Silk Hope, in Chatham County, North Carolina

Chatham County, North Carolina

Chatham County is a county located in the Piedmont area of the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2000, the population was 49,329. Its county seat is Pittsboro.-History:...

, USA, is a farm community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 centered on a community school

School

A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...

, a volunteer fire department

Volunteer fire department

See also the Firefighter article and its respective sections regarding VFDs in other countries.A volunteer fire department is a fire department composed of volunteers who perform fire suppression and other related emergency services for a local jurisdiction.The first organized force of...

, several country churches, and many historical farmsteads. It is evolving into the country home of many who work in 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...

, 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...

, 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...

. Joe Hackney

Joe Hackney

Joe Hackney is a Democratic member of the North Carolina General Assembly representing the state's fifty-fourth House district, including constituents in Chatham, Orange, and Moore counties. A farmer and attorney from Chapel Hill, Hackney is currently serving in his sixteenth term in the state...

 is a former resident.

According to oral history, the name came from an enterprise to create a silk

Silk

Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...

 industry in the early 19th century. No signs remain of the silk ambitions, nor the cotton gin

Cotton gin

A cotton gin is a machine that quickly and easily separates cotton fibers from their seeds, a job formerly performed painstakingly by hand...

 that once stood at the Silk Hope crossroads. Community residents come together each Labor Day

Labor Day

Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...

 to celebrate their heritage at the "Silk Hope Old Fashioned Farmers Day".

The Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival

Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival

The Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival is a music and dance festival that takes place each spring and fall in Silk Hope, North Carolina, near Chapel Hill. The festival takes place on a farmstead which is managed by Shakori Hills, Inc. a non-profit organization. The festival has been held twice...

 held nearby has attracted more than 4,500 people.

External links

• Silk Hope at the U.S. Geographic Names Information System
  Geographic Names Information System
  The Geographic Names Information System is a database that contains name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features located throughout the United States of America and its territories. It is a type of gazetteer...