Fun Facts
Fun Facts of Chapel Hill
- In 1838, President David Lowry Swain, together with science professor Elisha Mitchell, launched the building of stone walls on campus. Soon villagers in Chapel Hill followed suit.
- In 1876, the village of Chapel Hill had four general stores, three blacksmith shops, three wood-working shops, two drugstores, and a few shoemaker shops.
- Telephone service began in Chapel Hill in 1901.
- Carolina Coffee Shop was established in 1922 as the Carolina Confectionery, making it one of the oldest restaurants in the area.
- Chapel Hill has an altitude of 501 feet with an average rainfall of 42 inches per year.
- "Silent Sam," the Civil War monument located in McCorkle Place on the UNC campus, was erected to honor the 321 alumni who took part in the Civil War.
- The UNC men's basketball team has won four NCAA national championships: one in 1957, one in 1982, one in 1993, and the most recent in 2005. The women's basketball team won their first ever NCAA national championship in 1994.
Fun Facts was compiled by the Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau
Fun Facts of Carrboro
- Carrboro was started in 1882 when a spur from the Durham-Greensboro Southern Railway line was extended to link university students with the outside world.
- Carrboro is named after Julian Carr, who owned the Durham Hosiery Mill and bought and ran many mills in Carrboro.
- Carrboro’s railroad depot, first textile mill (now Carr Mill Mall), and a former grist mill are all listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
- There are approximately 150 structures still standing within Carrboro’s current city limits that were erected prior to 1930.
- In 1973 concerned cyclists and town staff members devised a bikeway plan for Carrboro. Today Carrboro has one of the most extensive on- and off-road bikeway systems in this area.
- In 1993 Carrboro was named a “Tree City USA” by the National Arbor Day Foundation. This was the tenth year that Carrboro had received this national recognition.
- The ArtsCenter, located in Carrboro, began in a loft in 1975 as a painting class. Today this full-fledged community arts center offers a wide variety of classes and performances dedicated to the visual, literary and performing arts.
Fun Facts was compiled by the Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau
Fun Facts of Orange County
- Estimated population of Orange County is 118,000. Orange County also encompasses part of Mebane and Durham.
- Before Orange County was founded in 1752, five Native American tribes lived in the area, one of which was the Eno-Occaneechi Indian tribe.
- In addition to the towns of Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Hillsborough, Orange County has many other unincorporated communities: Carr, Cedar Grove, Caldwell, Schley, Efland, Cheeks Crossroads, Buckhorn, University Orange Grove, Dodsons Crossroads, Eubanks, Oaks, White Cross, McDade, Teer, Miles, and Calvander.
- Orange County is named for either William III of the House of Orange, whose rule of England ended in 1702 or William V of Orange, whose mother Anne (daughter of George II of England) controlled affairs of state when Orange County was formed.
- Orange County encompasses approximately 400 square miles, of which only 10% is developed.
Fun Facts was compiled by the Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau
Famous Orange County People
- Charles Kuralt: This UNC alumnus (a former editor of The Daily Tar Heel) and North Carolina native was a former anchor of the CBS News Sunday Morning and hosted the news series “On the Road.”
- Lawrence Taylor: A former offensive linebacker and defensive end for the Tar Heel football team; Taylor earned many honors as a New York Giant including all-time quarterback sack leader in the NFL.
- Andy Griffith: This graduate of UNC’s Drama Department has appeared in a variety of plays, films, and television shows including “The Lost Colony” (1949-1953), the Broadway hit play “No Time for Sergeants” (1955), and eight years of the “Andy Griffith Show” (the highest rated program on television when the show ended in 1968).
- James Taylor: This famous singer/songwriter grew up at 618 Morgan Creek Road in Chapel Hill. Taylor is best known for writing about his Chapel Hill roots in the songs “Carolina In My Mind” and “Copperline.”
- Michael Jordan: This former guard for UNC’s men’s basketball team, went on to play for the NBA’s Chicago Bulls. Jordan’s basketball accomplishments include National Collegiate Player of the Year (1983), NBA Rookie of the Year (1984-85 NBA season), and NBA tournament MVP in 1991 and 1992.
- Alexander Julian: This famous clothes designer is a graduate of UNC. Some of Julian’s achievements include receiving five Coty Awards for menswear, being the youngest designer to be inducted into the Coty Hall of Fame, and being named Designer of the Year in 1982 by Fashion Designers of America.
Compiled by the Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau