OUTDOOR DRAMA

Ancestors of the Valdese settlers fled into the small valleys of the rugged Cottian Alps between Italy and France to escape persecution during the early middle ages. They refused to join the established church and abandon their simple yet steadfast faith in God. They faced a life of hiding, of worshiping in secrecy, of committing to memory the Bible, always fearing they might be discovered...

The persecutions ended on February 17, 1848 with King Charles Albert of Sardinia granting the Waldenses certain religious and civil liberties. This was a time of relative prosperity for the Waldenses, which ironically led to a surplus population. Soon the plots of land in the valleys had been so sub-divided that families found it difficult to meet their needs. The Waldenses would have to look elsewhere if they hoped to survive, so many made plans to emigrate to other parts of the world, including other European countries, South Africa, South America, and the United States.

Our story follows the latter emigrants, those who crowded into steamship steerage quarters and traveled to America. Those who found their dream of a new life in the ten-thousand acres of land in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. They had a dream in which they were living in large stone houses overlooking cultivated fields of wheat, corn, tobacco, and flourishing vineyards. But they would soon learn that survival in this promised land would not be easy.

They felt the cold winter winds blowing through the cracks of their crude cabins. They saw not green, fertile fields, but rocks and tree stumps that must be cleared from poor soil by their families.

Between your tear-filled eyes and heart-felt laughter, you will relive with these Waldenses, their glorious heritage.

An Author's Perspective

From This Day Forward is a story of “sacrifice for principle and a unique history of struggle to overcome poverty."

Fred Cranford says this of his creation: “Dick Banks. drama critic for the Charlotte Observer, came up to me after seeing a performance of From This Day Forward and said, ‘This play has a message that all of our present generation desperately needs to receive.’ I was amazed at how well Mr. Banks described in those few words the inspiration that has motivated me to write this play.”

“I was a history teacher when I wrote this drama. I worked daily with high school students who came to me feeling that history was something that always happened somewhere else.”

“Writing this drama was one of the ways I have attempted to show that some exciting pages of history were lived right here. I feel that those who attend From This Day Forward step for two hours into history and come away understanding themselves a little better because they have been there.”

About Fred Cranford

A Burke County native, Mr. Cranford has been interested in the history of the Waldenses since childhood. He holds his Bachelor’s degree in History from Lenoir-Rhyne College in Hickory and his Master’s degree in History from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His Masters’ thesis was written on the history of the Waldenses.

Fred visited the Waldensian valleys of Italy’s Cottian Alps while teaching at the Kaiserlautern American High School in West Germany. He also taught history at Valdese High School and South Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte. Fred returned as the Assistant Superintendent for Instruction of Burke County Public Schools, and now is retired after serving as personnel director for Cranford Woodworking, Inc. in Hickory.