Eden is a city in Rockingham County in the U.S. state of North Carolina and is part of the Greensboro-High Point Metropolitan Statistical Area of the Piedmont Triad region. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,405. From the late nineteenth century through much of the 20th, the city was a center of textile mills and manufacturing. The city was incorporated in 1967 through the consolidation of three towns: Leaksville, Spray, and Draper.

History

Leaksville (now Eden) station of Danville and Western Railroad, 1912

By the mid-eighteenth century, the territory of present-day Eden was within a 70,000-acre (280 km²) estate owned by William Byrd II, a planter of Virginia and North Carolina. He originally called his estate "The Land of Eden".

During the last years of his life, William Byrd II dreamed of bringing large numbers of Swiss Protestants to the "Land of Eden"; he eventually acquired more than 100,000 acres (400 km²) in Virginia. He envisioned an industrious, self-sufficient colony that would thrive on the abundance of the frontier. Byrd's dream was not to be realized. After years of negotiations, at least one boatload of Swiss did sail for "The Land of Eden" from Europe, but it was shipwrecked in a December gale off the coast of Virginia. None of the few survivors are believed to have reached Eden. Byrd died August 26, 1744. By that time, the "Land of Eden" began to be surrounded by small farms held by a wave of poor Scotch-Irish immigrants, whom Byrd had compared to the "Goths and Vandals."

"Eden" was inherited by William Byrd III, who shared none of his father's dreams of colonization. Young Byrd married Elizabeth Hill Carter in 1748. He sought to dispose of Eden to gain cash to support his grand lifestyle. He was finally successful on November 8, 1755, when he sold 26,000 acres (110 km²) in North Carolina to Simon and Francis Farley, two merchant brothers from the island of Antigua. By this time, yeoman settlement in the area was increasing at a considerable pace. The Farley brothers attempted to create plantations on some of the richest acres, but more frequently, settlers squatted on the land and built homesteads. In 1762 James Parke Farley, son of Francis Farley, went to Williamsburg to attend the College of William and Mary. He married Elizabeth Hill Byrd, daughter of William Byrd III and Elizabeth Hill Carter.

Many later settlers migrating to the Dan River Area knew little of William Byrd. They were familiar with an old Indian village in the area near Town Creek and the Farley holdings. This location became the center of settlement, and the 26,000 acres (110 km²) came to be called the Sauratown tract. In 1775, James Parke Farley and his new bride moved from cosmopolitan Williamsburg, Virginia, to Sauratown.

In the century that Sauratown was in existence, many families settled in the "Land of Eden", and their descendants have stayed in the area, including the Brodnax, Dillard, Ruffin, Morehead, Henry, and Winston families. Many Scots also settled in the area, including the Galloway, Scales, Watt, Lenox, Campbell, and Moir families. Other notable residents of the county include General Lighthorse Harry Lee.

20th century to present

Following previous unsuccessful referendums, on September 12, 1967, residents of Leaksville, Draper, Spray, and the unincorporated Meadows Greens Sanitary District voted to consolidate their communities, 2,252 to 1,753 with 60 percent of eligible voters participating. Of these, 784 elected to call the new city Eden, a term surveyor William Byrd II had used to describe the region in the 1700s. The consolidation took immediate effect, and Eden became the largest city in Rockingham County.

In 1970, the city had considerable growth.
In 2000, city population grew to 15,908.
In 2010, the US Census population was 15,527.
In 2014, 39,000 thousand tons of coal ash and 27 million gallons of contaminated water spilled into the Dan River near Eden from a coal-fired power plant owned by Duke Energy.

In the late 1990s and early 2000s the local economy suffered due to the closure of several textile mills- an expected byproduct of the North American Free Trade Agreement. Fieldcrest Cannon laid off hundreds of corporate staff in the 1990s, Pluma closed its plant in 1999, and Spray Cotton Mills closed its yarn mill in 2001, and Pillowtex folded in 2003. Some former workers moved to larger cities in search of jobs. The decline of textiles left the Miller Brewing Company's facility the town's flagship industry, but it announced its closure in 2015. The loss of the brewery and the textile mills had a knock-off effect on local retail stores, many of which closed due to the loss of customers and competition from national chains such as Walmart.

On the third weekend of September; Eden hosts the annual River Fest each year to celebrate Eden's history. The Boone Road Historic District, Bullard-Ray House, Cascade Plantation, Central Leaksville Historic District, Dempsey-Reynolds-Taylor House, First Baptist Church, Dr. Franklin King House-Idlewild, Leaksville Commercial Historic District, Leaksville-Spray Institute, Lower Sauratown Plantation, Mt. Sinai Baptist Church, Site 31RK1, Spray Industrial Historic District, St. Luke's Episcopal Church, Tanyard Shoal Sluice, Three Ledges Shoal Sluice, and Wide Mouth Shoal Sluice are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Geography

Smith River

The Smith and the Dan River have their confluence on the south side of Eden. The Dan River flows along Eden's southern border while the Smith River flows from the north bisecting the city on its route to meet the Dan River. Greensboro is 36 miles (58 kilometers) to the south, Reidsville is 15 mi (24 km) southeast via NC 14 High Point is 45 miles (72 km) south and Danville, Virginia is 26 mi (42 km) northeast of the city.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.2 square miles (39 km²), of which, 15.0 square miles (39 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.52 km²) of it (1.12%) is water.

Neighborhoods

List of neighborhoods in Eden include

Central Area/Meadow Summit
Fairview
Sunset Hills
Fitzgerald/Leaksville Junction
City Center

Major industry and economy

Eden Mall in 2020

Eden has three downtown areas, concentrated in the former towns of Leaksville, Spray, and Draper.

B. Frank Mebane, who had married into the prominent Morehead family, started the first of his six textile mills in the area in 1893. Marshall Field took over the company in 1912 and named it Fieldcrest. The company made textile products that included bedding: sheets and blankets. It employed more than 3000 people. After taking over Cannon Mills in 1986, the company became known as Fieldcrest Cannon; it later moved its headquarters and 110 employees to Kannapolis, North Carolina. Changes and restructuring were affecting the textile industry throughout the South, as companies moved manufacturing operations to areas with cheaper labor, including offshore.

In 1997 Fieldcrest Cannon was sold to Pillowtex. Pillowtex closed its Eden plants in 2003, laying off the last 495 textile workers.

Miller Brewing Company ran a brewery in Eden into the early 21st century. In 2012 it still employed nearly seven hundred people, and produced nine million barrels annually. Miller announced in 2015 that it was shutting down the brewery by September 2016. In September 2020, it was announced Nestle Purina will move into the old MillerCoors facility and will open in 2022.

In February 2017, it was announced that the European-based German grocery store Lidl had broken ground on a store in Eden. It was expected to open in early 2018. As of April, 2019, the store had not opened.

In 1980, the Eden Mall, an approximately 400,000 square feet shopping center, was constructed. The mall began to decline in the late 1990s when its Kmart store closed. More stores began to shut down, culminating in the departures of Peebles in 2008 and Belk in 2015. The mall's physical condition deteriorated over the following years. It was sold in 2013 and subsequently leased out to local businesses. In the late 2010s, the mall gained media attention and became an example of a "Dead mall" due to lack of stores in the mall and had no anchors left, the mall closed to the public in early 2020s.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1960	3,382	—
1970	15,871	369.3%
1980	15,672	−1.3%
1990	15,238	−2.8%
2000	15,908	4.4%
2010	15,527	−2.4%
2020	15,421	−0.7%
2022 (est.)	15,325	−1.3%
U.S. Decennial Census

2020 census

Eden racial composition
Race	Number	Percentage
White (non-Hispanic)	9,400	60.96%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	3,952	25.63%
Native American	62	0.4%
Asian	147	0.95%
Pacific Islander	4	0.03%
Other/Mixed	700	4.54%
Hispanic or Latino	1,156	7.5%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 15,421 people, 6,581 households, and 3,976 families residing in the city.

Regional and national awards

All-America City Award - 2011

Healthcare

UNC Health Rockingham: is a non-profit community hospital serves the surrounding cities within the Rockingham County area and the southern area of Virginia.
UNC Rockingham Rehabilitation and Nursing Care Center
UNC Rockingham Wound Healing Center
Cone Health Medical Group Heartcare of Eden
UNC Rockingham Outpatient Rehab
Piedmont Surgical Associates
UNC Family Medicine at Eden
Royalty Health and Wellness Resources
Genesis Medical

Sports

The Leaksville-Draper-Spray Triplets was a former Minor League Baseball team combined from three separate towns in North Carolina. The team played from 1934 through 1942 in the Bi-State League, winning the championship titles in 1935 and 1942 seasons. It was the Affiliate team for various current and former Major League Baseball teams such as, the Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Guardians, and Brooklyn Dodgers.

Parks and recreation

The city contains the following parks:

Bridge Street Center
Freedom Ball Field Complex
Freedom Park
John E. Grogan Park
Mill Avenue Recreation Center
Mill Avenue swimming pool
Morgan Road Community Center
Peter Hill Park
Washington Street Park
Spray (Dehart) Community Center
Smith River Greenway
Skate Park

Transportation

Eden is provided service by Piedmont Triad International Airport located in nearby Greensboro, North Carolina and Shiloh Airport located in Stoneville, North Carolina. Highways serving Eden include US 311, NC 14, NC 87, NC 135, NC 700, and NC 770. The nearest Interstates to Eden are I-73, I-40, I-85, from closest to furthest. Closest major highway to the city is US 220 / Future I-73, which intersects NC 770 in Stoneville, and NC 135 in Madison.

Culture

Festivals and events

Each year in September Eden host its annual Fall Riverfest, which celebrates the city's art, history, and river heritage. It is located in the "old" Leaksville shopping district on Washington Street, the oldest downtown street since 1917. Others include: Charlie Poole Music festival, which features music legends such as, Mike Seeger and the Osbourne brothers. The Eden chamber of commerce created the Eden Business Expo, as a venue for local businesses to present career opportunities, products, and services.

Eden Museum

On September 19, 2009, the museum was officially opened. In 2010, the exhibits were completed. The museum is an initiative of the Eden Preservation Society. The museum reflects on the city's history from the consolidation of Leaksville, Spray, and Draper, Triassic period, Saura Indians, William Byrd, Civil War, World Wars, the Korean War and much more.

Smith River Greenway

The Smith River Greenway is a walking trail consisted with the Smith River that is 1.5 miles long extending along the Eden Family YMCA located on Kennedy street and Island ford landing filled with plenty of interesting plants and wildlife found in the trail. From a circumference view the Greenway can cross the smith river on meadow road. Local parking, picnic shelters, and restroom facilities are offered at the trailhead for visiting tourist. The city's next plan for the Greenway is to extend the trail towards the Spray dam.

On BoJack Horseman

Eden was featured in "The Amelia Earhart Story", the season 5 episode of the Netflix animated series BoJack Horseman. One of the show's characters, Princess Carolyn, is from Eden and returns to her hometown in seeking an adoption from a local girl.

Education

Rockingham County Schools serves the City of Eden. The Rockingham County School System was established in 1993.

Elementary schools

Central Elementary School
Douglas Elementary School
Draper Elementary School (closed 2019–2020)
Leaksville-Spray Elementary

Middle and high schools

James E. Holmes Middle School
John Motley Morehead High School

Colleges and universities

Rockingham Community College – Wentworth, NC

Media

Radio Stations

WLOE at 1490 on the AM dial signed-on in 1946. The call letters stand for "Wonderful Land of Eden." The station is also heard at 92.5 FM.
WCLW at 1130 broadcasting a Southern gospel format, licensed to Eden.
WPTI at 94.5 commercial FM talk and sports radio station serving the entire Piedmont Triad, also licensed to Eden.

Local newspapers

Greensboro News & Record
Eden's Own Journal

Television stations

WFMY-TV, 2 CBS, Greensboro
WGHP, 8 Fox, High Point
WXII-TV, 12 NBC, Winston-Salem
WGPX, 16, Ion, Burlington
WGSR-LD, 19 Independent, Reidsville
WCWG, 20, The CW, Lexington
WXLV-TV, 45, ABC, Winston-Salem
WMYV-TV, 48, MyNetworkTV, Greensboro

Notable people

Clint Barrow, aka Andre Chase, professional wrestler for WWE
Houston Barrow, aka Lance Bravado, professional wrestler for Ring of Honor wrestling
Tabitha Brown, actress and internet celebrity
Bill Butler, NFL player
Herb Clarke, former weatherman and television journalist for WCAU
Ben Cook, actor, appeared on NBC's 30 Rock, and HBO's Veep
Norwood Creek, film and television producer, director and editor
Antico Dalton, retired NFL and Canadian Football League player, World Bowl and Grey Cup Champion
William Gordon, former bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Alaska
R.S. Gwynn, poet
Carol M. Highsmith, Visual Documentarian of America for the Library of Congress
Jennifer King, first full-time black female coach in NFL history
Charlie Poole Musician
Takayo Siddle, college basketball coach
Edwin Wilson, professor at Wake Forest University

Eden, North Carolina facts for kids

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