Hill's Raleigh (North Carolina) city directory [1928], Part 2

Author: Hill Directory Company.
Publication date: 1928
Publisher: Hill Directory Co.
Number of Pages: 866

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Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

The Seaboard Air Line and Norfolk-Southern shops here have 425 employees. The annual pay-roll from this source is $800,000.

The colleges and schools in Raleigh, led by the North Carolina College of Agriculture and Engineering, have an annual pay-roll to the faculties and other employees of $1,065,150. These figures do not include the city schools.

The Carolina Power & Light Company, which serves over seventy cities and towns in the Carolinas, with headquarters offices here, has an annual pay-roll in Raleigh of $500,000.

These interesting figures show some of Raleigh's sources of income, and is an indication of the substantial develop- ment of the city. In the pay-roll figures for the colleges and schools there is no method of determining the large amount expended in Raleigh annually by the student popu- lation, which numbers around five thousand.

Other Raleigh pay-roll figures from miscellaneous sources, largely confined to the printing industry, cotton mills, automobile garages and repair shops, lumber mills and machine shops have a pay-roll of $1,610,000 annually. The total for this amounts to $5,324,000.

Historical Raleigh

There have been two Raleighs in North Carolina; the first the "City of Raleigh," on Roanoke Island, which came into being in the spring of 1587, upon the arrival of Gov- ernor John White. Of it only old Fort Raleigh, its defense, now remains. Governor White last saw it in life August 27th, that year, when he told his colonists good-bye and sailed for England, expecting to return soon with more settlers and more supplies. In 1591 he saw it in death, its colonists gone without a trace and utter silence over all. Then what is now North Carolina and all the rest of North America from the pole to the Spanish possessions was "Vir- ginia," named fancifully by Sir Walter Raleigh, in honor of his queen, the great Elizabeth, who was unmarried and who had made him a Knight. His high purpose was to found here "the British Empire in America." He lived to see that dream realized, for Jamestown in Virginia, founded in 1607, was settled under the auspices of his same company of "gentlemen adventurers."

The inspiration of Sir Walter's great name persisted and when in 1787 the convention of the people of the State of North Carolina decreed that there should be a "Fixed and Unalterable Seat of Government" it was also decreed that it should be named in his honor. It was a wise course to pursue, as since the establishment of this Colony which began in 1663, there had been ten seats of government, at only three of which were there structures designed to be of a permanent character, these places being Edenton, Bruns- wick and Newbern; at the latter being the finest building in all North and South America; so noble that it was called the "Palace." It is small wonder that the one at the present Raleigh, built for the governors in 1814, was called the "Palace" also, until April, 1865, when the last governor to occupy it, Zebulon B. Vance, left it at the approach of the Federal Army, commanded by General William T. Sherman.

The City of Raleigh, in the County of Wake, was born like the hero in mythology, full armed; that is to say, its site was purchased with the public funds, its location hav- ing been determined by the State Convention, under the order of which the General Assembly or Legislature acted. Its streets were named by the Convention and the special commissioners named by the General Assembly; not named in a casual way, but in honor of notable men and for the eight superior court districts. In like manner the public squares were for men to whom the State was deeply indebted for its independence and other matters.

So it is that the Raleigh of today, established, bought

and paid for March 30, 1792, is the consummation of a well-laid and definite plan. When President Washington reached Newbern in his tour through North Carolina in the spring of 1791, he set down in his diary that he was about 150 miles eastward of the place where the permanent capi- tal was to be, on a site bought with public funds, as Wash- ington, in the District of Columbia was to be. The plan pleased and impressed him greatly. Perhaps he may have played no small part in the idea, as he did in the case of the present national capital.

Raleigh, like Washington City, made a small beginning. Washington was called for many years the "City of Mag- nificent Distances." It was tiny, the Capitol and the President's house were but poor structures, its streets were mud in wet weather and dust in dry. So Raleigh had its flimsy and uncouth capitol building begun in 1793 and fin- ished so it would be occupied in November, 1794.

Fires several times did damage to private property in Raleigh, one consuming a tenth of the buildings; another destroying the first capitol. The smallness of Raleigh per- sisted until the war of 1861-65 came, for and some years afterwards. The first modern building after the State Capi- tol was finished in 1840, was the post office and federal court building in 1888. Really not until after 1900 did the city's aspect change much. It was largely a residential town. The building of the present capitol did not lead to other permanent architecture of importance, nor did the erection of the second State building, the asylum for the insane, in 1853-57, or the State School for the Blind and Deaf, in 1847.

Raleigh's Substantial Growth

In 1907 the completion of the Masonic Temple marked the coming of fire-proof buildings and then came 1911-15, with the third State building, for the State Library, Su- preme Court and Historical Commission; the Citizens, Commercial and Raleigh Banking and Trust buildings, and the city auditorium. In fact most persons, asked when Raleigh really began to grow, reply "when it built the auditorium." The latter fixed it as the convention city of the State, for all the greater public gatherings.

Its first school was St. Mary's, built prior to 1840, 30 years later came Peace Institute and then about 1900 Mere- dith College, in the way of white institutions, while the negro ones, Shaw and St. Augustine's, date from 1867. Not until about 1890 did the State Agricultural and Me- chanical College come into being. The State Prison was be- gun in 1869 and finished a number of years later, the Sol-

diers' Home, unimportant buildings of wood, was occupied in 1891. In 1876, after a great notable celebration of the 4th of July, the old "Palace" of the Governors, long unoc- cupied, was secured for the first graded school. Some 20 years later the first high school was established in a build- ing on the site of the "Palace."

The end of the World War gave another impetus, like that of 1911-15, and then came what may be termed the greater hospital for the insane and epileptics, the school for the blind, the agricultural building, the Agricultural and Engineering College, the Odd Fellows Temple, the new Meredith College and public schools, modern and fireproof, a million dollar hotel, the Sir Walter, a great extension of area and such other structures along all lines as had been undreamed of, the proper paving of the streets, and the ad- vent of the most wonderful highway system in the South.

Progressive Capital City

Raleigh awoke New Year's Day, 1925, to find itself no longer a town but a city; a place with a dual responsibility; to its citizens but even more to North Carolina, which had conceived the great plan for it, bought the "unalter- able site" and nobly laid out the place, the only one in all America thus established.

In a county named in almost the last days of royal govern- ment for a lady of the family of the next to the last royal governor; in almost the precise geographical center of the State and near its present population center; in the region where the lower Piedmont and the Coastal Plain adjoin, its planning was at once noble and practical, while its growth has been in recent years so excellent as to show the wisdom of the forefathers of 1792 in laying it out with wide streets and large public squares.

All the romance of the first City of Raleigh, 1587, lingers in the present one. It is at the crossing of the roads, north to south and east to west, as it has been for nigh 150 years. Many of the State's greatest highways lead to it.

It is midway between New York and Florida.

At no other capital in all the United States are there so many state institutions. The growth of public build- ings, federal, state, county and city, as well as business houses, churches, schools, and homes have been well con- ceived and admirably carried out.

Chamber of Commerce

The Raleigh Chamber of Commerce functions most efficiently, having a membership devoted to the cause of

community advancement in all that bears on the essential progress of the city. A spirit of unity prevails that is in- spiring in its application to civic problems. Thus, econ- omic, industrial, mercantile, municipal and social ques- tions receive the consideration each deserves. Through the Chamber the aggressive and optimistic citizen speaks and he has an audience quite in sympathy with the loyal attitude he assumes. Every enterprise is fostered. Heads of industries seeking a location are invited to correspond with the secretary.

Library of Directories

Through the courtesy of the publishers of this Direc- tory the Chamber of Commerce has a library of City Direc- tories of the leading cities of the United States for free use by the public. These Directories are used by people de- siring to locate friends or business connections in other cities. There is not a day passes that these Directories . are not in use by the general public. This library is be- ing added to each month, and the public is invited to make the fullest use of this service.

MUNICIPAL PUBLICITY Advertising Raleigh

An important function of the Directory is to set forth the characteristics and advantages of the city as a place of residence, as a business location, as an industrial site and as an educational center. The Directory acts as a mirror, reflecting all that is noteworthy in the city in the above respects. In order to spread this information re- garding the city broadcast over the country the publishers place copies of this issue of the Directory in Directory Li- braries which are maintained in all the larger cities of the country, where they are readily available for reference use by the public. There they serve as perpetual advertise- ments of Raleigh, for business men the country over realize that the City Directory represents the community as it really is.

The publishers take this opportunity of thanking the citizens for valuable assistance rendered in the way of fur- nishing information concerning themselves for this Direc- tory, and also the public-spirited and progressive business and professional men for support given in the way of patron- age.

HILL DIRECTORY CO. INC., Compilers and Publishers.

CLASSIFIED BUYERS' GUIDE

OF THE CITY OF RALEIGH

NORTH CAROLINA

1928

PRO RIBONO ASSOCIATION OF NORTH AMERICAN

ORGANIZER DIRE DIRECDIRE! DIRECDIRECDIRIC

1898

Hill's Raleigh (North Carolina) city directory [1928], Part 2

Author: Hill Directory Company. Publication date: 1928 Publisher: Hill Directory Co. Number of Pages: 866

Author: Hill Directory Company.
Publication date: 1928
Publisher: Hill Directory Co.
Number of Pages: 866