- Title
- Our State
-
-
- Date
- August 2003
-
-
- Place
- ["North Carolina, United States"]
-
Our State
Hits:
(0)
























tar heel towns
Troy
With uvrld-dass symphony
performances, the nationally
renowned Capel Rug Outlet,
and a community committed
to togetherness, this small
Montgomery County town
rolls out the red carpet.
by Susan I Comer
hey ay the streets of Troy are
paved with gold. According to
T be Heritage of Montgomery
County. North Carolina. Volume I.
written by the Montgomery County
Historical Society, townsfolk
discovered "nuggets as big as
grains of corn- during street paving
in 19*3.
That legend, says society president
Rosemary Huntley, isn't so far¬
fetched. “We've had as many as 70
gold mines right here in this area,"
she says. While none exist today, the
riches to be found in this close-knit
community e»f 4.205 are far greater
than gold.
A little background
l ike the rest of Montgomery
County. Troy was settled primarily
by Scottish immigrants. In the 1 840s,
Angus McCaskill donated 50 acres
for a county seat at “West's
Oldfield.- near the center of the
county. While a debate exists as to
whether the renaming was for
attorney John B. Troy or State
Solicitor Alexander Troy — Huntley
subscribes to the latter — the town
was incorporated in IS52.
Troy's population soared from 1 30
in 1884. to 878 in 1900. According
to the aforementioned volume. “The
arris. il of the Axhehoro and Aberdeen
Railway and the founding of
Smithcrman Cotton Mills, both in
1895. undoubtedly exerted much
influence on the town." And a bit of
controversy. Some opposed the
railroad, says Huntley, so the tracks
often had to be laid after dark to
avoid disruptions.
Rugged enterprise
During the early 20th century, an
industrious 1 7-year-old founded a
business that, for many, has become
synonsmous with Troy. In 1917. A.
Leon Capel began purchasing waste
yarns from local nulls for his
manufacturing venture. Gee-Haw
Plow-lines, named for key words in
Top: A. Icon Capel hit on the idea of braided rugs in 1917. Today. Capel Rugs
employs more than 4 SO people and services SCO orders each day.
Above: Tho 1921 Classical Revival-stylo courthouso stands as the centerpiece
of Montgomery County.
t8 Our suit
Лиу«вгЛХУ