08/28/2026
🚦🥒 SMALL TOWN, BIG HISTORY: FAISON, NC 🌾🚂
Driving through Eastern North Carolina? 2-3 miles off I-40 🚙💨 make time for an hour in Faison—a small town with railroad history, historic homes, Main Street charm, and stories you won’t find from the highway.
The railroad arrived in 1838, helping Faison grow into an agricultural shipping center for to***co, cotton, produce—and eventually cucumbers. 🥒 In 1929, Charles F. Cates & Sons moved its pickle operation here, later becoming one of America’s largest independent pickle producers.
Faison is personal for me. My grandparents lived here, and my childhood memories include family friends, the town’s one stoplight, and my granddaddy, Leland D. “L.D.” Groome, a Cates vice president. Family history credits him with developing the Cates relish recipe, while 1945 agricultural research documents his work with cucumber brining and pickle finishing.
Be sure to visit the 1888 Faison Depot, now home to the Library & Museum, and look for the railroad tracks, historic homes, and the famous one-stoplight downtown. 🚦
Faison’s story also includes difficult chapters—from its plantation-era history and the lives of enslaved African Americans who worked the land to Sherman’s troops passing through in 1865.
🚗 Passing through? Stop for a visit! Explore the depot, stretch your legs, learn a little local history, and discover why this small town is worth more than a quick drive-by.
📍 Faison, North Carolina
📸 Historic images: Faison Museum/Faison Depot collections & State Archives of NC.