Falls, North Carolina facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Falls, North Carolina
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Stone dam on Neuse River at Falls, North Carolina prior to the construction of the current Falls Lake Dam
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 Falls, North Carolina
Location in North Carolina
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| Country | United States |
| State | North Carolina |
| County | Wake |
| Elevation | 200 ft (61 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code(s) |
27587, 27614,
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| Area code(s) | 919 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1020212 |
Falls is a small, quiet community in Wake County, North Carolina. It's located between the cities of Raleigh and Wake Forest. You can find it along Old Falls of Neuse Road. The community is also home to the Falls Dam, which is built on the Neuse River. Falls is known as an "unincorporated community," which means it doesn't have its own local government like a city or town. Instead, it's managed by the county.
Contents
A Look Back at Falls
Early School Days
The first school in the Falls area opened way back in 1814. It was called the "Lancaster" School. Governor David Stone helped to start it. A teacher named James Boyle, who trained at Georgetown in Washington, D.C., taught there for two years.
The First Mills
In 1846, a man named Jas. D. Newsom put some land up for sale in Falls. This land was about 13 miles north of Raleigh. It included 113 acres with a grist mill (for grinding grain) and a saw mill (for cutting wood). There was also a place for tanning leather and some storehouses.
Mr. Newsom wrote in a newspaper that the water power at Falls was "immense." He said it could power "any amount of machinery." He also mentioned that his mills had never stopped working since 1835, no matter if the water was high or low. The area around Falls was also a big cotton growing region. The land was close to two train stations, which made it easy to transport goods.
Before Mr. Newsom, this land and the mills might have belonged to Burwell Perry. In 1840, an advertisement mentioned the sale of Perry's "valuable plantation" on the Neuse River. It included about two thousand acres and an "excellent Saw and Grist Mill."
A Community Built on Mills
The community of Falls really started to grow in the 1850s. This was when a paper mill was built on the Neuse River. The community got its name from the "Falls of the Neuse," which were natural waterfalls. These falls were perfect for powering the mill.
Falls grew around where Falls of Neuse Road, Fonville Road, and Possum Track Road meet. At its busiest, the community had three churches, a volunteer fire department, and a one-room schoolhouse. There was also a ball field and an ice house.
The community began to shrink after the mill closed down in 1959. Then, in 1981, the Falls Dam was finished. This dam caused Possum Track Road to be flooded, which split the community in half.
The old Falls of the Neuse Manufacturing Company building is important to history. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. Today, this historic building has been turned into an apartment complex.
Life in Falls Today
Falls is located next to the Wakefield Plantation and Bedford neighborhoods in Raleigh. It sits where four different townships meet: New Light, Bartons Creek, Neuse, and Wake Forest. Some of the local neighborhoods in Falls include The Falls, River Run, Woodbridge, Oakcroft, and Falls Pointe.
The Falls Lake Dam is located right in the community. You can also find the start of the Neuse River Greenway here. This greenway is a popular spot for walking, running, and biking. For religious groups, there are churches like Falls Baptist Church, Falls Of Neuse Pentecostal Holiness Church, and Falls of Neuse Church of God. Wakefield High School is also very close to the community.
