Rockford is an unincorporated community and former town in southern Surry County, North Carolina, United States.
Rockford is an unincorporated community and former town in southern Surry County, North Carolina, United States.
Rockford is situated along the Yadkin River in the Rockford Township of southern Surry County. Rockford sits along the former Southern Railway, now used by the Yadkin Valley Railroad, which follows the Yadkin River through Surry County.
Rockford was founded in 1790 to be the county seat of Surry after Surry was split to form Stokes County (including then modern-day Forsyth County as well as Stokes). The community was incorporated in 1819 but has been municipally inactive for many years ( Powell 1968 , p. 420). When the portion of Surry County south of the Yadkin River was used to create Yadkin County in 1851, the county government was moved to Dobson. Several notable historical structures from the village's period as county seat are still standing, including the former county courthouse.
Ferries shuttled people across the Yadkin River at Rockford until 1900, when piano-seller R.F. Bland charged a quarter to cross a bridge he built that connected the river's banks with an island. Floods swept the bridge away in the 1930s. [1]
In 1962, a one-lane, low-water bridge was built to link the community with the nearest town, Boonville. A community group fought unsuccessfully to save the bridge. A modern high-rise bridge was built in 2002.
The Rockford Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. [2]
Rockford's Masonic hall was built around 1797 for the Unanimity Lodge Number 34 of the Masonic Order. After a new charter was granted in 1866, the lodge was renamed Rockford Lodge Number 251. The wood-and-stone lodge has been evaluated by the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources and officials from the Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of North Carolina. It is believed to be the oldest Masonic hall in northwestern North Carolina. Many of the most prominent members of the Rockford community attended meetings in this building. In 1848, the Baptist State Convention also was held there. In the late 19th century, the W.P. Dobson & Company mercantile business operated on the first floor. The business was owned by Charles B. Davis, W.P. Dobson III and G.M. Burrus.
In 1914, a 200-square-foot (19 m2) addition was built onto the Masonic hall. That portion of the building served as Rockford's last U.S. Post Office between 1914 and 1975 and still has original counter window bars and mail slots. The Masonic building, along with two adjacent properties, were purchased by Evelyn Holyfield and her brother, Robert Hardin Holyfield, in 1970. Since 2002, the properties have been under the ownership of the Rockford Preservation Society, Inc. [5]
In 1972, the Rockford Preservation Society, Inc. was established to begin restoration and preservation measures on the town of Rockford. Many of the buildings were in unstable conditions upon initially receiving the title to them; however, through funding from State and Federal Grants, the buildings have slowly been restored. The Methodist Church, Dudley Glass store, and Post Office building have all been successfully restored and opened up to the public. The Rockford Preservation Society, Inc. are now working on renovating The Mark York Tavern and Masonic Lodge and eventually, opening them up to the public as well. The Rockford Preservation Society, Inc. was unable to restore the Grant-Burrus Hotel building because it was burned down; however, the site of the fire has now been turned into Rockford Park, which still contains some remains of the hotel. [5]
Yadkin County is located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 37,214. Its county seat is Yadkinville. Yadkin County is included in the Winston-Salem, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Greensboro–Winston-Salem–High Point, NC Combined Statistical Area.
Surry County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 71,359. Its county seat is Dobson, and its largest community is Mount Airy.
Forsyth County is located in the northwest Piedmont of the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 382,590, making it the fourth-most populous county in North Carolina. Its county seat is Winston-Salem. Forsyth County is part of the Winston-Salem, NC, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Greensboro–Winston-Salem–High Point, NC, Combined Statistical Area. Portions of Forsyth County are in the Yadkin Valley wine region.
Dobson is a town in Dobson Township, Surry County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 1,396. It is the county seat of Surry County. Dobson is the home of the Shelton Vineyards, the largest winery in North Carolina. It is also home to a significant Latino population due to the large number of farms in the area. The main crops in the area are corn, tobacco and soy beans.
East Bend is a town in northeastern Yadkin County, North Carolina, United States. The population is 634 at the 2020 census. It is a Piedmont Triad community.
Jonesville, originally called Allen's Settlement, is the oldest town in Yadkin County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 2,285 at the 2010 census. The town grew by nearly 800 residents in 2001 when it merged with neighboring Arlington. Recognized as the Heart of the Yadkin Valley, Jonesville is a gateway to the Blue Ridge Mountains, the Yadkin Valley Heritage/Cultural Corridor and to local wineries in the Swan Creek AVA and the larger Yadkin Valley AVA, as well as offering access to the Yadkin river.
Elkin is a town in Surry and Wilkes counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina, along the Yadkin River. Elkin shares its name with the surrounding township of Elkin Township. The population was 4,083 at the 2020 census.
The Piedmont Triad is a metropolitan region in the north-central part of the U.S. state of North Carolina anchored by three cities: Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and High Point. This close group of cities lies in the Piedmont geographical region of the United States and forms the basis of the Greensboro–Winston-Salem–High Point, NC Combined Statistical Area. As of 2012, the Piedmont Triad has an estimated population of 1,611,243 making it the 33rd largest combined statistical area in the United States.
The Yadkin River is one of the longest rivers in the US state of North Carolina, flowing 215 miles (346 km). It rises in the northwestern portion of the state near the Blue Ridge Parkway's Thunder Hill Overlook. Several parts of the river are impounded by dams for water, power, and flood control. The river becomes the Pee Dee River at the confluence of the Uwharrie River south of the community of Badin and east of the town of Albemarle. The river then flows into South Carolina near Cheraw, which is at the Fall Line. The entirety of the Yadkin River and the Great Pee Dee River is part of the Yadkin-Pee Dee River Basin.
Wachovia was the area settled by Moravians in what is now Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. Of the six 18th-century Moravian "villages of the Lord" established in Wachovia, today only the town of Bethania and city of Winston-Salem exist within the historic Wachovia Tract. The historical tract was somewhat larger than present-day Winston-Salem and somewhat smaller than present-day Forsyth County.
The Yadkin Valley AVA is an American Viticultural Area that includes land in seven counties of northwestern North Carolina. The AVA encompasses an area of approximately 1,400,000 acres (5,666 km2) in the Yadkin River valley. The Yadkin Valley AVA includes all of Wilkes, Surry, and Yadkin counties, and parts of Davie, Davidson, Forsyth, and Stokes counties. Yadkin Valley is home to 44 wineries.
Yadkin College was a college founded in 1857 by the Methodist Protestant Church. It was located in rural Davidson County, North Carolina and named for the nearby Yadkin River. High Point University serves as the successor to Yadkin College.
Siloam is an unincorporated community in southeastern Surry County, North Carolina, United States. The Yadkin River makes up the community's southern border, and the Ararat River flows between it and the community of Shoals to the east. It is a Piedmont Triad community.
Richmond Hill is an unincorporated community in northern Yadkin County, North Carolina, United States, along the Yadkin River. The community is on the Yadkin County side of the river between the Surry County communities of Rockford and Siloam. It is located in the Boonville ZIP code area (27011).
Stony Knoll is an unincorporated community in the Rockford Township of Surry County, North Carolina, United States.
Donnaha is an unincorporated community along the Yadkin River in the Old Richmond Township of northwest Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. Donnaha is named for the last chief of the Sauras.
Huntsville is a small unincorporated community in Yadkin County, North Carolina, United States. The community was formerly chartered in 1792 by Charles Hunt of Salisbury, NC and was chartered again in 1822. It has a Huntsville Volunteer Fire Department, and Huntsville Community Center which is in front of a baseball/softball field which is home to Huntsville little league.
Enon is an unincorporated community in eastern Yadkin County, North Carolina, United States. The community, which is centered on Enon Baptist Church, is in the Forbush Township and in the East Bend ZIP code zone (27018). It is a Piedmont Triad community.
Lambsburg is an unincorporated community in Carroll County, Virginia, United States. Lambsburg is 10.4 miles (16.7 km) east-southeast of Galax. Lambsburg has a post office with ZIP code 24351. The community of Lambsburg Virginia has been around for a couple of hundred years. It was there when Hardin Taliaferro, pronounced "Tolliver" was growing up on Little Fish River in the 1820s: just across the state line in Surry County, North Carolina. Lambsburg was then called "The Hawks Settlement": later called Rocksburg, and still, later, it became Lambsburg.
Rockford Historic District is a national historic district located at Rockford, Surry County, North Carolina. The district encompasses 12 contributing buildings in the central business district of Rockford. They were primarily built between about 1790 and 1930 and include notable examples of Federal and Greek Revival architecture. Notable buildings include the Methodist Church (1912), former courthouse, York Tavern, Old Post Office, R. H. Clark's Store, the Tobacco Factory, the Grant-Burrus Hotel, and the former Masonic Lodge building.
Powell, William S. (1968), The North Carolina Gazetteer: A Dictionary of Tar Heel Places, Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, ISBN 0-8078-1247-1
36°16′05″N80°38′56″W / 36.268°N 80.649°W
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| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |