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New park is rich.
<br />witti history,
<br />Land oii,oce slated for a
<br />subdivislaiii-ii becomes, a
<br />park along
<br />Durhain•Orange Ilhie
<br />Plans are !to gnove ol�d
<br />iiollow Rock Country
<br />Store
<br />BY10SEPH MEET
<br />ineff@ne wsobserver. com,
<br />1) URHANI- ORAN Gs� COUNTY
<br />BORDER
<br />The"Friangle's newest
<br />park, Hollow Rock Nature
<br />Park, boasts walking trails,
<br />as harp: of history, a 'Triassic-,
<br />era Hanging Rock and the
<br />upcon-ting return of an old
<br />country store,
<br />The 75-aere park, 10
<br />years in the making, offi-.
<br />(.,,rally opened. Sunday.
<br />IlLocated halfway between
<br />Durham and Chapel Chill,
<br />the park was a touch.-and.-
<br />go project that was on its
<br />way to beconae a sub-
<br />division. in 2004, Nei.gh-
<br />borhood inobilizationand
<br />the joh-rt invol-vernent of
<br />Durhaiin and Orange
<br />COUnfies, the City of Dun.
<br />harn and the
<br />Chapel Hill halted the
<br />development and created
<br />the lmrk.
<br />"There were lots of
<br />politicians," said Mara-
<br />beth Carr, the landscape
<br />architect for Orange
<br />CoLmty
<br />Wendy Jacobs, who
<br />lived in an adjoining
<br />neighborhood, recalled
<br />Sunday how her daughters
<br />4earned that houses were
<br />going to replace the creeks
<br />and gUllies where they
<br />played,
<br />"Motn, what are you
<br />The News & Observer
<br />going to do about ffiat?"
<br />her two children asked.
<br />'flat question nudged
<br />Jacobs into politics, She
<br />led her neighborhood
<br />effort, then joined the
<br />Durham Planning Com-
<br />rnission and is now a Dur-
<br />harn County commission-
<br />01%
<br />The park has two rniles
<br />of tralls that connect. to
<br />Duke Forest under the
<br />Erwin Road. bridge over
<br />New Hope Creek. There is
<br />more to conie: an acces-
<br />sible trail for the disabled,
<br />overlooks for birders and
<br />an environmer.itally mind-
<br />ed toilet to replace the
<br />porta-potty in the parking
<br />10L
<br />And most importantly,
<br />the return of the Hollow
<br />Rock Country Store.
<br />'The Hollow Rock area
<br />takes its narne frown a
<br />geological formation on
<br />New Hope Creek, near the
<br />Erwin Road crossing,
<br />Early white settlers' ac-
<br />MENEM, VE MRITIMMMMAM MMWAMM
<br />v,
<br />K
<br />I)AR11",
<br />e
<br />cmu-as and artifacts point
<br />to Indian settICMUAS iD
<br />the area, Two colonial-era.
<br />roads crossed. 4.w _a major
<br />intersectioti just north of
<br />the pn scant Pickett Itoad
<br />junction with [ rwin,
<br />T'ho Patterson fa-rnfly
<br />built a ndli.rijearby in 11',ic
<br />19th cenbuy. lu gape 20011
<br />cen,fti,iry, the ccanjrrnnau�ty's
<br />and ior was the H ollow
<br />Rock Country S[ore a
<br />annall, woc.udl I rayne budd-
<br />rng with heart of Pine
<br />floors, fin roof, lwavy
<br />wooden shutter swarm its
<br />two windows au rd a large
<br />overb.ang out fn o.nt that
<br />provided. shade.
<br />The Store se rve""i a r,
<br />potfii,g pLace -- aeurru °lo t:
<br />Reynolds Price recalled
<br />voting for John U, Kenne,-
<br />dy there - aricl wa.sa
<br />handy stolp fro.r gas and
<br />groceries when towrn was
<br />distant, Envin Rf)ad rw?as
<br />dirt, and niglits were dark
<br />encn.a.gh to see the Aurora
<br />Borealis -- as was recalled
<br />by the late rriusician Torn-
<br />my Thompson, who in the
<br />early 1960s frequented
<br />1�riday-night picking sees
<br />sions at the store, Fhornp-
<br />son's group, the Hollow
<br />band, evolved
<br />unto the nationally-ac-
<br />claimed lRed Clay Rarn.
<br />blers,
<br />In the early 1970s the
<br />store owners wanted to
<br />jri.a in. a new ;tame and gas
<br />stadon. A. neighbor, hear-
<br />irng tire old store would be
<br />razed, rnoved the store to
<br />he propert)7, where it
<br />serVed as a pottery studio
<br />and swntge shed,
<br />'I 'lie group, Unique Pla-
<br />ces to Save, is about hatf-
<br />way to ralsing the
<br />$25,000 needed to move
<br />the old store to tire park
<br />,atop ,a. new foundation,
<br />organizers plan on cre-
<br />ating a small history mu-
<br />seurn for the Hollow Rock
<br />area.
<br />Marylu Flowers, an art
<br />teacher at nearby Forest-
<br />view Elementary School,
<br />has been bringing Stu-
<br />dents to Creek Week for
<br />years on the property. The
<br />students take water sam-
<br />ples, docurnent animal
<br />tracks, test soil, take core
<br />samples from trees and
<br />learn about water turbid-
<br />ity. ,
<br />iUid they learn about
<br />history.'rhe park's most
<br />prorninent feature is
<br />Hanging Rock, aTriassic -
<br />era point bar that vaults
<br />over New Hope Creek,
<br />"John Lawson was a.
<br />surveyor and artist who
<br />explored this area in the
<br />1600s," Flowers said, "He
<br />wrote abotit having a pic.,
<br />nic with the Occoneechee
<br />Indians on Hanging
<br />Rock."
<br />Ne,ffi 919-829-4516,
<br />@Josephcne
<br />
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