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Wake Wednesday - What is in a name? Local town had two names.

Update - read the additional article linked at the end of the post.

A very small town in Wake County, barely even a crossroads, went by the name of Log Pond early in its history. Even if you can find stories of  this community or find it on a map today, its name hints at the history of this part of Wake County before the Civil War. 

The location of this pond was pivotal for the community. It may have supported some logging trade and a mill in the area. it provided rest and respite for the horses of travelers passing through the area. When railroads began criss crossing Wake County, this small but useful pond was an attractive location for the builders as a reloading point for the steam engines that chuffed through the town. 

All this changed this tiny dot of a crossroads forever and the resulting town, sleepy though it still was, has now surpassed all bounds to become one of the larger suburban communities in our county. But where is the pond now?

Please follow this link to read the entire story in the words of Heather Leah of WRAL and discover the town's eventual moniker. It is fascinating and filled with wonderful historical context and detail that most of us have never heard before. Many thanks to Heather for bringing this story to light. 

I have devoted several afternoons to an attempt to find an early map with Log Pond marked on it. (I am at a disadvantage, as I am without a car at the moment and could not run downtown to check the NC Archives.)  If you find one, could you please share. I would love to see a map for the southwestern corner of Wake at that time period. 


"Trains would come up the hill from Haywood. That climb is 15 miles, and for a little steam engine pulling a long train of cars, it needed water by the time it reached the top of the hill. That's where the log pond was," he said. "It would refill at the 'apex' of the grade then proceed on to Cary, and downhill to Raleigh."   - Toby Holleman


Update - Still more about Log Pond from Cary Magazine in 2011. Read the article here including accounts from those who remember it!


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