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Incorporation & Commercial Growth The relocation of the train station stimulated commercial development and the College sold lots on the east side of the tracks for new stores and businesses on White Street. This growth al- lowed the community to draft its first charter and incorporated on March 26, 1880 as the Town of Wake Forest College. In 1909 the charter was amended and the town renamed, Wake Forest.
Between 1880 and 1905, several businesses were es- tablished in Wake Forest in- cluding Powers and Holding Drugstore, W. W. Holding Cotton Merchants, Dickson Brothers Dry Goods and the Wake Forest Supply Company which became Jones Hardware. There was a hotel next to the drug store that Dr. Benjamin Powers built across from the depot. Thomas E.
South White Street in the 1940s
Holding, a pharmacist, left his partnership with Dr. Powers and built and operated another drug store a little north. By 1920 other businesses downtown included the Bolus Department Store, the Wilkinson General Store, Dickson Brothers Dry Goods, Brewer & Sons feed and grocery store, and Keith’s Grocery Store. Wake Forest College Moves to Winston-Salem In 1956, Wake Forest College moved to Winston-Salem and sold the campus to the present occupant, the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. This move proved a major shock to the community. The Town had always been closely associated with the College. However, the Seminary shared the campus for a few years before the final move, managing to make a smooth transition, and the town eventually adjusted to the change. The Seminary serves a wide geo- graphic area and in 2017 had an enrollment of around 2,638 students.
The Mill Another aspect of Wake Forest’s growth at the turn of the last century was the Royall Cotton Mill, just north of Faculty Avenue. W. C. Powell, R. E. Royall and T. E. Holding established the Mill in 1899- 1900 to produce muslin sheeting from local cotton. After an addition between 1906 and 1908 the mill was one of the state’s largest cotton mills. Mill worker housing and a commissary store were built between the mill and Wake Forest.
The Mill Commissary is individually listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
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