Related stories
Coaxing Art -- and a Business -- from Clay
A Family Treasure Reborn as a B&B
An Unlikely Choice Becomes the County's Perfect Promoter

Its awesome scenery and welcoming business climate 
combine to give birth to a unique place to live and work

The exact geographical center of North Carolina is in Montgomery County — a community at the axis of neighborly generosity and local pride. It’s a place unspoiled by over-development, where as many acres are claimed by lakes as by towns. It’s a place where you would be happy to bump into your car salesman and join him for an impromptu lunch. It’s a place where children who act up in school are likely to get a tap on the shoulder from their teacher reminding them she’s having dinner later that week with the child’s parents.

“It’s a beautiful way of life when you know people and they know you and care about you,” says Ted Blake, chairman of the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners. Says local entrepreneur Gary McRae, who’s lived in the county most of his life: “It’s kind of trite, but it’s the people and the way of life” that make the area special. “It’s made up of small communities and everyone pitches in when you need help. I don’t stand in line to see the doctor, and I don’t wait in traffic at a stoplight.”

Bounded by Moore, Richmond, Stanly, Davidson and Randolph counties, Montgomery isn’t a large place — the population has grown at a steady rate of almost 15 percent during the 1990s to 26,822 residents in the 2000 census. The county seat of Troy — known as the rug Mecca of the state because Capel Inc. is headquartered there — sits along NC 24/27. Within an hour you can be in Charlotte or Greensboro, and it’s only another 30 minutes to Raleigh. Four other incorporated towns in the county are Biscoe, Star, Mount Gilead and Candor.

Locals say if the county had a beach it would be a microcosm of the state itself. To the east toward Pinehurst the soil is sandy and the pine trees are plentiful. To the west is the county’s greatest natural asset, the 40,000 acres that make up the bulk of the Uwharrie National Forest. The forest is named for the Uwharrie Mountains, which are some of the oldest in North America. They were created from an ancient chain of volcanoes and, though only 1,000 feet high today, are believed to have once peaked at 20,000 feet.

The forest is bounded on the west by the Pee-Dee River and by Badin and Tillery lakes, an attraction that has drawn million-dollar homes to their shores in the last decade.


A Growing Industrial Base

The natural beauty of the environment, as well as the friendly welcome of the business community, made Montgomery County the perfect site for Homanit, a German engineered wood company that opens its U.S. headquarters in Mount Gilead earlier this year. Homanit’s investment of $105 million in a 600,000-square-foot plant for making thin, high-density fiberboard used in furniture, laminate flooring and high-end automobiles, is the county’s largest industrial investment ever.

The plant’s location on N.C. 109 next door to Jordan Lumber Co.’s sawmill and wood chip processing facility is a testament to the friendships and business relationships that are easily forged in this quiet community. Gunter Heyen, president and CEO of Homanit USA Inc., says 13 communities in three states pursued the company, which saw its American-based business grow by serving the furniture industry.

Montgomery County offered the best available raw material through a partnership with Jordan Lumber. Labor was reasonable compared with more metropolitan areas and local leaders made the area even more attractive with tax considerations and other incentives. “We simply got the impression that we were welcome here and would be treated as friends — not as another industry that you need but don’t welcome,” Heyen says.

Heyen adds that even when the announcement was made in March 1999, when the state’s economy could have hardly been stronger, then-Gov. Jim Hunt and Secretary of Commerce Rick Carlisle made personal efforts to attract Homanit to Montgomery County. Homanit signed a 10-year contract with Jordan Lumber, owned by former lieutenant governor Bob Jordan, a Mount Gilead native and a man who says he’s been looking for a business partner like Homanit for more than 25 years. “It’s a good marriage,” says Jordan. “It’s a raw material that they need that we produce, and it’s a perfect match.”

Construction of the enormous plant, which is painted the signature pale yellow and blue of Homanit’s two German facilities, provided another example of the collaborative spirit evident in Montgomery. All three of the county’s commercial builders — Myrick Construction Inc. in Biscoe, J and J Builders Inc. in Biscoe, and D.R. Reynolds Co. Inc. in Star — had a hand in completing the project in a record 18 months. At full capacity, the Homanit plant will be able to produce 140 million square feet of inch board a year and employ 200 workers.


An Economy in Transition

Economic development victories like Homanit’s USA headquarters are something for the entire county to be proud of, says Judy Stevens, head of the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Corp. Homanit is evidence of how the local economy is slowly diversifying from textiles and hosiery. The transition doesn’t always come with such celebration.

On Dec. 5, Springs Industries announced it would close its 95-year-old mill in Biscoe, a town of 1,736 in western Montgomery County. Springs was Biscoe’s largest employer and the mill’s closing will eliminate jobs for 290 employees. Also, sock manufacturer Montgomery Hosiery closed last year after 50 years, putting 80 people out of work.

“Like a lot of other places, our economy takes two steps forward and one step back with regard to industry,” says County Commission Chairman Blake. But a broader look at the county shows that over time industry has diversified and population has grown, he adds.

“We’ve had steady growth in development and diversity in a positive kind of way. We’re still rural, but access to us is becoming more open through better roads and communication.”

To help attract industry, Montgomery County’s Committee of 100, a group that provides a way to involve private citizens in economic development issues, began a shell-building program. The committee’s first shell building was built in 1998 in Biscoe and was immediately sold to an expanding industry, Pine Hosiery in Star. “It shows that local industry has confidence in the local community to expand here,” Stevens says.

The second building, this time in Troy, attracted Atlantic Alliance Recycling, a British-based tire recycler. While the details are still being finalized on the sale of the 30,000-square-foot building, Atlantic Alliance is expected to create 70 jobs.

Sam Johnson, vice president of Fidelity Bank and chairman of the Committee of 100, sees the shell-building program as an instrumental tool in attracting industry. And an increasing tax base makes the county an attractive place for existing industry to expand or other diverse industries to locate here.

“We continue to be able to attract new industry, and that proves the hospitality we provide here,” says Johnson. “If someone was not satisfied, that would have prevented other industrial expansions,” he says.

Other recent steps, including the designation of N.C. 220 as Interstate 74/73, expanded water lines to most parts of the county and two new water tanks, have increased the county’s appeal.

Mid Atlantic Building Systems, a modular home factory, opened with 100 workers near I-74/73, as did Montaire Farms, a chicken feed processor that employs 60 people. Realistic Furniture, a division of Klaussner Furniture, hired about 300 people when it opened a new frame factory.

While the recent weakened economy has hurt some businesses, at least one has benefited from the war on terrorism. McRae Industries, a diversified company that supplies bar code readers and office equipment and makes cowboy and military boots, is one of four U.S. companies that assemble combat boots for the Army, Navy and Air Force. McRae, whose business is headquartered in Mount Gilead, has had the government contract since 1967. A few days after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, McRae got a call from his military supplies contact telling him to get ready. The government’s order increased McRae’s business from 500 to 1,200 pairs a day.

Quickly, the company has expanded from 130 to 180 employees, including some called back from retirement. The additional work will add about $3 million in sales this year. “Everybody feels a little proud to be a part of the effort. It was a good boost for the economy and the people around here,” says McRae, the owner and president of the company.

North Carolina’s Central Park

The abundant natural resources of the area support what is a significant growth industry in the county — recreation and leisure. The Yadkin-Pee Dee Lakes Region has marketed the area as North Carolina’s Central Park, a place to quickly escape the hectic pace of nearby metropolitan areas.

“There’s becoming less and less open land. We are some of the little public land in the Piedmont,” says Tom Horner, district ranger for Uwharrie National Forest. With its designation as a state gameland, the forest attracts hunting enthusiasts who pursue deer, wild turkey and smaller game.

With a rare system of trails for off-road vehicles, the park hosted the Uwharrie Safari a few years ago, a gathering of sport-utility enthusiasts who drove their Land Rovers through the rough terrain. Montgomery’s younger generation enjoys the forest trails for four-wheeler outings.

This March the park opened a new campground built to accommodate campers who bring their horses along to ride in the forest. The campsites include camp stoves and picnic tables, showers and toilets as well as facilities to tie horses and a wash rack.

The Uwharrie National Forest was purchased by the federal government in 1931 during the Great Depression, but it wasn’t until 1961 that President John F. Kennedy proclaimed it a national forest. Today it attracts mountain bikers and hikers year-round to the 20-mile Uwharrie National Recreation Trail.

Each of the county’s five incorporated towns offers festivals year-round that promote their individual attractions. Candor, known for its succulent peaches, hosts the Peach Festival on the third Saturday of each July. Homemade peach ice cream is the prize takeaway from a visit. The state’s oldest fiddler’s convention is held at East Montgomery High School in Biscoe each February and regularly attracts 1,000 people. Troy, the business center of Montgomery County, is well known outside the area as the home of Capel Inc., one of many textile-related industries.

Established in 1917, Capel today is America’s largest manufacturer and importer of area rugs. The company employs 450 people and manufactures more than 20 different rug styles. Every day there are more than 500 incoming and outgoing orders from more than 10,000 accounts in all 50 states. “I hear that people plan their vacation around stopping there to pick up a rug,” says Stevens.

Troy’s Fourth of July celebration, called Troyfest, has returned to its small town roots, offering visitors a taste of yesteryear with apple bobbing and watermelon eating contests.

The county’s earliest history can be traced to about 1500 when the Creek Indians were settled near Mount Gilead. It’s estimated the tribe’s population grew to around 2,000 in as many as 10 villages. Town Creek Indian Mound, now the state’s only historic site dedicated to Native American heritage, offers a glimpse of the temple where the Creeks worshipped. Excavations began at Town Creek in 1937 and continued for 50 years. It was named a state historic site in 1955. Today there is a visitor center with interpretive exhibits, audiovisual programs and maps to take a self-guided tour of the rebuilt structures and mound.

Montgomery County was formed in 1779 from Anson County and was named in honor of Gen. Richard Montgomery, a distinguished officer in the American Revolution. Among the famous people who hail from Montgomery County are Edmond Deberry, a member of Congress in the early and mid 1800s, as well as Jordan, the former lieutenant governor.

A Strong School System

Montgomery County’s public schools and community college are working hard to turn out future leaders. This year Montgomery County Schools administrators were proud to have a student, Jonathon Benson from West Montgomery High School, win a prestigious Morehead Scholarship to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Valued at $70,000, the scholarship is among the most competitive in the nation.

The countywide school system has 4,300 students attending class at four elementary schools, two middle schools and two high schools. The system offers a strong technical/vocational programs along with rigorous academic programs.

The system’s small size can be a plus, says Max Walser, the interim schools superintendent. “Any small, rural environment has advantages because people still believe in good schools,” says Walser. “The parents want their children to do better than they did, and it’s important when they feel that way because they support the teachers.”

Montgomery County School’s biggest challenge has been attracting qualified teachers. To that end, the county recently approved a $600 signing bonus for all new certified teachers. The system also has a strong commitment to technology and has found backing from the local business community.

 Walser says when he started on the job as interim superintendent he asked local businesses to donate scanners and digital cameras to each school. Within a week, every school had the new technology. “I’m optimistic for the county and what I see here,” he says.

Montgomery Community College, located on Page Street in Troy, serves a dual role as a place of higher learning for students who want to earn a certificate or associates degree and possibly pursue a degree at a four-year university, and as a center for job training in the diverse economy.

Located on 153 acres, the college has gained national acclaim for its programs in gunsmithing and taxidermy — both offshoots from the community’s strong opportunities in hunting and gaming.

Montgomery Community College was founded in 1967 and shortly thereafter started one of two pottery programs in the state community college system. The college’s 27-year-old pottery program is credited with helping to fuel the development of nearby Seagrove as a pottery craft capital in the Southeast.

The college serves as a resource for new and expanding industry in the county, and provided pre-employment screening of job applicants and assistance with training of employees for the new Homanit plant. It’s expected to do the same for tire recycler Atlantic Alliance.

The college recently started a LPN program, which is helping to provide additional healthcare workers in the county.

A decade ago, Montgomery Memorial Hospital was held out by the Clinton Administration as an example of a small community underserved by healthcare workers. At the time, the county had but one doctor, and President Clinton visited the hospital during his push to reform healthcare.

Montgomery has made major strieds since the president’s visit. The hospital is now affiliated with Moore Regional Hospital in Pinehurst, which gives residents access to some of the best physicians and other healthcare specialists in the state. Today, the county has a staffed clinic in every town.

The hospital underwent extensive renovations in 1992 and today is a 25-bed critical access hospital with a fully staffed emergency room, a state-of-the-art obstetrics unit as well as an outpatient facility.

Upscale Golf Communities

More evidence of how the county is changing couldn’t be more obvious than on the western side of the county, where two exclusive golf communities have spurred the development of many luxury homes and brought people from around the country to call Montgomery County home.

The Tillery Tradition Country Club opened late in 2000 and is an exclusive residential development on Lake Tillery that sports a par-72 golf course on lush terrain embraced by the area’s signature pine trees.

Uwharrie Point at The Old North State Club is another exclusive development located on a peninsula surrounded by Badin Lake. The development is centered on a spectacular Tom Fazio-designed golf course that has been rated the best private golf course in the state by the North Carolina Magazine Golf Panel. The neighborhood also includes a full-service marina.

Each year these two developments, as well as other upscale lakeside developments, including Carolina Forest, WoodRun, and Sandpiper Cove, account for a greater portion of the county’s tax base.

It began with cabins on the lakes in the 1960s, says Kat McRae, a Montgomery County realtor. Today families are building homes in the $400,000 range and higher, using them for their primary residence and often as second homes.

The location makes the area attractive to people who are retired or semi-retired, who might make the hour-long drive to Charlotte or Greensboro a few times a week.

“Eighteen years ago, not many people lived on the lake. It was a novelty,” says McRae, a realtor for that many years. “Over the years I’ve seen it turn around and prices really appreciate.”

With all that Montgomery County has to offer, there’s no sign that folks will stop being attracted to the county’s lakes and forest.

 “Our lakes are our biggest asset,” says Tammy Dunn, editor of the Montgomery Herald. “That is, second to our people, of course.”

Return to magazine index