History: Remembering Nathaniel Jones

Story and photos by Lindsey Chester

Cary, N C- Tucked away at the end of a cul de sac in a modern day neighborhood stands White Plains Cemetery.  Read more

Cary’s Cemetery Secrets

Story by Lisa Englert, photos by Hal Goodtree.

Cary, NC- For many of us, Cary is a modern place, with newcomers from across the country. But the town’s cemeteries tell a story, and one of those places will be dedicated this Saturday. Read more

Wake County Quiz: Where is St. Matthews Township?

Story by Hal Goodtree. Maps adapted from Wake County GIS.

Cary, NC – Green Level, White Oak, St. Matthew’s and Marks Creek – they are all Wake County townships. Do you know where they are? Read more

History: Cedar Fork Rifles

Story and photographs by Hal Goodtree

Morrisville, NC – Civil War History came to life on Saturday as the Cedar Fork Rifles reenacted their 1861 ceremony of commission. Read more

History: Films, Exhibit and Reenactors in Morrisville This Week

Story from staff reports. Photo from Cedar Fork Rifles. Left, Duncan Parrish, right Edward Parrish, circa 1861.

Morrisville Historic Exhibit Grand Opening and Documentary Premier

The Town of Morrisville will unveil new historic exhibits and two video documentaries that feature the history of the town.

The exhibits will tell the story of Morrisville from the first Native Americans to the present. In addition, a new documentary on the history of the town entitled,  Jeremiah’s Dream: The Story of Morrisville, will bring this story to life. In addition, a second documentary of the 1865 Civil War battle in Morrisville, Twilight of Sabers, will also be premiered.

The exhibit opening will take place on Thursday, June 23, 2011 at 5:30 p.m. in Town Hall followed by the premier of the video premier in the Council Chambers.

For more information contact, Ben Hitchings, Planning Director, bhitchings@townofmorrisville.org

Reenacting History

Members of the North Carolina Grays/Cedar Fork Rifles will bring history to life with period costume, morning and afternoon company drill and a flag ceremony at Page House in Morrisville on  Saturday, June 25, 2011, 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM.

Period civilian dress encouraged. Sponsored by the Cedar Fork Rifles Preservation Society.

For more information contact: wgo6regnc@aol.com

 

Morrisville History Center Opens June 24

Morrisville, NC – Morrisville is planning a Grand Opening of the Morrisville History Center on Friday, June 24th starting at 5:30 PM at Morrisville Town Hall, 100 Town Hall Drive. Read more

Black History Month: Billy Strayhorn of Hillsborough, NC

Story and photos of Hillsborough by Hal Goodtree.

Cary, NC – I’ve been pondering what to write for Black History Month. Yesterday, on a trip to nearby Hillsborough, I discovered a small hole in the fabric of black history. It concerned Billy Strayhorn, composer and arranger for jazz great Duke Ellington. Read more

Cary History: Dr. James Templeton

Story by Peggy Von Scoyoc. Illustrations by Jerry Miller.

James Templeton was born in 1855 in Lincolnton, North Carolina. He was chairman of the school board for thirty years, founder of the Wake County Medical Society, began a newspaper in Cary which he edited, and was in demand as a public speaker. He was a candidate for governor on the prohibitionist ticket and a soldier in the Great War.

But most of all, Dr. James Templeton was a pillar of Cary society. He ministered to the sick and tended to the growth and well-being of the community in equal measure. Read more

Cary History: Henry Adams

henry adams

Cary, NC – With thanks to Peggy Van Scoyoc and her book, Desegregating Cary, which is on sale at the Page-Walker History Center in downtown Cary. The book is a collection of oral history interviews conducted between local citizens and Friends of the Page-Walker. Proceeds from the sale of this book support the preservation of Cary’s history.

What follows is from Henry’s son, Charlie:

Making a Mark in Education and Local Business

Henry Adams was born and raised in Cary. He left Cary to go to college at Trinity Park, which is now Duke University. He had a sister who had a drugstore in Durham and she heavily influenced him to go to pharmacy school in Massachusetts. When he came back, he opened a drugstore in Cary. He ran Adams Rexall Drugs until he tired of that and found out that I was not going to be a pharmacist after college. So he sold the store to Ralph Ashworth and opened an appliance store on Chatham Street. He had that store until he died. Later, an elementary school was named after him – The Henry R. Adams Elementary School. Read more

History: Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church

Story by Mary Beth Phillips, photo by Hal Goodtree

Morrisville, NC – Finding a Cary-area native is getting harder and harder these days, but if you travel down the road from Cary just a piece, you can find a community made up of folks that have been born and bred in these parts since their families settled here in the mid-1800s. Read more