History Moments
Community Scrapbook
From Trains to Tech
Before white settlers came to the area where Cary is located in the 1750s, the land was inhabited by Tuscarora Native Americans. During the Revolutionary War era, the majority of Cary's land was divided up between two Nathaniel Jones's - Nathaniel Jones of Crabtree owned most of the land that's now western Cary, and Nathaniel Jones of White Plains owned most of the land that's now eastern Cary. The first half of the 19th century saw the development of sawmills, grist mills, and the community's first free school and church, started by Rufus Jones.
Highlights of Cary's History
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Detailed Timeline
Our timeline starts here!
John Bradford founds 'Bradford's Ordinary', a roadside inn, approximately where Cary Town Hall is today
Allison Francis "Frank" Page and his wife, Catherine "Kate" Raboteau-Page, buy 300 acres in what is now Cary. He names the development after Samuel Fenton Cary, a prohibitionist leader from Ohio whom he admired
Walter Hines Page, Cary's most distinguished citizen, was born
Arch Arrington, Sr. is born in Cary. Arrington becomes a respected civic leader in the African American and white communities. He comes to own three-fourths of the northern section of Cary, above Chapel Hill Road.
Frank Page builds a hotel for railroad passengers around the same time the North Carolina Railroad reaches Cary
Cary's first private boarding school opens, where Cary Elementary School is today
Cary is incorporated, and Frank Page becomes the town's first mayor
Cary's population reaches 316 people, according to census
Page sells his hotel to Jacob R. Walker and his wife Nancy, who continue to offer rooms to railroad passengers until 1916
Cary's private academy is converted into North Carolina's first public high school
Bank of Cary was chartered
Walter Hines Page is named as Ambassador to Great Britain by President Woodrow Wilson
First telephone service comes to Cary
Main roads were paved
William B. Umstead State Park is developed
Adams Rexall Drug Store (now Ashworth Drugs) opens
Town government goes bankrupt during the Great Depression
Taylor Biscuit Company (now known as Austin Quality Foods) opened its bakery in town, becoming Cary's largest employer
RTP was founded, bringing new jobs and people to Cary
Cary High School relocates to current spot on Walnut Street
Founding of the Cary Historical Society
Opening of the Page-Walker Arts & History Center (Full Facility)
Opening of the Cary Arts Center
The Cary Theatre opens
2040 Cary Community Plan is Adopted
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Town of Cary
316 N. Academy St. Cary, NC 27513