Abandoned Hwy 57/158 Caldwell, Roxboro and Oxford

At the Junction of Hwy 57 and Hwy 158. Abandoned duplex in Caldwell NC. 

The trip was a long overdue motorcycle adventure needed by both me and "Old Blue" my trusty 2010 BMW K1300GT. She always handles the gravel fine. I have new Michelin Pilot tires so I am feeling very confident going off on to gravel paths.

The Caldwell House

I started on Interstate 40 to get to 86 N to Danville. Once I got to Hillsborough I veered right onto Hwy 57 and motorbiked to Caldwell before I saw this building on your left. Interesting trying to research such a tiny town. Across the highway is a little gas station called Andy's. Andy was not in that day but would be back during the week. Several residents that I spoke with said the building is historic but no one knows who owns it or the last time it was inhabited.  The next site was shortly after the Caldwell building that is the Walker Farm below.

Walker Farm located on 57 headed toward Person County.

The Walker Farm

The walker farm was abandoned somewhere in the late 1950's or early 60's. The Walkers were from Washington State originally and had settled in the Piedmont after Mr. Walkers retirement from Boeing. The Walker's built a home across the highway from the original homestead.

Abandoned Gas Station

An abandoned gas station and garage. There was a mobile home (occupied) right in back so I did not stay long.
My bike was handling the slight off roads jaunts quite nicely.

The Oxford Orphanage

Prior to the Civil War, the Masonic Fraternity of North Carolina was much smaller and more fragmented than it is today. In that era, Masons in other states promoted philanthropy by supporting Masonic colleges and seminaries. North Carolina Masons hoped such an institution would serve the common good of the state, as well as provide a rallying point for their fraternity. The story of the Masonic Home for Children at Oxford began in 1838 when David W. Stone introduced a set of resolutions at the annual communication of the Grand Lodge of North Carolina "to establish a Masonic Seminary for the education of children attached to the Fraternity." The resolutions passed, but nothing came of them. The Grand Lodge formed a committee to investigate the possibility of such an institution, but in 1839 the committee asked for a postponement of consideration, and did so again in 1840. In 1842 T. J. Lemay proposed "that the Grand Lodge should...provide for the establishment of a committee to study and report plans for the establishment of a charity school."

Below are a couple of historic photos of the Oxford Orphanage. Many of the buildings remain but now they are used as general adult housing.

Administration building with students lining for what might be a convocation.

Oxford Orphanage sign in historic Oxford NC.

Ghost Town Run: Coleridge North Carolina

The original Coleridge Mill in Coleridge, North Carolina. Click on the picture 

above to see the entire album on my Google Profile. Ghost Town Run: Coleridge.

I wanted to mix my several hobbies into one. I love exploring Old North Carolina and I love riding motorcycles. So what better way to experience North Carolina then to chronicle the true abandoned town and some times buildings of my adopted home state.

 Current Condition

Buildings surveyed include a general dry goods store, a bank and the mill itself. The dam located nearby seems in good shape. The interior of the buildings is dangerous and "No Trespassing" signs are out.  In general the interiors of the building on poor to completely unsafe condition. There is an occupant on the grounds and a group of well cared for seemingly semi feral cats also occupy the town.

Visit the Gallery

 Coleridge, North Carolina 

From the North Carolina Carolina History Project

Coleridge was the home of the Enterprise Manufacturing Company, the southern most cotton mill built on Deep River. Its construction in 1882 was the final link in the chain of Randolph County’s water-powered textile industries that had begun to be forged in 1836.

The company was organized by H.A. Moffitt, an Asheboro merchant, and Daniel Lambert and James A. Cole, prominent citizens of southeastern Randolph. The original structure was a two-and-one-half-story, wooden building housing 800 spindles and 26 workers. The facilities of the corporation included a wool-carding mill, saw mill, and flour mill.

The surrounding village was known first as Cole’s Ridge and then as Coleridge, after James A. Cole, who in 1904 sold a majority interest in the company to his son-in-law, Dr. Robert L. Caveness.  By 1917 it was said that “R. L. Caveness is at the head of practically everything in Coleridge,” and it was under his influence that the brick mill facilities were built. The factory (built in the 1920′s) is of utilitarian design with Tudor Revival entrance towers. The company store, bending mill, and warehouse (all built circa 1910), and the company office and Bank of Coleridge (built in the 1920′s) were all constructed in the Romanesque Revival style. Caveness also directed the town’s only other industry, the Coleridge Manufacturing Company, which made parts of bentwood chairs.

Outlier Buildings

The Concord Methodist Church was built in Coleridge in 1887. Just behind the church building was located the Coleridge Academy, which included a room for the Masonic Lodge. The academy was formed in 1890 from two smaller schools, and closed in 1936. The Bank of Coleridge was founded in 1919, opened a branch in Ramseur in 1934, and moved there in 1939. The Enterprise Roller Mill, grinding wheat with steel rollers instead of stones, was the first roller mill in Randolph County.  Its “Our Leader” flour was a popular brand. Dr. Caveness remained involved in the mill's operation, although he tried to return to his medical practice in 1922.

Decline

In 1959 the mill boasted 6,000 spindles and 150 employees, manufacturing cotton or knitting yarn and twine. In 1951, Dr. Caveness died and the business immediately began to decline. His heirs sold out to Boaz Mills of Alabama in 1954, and in 1958 the mill was closed and the equipment sold off. The buildings have since been used as warehouse space.

The village was Randolph County’s first historic district, and has been placed on the National Register or Historic Places. Its 1970 nomination stated that “the chief appeal of this site is as a picturesque example of a riverside mill seen in one of North Carolina’s oldest manufacturing sections.”

The above citation from : North Carolina History Project http://www.northcarolinahistory.org/encyclopedia/666/entry