Durham, North Carolina
Encyclopedia
Durham is a city in the U.S. state
of North Carolina
. It is the county seat
of Durham County
and also extends into Wake
County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census. It is the home of Duke University
and North Carolina Central University
, and is also one of the vertices of the Research Triangle area (home of the Research Triangle Park
).
In 2003, the previous Raleigh
-Durham-Chapel Hill
metropolitan statistical area
(MSA) was re-defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, resulting in the formation of the Raleigh-Cary, NC MSA and the Durham, NC MSA.
Durham is the core of the four-county Durham-Chapel Hill MSA, which has a population of 504,357 as of Census 2010. The US Office of Management and Budget also includes Durham as a part of the Raleigh
-Durham-Cary
Combined Statistical Area
, which has a population of 1,749,525 as of Census 2010. Effective June 6, 2003 the Office of Management and Budget redefined the Federal Statistical Areas and dismantled what had been for decades the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, MSA and split them into two separate MSAs even though the region still functions as a single metropolitan area.
, related to the Sioux
, and the Shakori
lived and farmed in the area which became Durham. They may have established a village named Adshusheer on the site. The Great Indian Trading Path
has been traced through Durham, and Native Americans helped to mold the area by establishing settlements and commercial transportation routes.
In 1701, Durham's beauty was chronicled by the English explorer John Lawson, who called the area "the flower of the Carolinas." During the mid-1700s, Scots, Irish, and English colonists settled on land granted to John Carteret
, Earl of Granville, by King Charles I
(for whom the Carolinas are named). Early settlers built gristmills, such as West Point
, and worked the land.
Prior to the American Revolution, frontiersmen in what is now Durham were involved in the Regulator movement.
According to legend, Loyalist militia cut Cornwallis Road through this area in 1771 to quell the rebellion. Later, William Johnston, a local shopkeeper and farmer, made Revolutionaries’ munitions, served in the Provincial Capital Congress in 1775, and helped underwrite Daniel Boone
's westward explorations.
Large plantations, Hardscrabble, Cameron, and Leigh among them, were established in the antebellum period. By 1860, Stagville Plantation
lay at the center of one of the largest plantation holdings in the South. African slaves were brought to labor on these farms and plantations, and slave quarters became the hearth of distinctively Southern cultural traditions involving crafts, social relations, life rituals, music, and dance. There were free African-Americans in the area as well, including several who fought in the Revolutionary War.
Durham's location is a result of the needs of the 19th century railroad industry. The wood-burning steam locomotives of the time had to stop frequently for wood and water and the new North Carolina Railroad needed a depot between the settled towns of Raleigh and Hillsborough. The residents of what is now downtown Durham thought their businesses catering to livestock drivers had a better future than a new-fangled nonsense like a railroad and refused to sell or lease land for a depot. Eventually a railway depot was established on land donated by Bartlett S. Durham
in 1849.
Durham's Station, as it was known for its first 20 years, was just another depot for the occasional passenger or express package until early April 1865 when a Federal Army commanded by William T. Sherman occupied the nearby state capitol of Raleigh during the American Civil War. The last intact Confederate Army, commanded by General Joseph E. Johnston, was headquartered in Greensboro 50 miles (80.5 km) to the west. After the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia by Robert E. Lee at Appomattox, Virginia, General Johnston sought surrender terms, which were negotiated at Bennett's Place, a farm halfway between the lines about 3 miles (4.8 km) west of Durham's Station. While what could have easily been a battle in Durham was averted, the wholesale looting of houses in the Durham area by Union cavalry, in what people thought was a truce period, led to a bitterness towards Republicans and the North that lasted well into the 20th century.
Fortunately for Durham, its future had nothing to do with 19th century politics. Thousands of soldiers, both Union and Confederate, were encamped near Bennett Place
They confiscated the area's Brightleaf Tobacco, which had a milder flavor than other tobacco varieties. Durham's tobacco was far more pleasant to smoke or chew than any tobacco they had ever had and when they returned home and couldn't get anything like it, they started sending letters to Durham to get more.
industry. Veterans returned home after the war with an interest in acquiring more of the great tobacco they had sampled in North Carolina. Numerous orders were mailed to John Ruffin Green's tobacco company requesting more of the Durham tobacco. W.T. Blackwell partnered with Green and renamed the company as the "Bull Durham Tobacco Factory". The name "Bull Durham" is said to have been taken from the bull on the British Colman's
Mustard, which Mr. Blackwell (mistakenly) believed was manufactured in Durham
, England. Mustard, known as Durham Mustard, was originally produced in Durham
, England, by Mrs Clements and later by Ainsley during the eighteenth century. However, production of the original Durham Mustard has now been passed into the hands of Colman's
of Norwich
, England.
, on April 10, 1869. It was named for the man who provided the land on which the station was built, Dr. Durham. At the time of its incorporation by the General Assembly, Durham was located in Orange County. The increase in business activity, land transfers etc, made the day long trip back and forth to the county seat in Hillsborough untenable, so twelve years later, on April 17, 1881, a bill for the establishment of Durham County
was ratified by the General Assembly, having been introduced by Caleb B.Green, creating Durham County from the eastern portion of Orange County and the western portion of Wake County
. In 1911, parts of Cedar Fork Township
of Wake County
was transferred to Durham County and became Carr Township
.
The rapid growth and prosperity of the Bull Durham Tobacco Company, and Washington Duke
's W. Duke & Sons Tobacco Company, resulted in the rapid growth of the city of Durham. Washington Duke was a good businessman, but his sons were brilliant and established what amounted to a monopoly of the smoking and chewing tobacco business in the United States by 1900. In the early 1910s, the Federal Government forced a breakup of the Duke's business under the antitrust laws. The Dukes retained what became known as American Tobacco, a major corporation in its own right, with manufacturing based in Durham, and whose advertisements on radio in the 1930s and 1940s and television in the 1950s and 1960s were as ubiquitous as those of Coca-Cola or McDonald's today.
Prevented from further investment in the tobacco industry, the Dukes turned to the then new industry of electric power generation, which they had been investing in since the early 1890s. Duke Power (now Duke Energy) brought in electricity from hydroelectric dams in the mountains through the newly-invented technology of high voltage power lines. At this time (1910–1920), the few towns and cities in North Carolina that had electricity depended on local "powerhouses". These were large, noisy, and smoky coal-fired plants located next to the railroad tracks. Duke Power quickly took over the electricity franchises in these towns and then electrified all the other towns of central and western North Carolina, making even more money than they ever made from tobacco. Duke Power also had a significant business in local franchises for public transit (buses and trolleys) before local government took over this responsibility in the mid to late 20th century.
The success of the tobacco industry in the late 19th and early 20th century encouraged the then-growing textile industry to locate just outside of Durham. The early electrification of Durham was also a large incentive. Drawing a labor force from the economic demise of single family farms in the region at the time, these textile mills doubled the population of Durham. These areas were known as East Durham and West Durham until they were eventually annexed by the City of Durham.
Much of the early city architecture
, both commercial and residential, dates from the period of 1890–1930.
Durham quickly developed a vibrant Black community, the center of which was an area known as [Hayti,_Durham,_North_Carolina] , just south of the center of town, where some of the most prominent and successful black-owned businesses in the country during the early 20th century were established. These businesses — the best known of which are North Carolina Mutual Insurance Company and Mechanics & Farmers' Bank — were centered on Parrish St., which would come to be known as "Black Wall Street." In 1910, Dr. James E. Shepard
founded North Carolina Central University
, the nation's first publicly supported liberal arts college for African-Americans.
In 1924, James Buchanan Duke
established a philanthropic foundation in honor of his father Washington Duke
to support Trinity College in Durham. The college changed its name to Duke University
and built a large campus and hospital a mile west of Trinity College (the original site of Trinity College is now known as the Duke East Campus).
Durham's manufacturing fortunes declined during the mid-20th century. Textile
mills began to close during the 1930s. Competition from other tobacco companies (as well as a decrease in smoking after the 1960s) reduced revenues from Durham's tobacco industry.
In a far-sighted move in the late 1950s, Duke University, along with the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University in Raleigh, persuaded the North Carolina Legislature to purchase a large tract of sparsely settled land in southern Durham County and create the nation's first "science park" for industry. Cheap land and a steady supply of trained workers from the local universities made the Research Triangle Park an enormous success which, along with the expansion resulting from the clinical and scientific advances of Duke Medical Center and Duke University, more than made up for the decline of Durham's tobacco and textile industries.
movement developed in Durham. Multiple sit-ins were held, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
, visited the city during the struggle for equal rights. The Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People, organized in 1935 by C.C. Spaulding and James E. Shepard
, has been cited nationally for its role in the sit-in movements of the 1950s–60s. The committee also has used its voting strength to pursue social and economic rights for African-Americans and other ethnic groups. In the late 1950s, Douglas E. Moore
, minister of Durham's Asbury Temple Methodist Church, along with other religious and community leaders, pioneered sit-ins throughout North Carolina to protest discrimination at lunch counters that served only whites.
Widely credited as the first sit-in of the Civil Rights Movement, on June 23, 1957, Moore and six others assembled at the church to plan the protest. The young African Americans moved over to the segregated
Royal Ice Cream Parlor and took up whites-only booths. When they refused to budge, the manager called the police who charged them with trespassing. Unlike the Greensboro Four, three years later, the Royal Seven were arrested and ultimately found guilty of trespassing.
The six-month long sit-in at a Woolworth
's counter in Greensboro, NC
, captured the nation's attention. Within days, Martin Luther King Jr. met Moore in Durham, where King coined his famous rallying cry "Fill up the jails," during a speech at White Rock Baptist Church. Advocating non-violent confrontation with segregation laws for the first time, King said, "Let us not fear going to jail. If the officials threaten to arrest us for standing up for our rights, we must answer by saying that we are willing and prepared to fill up the jails of the South."
This community was not enough to prevent the demolition of portions of the Hayti district for the construction of the Durham Freeway during the late 1960s. The freeway construction resulted in losses to other historic neighborhoods, including Morehead Hills, West End, and West Durham. Combined with large-scale demolition using Urban Renewal funds, Durham suffered significant losses to its historic architectural base.
, and the beginnings of downtown revitalization. In 1975, the St. Joseph's Historical Foundation at the Hayti Heritage Center was incorporated to "preserve the heritage of the old Hayti community, and to promote the understanding of and appreciation for the African American experience and African Americans' contributions to world culture." A new downtown baseball stadium was constructed for the Durham Bulls
in 1994. The Durham Performing Arts Center
now ranks in the top ten in theater ticket sales in the US according to Pollstar magazine. There have been many famous people who performed there including B.B. King and Willie Nelson
. After the departure of the tobacco industry, large-scale renovations of the historic factories into offices, condominiums, and restaurants reshaped downtown.
Major employers in Durham are Duke University (39,000 employees, 13,000 students), about 2 miles (3.2 km) west of the original downtown area, and companies in the Research Triangle Park (49,000 employees), about 10 miles (16.1 km) southeast. These centers are connected by the Durham Freeway (NC 147).
and the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival
. A center of Durham's culture is its Carolina Theater, which shows both live performances and films, primarily independent releases. Notable dining establishments are primarily concentrated in the Ninth Street, Brightleaf, and University Drive areas. There is a resurgence of restaurants in and around the downtown area, including several new restaurants in the American Tobacco District. The Nasher Museum of Art
opened in October 2005 and has produced nationally-recognized traveling exhibitions of global, contemporary art.
The Durham Association for Downtown Arts (DADA) is a non-profit arts organization located in the downtown area. It was founded in 1998 and then incorporated in 2000. The organization's mission is a commitment to the development, presentation and fiscal sponsorship of original art and performance in Durham. DADA strives to support local artists working in a diversity of artistic media. Emphasizing community, DADA helps local residents gain access to these artists by providing free or low-cost venue admission.
's men's basketball team draws a large following, selling out every home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium
in 2009. The fans are known as the Cameron Crazies
and are known nationwide for their chants and rowdiness. The team has won the NCAA Division I championship twice since 2001 and four times overall. Duke competes in a total of 26 sports in the Atlantic Coast Conference
.
North Carolina Central University
's athletic program began to transition to Division I in 2005 and has begun competing in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
. NCCU has won CIAA
championships in football, volleyball, and cross country for two consecutive years, in addition to the 1989 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship.
Durham's professional sports team is the Durham Bulls
International League
baseball
team. A movie involving the franchise, Bull Durham
, was produced in 1988. The Bulls play in the Durham Bulls Athletic Park
, on the southern end of downtown, constructed in 1994. Now with one of the newest stadiums in the minor leagues, the Bulls usually generate an annual attendance of around 500,000. Previously the Durham Athletic Park
, located on the northern end of downtown, had served as the team's homebase. Historically, many Durham Bulls players have transferred to the big leagues after several years in the minor leagues. It has been preserved for the use of other minor league baseball
teams as well as for concerts sponsored by the City of Durham and other events. The Durham Dragons, a women's fast pitch softball
team, played in the Durham Athletic Park from 1998–2000. The DAP recently went through a $5 million renovation.
, which began publication in 1893. The Durham-based Independent Weekly
, noted for its investigative journalism and progressive/liberal perspective, provides political and entertainment news for the greater Research Triangle; it began publication in 1983.
Durham is part of the Raleigh-Durham-Fayetteville Designated Market Area, the 24th largest broadcast television market in the United States. Eight television stations are licensed or have significant operations in Durham, including WTVD-TV based in downtown Durham. All major U.S. television networks have affiliates serving the region, with most of them based in the city.
Durham and a large part of the Triangle area is Arbitron radio market #43. Public television and radio are provided by WUNC, which is based in Chapel Hill and has significant operations in Durham.
The area is predominantly Democratic
, and has voted for the Democratic Party's presidential candidate in every election since the city's founding in 1869. Durham is an activist community and politics are lively, visible, and often contentious, and like many communities, often dealing with issues of race and class. The shifting alliances of the area's political action committee
s since the 1980s has led to a very active local political scene. Notable groups include the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People, the Durham People's Alliance, and the Friends of Durham Friends of Durham. The first two groups tend to be affiliated with Democratic party activists, while the third group tends to attract Republican activists. Compared to other similarly sized Southern cities, Durham has a larger than average population of middle class African-Americans and white liberals
. Working together in coalition, these two groups have dominated city and county politics since the early 1980s.
Durham operates under a council-manager government
. The mayor since 2001 is Bill Bell, who was most recently reelected in 2011 with 82% of the vote in a runoff election. The seven-member City Council is the primary budgetary and lawmaking authority.
Key political issues have been the redevelopment of Downtown Durham and revival of other historic neighborhoods and commercial districts, a 45% reduction of crime, a 10 year plan to end homelessness, initiatives to reduce truancy, issues related growth and development. Naturally, a merger of Durham City Schools (several inner city neighborhoods) and Durham County Schools in the early 1990s has not been without controversy.
Federally, Durham is part of North Carolina's 4th congressional district
, represented by Democrat David Price
, elected in 1996.
Since 2003 the city has had a policy to prohibit police from inquiring into the citizenship status of persons unless they have otherwise been arrested or charged with a crime. A city council resolution mandates that police officers "...may not request specific documents for the sole purpose of determining a person's civil immigration status, and may not initiate police action based solely on a person's civil immigration status ..." Since 2010, the Durham police have accepted the Mexican Consular Identification Card as a valid form of identification.
In 2006, racial and community tensions stirred following false allegations of a sexual assault by three white members of the Duke University lacrosse team in what is now known as the 2006 Duke University lacrosse case. The allegations were made by Crystal Gail Mangum a young African- American woman, student, stripper and mother of two young children. She and another young woman had been hired to dance at a party that the team held in an off-campus house. In 2007, all charges in the case were dropped and the players were declared innocent. Durham County District Attorney Mike Nifong was dismissed from his job and disbarred from legal practice for his criminal misconduct handling of the case including withholding of exculpatory evidence
. There have been several other results
from the case, including lawsuits against both city and Duke University
officials.
, the eighth largest school district in North Carolina. The district runs 46 public schools, consisting of 28 elementary, 8 middle, 2 secondary, and 7 high schools. Several high schools focus on distinct subject areas, such as the Durham School of the Arts
and the City of Medicine Academy. Public schools in Durham were partially segregated until 1970.
The North Carolina School for Science and Mathematics is a high school operated by the University of North Carolina in central Durham. The residential school accepts rising juniors with a focus on technology, science, medicine, and mathematics.
Several private schools also operate in Durham, including Durham Academy
and a number of religious schools.
In December 2007, Forbes.com
ranked Durham as one of the "Top 20 Places to Educate Your Child;" Durham was the only MSA
from North Carolina to make the list.
is one of the premier universities in the United States and the world, with around 14,000 students split evenly between graduates and undergraduates. Duke's 8600 acre campus and Medical Center are located in western Durham, about 2 miles (3.2 km) from downtown. Duke forms one of the three vertices of the Research Triangle along with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
and North Carolina State University
. The University's research, medical, and teaching efforts are all among the highest-ranked in both the United States and the world.
North Carolina Central University
is a public, historically black university located in southeastern Durham. The University was founded in 1910 to address the needs of the region's black population, and now grants baccalaureate, master’s, professional and doctoral degrees. NCCU became a public University when it joined the University of North Carolina system in 1972. Durham Technical Community College
is a two-year public institution that grants associates degrees.
, I 85, connecting Durham to Virginia and western North Carolina cities, and I-40 running across southern Durham County between the Research Triangle Park and Chapel Hill. The I-40 corridor has been the main site of commercial and residential development in Durham since its opening in the early 1990s. Over 95% of commuters use a car to get to work, with 14% of those people in carpools.
Durham maintains an extensive network of bicycle routes and trails and has been recognized with a Bicycle Friendly Community Award. The American Tobacco Trail
begins in downtown and continues south through Research Triangle Park and ends in Wake County. The city is also considering furthering the progress on the Triangle Greenway System.
Air travel is serviced by Raleigh-Durham International Airport
, which enplanes about 4.5 million passengers per year. Frequent service (5 flights a day or more) is available to Philadelphia, Atlanta, New York LaGuardia, New York Kennedy, Washington Reagan, Washington Dulles, Chicago O'Hare, Dallas, and Charlotte. Non-stop daily service is provided to approximately 30 destinations in the United States and daily international service is also available to London Heathrow, Toronto-Pearson and Cancún, Mexico.
Triangle Transit (known formerly as the Triangle Transit Authority, or TTA) offers scheduled, fixed-route regional and commuter bus service between Raleigh and the region's other principal cities of Durham, Cary
and Chapel Hill
, as well as to and from the Raleigh-Durham International Airport
, Research Triangle Park
and several of the region's larger suburban communities. TT also coordinates an extensive vanpool
and rideshare
program that serves the region's larger employers and commute destinations.
From 1995, the cornerstone of Triangle Transit's long-term plan was a 28 miles (45.1 km) rail corridor from northeast Raleigh
, through downtown Raleigh, Cary
, and Research Triangle Park
, to Durham using DMU
technology. There were proposals to extend this corridor 7 miles (11.3 km) to Chapel Hill
with light rail
technology. However, in 2006 Triangle Transit deferred implementation indefinitely when the Federal Transit Administration
declined to fund the program. Government agencies throughout the Raleigh-Durham metropolitan area have struggled with determining the best means of providing fixed-rail transit service for the region.
The region's two metropolitan planning organization
s appointed a group of local citizens in 2007 to reexamine options for future transit development in light of Triangle Transit's problems. The Special Transit Advisory Commission (STAC) retained many of the provisions of Triangle Transit's original plan, but recommended adding new bus services and raising additional revenues by adding a new local half-cent sales tax to fund the project.
Duke University
also maintains its own transit system, Duke Transit operates more than 30 buses with routes throughout the campus and health system. Duke campus buses and vans have alternate schedules or do not operate during breaks and holidays.
A new Greyhound bus and amtrak station was built in 2011 in downtown Durham.
region at 35°59′19"N 78°54′26"W (35.988644, −78.907167). Like much of the region, its topography is generally flat with some rolling hills. The city has a total area of 94.9 square miles (245.8 km²), of which, 94.6 square miles (245.1 km²) of it is land and 0.3 square miles (0.7 km²) (0.29%) is water. The soil is predominantly clay, making it poor for agriculture. The Eno River
passes through Durham, along with several other small creeks.
according to the Köppen classification, with warm and humid summers, cool winters, and mild spring and autumn. Durham receives abundant precipitation, with thunderstorms common in the summer. The region sees an average of 3.9 inches (99.1 mm) of snow per year, which usually melts within a few days.
, there were 187,035 people, 74,981 households, and 43,563 families residing in the city. The population density
was 1,976.4 people per square mile (763.1/km²). There were 80,797 housing units at an average density of 853.8 per square mile (329.7/km²). The racial composition of the city was: 45.50% White, 43.81% Black or African American
, 3.64% Asian American
, 0.31% Native American
, 0.04% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
, 4.75% some other race
, and 1.94% two or more races
. 8.56% were Hispanic or Latino
of any race.
There were 74,981 household
s out of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.2% were married couples
living together, 15.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.9% were non-families. 31.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37, and the average family size was 3.01.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.9% under the age of 18, 14.1% from 18 to 24, 35.6% from 25 to 44, 18.1% from 45 to 64, and 9.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $41,160, and the median income for a family was $51,162. Males had a median income of $35,202 versus $30,359 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $22,526. About 11.3% of families and 15.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.4% of those under age 18 and 13.2% of those age 65 or over.
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
. It is the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Durham County
Durham County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 223,314 people, 89,015 households, and 54,032 families residing in the county. The population density was 769 people per square mile . There were 95,452 housing units at an average density of 329 per square mile...
and also extends into Wake
Wake County, North Carolina
Wake County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2010 census, the population was 900,993 making it North Carolina's second most populated county...
County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census. It is the home of Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
and North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University is a public historically black university in the University of North Carolina system, located in Durham, North Carolina, offering programs at the baccalaureate, master’s, professional and doctoral levels....
, and is also one of the vertices of the Research Triangle area (home of the Research Triangle Park
Research Triangle Park
The Research Triangle Park is a research park in the United States. It is located near Durham, Raleigh, and Chapel Hill, in the Research Triangle region of North Carolina...
).
In 2003, the previous Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
-Durham-Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, United States and the home of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Care...
metropolitan statistical area
United States metropolitan area
In the United States a metropolitan statistical area is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are not legally incorporated as a city or town would be, nor are they legal administrative divisions like...
(MSA) was re-defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, resulting in the formation of the Raleigh-Cary, NC MSA and the Durham, NC MSA.
Durham is the core of the four-county Durham-Chapel Hill MSA, which has a population of 504,357 as of Census 2010. The US Office of Management and Budget also includes Durham as a part of the Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
-Durham-Cary
Cary, North Carolina
Cary is a large town and suburb of Raleigh, North Carolina in Wake and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located almost entirely in Wake County, it is the second largest municipality in that county and the third largest municipality in The Triangle after Raleigh and Durham...
Combined Statistical Area
Combined Statistical Area
The United States Office of Management and Budget defines micropolitan and metropolitan statistical areas. Metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas consist of one or more counties...
, which has a population of 1,749,525 as of Census 2010. Effective June 6, 2003 the Office of Management and Budget redefined the Federal Statistical Areas and dismantled what had been for decades the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, MSA and split them into two separate MSAs even though the region still functions as a single metropolitan area.
Pre-establishment
The Eno and the OccaneechiOccaneechi
The Occaneechi are Native Americans who lived primarily on a large, long Occoneechee Island and east of the confluence of the Dan and Roanoke Rivers, near current day Clarksville, Virginia in the 17th century...
, related to the Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
, and the Shakori
Shakori Tribe
The Shakori Tribe were a possibly Siouan people closely allied with other nearby tribes such as the Eno and the Sissipahaw. Their name is also recorded as Shaccoree and can be confused with the Sugaree...
lived and farmed in the area which became Durham. They may have established a village named Adshusheer on the site. The Great Indian Trading Path
Trading Path
The Trading Path is not simply one wide path, as many named historic roads were or are...
has been traced through Durham, and Native Americans helped to mold the area by establishing settlements and commercial transportation routes.
In 1701, Durham's beauty was chronicled by the English explorer John Lawson, who called the area "the flower of the Carolinas." During the mid-1700s, Scots, Irish, and English colonists settled on land granted to John Carteret
John Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville
John Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville, 7th Seigneur of Sark, KG, PC , commonly known by his earlier title as Lord Carteret, was a British statesman and Lord President of the Council from 1751 to 1763.-Family:...
, Earl of Granville, by King Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
(for whom the Carolinas are named). Early settlers built gristmills, such as West Point
West Point Mill
West Point Mill is a reproduction of the historic gristmill on the Eno River in north Durham, North Carolina. The mill and other historic structures are preserved in the West Point on the Eno city park. The mill operates as part of a free tour on weekends, with mill-ground meal and flour available...
, and worked the land.
Prior to the American Revolution, frontiersmen in what is now Durham were involved in the Regulator movement.
War of the Regulation
The War of the Regulation was a North Carolina uprising, lasting from approximately 1760 to 1771, in which citizens took up arms against corrupt colonial officials...
According to legend, Loyalist militia cut Cornwallis Road through this area in 1771 to quell the rebellion. Later, William Johnston, a local shopkeeper and farmer, made Revolutionaries’ munitions, served in the Provincial Capital Congress in 1775, and helped underwrite Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone was an American pioneer, explorer, and frontiersman whose frontier exploits mad']'e him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. Boone is most famous for his exploration and settlement of what is now the Commonwealth of Kentucky, which was then beyond the western borders of...
's westward explorations.
Large plantations, Hardscrabble, Cameron, and Leigh among them, were established in the antebellum period. By 1860, Stagville Plantation
Stagville
Stagville Plantation is located in Durham County, North Carolina. With buildings constructed from the late 18th century to the mid-19th century, it was one of the largest plantation complexes in the American South. It was owned by the Bennehan-Cameron family...
lay at the center of one of the largest plantation holdings in the South. African slaves were brought to labor on these farms and plantations, and slave quarters became the hearth of distinctively Southern cultural traditions involving crafts, social relations, life rituals, music, and dance. There were free African-Americans in the area as well, including several who fought in the Revolutionary War.
Antebellum and Civil War
Prior to the arrival of the railroad, the area now known as Durham was the eastern part of present-day Orange County and was almost entirely agricultural, with a few businesses catering to travelers (particularly livestock drivers) along the Hillsborough Road. This road, eventually followed by US Route 70, was the major east-west route in North Carolina from colonial times until the construction of interstate highways. Steady population growth and an intersection with the road connecting Roxboro and Fayetteville made the area near this site suitable for a US Post Office, which was established in 1827. (Roxboro, Fayetteville and Hillsborough Roads remain major thoroughfares in Durham, although they no longer exactly follow their early 19th century rights-of-way.)Durham's location is a result of the needs of the 19th century railroad industry. The wood-burning steam locomotives of the time had to stop frequently for wood and water and the new North Carolina Railroad needed a depot between the settled towns of Raleigh and Hillsborough. The residents of what is now downtown Durham thought their businesses catering to livestock drivers had a better future than a new-fangled nonsense like a railroad and refused to sell or lease land for a depot. Eventually a railway depot was established on land donated by Bartlett S. Durham
Bartlett S. Durham
Dr. Bartlett Leonidas Snipes Durham was an American physician and entrepreneur whose land, donated for a railway station, became the location of Durham, North Carolina, named for him.-Biography:...
in 1849.
Durham's Station, as it was known for its first 20 years, was just another depot for the occasional passenger or express package until early April 1865 when a Federal Army commanded by William T. Sherman occupied the nearby state capitol of Raleigh during the American Civil War. The last intact Confederate Army, commanded by General Joseph E. Johnston, was headquartered in Greensboro 50 miles (80.5 km) to the west. After the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia by Robert E. Lee at Appomattox, Virginia, General Johnston sought surrender terms, which were negotiated at Bennett's Place, a farm halfway between the lines about 3 miles (4.8 km) west of Durham's Station. While what could have easily been a battle in Durham was averted, the wholesale looting of houses in the Durham area by Union cavalry, in what people thought was a truce period, led to a bitterness towards Republicans and the North that lasted well into the 20th century.
Fortunately for Durham, its future had nothing to do with 19th century politics. Thousands of soldiers, both Union and Confederate, were encamped near Bennett Place
Bennett Place
Bennett Place, sometimes known as Bennett Farm, in Durham, North Carolina was the site of the largest surrender of Confederate soldiers ending the American Civil War, on April 26, 1865.-History:...
They confiscated the area's Brightleaf Tobacco, which had a milder flavor than other tobacco varieties. Durham's tobacco was far more pleasant to smoke or chew than any tobacco they had ever had and when they returned home and couldn't get anything like it, they started sending letters to Durham to get more.
Reconstruction and the rise of Durham tobacco
The community of Durham Station grew slowly before the Civil War, but expanded rapidly following the war, with much of this growth attributed to the establishment of a thriving tobaccoTobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
industry. Veterans returned home after the war with an interest in acquiring more of the great tobacco they had sampled in North Carolina. Numerous orders were mailed to John Ruffin Green's tobacco company requesting more of the Durham tobacco. W.T. Blackwell partnered with Green and renamed the company as the "Bull Durham Tobacco Factory". The name "Bull Durham" is said to have been taken from the bull on the British Colman's
Colman's
Colman's is a UK manufacturer of mustard and various other sauces, based at Carrow, in Norwich, Norfolk. Presently an operational division of the multinational Unilever company, Colman's is one of the oldest existing food brands, famous for a limited range of products, almost all varieties of...
Mustard, which Mr. Blackwell (mistakenly) believed was manufactured in Durham
Durham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
, England. Mustard, known as Durham Mustard, was originally produced in Durham
Durham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
, England, by Mrs Clements and later by Ainsley during the eighteenth century. However, production of the original Durham Mustard has now been passed into the hands of Colman's
Colman's
Colman's is a UK manufacturer of mustard and various other sauces, based at Carrow, in Norwich, Norfolk. Presently an operational division of the multinational Unilever company, Colman's is one of the oldest existing food brands, famous for a limited range of products, almost all varieties of...
of Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
, England.
Incorporation
As Durham Station's population rapidly increased, the station became a town and was incorporated by act of the North Carolina General AssemblyNorth Carolina General Assembly
The North Carolina General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The General Assembly drafts and legislates the state laws of North Carolina, also known as the General Statutes...
, on April 10, 1869. It was named for the man who provided the land on which the station was built, Dr. Durham. At the time of its incorporation by the General Assembly, Durham was located in Orange County. The increase in business activity, land transfers etc, made the day long trip back and forth to the county seat in Hillsborough untenable, so twelve years later, on April 17, 1881, a bill for the establishment of Durham County
Durham County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 223,314 people, 89,015 households, and 54,032 families residing in the county. The population density was 769 people per square mile . There were 95,452 housing units at an average density of 329 per square mile...
was ratified by the General Assembly, having been introduced by Caleb B.Green, creating Durham County from the eastern portion of Orange County and the western portion of Wake County
Wake County, North Carolina
Wake County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2010 census, the population was 900,993 making it North Carolina's second most populated county...
. In 1911, parts of Cedar Fork Township
Cedar Fork Township, Wake County, North Carolina
Cedar Fork Township is one of twenty townships within Wake County, North Carolina. As of the 2000 census, Cedar Fork Township had a population of 10,911, a 309.6% increase over 1990, and a population density of 0.37 people per acre .Cedar Fork Township, occupying 29,376 acres in northwestern Wake...
of Wake County
Wake County, North Carolina
Wake County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2010 census, the population was 900,993 making it North Carolina's second most populated county...
was transferred to Durham County and became Carr Township
Carr Township, Durham County, North Carolina
Carr Township is one of six townships in Durham County, North Carolina, United States. The township had a population of 1,776 according to the 2000 census....
.
Early growth (1900–1970)
Washington Duke
George Washington Duke was an American tobacco industrialist and philanthropist.-Biography:Duke was born in Orange County, North Carolina , to Taylor Duke and Dicey Jones...
's W. Duke & Sons Tobacco Company, resulted in the rapid growth of the city of Durham. Washington Duke was a good businessman, but his sons were brilliant and established what amounted to a monopoly of the smoking and chewing tobacco business in the United States by 1900. In the early 1910s, the Federal Government forced a breakup of the Duke's business under the antitrust laws. The Dukes retained what became known as American Tobacco, a major corporation in its own right, with manufacturing based in Durham, and whose advertisements on radio in the 1930s and 1940s and television in the 1950s and 1960s were as ubiquitous as those of Coca-Cola or McDonald's today.
Prevented from further investment in the tobacco industry, the Dukes turned to the then new industry of electric power generation, which they had been investing in since the early 1890s. Duke Power (now Duke Energy) brought in electricity from hydroelectric dams in the mountains through the newly-invented technology of high voltage power lines. At this time (1910–1920), the few towns and cities in North Carolina that had electricity depended on local "powerhouses". These were large, noisy, and smoky coal-fired plants located next to the railroad tracks. Duke Power quickly took over the electricity franchises in these towns and then electrified all the other towns of central and western North Carolina, making even more money than they ever made from tobacco. Duke Power also had a significant business in local franchises for public transit (buses and trolleys) before local government took over this responsibility in the mid to late 20th century.
The success of the tobacco industry in the late 19th and early 20th century encouraged the then-growing textile industry to locate just outside of Durham. The early electrification of Durham was also a large incentive. Drawing a labor force from the economic demise of single family farms in the region at the time, these textile mills doubled the population of Durham. These areas were known as East Durham and West Durham until they were eventually annexed by the City of Durham.
Much of the early city architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
, both commercial and residential, dates from the period of 1890–1930.
Durham quickly developed a vibrant Black community, the center of which was an area known as [Hayti,_Durham,_North_Carolina] , just south of the center of town, where some of the most prominent and successful black-owned businesses in the country during the early 20th century were established. These businesses — the best known of which are North Carolina Mutual Insurance Company and Mechanics & Farmers' Bank — were centered on Parrish St., which would come to be known as "Black Wall Street." In 1910, Dr. James E. Shepard
James E. Shepard
James E. Shepard was the founder of what became the only taxpayer-funded liberal arts college for blacks in the nation, North Carolina Central University in Durham, North Carolina.-Personal life and family:...
founded North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University is a public historically black university in the University of North Carolina system, located in Durham, North Carolina, offering programs at the baccalaureate, master’s, professional and doctoral levels....
, the nation's first publicly supported liberal arts college for African-Americans.
In 1924, James Buchanan Duke
James Buchanan Duke
James Buchanan Duke was a U.S. tobacco and electric power industrialist best known for his involvement with Duke University.-Personal life:...
established a philanthropic foundation in honor of his father Washington Duke
Washington Duke
George Washington Duke was an American tobacco industrialist and philanthropist.-Biography:Duke was born in Orange County, North Carolina , to Taylor Duke and Dicey Jones...
to support Trinity College in Durham. The college changed its name to Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
and built a large campus and hospital a mile west of Trinity College (the original site of Trinity College is now known as the Duke East Campus).
Durham's manufacturing fortunes declined during the mid-20th century. Textile
Textile
A textile or cloth is a flexible woven material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, or other material to produce long strands...
mills began to close during the 1930s. Competition from other tobacco companies (as well as a decrease in smoking after the 1960s) reduced revenues from Durham's tobacco industry.
In a far-sighted move in the late 1950s, Duke University, along with the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University in Raleigh, persuaded the North Carolina Legislature to purchase a large tract of sparsely settled land in southern Durham County and create the nation's first "science park" for industry. Cheap land and a steady supply of trained workers from the local universities made the Research Triangle Park an enormous success which, along with the expansion resulting from the clinical and scientific advances of Duke Medical Center and Duke University, more than made up for the decline of Durham's tobacco and textile industries.
Civil Rights
As a result of its substantial African-American community, a prominent Civil RightsCivil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
movement developed in Durham. Multiple sit-ins were held, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
, visited the city during the struggle for equal rights. The Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People, organized in 1935 by C.C. Spaulding and James E. Shepard
James E. Shepard
James E. Shepard was the founder of what became the only taxpayer-funded liberal arts college for blacks in the nation, North Carolina Central University in Durham, North Carolina.-Personal life and family:...
, has been cited nationally for its role in the sit-in movements of the 1950s–60s. The committee also has used its voting strength to pursue social and economic rights for African-Americans and other ethnic groups. In the late 1950s, Douglas E. Moore
Douglas E. Moore
Douglas E. Moore , is a Methodist minister, civil rights activist, and politician in Washington, D.C. In 1974, he was elected as a Democrat to be an at-large member of the Council of the District of Columbia in the first election after home rule was established, serving for one term.Moore is the...
, minister of Durham's Asbury Temple Methodist Church, along with other religious and community leaders, pioneered sit-ins throughout North Carolina to protest discrimination at lunch counters that served only whites.
Widely credited as the first sit-in of the Civil Rights Movement, on June 23, 1957, Moore and six others assembled at the church to plan the protest. The young African Americans moved over to the segregated
Racial segregation in the United States
Racial segregation in the United States, as a general term, included the racial segregation or hypersegregation of facilities, services, and opportunities such as housing, medical care, education, employment, and transportation along racial lines...
Royal Ice Cream Parlor and took up whites-only booths. When they refused to budge, the manager called the police who charged them with trespassing. Unlike the Greensboro Four, three years later, the Royal Seven were arrested and ultimately found guilty of trespassing.
The six-month long sit-in at a Woolworth
F. W. Woolworth Company
The F. W. Woolworth Company was a retail company that was one of the original American five-and-dime stores. The first successful Woolworth store was opened on July 18, 1879 by Frank Winfield Woolworth in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, as "Woolworth's Great Five Cent Store"...
's counter in Greensboro, NC
Greensboro sit-ins
The Greensboro sit-ins were a series of nonviolent protests which led to the Woolworth's department store chain reversing its policy of racial segregation in the Southern United States....
, captured the nation's attention. Within days, Martin Luther King Jr. met Moore in Durham, where King coined his famous rallying cry "Fill up the jails," during a speech at White Rock Baptist Church. Advocating non-violent confrontation with segregation laws for the first time, King said, "Let us not fear going to jail. If the officials threaten to arrest us for standing up for our rights, we must answer by saying that we are willing and prepared to fill up the jails of the South."
This community was not enough to prevent the demolition of portions of the Hayti district for the construction of the Durham Freeway during the late 1960s. The freeway construction resulted in losses to other historic neighborhoods, including Morehead Hills, West End, and West Durham. Combined with large-scale demolition using Urban Renewal funds, Durham suffered significant losses to its historic architectural base.
1970s – present
Durham's growth began to rekindle during the 1970s and 1980s, with the construction of multiple housing developments in the southern part of the city, nearest Research Triangle ParkResearch Triangle Park
The Research Triangle Park is a research park in the United States. It is located near Durham, Raleigh, and Chapel Hill, in the Research Triangle region of North Carolina...
, and the beginnings of downtown revitalization. In 1975, the St. Joseph's Historical Foundation at the Hayti Heritage Center was incorporated to "preserve the heritage of the old Hayti community, and to promote the understanding of and appreciation for the African American experience and African Americans' contributions to world culture." A new downtown baseball stadium was constructed for the Durham Bulls
Durham Bulls
The Durham Bulls are a minor league baseball team that currently plays in the International League. The Bulls play their home games at Durham Bulls Athletic Park located in the downtown area of Durham, North Carolina. Durham Bulls Athletic Park is often called the "DBAP" or "D-Bap". The Bulls are...
in 1994. The Durham Performing Arts Center
Durham Performing Arts Center
The Durham Performing Arts Center opened November 30, 2008 as the largest performing arts center in the Carolinas at a cost of $48 million. It will be the main venue for the performing arts in Durham, North Carolina.-Costs and history:...
now ranks in the top ten in theater ticket sales in the US according to Pollstar magazine. There have been many famous people who performed there including B.B. King and Willie Nelson
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized...
. After the departure of the tobacco industry, large-scale renovations of the historic factories into offices, condominiums, and restaurants reshaped downtown.
Major employers in Durham are Duke University (39,000 employees, 13,000 students), about 2 miles (3.2 km) west of the original downtown area, and companies in the Research Triangle Park (49,000 employees), about 10 miles (16.1 km) southeast. These centers are connected by the Durham Freeway (NC 147).
Culture
Events include jazz festivals, blues festivals, symphony concerts, art exhibitions, and a multitude of cultural expositions, including the American Dance FestivalAmerican Dance Festival
The American Dance Festival is a six and four-week school for dance and a six-week summer festival of modern dance performances, currently held at Duke University and the Durham Performing Arts Center in Durham, North Carolina....
and the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival
Full Frame Documentary Film Festival
The Full Frame Documentary Film Festival is an annual international event dedicated to the theatrical exhibition of non-fiction cinema. Each spring Full Frame welcomes filmmakers and film lovers from around the world to historic downtown Durham, North Carolina for a four-day, morning to midnight...
. A center of Durham's culture is its Carolina Theater, which shows both live performances and films, primarily independent releases. Notable dining establishments are primarily concentrated in the Ninth Street, Brightleaf, and University Drive areas. There is a resurgence of restaurants in and around the downtown area, including several new restaurants in the American Tobacco District. The Nasher Museum of Art
Nasher Museum of Art
The Nasher Museum of Art is the art museum of Duke University, and is located on Duke's campus in Durham, North Carolina, USA. The $24 million museum was designed by architect Rafael Viñoly and opened on October 2, 2005...
opened in October 2005 and has produced nationally-recognized traveling exhibitions of global, contemporary art.
The Durham Association for Downtown Arts (DADA) is a non-profit arts organization located in the downtown area. It was founded in 1998 and then incorporated in 2000. The organization's mission is a commitment to the development, presentation and fiscal sponsorship of original art and performance in Durham. DADA strives to support local artists working in a diversity of artistic media. Emphasizing community, DADA helps local residents gain access to these artists by providing free or low-cost venue admission.
Sports
Collegiate athletics are a primary focus in Durham. Duke UniversityDuke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
's men's basketball team draws a large following, selling out every home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium
Cameron Indoor Stadium
Cameron Indoor Stadium is an indoor arena located on the West Campus of Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. It is home to the Duke Blue Devils men's and women's basketball teams, the women's volleyball team, and the men's wrestling team....
in 2009. The fans are known as the Cameron Crazies
Cameron Crazies
The Cameron Crazies are the student supporters of Duke University's basketball teams, named for Duke's Cameron Indoor Stadium. Crazies stand courtside in a 1,200 seat student section and begin cheering during warmups...
and are known nationwide for their chants and rowdiness. The team has won the NCAA Division I championship twice since 2001 and four times overall. Duke competes in a total of 26 sports in the Atlantic Coast Conference
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
.
North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University is a public historically black university in the University of North Carolina system, located in Durham, North Carolina, offering programs at the baccalaureate, master’s, professional and doctoral levels....
's athletic program began to transition to Division I in 2005 and has begun competing in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference is a collegiate athletic conference of historically black colleges and universities in the Southeastern United States...
. NCCU has won CIAA
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association
The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association is a college athletic conference, mostly consisting of historically black colleges and universities. Recent addition Chowan University is the first non-HBCU to play in the conference. Conference teams participate in the NCAA's Division II...
championships in football, volleyball, and cross country for two consecutive years, in addition to the 1989 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship.
Durham's professional sports team is the Durham Bulls
Durham Bulls
The Durham Bulls are a minor league baseball team that currently plays in the International League. The Bulls play their home games at Durham Bulls Athletic Park located in the downtown area of Durham, North Carolina. Durham Bulls Athletic Park is often called the "DBAP" or "D-Bap". The Bulls are...
International League
International League
The International League is a minor league baseball league that operates in the eastern United States. Like the Pacific Coast League and the Mexican League, it plays at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball. It was so named because it had teams in both the United States...
baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
team. A movie involving the franchise, Bull Durham
Bull Durham
Bull Durham is a 1988 American romantic comedy baseball film. It is based upon the minor league experiences of writer/director Ron Shelton and depicts the players and fans of the Durham Bulls, a minor league baseball team in Durham, North Carolina....
, was produced in 1988. The Bulls play in the Durham Bulls Athletic Park
Durham Bulls Athletic Park
Durham Bulls Athletic Park, frequently called the DBAP , is a ballpark in Durham, North Carolina that is home to the Durham Bulls, the AAA affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball. It is also home to the Duke Blue Devils and North Carolina Central Eagles college baseball teams. The...
, on the southern end of downtown, constructed in 1994. Now with one of the newest stadiums in the minor leagues, the Bulls usually generate an annual attendance of around 500,000. Previously the Durham Athletic Park
Durham Athletic Park
Durham Athletic Park, affectionately known as "The DAP" , is a former minor league baseball stadium in Durham, North Carolina. The stadium was home to the Durham Bulls from 1926 through 1994...
, located on the northern end of downtown, had served as the team's homebase. Historically, many Durham Bulls players have transferred to the big leagues after several years in the minor leagues. It has been preserved for the use of other minor league baseball
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
teams as well as for concerts sponsored by the City of Durham and other events. The Durham Dragons, a women's fast pitch softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
team, played in the Durham Athletic Park from 1998–2000. The DAP recently went through a $5 million renovation.
Media
The major daily newspaper in Durham is The Herald-SunThe Herald-Sun (Durham, North Carolina)
The Herald-Sun is a daily newspaper in Durham, North Carolina, published by the Paxton Media Group of Paducah, Kentucky.-History:The Herald-Sun began publication on 1 January 1991 as the result of a merger of The Durham Morning Herald and The Durham Sun.The Herald-Sun and The Durham Morning Herald...
, which began publication in 1893. The Durham-based Independent Weekly
Independent Weekly
The Independent Weekly is a tabloid-format alternative weekly newspaper published in Durham, North Carolina, United States and distributed throughout the Research Triangle area and counties .The Independent is a member of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies and has a...
, noted for its investigative journalism and progressive/liberal perspective, provides political and entertainment news for the greater Research Triangle; it began publication in 1983.
Durham is part of the Raleigh-Durham-Fayetteville Designated Market Area, the 24th largest broadcast television market in the United States. Eight television stations are licensed or have significant operations in Durham, including WTVD-TV based in downtown Durham. All major U.S. television networks have affiliates serving the region, with most of them based in the city.
Durham and a large part of the Triangle area is Arbitron radio market #43. Public television and radio are provided by WUNC, which is based in Chapel Hill and has significant operations in Durham.
Politics
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, and has voted for the Democratic Party's presidential candidate in every election since the city's founding in 1869. Durham is an activist community and politics are lively, visible, and often contentious, and like many communities, often dealing with issues of race and class. The shifting alliances of the area's political action committee
Political action committee
In the United States, a political action committee, or PAC, is the name commonly given to a private group, regardless of size, organized to elect political candidates or to advance the outcome of a political issue or legislation. Legally, what constitutes a "PAC" for purposes of regulation is a...
s since the 1980s has led to a very active local political scene. Notable groups include the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People, the Durham People's Alliance, and the Friends of Durham Friends of Durham. The first two groups tend to be affiliated with Democratic party activists, while the third group tends to attract Republican activists. Compared to other similarly sized Southern cities, Durham has a larger than average population of middle class African-Americans and white liberals
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
. Working together in coalition, these two groups have dominated city and county politics since the early 1980s.
Durham operates under a council-manager government
Council-manager government
The council–manager government form is one of two predominant forms of municipal government in the United States; the other common form of local government is the mayor-council government form, which characteristically occurs in large cities...
. The mayor since 2001 is Bill Bell, who was most recently reelected in 2011 with 82% of the vote in a runoff election. The seven-member City Council is the primary budgetary and lawmaking authority.
Key political issues have been the redevelopment of Downtown Durham and revival of other historic neighborhoods and commercial districts, a 45% reduction of crime, a 10 year plan to end homelessness, initiatives to reduce truancy, issues related growth and development. Naturally, a merger of Durham City Schools (several inner city neighborhoods) and Durham County Schools in the early 1990s has not been without controversy.
Federally, Durham is part of North Carolina's 4th congressional district
North Carolina's 4th congressional district
The Fourth Congressional district of North Carolina is located in the central region of the state and contains most of the area commonly known as The Triangle. It includes all of Durham and Orange counties, part of Wake County and a small section of Chatham County...
, represented by Democrat David Price
David Price (American politician)
David Eugene Price is a professor and the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1997 and previously from 1987 to 1995. He is a member of the Democratic Party...
, elected in 1996.
Since 2003 the city has had a policy to prohibit police from inquiring into the citizenship status of persons unless they have otherwise been arrested or charged with a crime. A city council resolution mandates that police officers "...may not request specific documents for the sole purpose of determining a person's civil immigration status, and may not initiate police action based solely on a person's civil immigration status ..." Since 2010, the Durham police have accepted the Mexican Consular Identification Card as a valid form of identification.
In 2006, racial and community tensions stirred following false allegations of a sexual assault by three white members of the Duke University lacrosse team in what is now known as the 2006 Duke University lacrosse case. The allegations were made by Crystal Gail Mangum a young African- American woman, student, stripper and mother of two young children. She and another young woman had been hired to dance at a party that the team held in an off-campus house. In 2007, all charges in the case were dropped and the players were declared innocent. Durham County District Attorney Mike Nifong was dismissed from his job and disbarred from legal practice for his criminal misconduct handling of the case including withholding of exculpatory evidence
Exculpatory evidence
Exculpatory evidence is the evidence favorable to the defendant in a criminal trial, which clears or tends to clear the defendant of guilt. It is the opposite of inculpatory evidence, which tends to prove guilt....
. There have been several other results
Responses to the 2006 Duke University lacrosse case
The 2006 Duke University lacrosse case resulted in a great deal of coverage in the local and national media as well as a widespread community response at Duke and in the Durham, North Carolina area.-Initial coverage :...
from the case, including lawsuits against both city and Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
officials.
Primary and secondary schools
Public schools in Durham are run by Durham Public SchoolsDurham Public Schools
Durham Public Schools was formed in 1992 with the merger of Durham's previous two school districts and is currently the 8th largest school system in North Carolina. There are currently 46 public schools in the system, consisting of 28 elementary , 8 middle , 2 secondary , 7 high , and 1 hospital...
, the eighth largest school district in North Carolina. The district runs 46 public schools, consisting of 28 elementary, 8 middle, 2 secondary, and 7 high schools. Several high schools focus on distinct subject areas, such as the Durham School of the Arts
Durham School of the Arts
Durham School of the Arts is a secondary magnet school located in downtown Durham, North Carolina, housing 1,381 students. Its focus is on the visual and performing arts....
and the City of Medicine Academy. Public schools in Durham were partially segregated until 1970.
The North Carolina School for Science and Mathematics is a high school operated by the University of North Carolina in central Durham. The residential school accepts rising juniors with a focus on technology, science, medicine, and mathematics.
Several private schools also operate in Durham, including Durham Academy
Durham Academy
Durham Academy is an independent, coeducational, day school in Durham, North Carolina. Character education is emphasized school-wide, and community service opportunities abound from preschool through upper school. An experiential education program begins in fifth grade and includes a trip to...
and a number of religious schools.
In December 2007, Forbes.com
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
ranked Durham as one of the "Top 20 Places to Educate Your Child;" Durham was the only MSA
United States metropolitan area
In the United States a metropolitan statistical area is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are not legally incorporated as a city or town would be, nor are they legal administrative divisions like...
from North Carolina to make the list.
Colleges and universities
Duke UniversityDuke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
is one of the premier universities in the United States and the world, with around 14,000 students split evenly between graduates and undergraduates. Duke's 8600 acre campus and Medical Center are located in western Durham, about 2 miles (3.2 km) from downtown. Duke forms one of the three vertices of the Research Triangle along with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
and North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Commonly known as NC State, the university is part of the University of North Carolina system and is a land, sea, and space grant institution...
. The University's research, medical, and teaching efforts are all among the highest-ranked in both the United States and the world.
North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University is a public historically black university in the University of North Carolina system, located in Durham, North Carolina, offering programs at the baccalaureate, master’s, professional and doctoral levels....
is a public, historically black university located in southeastern Durham. The University was founded in 1910 to address the needs of the region's black population, and now grants baccalaureate, master’s, professional and doctoral degrees. NCCU became a public University when it joined the University of North Carolina system in 1972. Durham Technical Community College
Durham Technical Community College
Durham Technical Community College is a public two-year accredited institution of higher education and technical training school located in Durham, North Carolina, USA. Durham Tech's main campus is near to downtown Durham, Research Triangle Park, and Raleigh-Durham International Airport...
is a two-year public institution that grants associates degrees.
Transportation
Most travel in Durham is by private vehicle on its network of public streets and highways. Important arteries for traffic include NC 147, which connects Duke University, downtown, and Research Triangle Park, U.S. 15-501 between Durham and Chapel HillChapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, United States and the home of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Care...
, I 85, connecting Durham to Virginia and western North Carolina cities, and I-40 running across southern Durham County between the Research Triangle Park and Chapel Hill. The I-40 corridor has been the main site of commercial and residential development in Durham since its opening in the early 1990s. Over 95% of commuters use a car to get to work, with 14% of those people in carpools.
Durham maintains an extensive network of bicycle routes and trails and has been recognized with a Bicycle Friendly Community Award. The American Tobacco Trail
American Tobacco Trail
The American Tobacco Trail is a long Rails-to-Trails project located in the Research Triangle region of North Carolina, running along an abandoned railroad bed originally built for the American Tobacco Company in the 1970s. The route crosses through the City of Durham, Durham County, Chatham...
begins in downtown and continues south through Research Triangle Park and ends in Wake County. The city is also considering furthering the progress on the Triangle Greenway System.
Air travel is serviced by Raleigh-Durham International Airport
Raleigh-Durham International Airport
Raleigh-Durham International Airport is a public international airport located 4.5 miles northeast of the town of Morrisville in suburban Wake County, North Carolina, United States. The airport covers and operates three runways, providing direct service to 40 domestic and international...
, which enplanes about 4.5 million passengers per year. Frequent service (5 flights a day or more) is available to Philadelphia, Atlanta, New York LaGuardia, New York Kennedy, Washington Reagan, Washington Dulles, Chicago O'Hare, Dallas, and Charlotte. Non-stop daily service is provided to approximately 30 destinations in the United States and daily international service is also available to London Heathrow, Toronto-Pearson and Cancún, Mexico.
Triangle Transit (known formerly as the Triangle Transit Authority, or TTA) offers scheduled, fixed-route regional and commuter bus service between Raleigh and the region's other principal cities of Durham, Cary
Cary, North Carolina
Cary is a large town and suburb of Raleigh, North Carolina in Wake and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located almost entirely in Wake County, it is the second largest municipality in that county and the third largest municipality in The Triangle after Raleigh and Durham...
and Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, United States and the home of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Care...
, as well as to and from the Raleigh-Durham International Airport
Raleigh-Durham International Airport
Raleigh-Durham International Airport is a public international airport located 4.5 miles northeast of the town of Morrisville in suburban Wake County, North Carolina, United States. The airport covers and operates three runways, providing direct service to 40 domestic and international...
, Research Triangle Park
Research Triangle Park
The Research Triangle Park is a research park in the United States. It is located near Durham, Raleigh, and Chapel Hill, in the Research Triangle region of North Carolina...
and several of the region's larger suburban communities. TT also coordinates an extensive vanpool
Vanpool
Vanpools are an element of the transit system that allow groups of people to share the ride similar to a carpool, but on a larger scale with concurrent savings in fuel and vehicle operating costs...
and rideshare
Carpool
Carpooling , is the sharing of car journeys so that more than one person travels in a car....
program that serves the region's larger employers and commute destinations.
From 1995, the cornerstone of Triangle Transit's long-term plan was a 28 miles (45.1 km) rail corridor from northeast Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
, through downtown Raleigh, Cary
Cary, North Carolina
Cary is a large town and suburb of Raleigh, North Carolina in Wake and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located almost entirely in Wake County, it is the second largest municipality in that county and the third largest municipality in The Triangle after Raleigh and Durham...
, and Research Triangle Park
Research Triangle Park
The Research Triangle Park is a research park in the United States. It is located near Durham, Raleigh, and Chapel Hill, in the Research Triangle region of North Carolina...
, to Durham using DMU
Diesel multiple unit
A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple unit train consisting of multiple carriages powered by one or more on-board diesel engines. They may also be referred to as a railcar or railmotor, depending on country.-Design:...
technology. There were proposals to extend this corridor 7 miles (11.3 km) to Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, United States and the home of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Care...
with light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
technology. However, in 2006 Triangle Transit deferred implementation indefinitely when the Federal Transit Administration
Federal Transit Administration
The Federal Transit Administration is an agency within the United States Department of Transportation that provides financial and technical assistance to local public transit systems. The FTA is one of ten modal administrations within the DOT...
declined to fund the program. Government agencies throughout the Raleigh-Durham metropolitan area have struggled with determining the best means of providing fixed-rail transit service for the region.
The region's two metropolitan planning organization
Metropolitan planning organization
A metropolitan planning organization is a federally-mandated and federally-funded transportation policy-making organization in the United States that is made up of representatives from local government and governmental transportation authorities...
s appointed a group of local citizens in 2007 to reexamine options for future transit development in light of Triangle Transit's problems. The Special Transit Advisory Commission (STAC) retained many of the provisions of Triangle Transit's original plan, but recommended adding new bus services and raising additional revenues by adding a new local half-cent sales tax to fund the project.
Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
also maintains its own transit system, Duke Transit operates more than 30 buses with routes throughout the campus and health system. Duke campus buses and vans have alternate schedules or do not operate during breaks and holidays.
A new Greyhound bus and amtrak station was built in 2011 in downtown Durham.
Geography
Durham is located in the east-central part of the PiedmontPiedmont (United States)
The Piedmont is a plateau region located in the eastern United States between the Atlantic Coastal Plain and the main Appalachian Mountains, stretching from New Jersey in the north to central Alabama in the south. The Piedmont province is a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division...
region at 35°59′19"N 78°54′26"W (35.988644, −78.907167). Like much of the region, its topography is generally flat with some rolling hills. The city has a total area of 94.9 square miles (245.8 km²), of which, 94.6 square miles (245.1 km²) of it is land and 0.3 square miles (0.7 km²) (0.29%) is water. The soil is predominantly clay, making it poor for agriculture. The Eno River
Eno River
The Eno River, named for the Eno Indians who once lived along its banks, is the initial tributary of the Neuse River in North Carolina, USA.The Eno rises in Orange County. The river's watershed occupies most of Orange and Durham counties...
passes through Durham, along with several other small creeks.
Climate
Durham is classified as a humid subtropical climateHumid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a climate zone characterized by hot, humid summers and mild to cool winters...
according to the Köppen classification, with warm and humid summers, cool winters, and mild spring and autumn. Durham receives abundant precipitation, with thunderstorms common in the summer. The region sees an average of 3.9 inches (99.1 mm) of snow per year, which usually melts within a few days.
Demographics
As of the 2000 censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, there were 187,035 people, 74,981 households, and 43,563 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,976.4 people per square mile (763.1/km²). There were 80,797 housing units at an average density of 853.8 per square mile (329.7/km²). The racial composition of the city was: 45.50% White, 43.81% Black or African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
, 3.64% Asian American
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...
, 0.31% Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
, 0.04% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
Pacific Islander American
Pacific Islander Americans, also known as Oceanian Americans, are residents of the United States with original ancestry from Oceania. They represent the smallest racial group counted in the United States census of 2000. They numbered 874,000 people or 0.3 percent of the United States population...
, 4.75% some other race
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.94% two or more races
Multiracial American
Multiracial Americans, US residents who identify themselves as of "two or more races", were numbered at around 9 million, or 2.9% of the population, in the census of 2010. However there is considerable evidence that the real number is far higher. Prior to the mid-20th century many people hid their...
. 8.56% were Hispanic or Latino
Hispanic and Latino Americans
Hispanic or Latino Americans are Americans with origins in the Hispanic countries of Latin America or in Spain, and in general all persons in the United States who self-identify as Hispanic or Latino.1990 Census of Population and Housing: A self-designated classification for people whose origins...
of any race.
There were 74,981 household
Household
The household is "the basic residential unit in which economic production, consumption, inheritance, child rearing, and shelter are organized and carried out"; [the household] "may or may not be synonymous with family"....
s out of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.2% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 15.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.9% were non-families. 31.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37, and the average family size was 3.01.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.9% under the age of 18, 14.1% from 18 to 24, 35.6% from 25 to 44, 18.1% from 45 to 64, and 9.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $41,160, and the median income for a family was $51,162. Males had a median income of $35,202 versus $30,359 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $22,526. About 11.3% of families and 15.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.4% of those under age 18 and 13.2% of those age 65 or over.
Tallest buildings
| Rank | Name | Height ft / m |
Floors | Year | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University Tower | 356 | 17 | 1990's | Tallest building in Durham. | |
| 2 | Durham Centre Durham Centre Durham Centre was a provincial electoral district in the Durham Region. Created in 1987, the riding contained the town of Whitby from south of Taunton Road... |
300 | 18 | Home of the Durham Chamber of Commerce. Twin building is planned. | ||
| 3 | North Carolina Mutual Building | 250 | 14 | Former headquarters of N.C Mutual Life. | ||
| 4 | The Hill Building | 207 | 17 | Is currently being turned into a hotel | ||
| 5 | Duke Chapel Duke Chapel Duke University Chapel is a chapel located at the center of the campus of Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. It is an ecumenical Christian chapel and the center of religion at Duke, and has connections to the United Methodist Church... |
202 | ||||
| 6 | Quintiles Quintiles Quintiles Transnational is a pharmaceutical services company offering clinical, commercial, consulting and capital services. The Quintiles network consists of more than 20,000 employees in 60 countries.... |
200 | 11 | Headquarters for Quintiles | ||
| 7 | Hock Plaza | 200 | 11 | |||
| 8 | Durham County Courthouse | 187 | 11 | 2011/2012 | Under construction. Expected to be completed in late 2011 or early 2012. |
Born in Durham
- The Late Show with David Letterman comedian and television personality Biff HendersonBiff HendersonJames Jackson "Biff" Henderson, Jr. is an American comedian and television personality best known for his work on The Late Show with David Letterman. He is the show's stage manager and appears in occasional humorous segments, often involving interviewing people he meets in public places or at...
- Vogue Editor & Fashion Luminary/Current Judge of ANTM Andre Leon TalleyAndré Leon TalleyAndré Leon Talley is the former American editor-at-large for Vogue magazine, listed as Contributing Editor in the April 2010 masthead. Talley has been a front-row regular at fashion shows in New York, Paris, London and Milan for more than 25 years...
- Artist/painter Ernie BarnesErnie BarnesErnest “Ernie” Eugene Barnes, Jr. was an African-American painter, well-known for his unique style of elongation and movement. He was also a professional football player, actor and author.- Childhood :...
- Pastor & Gospel recording artist Shirley CaesarShirley CaesarShirley Ann Caesar is an American Gospel music singer, songwriter and recording artist whose career has spanned six decades...
- Pastor & Gospel recording artist John P. KeeJohn P. KeeJohn P. Kee is an American gospel singer and pastor.-Early life:John P. Kee was born the 15th out of 16 children in Durham, North Carolina. At an early age he began to develop his musical talent both instrumentally and vocally...
- Major League SoccerMajor League SoccerMajor League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
defender Ike OparaIke OparaIkenna "Ike" Opara is an American soccer player who currently plays for San Jose Earthquakes in Major League Soccer.-College and Amateur:...
of the San Jose EarthquakesSan Jose EarthquakesThe San Jose Earthquakes professional soccer team is located in the San Jose, California, United States suburb of Santa Clara, and participates in Major League Soccer , the top level soccer league in the United States and Canada.... - Major league baseball pitcher Roger Lee CraigRoger Craig (baseball)Roger Craig may refer to:*Roger Craig , former NFL running back*Roger Craig , former pitcher, coach and manager in Major League Baseball...
- David GergenDavid GergenDavid Richmond Gergen is an American political consultant and former presidential advisor who served during the administrations of Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton. He is currently Director of the Center for Public Leadership and a professor of public service at Harvard Kennedy School. Gergen is...
, advisor to presidents Ford, Reagan, and Clinton - Brittany HargestBrittany HargestBrittany Lynne Hargest is a Christian singer and dancer best known for being a member of the Christian/pop group Jump5, which also featured her older brother Brandon Hargest.- Personal life :...
and Brandon Hargest, Singers for Jump5Jump5- History :Siblings Brandon and Brittany Hargest had competed on the same dance team as Lesley Moore, and were familiar with Chris Fedun and Libby Hodges through the competitive dance circuit. The mother of Hodges held an open casting call to find additional members to form a new pop group with her... - Comic actor and novelty musician Pigmeat MarkhamPigmeat MarkhamDewey "Pigmeat" Markham was an African-American entertainer. Though best known as a comedian, Markham was also a singer, dancer, and actor...
. - Contemporary Jazz musician LeRoi MooreLeroi MooreLeRoi Holloway Moore was an American saxophonist best known as a founding member of the Dave Matthews Band. Moore often arranged music for the songs written by frontman Dave Matthews...
of the Dave Matthews BandDave Matthews BandDave Matthews Band, sometimes shortened to DMB, is a U.S. rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia in 1991. The founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer/backing vocalist Carter Beauford and saxophonist LeRoi Moore. Boyd Tinsley was...
. - Songwriter John D. LoudermilkJohn D. LoudermilkJohn D. Loudermilk is an American singer and songwriter.-Biography:Born in Durham, North Carolina, Loudermilk grew up in a family who were members of the Salvation Army faith and was influenced by the church singing. His cousins Ira and Charlie Loudermilk were known professionally as the Louvin...
("Tobacco Road"Tobacco Road (song)"Tobacco Road" is a song written and first recorded by John D. Loudermilk in 1960 that was a hit for The Nashville Teens in 1964 and has since become a standard across several musical genres....
, "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye") - New York Times Theater Critic Ben BrantleyBen BrantleyBenjamin D. "Ben" Brantley is an American journalist and the chief theater critic of The New York Times.-Life and career:...
- John Lucas IIJohn Lucas IIJohn Harding Lucas II is a retired American professional basketball player and a current assistant coach for the Los Angeles Clippers.-Basketball playing career and substance abuse:...
, NBA player and coach - Singer/songwriter Clyde McPhatterClyde McPhatterClyde McPhatter was an American R&B singer, perhaps the most widely imitated R&B singer of the 1950s and 1960s, making him a key figure in the shaping of doo-wop and R&B. He is best known for his solo hit "A Lover's Question"...
- Actress Anita MorrisAnita Morris-Career:Among many roles, Morris's most prominent film role was as Carol Dodsworth, the mistress to Danny DeVito, in Ruthless People and for her sensual performance as Carla in the musical Nine opposite Raul Julia. While nominated for a Best Featured Actress Tony Award as Carla, she lost to Liliane...
- Blues Musician Bull City RedBull City RedBull City Red was an American, Piedmont blues guitarist, singer, and predominately washboard player, most associated with Blind Boy Fuller and the Reverend Gary Davis...
- David NoelDavid NoelDavid Anthony Noel III is an American professional basketball player. A graduate of Southern High School in Durham, North Carolina and the University of North Carolina, Noel was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round of the 2006 NBA Draft with their lone pick, 39th overall.Noel...
, NBA player for the Milwaukee BucksMilwaukee BucksThe Milwaukee Bucks are a professional basketball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. They are part of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and currently plays at the Bradley Center.... - Songwriter Don SchlitzDon SchlitzDonald Alan "Don" Schlitz, Jr. is a country music songwriter. For his songwriting efforts, Schlitz has earned two Grammys, as well as four ASCAP Country Songwriter of the Year awards...
(Kenny RogersKenny RogersKenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...
's "The Gambler"The Gambler (song)"The Gambler" is the title of a song written by Don Schlitz and recorded by American country music artist Kenny Rogers. It was released in November 1978 as the title track from his album The Gambler which won him the Grammy award for best male country vocal performance in 1980. Bobby Bare had...
) - Hip-Hop Artist/producer 9th Wonder9th WonderPatrick Douthit , better known as 9th Wonder is a hip hop record producer, record executive, DJ, professor, and lyricist from Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S.A. He began his career as the main producer for the hip hop group Little Brother, and has also worked with Mary J...
- Hip-Hop Group Little Brother
- Hall of Fame baseball player Rick FerrellRick FerrellRichard Benjamin Ferrell was an American professional baseball player, coach, scout and executive. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from to for the St. Louis Browns, Boston Red Sox and Washington Senators. Ferrell was regarded as one of the best catchers in baseball during the...
- NFL (2002–Present) quarterback, Free Agent David GarrardDavid GarrardDavid Douglas Garrard is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent.Garrard played college football at East Carolina. He was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the fourth round of the 2002 NFL Draft, and served as the team's starting quarterback from 2007 to 2010...
- John H. HagerJohn H. HagerJohn Henry Hager is an American politician who served as the chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia from July 2007 until May 2008...
, former Virginia Lieutenant Governor (1998–2002) and the father-in-law of former First Daughter Jenna BushJenna BushJenna Welch Bush Hager , is the younger of the sororal twin daughters of the 43rd U.S. President George W. Bush and former First Lady Laura Bush, and a granddaughter of the 41st U.S. President George H. W. Bush. She and her sister, Barbara, were the first twin children of a U.S. President...
Hager - NBA (1993–2005) power forward Rodney RogersRodney RogersRodney Ray Rogers is a retired American basketball player who last played power forward for the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers.-Early life:...
- Current major league baseball player Brian RobertsBrian RobertsBrian Michael Roberts is an American Major League Baseball All Star second baseman, nicknamed B-Rob.He made his Major League debut in and has spent his entire professional career with the Baltimore Orioles organization, located in Baltimore, Maryland.-Early life, education and college-baseball...
, second baseman for the Baltimore OriolesBaltimore OriolesThe Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...
] - Former Undersecretary of the Treasury Robert K. SteelRobert K. SteelRobert King "Bob" Steel is an American business leader and an expert on financial institutions and markets. In June 2010, he was named Deputy Mayor for Economic Development by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg...
- NFL (1994–2005) cornerback Dewayne WashingtonDewayne WashingtonDewayne Neron Washington is a former American football cornerback in the National Football League. He played for the Minnesota Vikings , the Pittsburgh Steelers , the Jacksonville Jaguars , and the Kansas City Chiefs...
- OlympicOlympic GamesThe Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
champion snowboarder Seth WescottSeth WescottSeth Benjamin Wescott is an American snowboarder. He is a two-time Olympic champion in the snowboard cross.-Life and career:Wescott was born in Durham, North Carolina, and lives in Carrabassett Valley, Maine... - Major League BaseballMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
first baseman Josh WhitesellJosh WhitesellJoshua S. Whitesell is a 6' 1", 225-pound left-handed professional baseball first baseman for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball....
of the Arizona DiamondbacksArizona DiamondbacksThe Arizona Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix. They play in the West Division of Major League Baseball's National League. From 1998 to the present, they have played in Chase Field... - Platoon Leader of A&O Engineer Platoon, C Co, STB, 2/1 AD 1st Lieutenant Nick Mitchell in the US Army
Residents of Durham
- Singer/actor Clay AikenClay AikenClayton Holmes "Clay" Aiken is an American singer, songwriter, actor, producer and author who began his rise to fame on the second season of the television program American Idol in 2003. RCA Records offered him a recording contract, and his multi-platinum debut album Measure of a Man was released...
. Born in neighboring Raleigh, but a current resident of Durham. - Branford MarsalisBranford MarsalisBranford Marsalis is an American saxophonist, composer and bandleader. While primarily known for his work in jazz as the leader of the Branford Marsalis Quartet, he also performs frequently as a soloist with classical ensembles and has led the group Buckshot LeFonque.-Biography:Marsalis was born...
has been a resident of Durham for several years. The Branford Marsalis QuartetBranford Marsalis Quartet-Current members:*Branford Marsalis – saxophones*Joey Calderazzo - piano*Eric Revis - bass*Justin Faulkner - Drums -Past members:*Jeff "Tain" Watts - Drums *Kenny Kirkland - Piano *Robert Hurst - Bass...
's 2006 albumAlbumAn album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
BraggtownBraggtownBraggtown is an album released by The Branford Marsalis Quartet in 2006.The album, following the 2004 Grammy-nominated Eternal, draws upon a world of inspirations, including John Coltrane, a 17th Century English composer, an American Indian Warrior and a Japanese horror film...
was titled after Braggtown Baptist Church, which sits in the neighborhood of Bragtown, located in northeastern Durham, just north of Highways 70/85. - The Mountain GoatsThe Mountain GoatsThe Mountain Goats is an American indie rock band formed in Claremont, CA by singer-songwriter John Darnielle. For many years, the sole member of the Mountain Goats was Darnielle himself, despite the plural moniker....
, an indie rockIndie rockIndie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band. - Jamie StewartJamie StewartJames "Jamie" Cyrus Stewart is the front-man of the American musical group Xiu Xiu , a former front-man of IBOPA and Ten in the Swear Jar and a current member of Former Ghosts. He was also a member of 7 Year Rabbit Cycle which has since disbanded...
, Frontman of experimental music group Xiu XiuXiu XiuXiu Xiu is an American avant-garde group originally from San Jose, California. The band is the brainchild of singer-songwriter Jamie Stewart, who has been its only constant member since its inception in 2002. His current bandmate is Angela Seo...
& member of Former GhostsFormer GhostsFormer Ghosts consists of former This Song Is a Mess But So Am I member Freddy Ruppert with collaborations from Xiu Xiu frontman Jamie Stewart, Zola Jesus originator Nika Roza Danilova, and Yasmine Kittles of TEARIST. Ruppert is the lead songwriter on this brutally gloomy, Joy Division-esque project...
. - Dr. LeRoy T. WalkerLeRoy T. WalkerLeRoy T. Walker was the first black president of the United States Olympic Committee. In the 1996 Olympics, Dr. Walker was delegated to lead a 10,000 member group of the most talented athletes in the world. His goal is to make sure that American citizens have a feeling of ownership in the program,...
, former United States Olympic President and former Chancellor of North Carolina Central University(NCCU), presently lives in Durham. - Mur LaffertyMur LaffertyMur Lafferty is an American podcaster and writer based in Durham, North Carolina. She attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and graduated with a degree in English. She is the editor and host of Escape Pod since 2010, when she took over from Steve Eley...
, podcaster and writer. - Nnenna FreelonNnenna FreelonNnenna Freelon, , is an American jazz singer, composer, producer, and arranger. She has been nominated for five Grammy Awards for her vocal work, and has performed and toured with such top artists as Ray Charles, Ellis Marsalis, Al Jarreau, Anita Baker, Aretha Franklin, Dianne Reeves, Diana Krall,...
, jazz singer. - Mike Nifong, disbarred District Attorney.
- R. Kelly Bryant, Jr., Activist, Historian, Leader.
- Michelle GordonMichelle GordonTyna Michelle Gordon 티나 미셸 고든 is a national and international award-winning American martial artist. She is known for her work with children and as a martial arts instructor.-Early life:...
, national and international award-winning martial artist. - Big Daddy KaneBig Daddy KaneAntonio Hardy better known by his stage name Big Daddy Kane, is an American rapper who started his career in 1986 as a member of the rap group the Juice Crew. He is widely considered to be one of the most influential and skilled MC's in Hip Hop...
, Hip-hop artist and actor.
Associated with Durham
- Blind Boy FullerBlind Boy FullerBlind Boy Fuller was an American blues guitarist and vocalist. He was one of the most popular of the recorded Piedmont blues artists with rural Black Americans, a group that also included Blind Blake, Josh White, and Buddy Moss.-Life and career:Fulton Allen was born in Wadesboro, North Carolina,...
, Musician. - Rev. Gary Davis, Musician.
- Andrew BrittonAndrew BrittonAndrew Paul Vine-Britton was a British-born spy novelist who immigrated to the United States with his family at age seven. He published his first novel at age 23, his books were translated for international sales, and have been posted on the extended New York Times bestseller list.-Early...
, Novelist. - Pulitzer PrizePulitzer PrizeThe Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-winning cartoonist Doug Marlette lived in Durham as a child.
See also
- The Triangle (North Carolina)The Triangle (North Carolina)The Research Triangle, also known as Raleigh-Durham and commonly referred to as simply "The Triangle", is a region in the Piedmont of North Carolina in the United States, anchored by North Carolina State University, Duke University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and cities of...
- I-85 CorridorI-85 CorridorThe I-85 Corridor is a multi-state region that follows Interstate 85 across the Southeastern United States. It stretches from Montgomery, Alabama to Petersburg, Virginia...
- Triangle J Council of GovernmentsTriangle J Council of GovernmentsThe Triangle J Council of Governments is one of the 17 regional North Carolina Councils of Governments established by the North Carolina General Assembly for the purpose of regional planning and administration...
External links
- Government & Commerce
- History
- Digital Durham Exploring and chronicling the history of post-Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
Durham - Endangered Durham Website with history and many before-and-after pictures of architecture in Durham
- North Carolina Room of the Durham County Library Website for an archive which collects materials concerning the city and county of Durham
- Review of Southern Mill Village: History of Old West Durham on Teachinghistory.org
- Digital Durham Exploring and chronicling the history of post-Civil War
- Arts, Entertainment and Local Media
- The Herald Sun
- Durham Arts Council
- Durham Association for Downtown Arts (DADA)
- Durham Socialite Durham's source for social events.
- Sojam Festival Weekend-long a cappella extravaganza in Durham
- Troika Music Festival
- Full Frame Documentary Film Festival
- WXDU 88.7 FM
- The World Music Central guide to Durham For cultural travelers interested in local roots music, venues, CD shops, instrument makers, etc.
- Taste of Durham Annual food and live music festival.
- Durham Skywriter Durham Skywriter local news
- Festival for the Eno Website Annual festival for ENO river conservation