Today, we had hoped to hear that our second coolant unit was in and the refrigerator repairman would be out. But no such luck, so we got in the car and traveled to a town close by that had been recommended as a must see. Hillsborough, North Carolina was laid out in 1754 by William Churton, where the great Indian Trading Path crossed the Eno River. Then called "Orange," the town was designed on 400 acres granted by the Honorable John Earl Granville. Hillsborough took its present name in 1766.
Our first stop was the Visitor Center, located in the Alexander Dickson House, built in 1790. This was General Johnston's Headquarters, when he surrendered to the Union forces 1865. It is a Quaker-plan house.
Across the street was the William Reed's Ordinary House, built in 1724. An Ordinary is a place that serves meals or drink at a regular time each day. So this was a place people came for dinner and a drink. It was located at the intersection of several major roads, and just a short distance from the courthouse. It was recently purchased for $529.000. So if you want to own a piece of history. That's the cost.
We headed to lunch, of course. we had to try the BBQ in town. The lady at the Visitor's Center recommended Hillsborough BBQ. We checked it out on Yelp and it had a 4 star, and 2 $$ rating. We found it easily. Food was excellent, three types of slaw and a lot of different beers. Bob and I are not beer drinkers so we can't give a rating on the beer, but the German couple next to us were satisfied so I would guess the beer would be ok.
In my former life, I was a teacher, so I wanted to see the Burwell School. This is the house and it has been turned into a museum that preserves and interprets the history of its antebellum and Civil War era residents. In the three decades prior to the Civil War, the property was the home of Robert and Anna Burwell, and their twelve children. The Burwell Residence, built in 1821 remains from this period.
In the summer of 1837, the Burwells opened their landmark school, one of the earliest female academies in North Carolina, in a brick school building in their backyard. For two decades (1837-1857), the Burwell School educated 200 students in an academically rigorous curriculum designed by Mrs. Burwell to make them "thorough scholars and useful members of society." If you'd like to know about the 200 students who studied here, a research project has been done. What did they do with this education?
Still being maintained is a garden at side of the house.
Formerly a dorm for the Burwell School, the Cates house is across the road from the Burwell Home.
No comments:
Post a Comment