Haw River

Paddle Trail

Glencoe Paddle

Access

to

Red Slide Park

Distance:

Glencoe Paddle Access to Town & Country Access - ? miles

Town & Country Access to Red Slide Park - ? miles

Time to Paddle: 5 to 6 hours ?

Difficulty: Moderate ?

Minimum water level: 1.7 feet ?

Maximum water level: 4 feet ?

Check water levels on the Haw River USGS Gauge:

http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?02096500

or

www.thehaw.org

All Paddle Accesses are open seven days a week, dawn to dusk.

For more information contact Brian Baker, Haw River Trail Coordinator at

336.229.2229 or www.thehaw.org

Glencoe Paddle Access

Address: Hwy 62 N at Glencoe Street

Burlington, NC 27217

GPS Coordinates:

Directions to Glencoe Paddle Access:

From I-40/85, take Exit 143 onto Highway 62 N. Follow Highway 62 North

through Burlington. Take the first left onto Glencoe Street after crossing the

Haw River Bridge. The Paddle Access is immediately on the Left.

Town & Country Paddle Access

Address: Riverside Drive

Burlington, NC 27217

GPS Coordinates:

Directions to Town & Country Paddle Access:

From I-40/85, take Exit 150. Turn north on Jimmie Kerr Road. Turn right onto

Highway 70 West. Turn right onto McKinney Street. Turn right onto ? Street.

Turn right onto Riverside Drive.

Red Slide Park

Address: Lang Street

Haw River NC 27258

GPS Coordinates: N 36 05.508 W 79 22.213

Directions to Red Slide Park:

Located in downtown Haw River. From I-40/85, take Exit 148 onto

Highway 54. Turn north on Highway 54 for approximately one mile, turn right

onto Elm Street. When Elm Street dead ends turn right onto Main Street/Hwy

49. Take the first left onto Lang Street, the park is located on the right.

For information on lodging and outfitters, visit www.thehaw.org

This brochure was made possible by a grant from the

Burlington/Alamance Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Opened in 2008, Great Bend Park has 20 beautifully wooded

acres along the Haw River with almost a mile of river frontage

which offers spectacular views from the hiking trails and desig-

nated fishing and picnicking areas. Great Bend Park is also a site

on the North Carolina Birding Trail, providing excellent opportu-

nities for viewing Great Blue Herons, Kingfishers, Osprey and

Wood Ducks among others.

In the 1860’s, Joseph and Levi Vincent constructed a grist and saw mill on the

Haw River, building a 9 foot tall dam of wood and stone to power the mill. In

1880, James H. and William E. Holt purchased the

39 acre property for $8,000 and founded Glencoe

Mills, the last hydro power mill built by the Holts.

A dye house built north of the mill enabled the mill

to dye, spin and weave colorful Glencoe Plaids, as a

part of the famous Alamance Plaids.

The Holts also built the Glencoe Mill Village, one of

the best remaining examples of a typical 1880s cot-

ton mill and village These houses once rented for 50 cents a week and housed

more than half of the 500 employees that worked at the mill during its peak. 32

houses, the mill store, office, lodge and other associated buildings still remain.

When the mill closed in 1954, the village fell into ruins. The mill again began pro-

ducing hydroelectric power in 1983, but the village remained a ghost town until

purchased by Preservation N.C. in 1997. Glencoe Mill is now owned by Hedge-

hog Holdings of Raleigh and is being developed for office, living and retail space.

The Textile Heritage Museum is located in the former

Company Store and Office Building in the Glencoe Mill

Village. Built in 1880, the building was purchased for the

museum in 2004 and is an ongoing restoration project.

The museum features history and machinery of the tex-

tile industry from the cotton industry to the present,

the family labor system, life in the mill village, a large

company store exhibit, and various other exhibits.

In 2007, George and Jerrie Nall donated two acres of riverside property in mem-

ory of their son, Dr. Steven Nall, for use as a paddle access and educational focal

point of the Haw River Trail. Now Alamance County residents and visitors of

the historic Glencoe Mill Village can learn about conservation and recreation op-

portunities. The highly visible property serves as a trailhead for the Haw River

Trail, which is also part of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail network, and expands ac-

cess to the Haw River Paddle Trail by opening a key access point below the

Glencoe Dam.

Opened in 2010, this 2 mile long section of the Haw River Trail/Mountains to Sea

Trail connects Glencoe to the community of Carolina and the Stony Creek Ma-

rina and reservoir. The trail begins along the now dry Carolina Mill race, which

was once the longest mill race in the State. The trail continues past Carolina Mill,

up Gray Hill and past the site of the former Midway School, so named because of

its location mid-way between Carolina and Hopedale.

George W. Swepson bought this mill site from Joseph Trollinger

in 1865 and resold it to the Holts in 1866. A 200 feet long and

six feet high dam built in 1868 , powered the mill 3/4 of a mile

below. The Holts and John Q. Gant built the cotton mill in 1869.

The mill was expanded in 1904. By 1950 the dam had been long

destroyed, although the abutments are intact. The Carolina Mill

is now owned by Capital Broadcasting Company of Raleigh, who

recently renovated the American Tobacco Campus in Durham.

Ben, John and William Trollinger built the mill in

1838 as High Falls Mill. Later known as Juanitia

Cotton Mill, the mill changed ownership several

times before 1941, when James Copland, Sr. and

George Fowler bought the mill and founded

Copland Fabrics. A 200 foot long race brought

once brought water from a 6 foot dam to

power the mill. This mill has been in almost con-

stant operation since 1838 making it the oldest

operating textile operation in the same location

in North Carolina. Today, Copland is the largest

supplier of filament based goods in the ready-

made curtain market in the country.

In 1842 community leaders and politicians gathered at High Falls to discuss the

formation of a new county out of Western Orange. The conference resulted in a

decision to oppose political candidates who did not favor division

of Orange County to create a new county west of Hillsborough-

which by then had obtained a working title of “Jefferson

County.” Opposed by eastern Orange influences, it was 1848

before Alamance County was created.

The area around the High Falls Mill was typical of the surround-

ing mill villages, as homes were built around the mill by the

workers who wanted an easy walk to work. High Falls continued

until 1883, when Gustave Rosenthal assumed control of the mill

and changed the name of the operation to Rosenthal and Com-

pany and the community became known as Big Falls. In 1904, the

mill went bankrupt and the Williamson family, which operated a

mill in the small town of Ossipee, bought the operation at auction. The new own-

ers revamped the entire operation and, once again, the name of the community

changed, this time to Hopedale. It is said that the new name came from the town

in Massachusetts where the new looms for the mill were purchased. The area

was also the original settlement for one of Alamance County’s first families. The

Scott family, which boasts two N.C. governors among its bloodlines, got started

in an area just north of Hopedale in the late 1740s.

Here, Stony Creek merges with the Haw River. Two upstream reservoirs, Lake

Cammack and Stoney Creek Reservoir, provide drinking water for the City of

Burlington.

Textile Heritage Museum

At nearly a mile long, Goat Island is the longest island on the

Haw River. So named for the goats that once roamed the island,

Goat Island was once home to an 8 room brick house until it

burned in the late 1980’s. The island is connected to the

mainland on the south side by a unique bridge, handcrafted from

three recycled bridges by former owner Dude Hawking. The

bridge brought a number of unique items to the island over the

years, including a stolen 18-wheeler, a school bus(which remains)

and scores of teenagers looking to encounter Chris-Chris, the

ape-like monster that is said to roam the island.

Town & Country Paddle Access is adjacent to Town & Country Nature Park,

which offers hiking trails and picnic areas. Located on Riverside Drive in Burling-

ton, the access is operated by Burlington Recreation and Parks Department.

Here Boyd’s Creek merges with the Haw River on the north side of the river.

The East Burlington WWTP was put into service in 1959 and up-

graded in 1993. It has the capacity to treat 12 million gallons per

day (MGD) of domestic and industrial sewage. Located on the

south side of the river

This bridge was dedicated in honor of the three North Carolina

governors who called the Town of Haw River home. Thomas Holt,

W. Kerr Scott and Robert Scott were honored with the naming of The Three

Governors Bridge in May 2008.

Opened in 2009, the park was acquired and developed with a grant from the

North Carolina State Trails Recreational Trails Program. The 15 acre park is

named “Red Slide” after the historic name of the neighborhood the park borders.

Between 1911 and 1923, the southeastern corner of the park, at the corner of

Main Street and Lang Street was the eastern terminus of a streetcar that ran from

Burlington and Graham. The streetcar rails were removed in 1940 to provide

metal for the war effort. As you enter the river from the boat launch at Red Slide

Park, proceed quickly to the middle of the river. A section of the dam remnants

has been cleared to allow passage for boats.

The area surrounding Red Slide Park was a prominent river cross-

ing on the Indian Trading Path that predates white settlement of

the area. The river was called the Hau River or Reatkin by the

Indians, whose villages existed on its banks as late as 1756.

By the early 1700’s, the area became known as “Piney Ford.” The

dominant family in the history of the Haw River, the Trollingers,

came to this spot in 1745 and began operation of a grist mill on

the west bank of the river.

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Indian

Valley

Great Bend Park Carolina Mill

“High Falls” - Present-day Hopedale

High Falls Mill & Copland Industries

Stony Creek

Glencoe Paddle Access

Glencoe Mill and Mill Village

Goat Island

East Burlington Waste Water Treatment Plant

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Island

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15 Haw

River

Boyd’s Creek

Town & Country Paddle Access

The Three Governors Bridge

Red Slide Park

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16 Haw

River

Piney Ford

5. Haw River Trail -Glencoe to Stoney Creek Section

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13 Hopedale

1941

1952

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Carolina