29 September 2007
Putting Down Roots
Posted under places beginning with: H; North Carolina; Hillsborough .
This story comes to us from Toni Jarvis of Hillsborough North Carolina. We’d like to thank Toni for including photos with her story and you can visit her blog 3 AM Designs.
I grew up as an Air Force brat, which meant that we never stayed in one place for very long. I recently met another Air Force brat who said she liked that life, but she’s the only one I’ve ever met who did. I thought it was a hard life, always being “the new kid on the block.” It seemed that we no sooner got settled than my dad was telling us that we were moving again. I went to 13 schools in the 12 years between first grade and graduation. I’m telling you this so that you can understand that even though Hillsborough is not my hometown - none of my family came from here - it has become my HOME. I have lived here longer than I have ever lived anywhere. I feel like I have finally put down some roots.
My dad is from North Carolina and I chose to go to college here - well, in-state tuition helped make that choice! When my dad retired, he came home to NC, so it just made sense that I ended up staying in the area. My first job was in Durham, and I lived there for a while. I moved down to Georgia for a little over a year, but felt the pull to return to Durham, where I stayed and later met my husband. When we decided to buy a house, we moved to Hillsborough - to the “country.”
This was in 1981, and Hillsborough was much smaller then - it’s not that big, now! But back then, it was mostly rural, and there were just a couple of blocks downtown, and there was a section of antique stores that attracted some visitors. Over the years, people have discovered this historic little town, and it has really grown.
We built our house at the end of a short street with only 8 lots - we were the first people to live here and we were really in the country. In the past 5 years or so, housing developments have gone up, and we now have neighbors all around us.
Hillsborough is a quaint, historic town, settled during the Revolutionary War. In the downtown area, there are many homes and buildings still standing that date back to the 19th century. [See this site for a historic overview of Hillsborough]
We have the usual big stores - Walmart, Home Depot - but we still have our local Mom and Pop stores, too. You can go into Dual Supply hardware store and buy a few nails out of a bin, and while you’re there, you can pick up some fresh corn and tomatoes that someone is selling from their garden. He’s got just about anything you need to fix something, and he’s got a nice selection of old-fashioned toys - wagons, bikes, sleds, Across the street is Carolina Game and Fish where you can get everything you need for a day of hunting or fishing. There’s usually someone hanging around that you can chew the fat with, find out what’s biting, maybe even play a little checkers. And you never know when a group of folks are going to start pickin’ and some impromptu bluegrass will get going.
Yeah! I love this town. I feel like I am finally at home!
