History of Carrboro, North Carolina
In 1882, the Durham-Greensboro Southern Railway line began offering service to a small, somewhat deserted area west of Chapel Hill in order to accommodate travelers to and from UNC. It was decreed that the railroad station was to be built at least a mile from the UNC campus and thus, Carrboro was born.
The first name for Carrboro was West Of, as in West of Chapel Hill. It is said that the town then became known as West Chapel Hill, dropping the "of." After folks complained about a tiny town across the tracks sharing the Chapel Hill name, it eventually became known as West End. Carrboro was also called Lloydville and later Venable, in honor of UNC President Francis P. Venable.
In the early 1890's, the train station was one of only a few buildings in Venable. Drivers transported people to Chapel Hill from the trains in Carrboro on a regular basis, and the community of Venable very slowly began to grow.
In 1898, Tom Lloyd built Alberta, his cotton mill, which nudged forward a period of growth for Venable, turning it into a real town. The town's name was changed to Carrboro in 1914, after the Julian Carr family bought the cotton mill from Tom Lloyd in 1909 and donated electricity and streets to the community.
The 1920 census showed Carrboro's population at 1129. In 1921, the town proudly displayed their new brick schoolhouse, which now houses Town Hall. During hard times for Carrboro, in the 1930's, the UNC administration tried to provide jobs for the people who lived in Carrboro and were out of work due to lay offs at the woolen mills.
In March of 1945, the Farmer's Exchange was opened in Carrboro by John Sprunt Hill, who provided both financial and moral support for farmers. The Carrboro Farmer's Market continues to thrive today, and is known as one of the top farmers market in the nation.
In 1975, the Carrboro Board of Aldermen decided to have Tom Lloyd's mill, Alberta, demolished in order to build a new shopping mall. Community sentiment appealed for the restoration of the mill and, due to a petition, the mill re-opened its doors in 1977 as Carr Mill Mall. Over the years, Car Mill Mall has expanded to include Weaver Street Market, a community owned and operated natural foods store and Cafe, and two floors of office spaces above it.
Carrboro's current population is around 19,000 people.