed pursuit down Rt. 153 and crashed at the intersection of Rt. 460. The sister of suspect Michael Woodson is demanding answers. A Nottoway deputy was wounded in the hand. Woodson’s sister insists her brother didn’t fire that shot.
The incident is the first time a law enforcement officer has killed a suspect in Nottoway County since September 1979, when a Crewe officer fatally shot a shoplifting suspect who pointed a gun and fired a shot at one of two officers trying to detain him.
10. Tragedy in Lunenburg. Predator hunter Bug Gaulding was fatally shot in February by another hunter, who has been indicted on charges of Felony Homicide and Hunting While intoxicated among other charges. Gaulding’s sister, Brandy, has filed a $10.35 million wrongful death lawsuit against defendant Jonathan Bailey.
Other Notable News
•Nottoway County moved closer to revealing its plans to comply with a court order mandating more secure and accessible court facilities — a venture that some officials privately say could cost $20 million or more.
•An early morning fire on Cottage Road in February fatally injured 93-year-old Thomas Williams, who was heroically rescued by his grandson, Justin “Slicky” Williams and Nottoway deputy CJ Felder. Mr. Williams died later from his injuries.
•Fire late December 13th destroyed one of Nottoway County’s most historic churches, Mt. Nebo Baptist.
•The County broke ground in May on renovations for a new animal shelter that could open by late January 2026.
•Well-known retired businessman “Normie” Taylor, Jr. of Crewe became a social media celebrity over his “Lock’em Up!” comment to trespassing fishermen then several weeks later spent a night in jail after being accused in October of misdemeanor Sexual Battery by a county woman. A trial date is set for Jan. 14th.
•After several months of debate, the School Board agreed to surplus the former Burkeville Elementary School to the County Board of Supervisors.
•Tractor Supply won re-zoning in December to locate on South Main in Blackstone.
•Blackstone native Matthew Bagley (“Alexander Mac”) was nominated for a Grammy. We’ll find out if he wins on February 1st, 2026.
•Nottoway County in February moved the Treasurer’s and Commissioner of Revenue’s offices to the former BB&T building in downtown Blackstone. The Voter Registrar could be next — especially if Supervisors relocate the Health Dept. and Social Services to the Burkeville school and move the Sheriff ’s Office to the current Social Services building at the courthouse complex. Musical chairs!
•The “new” 25 mph speed limit on South Main, between 10th Street and southern town limits, continued to annoy many motorists, but Council held firm and refused to change it back to 35 mph.
•A grassroots “No Apartments” effort by residents of Oak Street and surrounding area appears to have convinced Blackstone Town Council to no longer pursue multi-family units in old school buildings. But Council isn’t ruling-out workforce housing in that area.
•The County twice rejected bids on the former Nottoway Lanes bowling alley but, in December, authorized the County Administrator to negotiate a deal with one of those bidders.
•The Blackstone Chamber of Commerce’s Christmas Parade was one of the largest in many years, and a new tourism committee brought model trains and a bazaar to the armory two weeks before Christmas. DBI won a grant for a new, patriotic LOVE sign, which was installed in December.
•Citizen Chris Page sworeout a Trespassing warrant against School Board member Bill Outlaw after Outlaw placed a sign in front of Page’s 6th Street residence without permission. Outlaw initially refused to leave after being asked by Page, who recorded Outlaw scolding him. A trial date is set for Feb. 11th.
•The School Board voted in January and again in December to keep the name “Winter Break” and not call it “Christmas Break” as passionately advocated by Outlaw.
Mystery of the Year: Only hard-hitting Facebook commenter “Johnny Walker” — and perhaps a few others — knows his or her real identity. But spec-
Loading Comments