North Carolina ... a friendly comfortable way of life with plenty of southern hospitality and a lower cost of living. |
North Carolina'a culture is unsurpassed in the South, providing the proper environment to nurture the artist as well as to satisfy the desires of art lovers throughout the state. Ballet, jazz ensembles, symphony orchestras, sidewalk art shows and fine art exhibits are available throughout the year. The North Carolina Museum of Art with its nationally acclaimed collection of over 2,000 works is in Raleigh. The Museum of Natural Sciences and the Museum of History are also in Raleigh. Finding the arts and your own creative spirit is rewarding and easy in North Carolina. |
You will need every minute to see and enjoy all that North Carolina has to offer. The sun splashed Outer Banks and Beaches in the east, the snowcapped mountains in the west and the SandHills which are centrally located and have been established as one of the premium locations to live. You will find a friendly and comfortable way of life and with our mild four season climate, even the weather is friendlier. North Carolina has been called "an oasis between Northern realities and Southern dreams... a day's drive from friends and family in the North and resorts further South. . |
make footprints in the sand and admire the dunes at Kitty Hawk where the Wright Brothers made their famous first flight. With barrier islands that form a giant sandbar known as the Outer Banks visitors get to see some of the best beaches in the country. Some things never get old... the sun, the sand, the salt air and the feeling that this is a place you never want to leave. A favorite place to visit at the beach is Wilmington which is on the Cape Fear River. The waterfront has been restored and has many fine shops and restaurants. Wilmington is also home to some film studios and over 500 movies were filmed there... Hannibal, The Fugitive, Days of Thunder, The Color Purple, etc. |
North Carolina has the largest area of inland waters of any state in the nation. Estimates suggest that there are more than 48,000 lakes, reservoirs, and ponds offering recreation across North Carolina. Rivers and streams wind throughout the state. |
. Old Salem...In the rolling foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Winston-Salem offers history and charm with a vibrant city feel. In the area there is a restored Moravian town called "Old Salem". Step back in time and see the life of your ancestors portrayed in real time. Old Salem is important to the history and heritage of Winston-Salem, North Carolina and the United States. Unique dining, shopping, entertainment, and historical attractions are all part of the Winston-Salem experience. 10 miles to the west is Tanglewood Park, featuring two of America's finest golf courses. |
....Directly across the Cape Fear River is the Battleship North Carolina, a living museum of World War II. Visitor's can tour the ship and attend an excellent sight and sound show staged each evening. ....Nearby is Orton Plantation Gardens, considered by many to be one of the finest gardens in America. While taking a leisurely stroll among the elegantly arranged gardens that are surrounded by rice fields and huge ancient oaks you can view the beautiful White Orton House, a classic example of Green Revival Architecture. Central and Eastern North Carolina is rated as one of the top ten places in the United States to retire. |
Myrtle Beach...is a legendary destination enchanting legions of admirers with a mystical allure and a fascinating past. Myrtle Beach has a spectacular oceanfront with great accommodations, posh golf courses, sculpture gardens and world-class restaurants. Theatres like Alabama Theatre, Dixie Stampede, House of Blues, Legends in Concert and Spirit of the Dance with shows that headline such performers as Alabama, The Glen Miller Orchestra, Kinston Trio, and many others, are throughout the area. One of our favorite places is the Sea Island Inn at 62nd and the beach. It is a beach front hotel with the warmth and friendliness of a bed and breakfast. The restaurant, which is in the hotel, is second to none. When you purchase the meal plan, $30.00, it includes a five course dinner and a full breakfast. Both are served by a very gracious staff in an elegant setting on the beach. There are casino boats that set sail from Little River, just above North Myrtle Beach. |
The Southern Pines and Pinehurst area has long been home to horse owners of all breeds and disciplines. Each autumn, trainers and owners from throughout the country bring their horses here to train in the mild winter climate and great sand footing, features which make the Sandhills one of the leading training and competition locations in the country. The Sandhills is also the midway point between the Winter Circuit in Florida and the Summer Circuit in the North. The Pinehurst Harness Track* has been the winter home for the Standardbreds for over fifty years. It is here these horses come every fall to live and train and prepare for the upcoming summer racing season. The matinee races are a highlight of the spring season. No matter what your equine discipline or interest, whether you are a competitive rider or ride for pleasure, the Sandhills offers an extraordinary environment for both horse and rider. |
...CAMERON ... The railroad brought boom times to Cameron. Or maybe it was the Goodman brothers who should be credited with sowing the seeds that grew into Cameron. It was no accident that the railroad made its way through Moore County via Cameron. Three brothers named Goodman owned most of the land surrounding present-day Cameron. These brothers knew the value that the railroad could add to their land. In pursuit of this additional value, they made an agreement with a Major John Scott that if he could get the Raleigh and Augusta Railroad to lay its tracks through their land, the brothers would reward Major Scott with every other lot for a mile on either side of the track. The railroad did come to Cameron in 1857, and for a long time Cameron was the place where the Raleigh and Augusta Railroad line ended. Just as the Goodman brothers hoped, with the railroad came a variety of merchants and residents, and a community was established. The town of Cameron was incorporated by an act of the General Assembly in 1876 and named for Paul Cameron, an official of the railroad. The railroad's influence was obvious when the town limits were set in a square one mile wide with the center of the square positioned at the depot lot of the Raleigh and Augusta Airline Railroad. Cameron grew into a bustling commercial center with many mercantile stores, a carriage works, millstone company, and six turpentine distilleries. By the early 1900's, a winery and hosiery mill were added. Within twenty years, Cameron was home to two hotels, three saloons, ten general stores, and one drugstore. From 1880 to 1890 the population grew from 117 to 218. During this period, Muse Brothers Store in Cameron was recognized as the largest department store between Richmond, Va., and Augusta, Ga. Early settlers had worried no crop would grow in the sandy regions now known as Sandhills. It took the Highland Scots in the late 18th century to see the potential in the pines for the lumber and turpentine the forest would yield. Cameron was about to discover a new industry to be produced in the sandy soil. This new industry would put the name of Cameron on the map. In 1892, the Lucretia Dewberry was introduced to Moore County. This cultivated blackberry was grown on farms all around Cameron. In fact, Cameron became the dewberry capital of the world attracting buyers from as far away as Florida. In the ten years from 1910 to 1920, between 60,000 and 90,000 crates of dewberries were shipped each season in refrigerated boxcars from Cameron to such destinations as Richmond, Washington, and New York. The dewberry patch is a one-crop situation. The bushes soon aged, and no new ones were planted. It was under this scenario that the dewberry industry suffered a double blow. A rust struck the already weakened dewberry plants, and tobacco emerged as the major cash crop. The dewberry industry had died out completely by the early 1950s. As a matter of fact, both the dewberry and turpentine industries had disappeared. Even the trains that had once made daily stops in Cameron now just passed through. Cameron may have lost its commercial status, but not its charm. Today, Cameron has cleverly taken advantage of its charming past. The mercantile stores which once sold groceries and dry goods now sell a new kind of treasure --antiques. Although Cameron is no longer the dewberry capital, it has put itself on another map as the antique capital of the Sandhills. The town is now a reflection of its past. Cameron's historic homes hold a variety of antique shops and tearooms, and the area has become a mecca for antique lovers far and wide. Two fairs, one held each spring and fall, attracts vendors and shoppers from as far way as Maryland and Georgia. The town that exploded from 117 residents in 1880 to 218 resident in 1890 has seen its population creep up to a current 300. For its visitors, Cameron is a pleasant place to spend a day enjoying the antique shops; for its residents, Cameron is a pleasant place to spend a lifetime with its tree-lined streets and neatly manicured homes. |