Community history
What is Liberty?
Liberty is a small, quiet, friendly rural Town in the Piedmont region that is convenient to everywhere and everything. We are 20 minutes from Asheboro and the North Carolina Zoo; 20 minutes from Burlington and some great outlet stores; 20 minutes from Greensboro and more excellent shopping and other amenities; 30 minutes from High Point and some fantastic furniture stores and bargains; and, not far from Raleigh, the state capital, Winston-Salem or Charlotte and all these Towns have to offer.
Lets not forget the other rural communities that makes this a great area to live, shop or just visit. These being Staley, Julian, Climax and Snow Camp.
Facts About Liberty?
Incorporated: January 30, 1889
Location: 35.853° N Latitude 79.572° W Longitude
Elevation: 790 Feet above mean sea level
Land Area: 3.074 Square Miles
Time Zone: Eastern (Daylight Savings)
Zip Code: 27298
Area Code: 336
Fire “ISO” Rating = 4
Population (July 1, 2004): 2,747 (State Estimate--Ranked 185th in NC for population)
Spotlight About Liberty's Rich History:
1663: King Charles of England gave North Carolina to 10 Lords Proprietors as a gift.
1779: Randolph County formed and named after Peyton Randolph, the then President of the Continental Congress in Philadelphia.
1807: "Liberty Oak" is referenced (for the nearby plantation owned by John Leak).
1809: "Publick Square" laid off at crossroads of S. Fayetteville St. and E. Raleigh Ave. The earliest recorded reference to "Liberty" was in deeds (Lots #23 and #24) recorded on December 2, 1809 to Abraham Brower. You will note this date (1809) on the "Liberty Oak" tree, which is part of the town shield/logo.
January, 1884: First train to come through the community; "Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley Railroad".
October 11, 1884: First church in Liberty was the Christian Church (now United Church of Christ). The deed for the property was made on this date, although some sources list the date of establishment at 1880.
1884: Population of Liberty = 500
May 6, 1885: Liberty Academy, the first school opened (1 teacher and 21 students) at the site of the present Liberty School; in 1899, it was chartered as Liberty Normal College, and in 1909 became Liberty Graded School.
1886: First burial at the town-owned Fairview Cemetery-Sophia Patterson.
1887: "Our Homes" (Liberty's first newspaper) was published weekly; subscription cost 50 cents per year.
1888:Big "devastating" fire in downtown Liberty.
January 30, 1889: Liberty, NC was incorporated and received its charter.Population at time of charter = "about 600 persons".
1889: Wesley Benton was first Marshall of Liberty; later served as (6th) mayor (1907-1914) and his grandson, Paul Henry Smith served as (26th) mayor (1965-1971).
1895: Big "devastating" fire in downtown Liberty.
1896: First two brick store buildings constructed, Brower & Sons Store and Ruth's Dime Store.
1900: Population of Liberty = "about 700".
1903: First bank in Liberty was incorporated.
1907: First telephone service began (Liberty Telephone); later sold and became Randolph Telephone Company in 1950.
1907: Liberty Normal College burned.
1908: First paved sidewalk was built on both sides of the main block of Swannanoa Street.
1910: First manufacturing plant (Picker-Stick and Novelty Company) which became the Liberty Chair Company in 1912. Liberty Chair changed its name to Liberty Furniture Company in 1975.
1917: First electricity in Liberty. The Liberty Chair Company furnished the first electricity for the town. The company actually bought the dynamo in 1916 and sold it in 1922. It was subsequently sold in 1925 to the Carolina Power and Light Company (CP&L) which was later purchased by Progress Energy.
February, 1926: Big fire at Liberty Chair Factory; established a need for deep well water system and a storage tank.
1926 and 1927: First water and sewer lines were laid in town.
1927: The first paved road through Liberty was built; one mile on what is now [Old] Hwy 421 and also one mile on Hwy 49.
1927: First above ground water storage tank erected (located on Swannanoa Street).
1929: First movie theater opened in Liberty (Curtis Theater); new Curtis Theater opened in 1949 across the street from previous theater (current location of Liberty Showcase; formerly Liberty Jubilee, once the "Rand Ol' Oprey".
1941: Liberty Graded School (first public school building) burned.
1942: First Library established in Liberty; Juanita Haynes was the first Librarian (1942-1968).
1958: First full-time Town Clerk hired (J. A. Culberson).
1960: Population of Liberty = 1,438.
1970: Population of Liberty = 2,136.
January 30, 1975: First Town Manager hired (John "Frank" Kime; served until April, 1986).
1990: Population of Liberty = 2,047
2000: Population of Liberty = 2,661
Sources include: The Liberty News/Burrage; Liberty, NC; June 1, 1960; Files of Francine Swaim; et al. W have hopefully provided the most accurate information available about our Town here; however, if you have contradictory information, corrections, additions, changes, updates, etc. and can provide us the source documentation, we would be most grateful