Skip to main content

Exploring Central North Carolina

Image
By

Recently, I did an explore trip in Central North Carolina.  There were a few items for my Carolina Crossroads project that I wanted to get photos of - but like many road trips, there were a few surprises!

This trip took me from our home northeast of Charlotte and out to Chatham County and back.  It was a mix of churches and freeways, antiques and old bridges, backroads, and old country stores.  You can find the entire photo set on flickr, here.

I didn't gain any new state highways as I've done them all before - and in some cases, I had passed a few times and finally took some photos or even returned to take some more.

Lower Grace Stone Church

Have you ever driven past an old building that you know has been there a long time - it sticks out compared to the rest of the landscape - and wanted to stop?  The Grace Lower Stone Church would be one.  I've often driven past this historic church on our way to the North Carolina Zoo.  (Sometimes, we take the backway vs. the typical I-85 US 64 route.)

The church dates to 1795 - and the congregation to the 1740s.  The church has German roots, as it was founded by colonial Pennsylvanians who settled in the area in the mid-18th Century.


Located on about 16 acres in rural Rowan County, the church was constructed of local fieldstone.  Weekly services still occur at the nearly 230-year-old chapel.  The cemetery that surrounds it has gravestones that date well into the 1800s.

Downtown Ramseur, NC

I recently wrote about the Town of Ramseur for the Crossroads project.  My photos were dated (November 2010), and it was suggested that I return and take a fresh look at the community.  It was a quiet Sunday afternoon - so the downtown was inactive.  Yet, there were a handful of new businesses in formerly abandoned buildings.  I also noticed that the Deep River State Trail goes through the town, bringing additional opportunities.

The Deep River State Trail is a hybrid trail that combines paddling, biking, and hiking.


Often, it is easy to visit a town - or even travel down a highway - and never go back. I am trying, when I can, to go back to communities I have visited or photographed. It's easy to miss something when you first come through; a second look is always worthwhile.


One of the surprises on the trip is on US 64 east of Ramseur.  Luna's Trading Post is an absolute wonder for anyone who likes old gas station and highway memorabilia - or equipment.  I believe it was closed when I stopped.  Even though a TV was broadcasting on the front porch, the door to the inside was locked.  Yet, there's enough on the outside to satisfy your curiosity - and wet it enough to return when the store is open.

Luna's Trading Post is a must-visit for anyone that loves old gas station, soda, and automobile memorbilia.


There are easily one hundred old gas pumps, endless amounts of old gas station signs and license plates, old cars, soft drink signs, and more.  I'm definitely going to come back.

Chatham Bridge 147 is a pin-connected Pratt Truss Bridge.

The other planned stop for the trip was the recently closed Chatham Bridge 147 over the Rocky River.  After a routine inspection about a month ago, state transportation officials closed the bridge indefinitely.  The inspection found deficiencies in the steel structure.

Chatham Bridge 147

The one-lane bridge dates to the 1920s and is one of the last steel-truss bridges in the state. Over the years, several efforts by nearby residents kept the bridge from being replaced with a modern two-lane structure. Hopefully, the bridge will be preserved in some way.

G.C. Sharpe's (Reno's) Store dates to 1883.

Behind the store is a stage where bluegrass music is played.

At this point, I began the journey back to Charlotte - and not long after, I found a gem of an old country store.  The Reno Sharpe Store on Pittsboro-Goldston Road sits off the road a bit and is surrounded by woods.  Behind the store is a small stage. Reno Sharpe's reopens occasionally for Bluegrass music. A few outbuildings are also around.  It seems that music has preserved these old country stores in some communities. Whether weekly, monthly, or occasionally, these decades, if not century-old, stores come alive with visitors from near and far to enjoy a pleasant night out.



The former Enterprise Manufacturing Company store stayed open after the mill closed in the 1950s.  It operated into the 1970s.

After miles of forests and farmland on secondary roads, I came to an old textile mill town in Randolph County.  The community of Coleridge along the Deep River was home to the Enterprise Manufacturing Company.  Here, at the junction of NC 22 and 42, are abandoned structures from the Piedmont's textile manufacturing past.  An old company store, former cotton mill, bank, and mill offices are now part of the Coleridge Historic District.

The rest of the drive on a humid June afternoon was a mix of threatening skies and some rain.  But I did see a few more things that I'll have to get back to.

All photos taken by post author - June 17, 2024


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Abandoned US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon

By
Within the Truckee River Canyon in the Sierra Nevada range numerous abandoned portions of US Route 40 can be found alongside modern Interstate 80.   This segment of highway was opened during 1926 as a bypass of the Dog Valley Grade which carried the early North Lincoln Highway and Victory Highway. The corridor of the Truckee River Canyon State Highway would be assigned as US Route 40 when the US Route System was commissioned during November 1926. During 1958 the segment of Interstate 80 between Boca, California and the Nevada state line was complete. When Interstate 80 opened east of Boca numerous obsolete portions of US Route 40 were abandoned. Some of these abandoned segments have been incorporated into the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail.  Part 1; the history of US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon The Truckee River Canyon for centuries has been an established corridor of travel known to native tribes crossing the Sierra Nevada range.  The first documented wagon crossi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Former US Route 50 and the Pioneer Route Lincoln Highway on Johnson's Pass Road

By
Johnson's Pass Road is one of the oldest highway corridors in California.  Johnson's Pass was part of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road as it was completed during 1856 over the Sierra Nevada.  The pass would later be incorporated into the Pioneer Branch of the Lincoln Highway in 1913 and US Route 50 in 1926.  Johnson's Pass Road would be bypassed by a new alignment of US Route 50 over Echo Summit in 1938.  A replacement of the Meyers Grade east of Johnson's Pass would be opened to traffic in 1947.   Johnson's Pass Road remains accessible to traffic and is still signed by the Lincoln Highway Association.  Pictured as the blog cover is the view from the top of Johnson's Pass Road overlooking modern US Route 50 and Lake Tahoe.   Part 1; the history of Johnson's Pass Much of the history of what become the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road is discussed in the  September 1950 California Highways & Public Works  during its Centennial Edition.  The or...
Post a Comment
Read more

Former California State Route 41 past Bates Station

By
When California State Route 41 was commissioned during August 1934 it was aligned along the then existing Fresno-Yosemite Road north of the San Joaquin River.  Within the Sierra Nevada foothills of Madera County, the original highway alignment ran past Bates Station via what is now Madera County Road 209, part of eastern Road 406 and Road 207.   Bates Station was a stage station plotted during the early 1880s at what was the intersection of the Coarsegold Road and Stockton-Los Angeles Road.   The modern alignment bypassing Bates Station to the east would be reopened to traffic during late 1939.   Part 1; the history of California State Route 41 past Bates Station Bates Station was featured as one of the many 1875-1899 Madera County era towns in the May 21, 1968, Madera Tribune .  Post Office Service at Bates Station is noted to have been established on November 23, 1883 and ran continuously until October 31, 1903.  The postal name was sourced...
Post a Comment
Read more