It will be later this month before school system officials name Halifax County High School's new principal.
It was also announced that .....Halifax County Middle School Principal Bristol Martin Jr. and Sydnor Jennings Elementary School Principal Bradley Ingram will retire at the end of the of the 2000-2001 school year.
Halifax County School Superintendent Dennis said yesterday that another round of school system appointments will likely follow the June 26 meeting of the Halifax County School Board.
Along with naming Clark's successor at Halifax County High School, the School Board is expected to fill an assistant principal's post at Halifax County Middle School and and the principal's position at Clays Mill Elementary School.
Clark is leaving the principal's post at Halifax County High School at the end of this school year to take a position as as the school system's assistant superintendent for Human Resources.
He will replace Dr. Bobby R. Hall who is retiring from the post of deputy superintendent on June 30.
The vacancy at Halifax County Middle School was created when Marliss Barczak was recently appointed as the school system's instructional supervisor.
Joe Griles' recent appointment to the post of Director of Pupil Personnel created the principal's vacancy at Clays Mill Elementary School.
The announcement of the impending retirement of Martin and Ingram was noted in the personnel report issued by school system officials at Monday night's Halifax County School Board meeting.
Price Hike For School Meals
While the School Board made no move in filling the principal's seat at Halifax County High School, it did make a move in upping prices for full-price student and adult breakfast and lunch meals.
The School Board voted unanimously to increase the price of its meals by 15 cents to help offset price increases for food supplies, labor and equipment.
This is the first increase in the cost of school meals in two years.
With the price increase, the cost of a full-price lunch meal for students will increase from $1 to $1.15, while the price of the full-price breakfast meal will jump from 60 cents to 75 cents.
Adults will see the price of full-price lunch meals increase from $1.75 to $1.90 and will notice an increase in the price of the full-price breakfast meals from 95 cents to $1.10.
The increase in the breakfast price will generate an additional $8,181 in income, while the increase in the lunch prices will net the school system an additional $56,673.
Dr. Hall pointed out to the school board that the typical full-price lunch meal costs the school system $1.56 per meal and that the school system is currently receiving only $1 for the full-price student meal.
The school system is dependent upon federal and state government reimbursements for reduced-price and free lunch and breakfast meals to help make up for the revenue it loses on full-price meals.
While the school system has central financing to operate the food service program, a number of the school cafeterias in the county operate in the red.
"We have approximately half of the schools operating in the red every year in the food services program," Hall pointed out.
"We have schools that run $100,000 in the red."
Hall also stated that the school system has schools that are able to make a profit because of their size and the number of free and reduced price meals.
Insurance Premiums Increase
Also Monday night, school system employees saw their out-of- pocket expense for group health insurance premiums take a big hike.
The school system, which is in its second year of a three-year contract with Centerra, saw its premium rates skyrocket with increases ranging from 14 to 20 percent.
At the heart of the increase is the fact that the school system is an experience-rated group.
School system finance director Bill Covington pointed out to the School Board that Centerra paid out 38 percent more in benefits this school year than it took in, in the form of premiums.
The school system's insurance group was hit with four major claims this year, one of which forced the insurance company to pay out over $300,000.
Covington pointed out that the school system's group also was hit by three other claims of approximately $48,000, $75,000 and $65,000.
School system employees will have a three-tiered plan to choose from this year.
One of the plans, the POS 3000, will cost the employee $158.71 per month out-of-pocket. The plan most closely resembling that option which was available this year, cost employees $95.15.
That plan requires a primary care doctor and has no deductible. The insured person pays $25 out of pocket for each doctor's office visit to the primary care physician or to a physician that the patient is referred to by the primary care doctor.
A second plan known as the PPO2 Plan, cost employees $96.33 per month out-of-pocket this year. It increases to $158.26 for the coming school year.
This plan is an 80/20 plan in which the individual pays 20 percent after reaching a $300 deductible.
The individual is required to seek care from a doctor participating in the local area network but is not required to designate a primary care doctor.
Both of those plans have a three- tiered drug card program where the individual pays $15 for generic and basic drugs, $25 for the next level of drug coverage and $40 for top brand- name drugs and more expensive specialized drugs.
Another version of the POS 3000 Plan, a plan for which employees paid $101.71 per month out-of-pocket, will cost $181.66 per month out-of-pocket for the coming school year.
Under that plan, the individual must designate a primary care physician and pay $20 for each visit to the doctor's office.
The individual, however, will pay only $10 for any drug.
The school system pays each employee that participates in the group health insurance program $170 per month for 10 months toward the health insurance premium.
Previously mentioned out-of-pocket costs referred to with regard to the health insurance premium costs are the out-of-pocket costs employees pay after the school system's payment.
The increase in group health insurance premium rates stung the School Board.
Chairman D.H. McDowell, Jr. was among the first to speak.
"I think the Board needs to make it a high priority to pay more benefits," he said after examining the 14 to 20 percent premium rate hikes.
"When we give a 2.4 percent increase and you look at what is happening, we've got to do something to help them."
Board member Patricia Nelson offered the opinion that the School Board examine working with the insurance company to better streamline benefits and offer fewer options.
"The board needs to work toward a reasonable (insurance) plan for everybody where the Board picks up the whole cost."

Preliminary reports show that Halifax County's scores on the spring Standards of Learning (SOL) Tests showed an improvement over last year.
But, despite improvements, Halifax County's students are still doing poorly on U.S. History tests.
Ann Conner, the director of instruction for the Halifax County school system, told the Halifax County School Board Monday night that scores from the high school and middle school show gains over last year in every area.
"The high school administration feels very good about the results with the exception of U.S. History which does not look good," Conner said.
"The fifth grade social studies also appears to be a problem," added Conner.
"We don't know yet if it is a state-wide problem."
Third grade students, Conner noted, performed better than last year's third graders.
An area of concern is what the state's benchmarks will be for the school accreditation process.
Conner said state officials have not made that information available.
That information, she noted, could come sometime in July.
Conner pointed out that students and parents now have their SOL test scores in hand.
And, she advised that students who failed one or more of the SOL tests should attend summer school for remediation.
That, Conner noted, is especially true for eighth grade students.
"We believe it is critical that eighth grade students get remediation this summer if they failed the SOL test," Conner told the Halifax County School Board.
"That is because they will be the first class to have to verify credits at the high school level for graduation."

Charity Lancaster Perry, a 23-year-old Longwood College student and resident of South Boston, was killed yesterday morning in a single-vehicle crash on U.S. Route 360 in Charlotte County. Perry, a business administration major, was to have graduated later this year.
Virginia State Trooper James Gregory said that Perry was alone and operating a 1997 Hyundai sedan when, for reasons undetermined, she ran off of the left side of the roadway and into the median strip.
The driver, said Gregory, appeared to have overcorrected and the vehicle re-entered the eastbound lane, struck an embankment and overturned twice. The victim was pinned beneath the wreckage and was said to have been killed instantly.
Perry was not wearing a seat belt.
Time of the accident was approximately 9:30 a.m.
Perry and her husband, Timothy, lived at 1335 Washington Avenue.

South Boston Town Council tabled a request from the Mecklenburg County Board of Supervisors to join it in seeking an increase in the general retail sales tax during its meeting Monday night.
The Mecklenburg Board has requested all Virginia localities to join it in seeking an amendment to Virginia State law to raise the tax from 1 percent to 2 percent.
The Finance Committee had previously discussed this issue in its June 5 work session and suggested that council take no action until the position of the Halifax County Board of Supervisors could be determined.
The supervisors voted to support the Mecklenburg Board's request at their June 5 meeting .
Other Business
· Council unanimously approved a request by Mr. and Mrs. Mark Repokis to rezone their Double Bubbles property from residential to business after a public hearing during the meeting.
The carwash/laundromat is located at the northwest corner of the intersection of Route 129 and Love Shop Park Road.
There was no opposition expressed during the hearing to the rezoning of Double Bubbles from R-1 Low Density Residential to B-2 General Business Zone.
· The second reading and final adoption of the 2000-2001 budget was also approved unanimously on Monday.
Resolutions including the establishment of fees and taxes for 2000-2001 and participating in the Unreduced Early Retirement Benefits Program were also approved.
Town employees who are members of the Virginia Retirement System, or will become members in the future, are eligible for unreduced early retirement benefits at age 50 with as least 30 years of service, effective July 1, 2000.
· An amendment to the Town Code concerning the local meals tax was adopted by council.
The 2000 Virginia General Assembly had previously changed the state statutes.
Under the revised law, localities can no longer levy a tax on factory prepackaged items such as candy, nuts, gum, crackers, chips and cookies.
Alcohol and non-alcoholic beverages sold in factory-sealed containers are also not subject to taxation under the revised law.
· Council voted on Monday to authorize the town staff to act in its behalf to work with HUD on its Good Neighbor Program.
The new initiative by HUD will allow local governments to purchase properties which have been listed for more than six months for $1 plus closing costs.
This will make it possible for local nonprofit housing organizations, such as the Halifax County Community Action Agency, to partner with South Boston and Halifax County to rehabilitate a property or replace a structure and build a new home for resale to first-time home buyers.
· Council voted to request the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation to conduct a study of the Staunton River for designation for the Scenic River Program.
The area under consideration is between Brookneal and the Staunton River Battlefield State Park.
Similar action was taken by the Halifax County Board of Supervisors at its May meeting.
· Town Council vote to adopt five grant prerequisite polices to be implemented prior to receiving funding for the tobacco warehouse project.
The prerequisites are routine federal items that are adopted before federal grant monies are distributed.
After adoption, the policies are to be signed by Town Manager Ted Daniel and placed in the Pre-Contract File.
Citizen Comment Period
Several residents from the Maid Marian Lane area of South Boston spoke to council on the lack of town services in their area, such as trash pick-up and street maintenance.
The access road into the area is unpaved and difficult to navigate during bad weather such as snowstorms. A portion of it is also privately owned.
According to Town Manager Ted Daniel, there are several undeveloped roads (unpaved) within the town boundaries. There are right-of-way issues to be addressed before they can be improved.
"This is something that's going to come before us, " said Daniel.
"The town must confront the issue of private roads and the condition of these roads. Whose responsibility is it to bring them up to standards?" Daniel asked.
After considering the issue, Mayor Glen Abernathy requested that town staff to look into the trash pickup situation on Maid Marian Lane, and also the easement issue concerning street improvement.

Two public hearings are scheduled today for the South Boston Planning Commission during its June meeting.
The meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. at council chambers on Yancey Street.
The first public hearing is on a request from Leo and Vilma Pambid for conditionally zoning 6,500 square feet from R-2 Medium Density for restaurant purposes.
A second public hearing for a proposed subdivision ordinance change is also scheduled. The commission will study a request from McLaughlin Investment Corporation to allow individual lots without frontage on improved streets within shopping centers.
There will be a public comment period following the public hearings.
Other Business
· Sunnybrooke final plat review.
· Discussion on possible short course on town planning and engineering processes.
· Brief review of potential ordinance changes.
·Annual report to Town Council as required by Town Code.
· Other items brought forth by the Planning Commission.

A 25-year-old Vernon Hill woman, Danielle Renee Tidwell, has been arrested and is being held in a Phoenix, Arizona, jail as a fugitive of justice. Tidwell, a former bookkeeper with Colonial Homes Center of South Boston, is expected to be returned here to face a host of charges, including forgery in an investigation that has been ongoing since February.
Tidwell is suspected of embezzling over $100,000 from her former employer before leaving the state to avoid prosecution. The search for her whereabouts quickly led authorities to the State of Arizona where she was believed to have met a companion on the Internet.
Just before leaving her employment at Colonial Homes Center, Tidwell is suspected of having written checks to herself, forged the signature of her employer, Don Woodward, and cashed the same for an estimated $38,000.
Tidwell went to work for Colonial Homes as a bookkeeper in 1992, left for a brief time and was rehired in 1998.
In February, she called in to say that she would not be in for work because her grandmother had died. The day following, Woodward said that he found a note in his office from Tidwell explaining that she had left for Missouri for the burial and would return within a few days.
Woodward said he later learned that Tidwell's grandmother was not dead nor did she live in Missouri.
Woodward said that he, along with his accountant, began to investigate bank deposit records only to discover that some amounts entered as cash were never actually deposited in the company's bank account. Tidwell's duties, according to Woodward, included making all bank deposits and drafting checks including payroll.
Further investigation of the business records, according to Woodward, revealed that an undetermined amount of cash entered into bookkeeping records was never actually deposited into the company's bank account.

Virginia State Police Special Agent Carl Bond is leading the investigation. Bond was not available for comment yesterday on the Tidwell case and it is not when extradition will take place.

Bond hearings were held Tuesday in United States District Court in Roanoke for two suspects facing charges from the Halifax/South Boston Regional Narcotic Enforcement Task Force, according to Major R.S.B. Pulliam.
The hearings resulted in Willie Caswell Williams, 60, of Old Richmond Road in Keeling, receiving a $125,000 bond and William Bass "Buddy" Womack, 41, of Pine Ridge Road in Vernon Hill, ordered to be held without bond, Pulliam said.
Williams is facing federal charges of one count of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine, 16 counts of distribution of crack cocaine and one count of possession of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, according to Pulliam.
Womack, a co-conspirator, faces federal charges of one count of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine and nine counts of distribution of crack cocaine, Pulliam said.
The federal court proceedings followed a lengthy four-year investigation conducted by the Halifax/South Boston Regional Narcotic Enforcement Task Force into an open-air drug market located in the Birchland Park section of Halifax County and Pittsylvania County, Pulliam said.
The charges stem from undercover controlled purchases of crack cocaine from Williams and Womack conducted by the Task Force and the execution of a search warrant on the Birchland Park residence of Williams, where a quantity of crack cocaine, firearms and cash proceeds from drug sales were seized, Pulliam said.
The main distribution points for the open-air drug market were a convenience store located on Mountain Road (Route 360) in the Birchland Park community of Halifax County and at Willie William's Birchland Park area residence on Old Richmond Road, just across the Pittsylvania County line, Pulliam said.
Willie Williams and his associates are allegedly responsible for the distribution of mass quanitites of crack cocaine in Halifax and Pittsylvania counties. And Birchland Park has an established reputation with drug users as a crack cocaine distribution center in both counties where Williams functioned as the local kingpin of that crack cocaine conspiracy, Pulliam said.
While the investigation continues to unfold, more arrests are expected in the future.
Both Williams and Womack are facing multiple life sentences in a federal penitentiary for the charges mentioned above.
These hearings follow on the life sentence of Robert James Graves, which occurred Thursday after Graves operated an open-air drug market on the north end of Halifax County in the Cody community, said Pulliam.
The investigation was a joint effort of the Task Force and the Pittsylvania County Sheriff's Office, working in unison with the Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States Attorney's Office.

· The Jiffy Store on John Randolph Boulevard was broken into early Monday morning with an undisclosed amount of cash taken.
A spokesman of the South Boston Police Department said the perpetrator(s) entered the store by breaking through the front window sometime after 11 p.m. Sunday night when a unit had checked the store.
The incident is currently under the investigation of Lt. Rick Loftis and B.K. Lovelace.
Anyone with information about the break in is asked to contact the South Boston police at 575-4271 or Crime Stoppers at 575-TIPS (8477).

In other police reports:

Robert Brent Mason, 21, of Nathalie, was charged with reckless driving early Saturday morning after the 1991 Chevrolet pickup he was driving ran off of Route 40 and crashed into a utility pole.
Trooper D.O. Cooper said the 2:50 a.m. crash occurred nine-tenths of a mile west of Route 501 and resulted in two minor injuries and damage to a Nathalie home.
Mason's vehicle ran off of the left side of the road and struck a highway sign, then began to overturn and struck another sign and small trees before it hit the utility pole, according to the trooper.
Parts of the overturned vehicle broke away and struck the home of Coretta Terry, Cooper said.
Mason and a passenger, Edward Lee Carwile, 22, received minor injuries and estimated damages were $8,000 to the vehicle, $2,000 to the utility pole, $500 for two highway signs belonging to VDOT and $250 to Terry's house.
· An Alton man was injured Friday afternoon after his vehicle was hit in the rear while stopped for a school bus on Route 58, one-tenth of a mile west of Sandy Beach Road (Route 703).
Trooper D.T. Conner said the 3:45 p.m. crash occurred when Maxine Stephens Jeffreys, 80, driving a 1990 Chevrolet, was stopped for a school bus, which was stopped in preparation to discharge students, and that Jeffreys' vehicle was struck in the rear by a 1991 Chevrolet pickup, driven by Donnell Stephens, 50, of South Boston.
Jeffreys was treated at Halifax Regional Hospital and released, according to a hospital spokesperson.
Conner estimated $1,200 in damages to the Jeffreys vehicle and $3,500 in damages to Stephens' vehicle.
Stephens was charged with following too closely.
· A 17-year-old Nathalie youth was charged with failing to yield the right of way after a two-car crash Friday evening on Sinai Road.
Trooper Conner said the youth was driving a 1993 Mitsubishi and made a left turn into the path of a 1989 Toyota, driven by Sarah Palmer Perez, 47, of South Boston.
Conner said the youth's vehicle then struck the Perez vehicle, causing an estimated $400 to her vehicle and $1,200 to the vehicle driven by the youth.
The 7:25 p.m. occurred one-tenth of a mile south of Route 930.
· Charges are pending with a one-vehicle crash that occurred Friday afternoon on Route 40, one half of a mile west of Cody Road (Route 603).
Trooper S.L. Noblin said a 1993 Chevrolet, driven by Marie Elizabeth Tune, 49, of Nathalie, ran off of the right side of the road, came back on the road and ran off of the left side of the road before hitting a mailbox and overturning.
Noblin said that minor injuries occurred to Tune and a 12-year-old passenger, Nicole Samantha Tune.
An estimated $5,000 in damages occurred to the vehicle and $50 in damages to the mailbox, belonging to Floyd Short of Gretna.

By Michael A. Paige
After over 70 years of producing cotton cloth in the town of South Boston, the old Halifax Cotton Mill on Railroad Avenue, now owned by Hilden America, Inc., remains a woven strand in what is now the global economy.
In the volatile market of textiles, the pattern of success lies in the "high end" or tip of the triangle, a graphic interpretation of where businesses chart the level of their quality products.
That level of quality has kept the 100 percent-damask checkered cloth a successful product, sharing a spot in the Hilden portfolio along with other custom-made yarns.
Hilden Manufacturing of England, the parent of Hilden America, and the recipient of the Queen's Award for Export Achievement in 1988, has accomplished a high-end level in cotton products through the standards of quality weaving and specializing in textile manufacturing, with an emphasis on valued products made in limited quantities and in a short amount of time.
Specialized products can separate a textile manufacturer from other commodity-based companies that produce in bulk, such as the makers of T-shirts and shoes, products that are positioned at the base of the triangle where the perils of the labor economy lie.
The marketing strategy of developing quality fabrics has produced a commitment from Hilden to provide "the most efficient technical manufacturing service facility in the world."
That kind of commitment has allowed their subsidiary, Halifax America, to have sales in the high end with its continued production of checkered-designed tablecloths and satin-band products that adorn tables throughout the country and the world.
South Boston textile businesses JPS Apparel and Burlington Industries have also developed a competitive niche in high-end products with their upgraded facilities and the ability to produce materials in short order for special occasions - such as wedding dresses, top quality ladies' apparel and valued woolen products.
The telltale sign of success for JPS Apparel has been an increase in production by 15 percent, along with an increase of 50 employees, within a 12-month period since June, according to J.R. Griffin, plant manager.
Rising to the Crest
For Hilden, the use of 100 percent Egyptian cotton - with global sales to hotels and restaurants, rental laundries, airlines, cruise lines, etc. - produces sales to area businesses such as the Jefferson Hotel in Richmond and the Homestead Resort in Hot Springs.
With custom-designed tablecloths and napkins, as well as bed linen, monthly sales for the South Boston plant have steadily risen from one year to the next.
"We're doing twice as much business, especially in hotels and restaurants that cater to big conventions," said Dave Nicoll, president of Hilden America, Inc.
How the maker of the checkered cloth has managed to survive in the textile market is a particular success story, considering the history of the South Boston plant.
And as labor-oriented competition intensifies in the commodity market, especially with the recent China/World Trade Organization agreements, the casualties of a global market may prove even more costlyto commodity-based textiles in the United States.
In fact, South Boston already has taken losses in the textile industry, due to overseas competition in labor costs, with the closings of Tultex Corp. and Rochester Button Company.
Hilden has risen above the flood of foreign textile imports, through the high end of quality yarns, which means a continuation of the cotton checkered-cloth that was once associated with the oldest textile mill in South Boston.
From Bale to Cloth
Established in 1897 as Century Cotton Mill, the plant first manufactured cotton yarns before it was later incorporated in 1911 as the New Century Cotton Mills, which then produced hosiery.
In 1914, Napolean B. McCanless of Salisbury, N.C., and his son William Adolphus McCanless, along with other businessmen, bought the cotton mill and the purchase brought W.A. McCanless to South Boston.
McCanless eventually became sole owner of what became known as the Halifax Cotton Mill and he expanded the mill in the late 1920s by building departments for weaving, bleaching and the finishing of cotton cloth.
With additional space and new machinery, such as the jacquard looms for intricate weaving, Halifax Cotton Mill began to produce the checkered tablecloths and white "momie" cloth from the bale to the finished product, which were then shipped throughout the country from an office in New York City.
The mill dominated a large section of the westside of town with about 230 employees on the payroll. Housing for the workers was provided on a nearby summit known as McCanless Park, or more popularly called "Cotton Hill."
The houses were rented at $1.40 a week to employees such as James Snead, a supervisor of the Yarn Department, who lived on Cotton Hill with his family.
Snead worked from 1950 to 1988 and was in charge of separating the cotton from the 500-pound bales that rolled in by trains.
The cotton bales were purchased from Wake Forest, N.C., and stored in warehouses behind the mill.
" The bales were pressed tight and brought in by hand trucks," said Snead, 71, who now resides outside of South Boston.
Sheets of cotton were removed from a bale and sent to a card room where the separation of fibers occurred. After straining and stretching the fibers, the cotton was sent on to the weaving department where the thread was bleached and dyed before being set on the jacquard looms for weaving into cloth.
Albert Bane and his wife, Elizabeth, were also employed at the mill, with Albert, at age 16, starting work on September 1, 1944, and making 53 cents an hour.
Bane recalled how Cotton Hill rent was $1.40 a week for a four-bedroom house and 90 cents a week for a three-bedroom house.
"It was said that at one time even the electric bill was paid for by the mill, until one night Mr. McCanless was riding into town on the 2 o'clock train and saw Cotton Hill lit up like New York City," said Bane.
After serving in the Korean War, Bane returned to the mill where he was eventually promoted to supervisor of the weaving department.
In the weaving room, Bane oversaw the weaving, slashing and dying of cotton.
"I'd come home with red hair," said Bane referring to the steel tanks that were loaded with about 180 cheeses of cotton thread and dyed with the colors of red, green, yellow and blue.
Elizabeth worked in the spinning room for 17 years, until she retired in 1988.
"We enjoyed the people as well as the work," Elizabeth said of the employees who were characterized as hardworking, dedicated and caring of one another in their daily lives.
Robert Briggs, of South Boston, started working at the mill in April 1966, and was part of the Cotton Hill community.
Briggs worked in the card room for a year and a half before he was transferred to the sewing room, where he eventually became supervisor.
"The mill was really booming at the time and we made some beautiful cloth," said Briggs, of the napkins and tablecloths that were cut and hemmed in his department.
Made with the highest quality, the "momie" cloth and the checkered cloths were a staple for daily use in restaurants all over the country.
"The tablecloths were made to be used on a regular basis; they barely faded from washing and after the cloth was pressed, it kept its sheen," said Rucker Eggleston, daughter of John McCanless, who took over as president after the death of his father in 1948.
Elements of Decline
By the 1960s, the cotton mill was at the peak of its productivity but the facilities were experiencing a different set of high marks - high water marks - from the floods of the Dan River.
After the flood of 1940, the mill underwent a series of challenges far more disastrous than imports or tougher federal regulations that were about to be imposed by the Environmental Protection Agency.
Textile mills in general were on the decline throughout the country in the 1970s, prompting W.A. McCanless Jr., president after the death of his brother, John, in 1969, to remark, "heavy imports from foreign-made textiles had caused all textile mills to suffer."
However, along with the onslaught of foreign competition, the growing popularity of polyester, the stiff environmental procedures and aging equipment there came another indicator of decline. The Halifax Cotton Mill was situated in a flood plain.
W.A. McCanless Jr. witnessed not only the effects of trade laws and government regulations, but also the most destructive event ever to take place at the mill - the flood of 1972.
The Dan River rose to a record 325 feet above sea level from Hurricane Agnes.
And Popular Creek, running south along the west side between the mill and Cotton Hill, rose from a combination of the river and rain runoffs from development in the Centerville area.
Despite the iron gates constructed at the mouth of the creek to protect the mill after the 1940 flood, an already swollen creek rose above the mill's first floor.
The water rose 18 inches over the first floor, causing major damage to the maple hardwood floors and to the machines that had been operating since their installment in the late 1920s.
In an effort to save the cotton from the flood, the bales, stored in the buildings out back, were hauled up to the second floor on the elevators.
But the water soon flooded the boiler room with its electrical boxes, which shut off the power to the elevators, contributing to water damage to a great portion of the cotton bales.
"It took 30 days to get back to the boiler room, where it was under five feet of water," said James Sadler, head of maintenance and an employee at the mill from 1963 to 1988.
More floods occurred one after another during the 1970s, which caused additional structural and inventory damage.
In 1986, another flood reached the second highest water level since 1972. The vulnerable mill with its aging machinery was sold in 1988 to Nicoll and two business partners before it was sold again in 1989 to Hilden Manufacturing, the family-owned textile giant in Oswaldtwistle, England.
Nicoll remained as president of the newly formed Hilden America, Inc., however, the weaving of cotton would be done in the mills in England and the sewing operations were left in South Boston.
While Hilden America continued its output of the checkered cloth, the business was hit by Hurricane Fran, which brought about the flood of 1996.
Preparations to protect the facilities could not be made in time as the flood overtook the mill with the highest watermark yet to scale the walls of the brick two-story mill, causing major damage to inventory and to office equipment.
Looming in the Horizon
In 1997, Nicoll applied for a federal grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to have the property within the flood plain purchased.
Still in the process of approval, the purchase includes over 200,000 square feet of the older section of the mill, which had not been used after the sale to Hilden in 1989.
The deterioration of the unused section, which included the tower and power plant with its skyline smoke stack, led Nicoll to turn the property over to the Town of South Boston.
Three years have passed and while the grant application is still in process, a series of environmental testing as well as efforts to clean up soil have been underway, including filling in ponds that once served the mill, before the federal purchase can take place, according to Ted Daniel, city manager of South Boston.
The sale of the mill would allow Nicoll to move the business to a new location in South Boston.
"We plan to stay in the area," said Nicoll, who is looking for a one-level facility that would place the sales department with the sewing department on the same floor.
At the present location, the original freight elevators of the building still serve in the movement of material, since the sewing room remains upstairs, separated from the sales office by a long flight of stairs.
FEMA requires that once the purchase of the mill is completed, the area would be returned to its natural state, according to Daniel.
A demolition company would take down the mill, salvaging the brick, steel and wood for use elsewhere.
However, FEMA stated in a letter to the town that the demolition of the mill would have an adverse effect on the South Boston historical district and that prior to the removal of the mill, the buildings were to be recorded with quality photos to document their history.
The documentation of the mill has yet to be completed.
Meanwhile, the tradition of the mill, especially the checkered table linen, continues to be carried on by Hilden with its quality item in the showcase of jacquard woven cloth.
Therefore, the standard of quality that was once the trademark of the Halifax Cotton Mill may continue in a market where its niche is woven in the high end of fabrics.
"It's a service-oriented business and you have to have that special niche in order to stay alive," said Billy Payne, a vice-president of Halifax Cotton Mill before the business was sold.
"When you're making something that anybody can do, there's always somebody else who can make it cheaper," added Payne.

The Group AA Piedmont District is being considered as an alternative to Halifax County High School's placement in the Group AA Seminole I District.
Virginia High School League officials have recently initiated discussions with local school system officials regarding possible placement into the Piedmont District.
The Piedmont District, which basically parallels Route 58 west includes primarily Pittsylvania County and Henry County schools as well as Patrick County High Schools.
Schools in the district as proposed by the VHSL Reclassification and Redistricting Committee iinclude Dan River, Tunstall, Laurel Park, Martinsville, Fieldale-Collinsville, Bassett, Chatham, Magna Vista and Patrick County.
Halifax County School Superintendent Dennis Witt told the Halifax County School Board Monday night that VHSL Executive Director Ken Tilley has contacted him to discuss the Piedmont District as an alternative.
In turn, Witt said, he has been involved in discussions with school superintendents and school officials in Pittsylvania, Henry County and Martinsville, the areas in which the Piedmont District schools are located.
Witt said that in addition to being positioned somewhat better as compared to the proposed Seminole I District when it comes to travel distances "we're probably more demographically and geographically closer to the Piedmont District than the Seminole District."
Halifax County High School Principal Larry Clark explained yesterday that Tilley's point was that if travel distances and geographical proximity was Halifax County's primary concern, the Piedmont District could be a viable option.
"Ken had done a mileage check," Clark said.
"He said if you go toward the Piedmont District you will be looking at 60 plus miles on the average. If you toward the Seminole District, you're looking at a 70 plus mile factor. And, if we were to go to the new Group AAA Western Valley District, you're looking at an 80 plus mile factor."
Clark said that another consideration in this possible alternative is the roads.
"Route 58 is four lanes," Clark said.
"Route 501 is not. And, Route 40 (which is part of the route to travel to the Roanoke schools and Franklin County) is, at best, a secondary rural highway."
While the Piedmont District is viewed as a potential alternative for Halifax County, the water is not very clear in the Piedmont District at this point.
Clark also said yesterday serious discussions underway in Henry County about consolidating the county's four high schools into two high schools.
"That is a topic of current discussion in Henry County," Clark said.
"What will happen with Laurel Park, Fieldale-Collinsville and Tunstall, I don't know. It's a matter of serious discussion which will obviously have some impact. The size of those consolidated schools would have an impact upon their classification."
A third, but apparently unlikely alternative for Halifax County in Group AA would be the Southside District.
That district includes Bluestone, Park View, Nottoway, Brunswick, Greensville County, Powhatan and Matoaca.
"But, that hasn't received any discussion from us," noted Clark.
"I haven't ever heard that discussed."
Earlier this year, Halifax County appealed to the VHSL to be allowed to play down in order to help relieve its plight relating to extensive travel distances for athletic and academic competitions.
Last month the Virginia High School League Redistricting and Reclassification Committee, granted Halifax County's appeal.
It recommended placing Halifax County in the Seminole I District for a two-year period beginning with the 2001-2002 school year.
Halifax County would join E.C. Glass, which was also allowed to move down, Heritage, Amherst County, Jefferson Forest, Liberty and Staunton River.
While the recommendation from the reclassification and redistricting committee to allow Halifax County to play down in the Seminole I District carries a lot of weight, Halifax County's move to Group AA and to the Group AA Seminole I District is not a "done" deal.
The Virginia High School League Executive Committee will make the final decision regarding reclassification and redistricting when it meets September 20 in Charlottesville.

"There is nothing "done" about this deal," Clark said of Halifax County's placement into the Group AA Seminole I District.
"It's not a very simple situation. It is a multi-sided, very complex matter where you deal with one variable that is, in turn, going to effect several others."

"It's a developing situation," Clark added.
"It's not a done deal. It's far from it."

Johnnie William Hubbard, 66, of Roxboro, N.C., died June 12, 2000, at the Durham VA Medical Center.
Mr. Hubbard was born on September 30, 1933, to the late Leslie and Addie Morris Hubbard in South Boston. He served in the U.S. Army during the Korean Conflict.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. June 15 at Black Walnut Baptist Church located in Cluster Springs with Rev. Rick Whitlow officiating.
Survivors include: daughters, Diane Ketron of Ft. Meyers, Fla., Johnette Whitlow of Virgilina, Devone Hubbard of Halifax, Gail Sanford of Roxboro, NC, Anita Hubbard of Ft. Meyers, FL, Wanda Pasternak and Lisa Hubbard, both of Waldorf, Md. and Kelli Dasconio of Higganum, CT.; 13 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.