Something is pulling my attention to Raleigh/Wake County around the turn of the century (1900's). It was a time of accelerated growth and prosperity. Perhaps it is that parallel that with today's frantic growth pace that has me looking backwards.   I started looking at the historic neighborhoods that built up in the early 1900's: Glenwood   - c.1905. It's development a direct result of the streetcar line providing access north and west. Boylan Heights  -  c.1907. Built on 180 acres of the William Montfort Boylan Mansion on the western outskirts of Raleigh. Cameron Park  - c.1910. Built on land that half a century earlier was Cameron Plantation. Bloomsbury - c. 1914. It's construction signaled the transition from streetcar access to automobile access as Raleigh expanded ever outward. Trolley time in Raleigh ( source ) As I did more research, I  became amazed and a little unsettled at the historical, cultural and sociological details that are u...

This wonderful street car map from 1914 recently passed thru my Facebook Feed. Mike Legeros of Legeros Fire Blog shared his map with the "You know you grew up in Raleigh when..." group there.  His map is an annotated version showing the street car lines of the time. It is viewable at his website . Click map to see larger. Source The original is available via  North Carolina Maps site from UNC-CH. Visit Wake County Genealogical Society's Website  -  Homepage  |  WCGS Events  |  Join WCGS  |  Publications  |  Wake Cemetery Survey Images  |  Society Surnames  |  Digital Resources  |  History Resources  |  More Links and Resources  |  Contact - info(at)wakecogen(dot)org

The Evolution of Raleigh's African-American:  Neighborhoods in the 19th and 20th Centuries by Richard Mattson,  November, 1988  It seems like I visit this document yearly as I seek to gain insight into important topics to highlight for Wake researchers during Black History Month. I know I have pulled information from it for the last two years running - once, for an expansion of the list of Freedmen's Villages in Wake County and again, when gathering sources for the growth of suburbs in Raleigh. When revisiting this document today, not only was I struck by the value of the comprehensive content but also by the generous list of resources that are included with in this historic survey document. If you are interested in the formation of Freedmen's communities, suburbs, polulation changes during Reconstruction, or growth and development in black communities, you should spend some time with Mr. Mattson's document .  Do not miss the pages of sources in the endnotes! What a...