People & Places

326 Brooks St. / Weaver Grocery Store

Once the neighborhood grocery store, it was located south of the Orange County Training School in the historic Northside neighborhood.

Ridge School

The school was a segregated school for African American students of the area. It was built circa 1915 to replace an earlier (late 1800s), log structure. Although it resembles a Rosenwald School, it is not. View north (photo by S. Rankin, 04.01.2022) View south (photo by S. Rankin, 04.01.2022) View north west (photo by S. Rankin, 04.01.2022) View...

Dilapidated white church building

2502 HURDLE MILLS RD / Five Forks Baptist CHURCH

04.01.2012 (S. Kueber) Aerial photo, view north west, 1965 The Five Forks Baptist Church converted an agricultural outbuilding into this church, beginning circa 1952. They moved to a new building in 1966, and the property reverted back to the Crabtree family, as per their deed agreement (see OC Deed Book 143, Page 362), provision below. 04.01.2012...

Carr Store / Carr's Store / Compton's Store

Not sure of the dates for this (these?) structure(s) yet; if I had to make a guess I'd say the store started in the 1920s. The main section may have originally been a dwelling, and appears to date to the 1880 to 1910 period. One of the smaller attached structures (on the west side) may have been the Carr Post Office, which operated from 1894 to...

3517 Nc Highway 86 N / FARM & GARDEN

Listed as the Walton Robinson Store, it is now the Farm & Garden Center

112 W. Franklin St.

Built circa 1934 as a Pure Oil Service Station, owned and operated by Ben Strowd. In 1945, A. H. Poe purchased the property and expanded the structure to incorporate a Plymouth/DeSoto automobile dealership, renaming it the Poe Motor Company. In October 1956, Poe sold the property to Charlie Stancell (and it was renamed the Stancell Motor Company)...

137 N. Churton St. / Colonial Service Station

The Colonial Service Station's grand opening was May 8, 1964. Odis Johnson (then located in Mebane) was the building contractor. The structure replaced a large frame dwelling that was built sometime between 1894 and 1900, on historic town lot 35. It was a Phillips 66 station, selling Kenan Oil distributed products. Its first station manager was...

311 W. Franklin St. / Trailways Bus Station

Trailways Bus Station, also known as the Chapel Hill Bus Station, the Greyhound Bus Station, and the Union Bus Station, was built in 1946-47. It was a "segregated" structure, and had separate entrances and waiting rooms according to race. It was designed by James Edwards, Jr.; its formal opening was April 19, 1947. View south east, 1947 (image...

View east, March 2025 (via Google Streetview)

THOMPSON BUILDING

Built circa 1960 on property owned by Otha/Othar and Viola Thompson. In the tax records it is listed as/under "Commercial, Retail, Shopping Centers, Restaurants." It is three bays wide and on each side of the structure is painted "RESTAURANT." It was demolished in June 2026. View east, March 2025 (via Google Streetview) View south east, March 2025...

View north, April 2024 (via Google Streetview)

208 PUREFOY RD.

Built 1947 on Lots 69 and 70 of property subdivided in 1924. Site of the September 23, 1961 suicide of Harry Paxton Owen (UNC Class of 1961), who worked as a night clerk at the Carolina Inn. View north, April 2024 (via Google Streetview) Via the News of Orange REFERENCES: Orange County deed book 144, page 239; deed book 145, page 380; deed book 185...