Midway, North Carolina
Encyclopedia
Municipal corporation
A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...
town in Davidson County
Davidson County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2010, there were 149,331 people, 58,156 households, and 42,512 families residing in the county. The population density was 267 people per square mile . There were 62,432 housing units at an average density of 113 per square mile...
, 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...
located within a township
Township
The word township is used to refer to different kinds of settlements in different countries. Township is generally associated with an urban area. However there are many exceptions to this rule. In Australia, the United States, and Canada, they may be settlements too small to be considered urban...
of the same name. The town is where rapper slash producer 9th wonder
9th Wonder
Patrick 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...
is from. Midway is situated approximately 890 feet (271.3 m) above sea level, and as of 2006, has a population of 4,399. Midway is part of the Piedmont Triad
Piedmont Triad
The Piedmont Triad, or Triad, is a north-central region of the U.S. state of North Carolina that consists of the area within and surrounding the three major cities of Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and High Point. This close group or "triad" of cities lies in the Piedmont geographical region of the...
region and is neighbored by the communities of Arcadia
Arcadia, North Carolina
Arcadia is an unincorporated community in Davidson County, North Carolina. It is located in the northwestern section of the county along NC Highway 150. Neighboring communities and municipalities include Midway, Welcome, and Winston-Salem.-Education:...
, Welcome
Welcome, North Carolina
Welcome is a census-designated place in Davidson County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 3,538 at the 2000 census. It is nationally known as the home of NASCAR's Richard Childress. The town motto is "Welcome to Welcome, A Friendly Place," as posted on the welcoming sign...
, and Wallburg
Wallburg, North Carolina
Wallburg is a town in Davidson County, North Carolina. It is incorporated, but was never recognized as a CDP by the US Census prior to its incorporation in 2004...
. Every autumn, the town hosts the Midway Christmas Parade in celebration of the coming Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
season.
Etymology
The town of Midway derives its name from its relative geographic location, "midway" between the cities of Winston-SalemWinston-Salem, North Carolina
Winston-Salem is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina, with a 2010 population of 229,617. Winston-Salem is the county seat and largest city of Forsyth County and the fourth-largest city in the state. Winston-Salem is the second largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region and is home to...
and Lexington
Lexington, North Carolina
Lexington is the county seat of Davidson County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 19,953. It is located in central North Carolina, twenty miles south of Winston-Salem. Major highways include I-85, U.S. Route 29, U.S. Route 70, U.S. Route 52 ...
. Urban sprawl
Urban sprawl
Urban sprawl, also known as suburban sprawl, is a multifaceted concept, which includes the spreading outwards of a city and its suburbs to its outskirts to low-density and auto-dependent development on rural land, high segregation of uses Urban sprawl, also known as suburban sprawl, is a...
and annexation by the city of Winston-Salem has muddled the logical apparency of the town's name since the city limits
City limits
The terms city limits and city boundary refer to the defined boundary or border of a city. The area within the city limits is sometimes called the city proper. The terms town limits/boundary and village limits/boundary mean the same as city limits/boundary, but apply to towns and villages...
of Winston-Salem now share a border with Midway while Lexington's nearest border is seven miles (11 km) away. Originally, the community which now forms the center of modern Midway was founded as Eller when the Eller train depot was constructed, labeled as such after members of the Eller family which resided nearby. Until incorporation in 2006, many maps still marked the area as Eller, despite disuse of the name over time by the public, local media, and local establishments.
Post office
The town of Midway does not currently have a post officePost office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
, nor a zip code to its name. Rather than being within the town limits, the post office with the Midway, North Carolina designation is found in a small community of the same name in Rockingham County, North Carolina
Rockingham County, North Carolina
Rockingham County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2010, the population was 93,643. Its county seat is Wentworth.- History :The county was formed in 1785 from Guilford County...
, five miles (8 km) southwest of Reidsville
Reidsville, North Carolina
Reidsville is a city located in Rockingham County, North Carolina. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 14,485.Originally established in the early 19th century as an outpost and stop on the stage line that ran between Salisbury, NC and Danville, VA called Wrights Crossroads,...
. As a result, most residents of the town either use Winston-Salem or Lexington city names for mailing via the United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
.
Incorporation
The community sought incorporationMunicipal corporation
A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...
from 2004-2006 to protect local identity and to prevent annexation
Annexation
Annexation is the de jure incorporation of some territory into another geo-political entity . Usually, it is implied that the territory and population being annexed is the smaller, more peripheral, and weaker of the two merging entities, barring physical size...
by nearby Winston-Salem. The successful incorporation of nearby Wallburg
Wallburg, North Carolina
Wallburg is a town in Davidson County, North Carolina. It is incorporated, but was never recognized as a CDP by the US Census prior to its incorporation in 2004...
inspired the formation of the Midway Incorporation Committee, which led the effort to make Midway a town. A petition drive in 2005 gathered the required signatures of 51 percent of the voting population within the proposed town limits. In April 2005, the city of Winston-Salem granted the incorporation committee the approval to seek incorporation with a few minor changes to the proposed town limits, a necessary step required by the North Carolina Constitution
North Carolina Constitution
The Constitution of the State of North Carolina governs the structure and function of the state government of North Carolina, United States; it is the highest legal document for the state and subjugates North Carolina law...
. An act of incorporation was then submitted to the North Carolina General Assembly
North 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...
for approval (Senate Bill S1852), which was unanimously ratified on June 29, 2006. The act passed by the General Assembly officially established the "Town of Midway", which encompasses nearly eight square miles and has a population of approximately 5,000; it also gave the newly formed municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
its governing document, known as a town charter. Midway is Davidson County's fifth and newest incorporated municipality. Norman Wilkes was the town's first (interim) mayor, and held the title until official elections in 2007, when George Byrum became the town's first elected mayor.
Education
Midway is home to Midway Elementary School, a K-5 grade school, which is part of the Davidson County School SystemDavidson County Schools
Davidson County Schools is a school district in Davidson County, North Carolina. The administrative education board is headquartered just off of U.S. Highway 64 on County School Road just outside the city limits of Lexington, North Carolina...
. The school feeds into North Davidson Middle (grades 6-8) and North Davidson High
North Davidson High School
North Davidson Senior High School is a public high school in Welcome, North Carolina . It was established in 1952 and is located along Old US Highway 52 in northern Davidson County. The high school serves the Welcome, Arcadia and Midway areas...
(grades 9-12), both located in neighboring Welcome
Welcome, North Carolina
Welcome is a census-designated place in Davidson County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 3,538 at the 2000 census. It is nationally known as the home of NASCAR's Richard Childress. The town motto is "Welcome to Welcome, A Friendly Place," as posted on the welcoming sign...
.
Notable people
- Wilmer David "Vinegar Bend" MizellWilmer David MizellWilmer David "Vinegar Bend" Mizell was an American left-handed pitcher in major league baseball who went on to serve three terms as a Republican U.S. congressman from North Carolina between 1969 and 1975...
- 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...
pitcherPitcherIn baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
and United States Representative