Wake Forest was at first a college town, and over the years while Wake Forest College has moved west out of the town, Wake Forest still has the air of a large college town, complete with its thriving downtown area where students and residents visit shops and restaurants. While Wake Forest College is now in Winston Salem, Southeastern College at Wake Forest has taken its place. It’s a friendly town north of Raleigh and centrally located between the mountains in the west and the Carolina beaches on the east. The average snowfall is 7.5 inches and the temperatures averaging 60 degrees throughout the year (average in the 80s during the summer).
With more than 25,000 residents and 100 businesses, Wake Forest is a vivacious town with educationally and technologically advanced residents who appreciate the history of the town. Wake Forest’s downtown is officially registered as an historic district!
Situated less than 10 miles north of Raleigh and approximately 250 miles south of Washington, DC, Wake Forest is a prime location for anyone wishing to enjoy a short commute to city amenities and the Research Triangle Park.
Location
North of Raleigh, the capital city of North Carolina, Wake Forest is located at 35°58′24″N, 78°31′8″W (35.973289, -78.518789). According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 7.9 square miles with .1 square miles of it being water.
History
Wake Forest formed and grew around the college, opening its doors in the 1830s. Just a decade after Dr. Calvin Jones from New England bought 615 acres in what then know as “Wake Forest Township” from Davis Battle, Jones built a two-story house in the center of the land. That house would later become Wake Forest College. In 1832, the North Carolina Baptist Convention agreed to start an educational institute right around the time Jones placed his land and the home up for sale. A Baptist minister named John Purefoy heard about the property and talked the N.C. Baptist Convention to buy the land. The “Wake Forest Institute” opened its doors to boys in 1834.
The Gaston Railroad Track, which was being laid in Raleigh by the 1840s, sparked increased enrollment in the school and the name changed to Wake Forest College. The college later relocated to Winston-Salem in 1956, and the current location became Southeastern College at Wake Forest.
The Research Triangle Park, which was started in the 1950s in Durham, hit its stride in the 1970s. It was the first planned research park of its kind in the United States. Like the other triangle cities, Wake Forest continues to grow with the increased volume of businesses coming to RTP.
Education
Wake Forest has seven elementary, three middle and two high schools for children to attend. Those schools include: Franklin Academy (elementary, middle & high), Wake Forest Elementary, Heritage Elementary, Montessori Children’s House of Wake Forest, St. Catherine of Siena Catholic, Jones Dairy Elementary, Forest Pines Elementary, Wake Forest Rolesville Middle, Heritage Middle, Wake Forest-Rolesville High School.
Wake Forest is also home of the NCAA Atlantic Coast Conference school, Wake Forest University, home of the Demon Deacons. Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Inc., is located within the city limits of Wake Forest. The school is an institution of higher learning and a Cooperative Program ministry of the Southern Baptist Convention.
Taxes
If you live in the corporate limits of Wake Forest, your tax rate is 55 cents per $100 of assessed valuation plus the county rate of 60.4 cents per $100, for a total tax of $1.154 per $100 in 2007.
Property is appraised every eight years. The assessed valuation is 100% of the appraised value. The county property tax rate is 60.4 cents per $100 of assessed valuation.
Sales taxes in Wake County are 2.5%, and the North Carolina state taxes are 4.5% for a 7% sales tax total.
Demographics
As of the 2000 census, there were 12,588 people, 4,617 households, and 3,407 families residing in the Wake Forest. In 2007, the town was listed by Forbes Magazine as the 20th fastest growing suburb in America, with a 73.2 percent increase in population between 2000 and 2006.
The 2000 census also revealed:
• The median age was 32
• For every 100 females there were 91.8 males
• The median household income was $52,307
• The median family income was $60,408
• Male median income was $45,630
• Female median income was $30,205
• Per capita income was $22,746
• 8.8% of the population was below the poverty line
The racial makeup of the town was 79.63% White, 15.78% African American, 0.21% Native American, 2.03% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.78% from other races, and 1.56% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.08% of the population.
Restaurants and Shopping
The Cotton Company in Wake Forest has more than 50 boutiques including furniture, antiques, fine art, home accessories, jewelry shops and other stores selling gift items.
Restaurants and eateries include the more common, chain restaurants like Outback Steakhouse, Quiznos Subs, Pizza Hut, O’Charleys, Remington Grill and Sonic, as well as local eateries, such as McKenzie’s, Land and Sea, Over the Falls Deli and Andy’s Cheesesteaks and Cheeseburgers of Wake Forest.
Annual Events
Wake Forest has several annual events, including the Wake Forest Autumn Arts Festival, the American Dance Festival, ‘Six Sundays in Spring’, the annual ‘Meet in the Street’ festival (which attracts more than 10,000 visitors to the downtown area), the ‘Dubois Jazz Festival’ and more!
Parks and Recreation
Wake Forest has several parks and community centers at which residents and visitors can enjoy, including Plummer Park, Tyler Run Park, Holding Park, J.B. Flaherty Park, Taylor Street Park & Alston Massenburg Center (available for rent Friday through Sunday), Ailey Young Park, H.L. Miller Park, Kiwanis Park, Smith Creek Soccer Center and Wake Forest Community House (available for rent Friday through Sunday).
Famous People
Soupy Sales, a famous comedian, is a native of Wake Forest.
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