Local Historic Landmark: Sams-Jones House (Web page with photos and a link to the Landmark application and associated report written by an architectural historian.)
Many thanks to Thom Hill for sharing family photographs of the former Methodist parsonage.
Ivey-Ellington House
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the front yard of the Ivey-Ellington House at its original location at 135 West Chatham Street was used as a camp site for cattle drovers moving cattle from Chatham County to Raleigh.
Transcript 3 with descendents of the Ivey Family Recording with descendents of the Ivey Family
Cary First Baptist Church
An oral history of Ernest Northcutt who purchased the property of the original Cary Baptist Church and dismantled the “first” church building in 1939 recounted that “the sills were made of 13” x 13” solid pine, flooring was one inch thick hard [sic – heart] pine, ceiling joists were 28 feet long, hand-hewn dove tails joined floor joists and sills and the front was underpinned with hand-made brick.” Knowing that the Cary area was part of a large longleaf pine savannah, could the lumber have been cut locally and processed by Frank Page, Cary’s founder? Footnote page 7 of the book “The Baptist Bride” by Evelyn Holland, 1974.
It was a tradition for many years to have a “pounding” for new ministers moving into the pastorium. “Women would fill the pantry with canned fruits and vegetables, jelly, preserves, pickles, sweet potatoes or whatever was in season from the garden. This was done as a voluntary act of welcoming the pastor to the church and community.”
Dr. Yarborough’s son John recalls: His Christmases from his patients were something to behold. It seemed like three-fourths of them brought something … . A lot of times, especially before the fifties, it wouldn’t be unusual to get a ham or something in food. Patients were always bringing him food. He loved to eat, and they knew the way to his heart.
Excerpted from “Just a Horse-Stopping Place: An Oral History of Cary, North Carolina” by Peggy Van Scoyoc.
Dr. Samuel Waldo House
Dr. Waldo and his grandson, former Cary mayor, Waldo Rood both have streets named for them in the Town of Cary.
Julia Pasmore House
Much of the Title of Deeds and Newspaper research contributed By Carla Michaels.
The Park is built in a floodplain, which the tiered water feature helps to mitigate. In the 1800s and early 1900s, this area was home to a very rural community. Due to the floodplain and local climate, lots of frogs migrated to the area. If you visit the Park in the evening, you might still hear the frogs that remain, and they can be quite noisy!
There is a similar low-lying flood area nearby in Apex, known at one time as Frogtown. This name came from the loud chorus of frogs in the area. According to a local historian, the frogs were so noisy that it was impossible to have a conversation in downtown Apex at night! On early maps, the area near the Park in Cary is also labeled Frogtown.
