For years, The Carolina Crossroads post was the only thing I found on Williams Crossroads. My sleuthing must have improved because I have found several other mentions of this all but forgotten speck of rural Wake County. Now I can add a list of cemeteries near there and some great references from some National Register of Historic Places Documentation forms.
Williams X roads - check out the feature at Carolina Crossroads!
In the process of hunting for information on Williams Crossroads, I discovered one of my favorite ever overlooked documents types for researching family history - historical and architectural surveys. I had bumped into a few of these in researching for the Wake Cemetery Survey project and found them very useful so my spidey senses were tingling when I found a reference to Williams Crossroads in a multi-location document that has become a constant fascination as I search for content, context and historically relevant material for the blog.
I found a reference in a National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form from the early 1990's. The file (WA7244) included the surveyed locations for the Historic and Architectural Resources of Wake County, North Carolina (ca. 1770-1941) report from the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. This file led me to another survey file where Williams Crossroads and the George Williams Farm (WA0457) in the area are described and evaluated for historic preservation status for about 26 pages of the report. Take a look and you will find, physical descriptions, photos, maps, historical context and evaluation against historcal register criteria.
I found a reference in a National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form from the early 1990's. The file (WA7244) included the surveyed locations for the Historic and Architectural Resources of Wake County, North Carolina (ca. 1770-1941) report from the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. This file led me to another survey file where Williams Crossroads and the George Williams Farm (WA0457) in the area are described and evaluated for historic preservation status for about 26 pages of the report. Take a look and you will find, physical descriptions, photos, maps, historical context and evaluation against historcal register criteria.
If your Williams ancestors were in this part of Wake County, this is a gold mine for you. The Crossroads and the George Williams farm were not approved for Register status or protection but the survey remains as a lasting document of the Crossroads and its people in their time and place. While Willimas Crossroads is intact for the present, this may be the only glimpse of this community you may get as developement spreads out this way.
Moving on from the historical surveys, I found another useful link to see the cemeteries that are near Williams Crossroad at Roadsidethoughts.com. View here and scroll a little past half way down the page.
I have been looking for info on this area almost as long as I have been writing this blog. It is very satisfying to connect the Williams researcher with something more than a mere snippet of information about this little corner of Wake County before it gets crowded out and paved over.
Visit Wake County Genealogical Society's Website -
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