Roaring through the 1920s

100 years of history The 1920 Census found that more people lived in towns than on farms for the first time in the nation’s history. In that year, Prohibition began and women won the right to vote. There was prosperity, but agricultural prices were falling. As the decade progressed, there was the Teapot Dome scandal, the Scopes trial in Tennessee and Ford roadsters selling for $260, while the bootlegging industry was estimated at $3.6 billion. Henry Ford revolutionized the workweek, introducing the eight-hour day and five-day week. The mechanical cotton picker was invented, Mount Rushmore was begun and Lindbergh flew to Paris. It was a dizzy time for the stock market and for the economy across the nation. In Wake Forest, the local economy centered on Royall Cotton Mill just outside the town limits to the north, the college on its central campus and the farmers all around town. There

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Holding Park Aquatic Center opens Saturday

HHolding Park Aquatic Center (HPAC), 133 W. Owen Ave., will open for the season Saturday, May 25, at 9 a.m. Daily admission fees for Wake Forest residents are $1 for children ages 2 and under; $4 for children ages 3-13; $5 for patrons ages 13-59; and $4 for ages 60 and over. Daily admission fees for non-Wake Forest residents are $2 for children ages 2 and under; $6 for children ages 3-13; and $7 for patrons ages 13-59; and $6 for ages 60 and over. Open swim times are scheduled in three-hour blocks, with 30-minute breaks in between. A maximum of 200 patrons will be allowed inside the facility during each session. To help ensure an enjoyable experience for everyone, patrons are strongly encouraged to register and pay online in advance at https://bit.ly/HoldingParkAquaticCenter. Pre-registration opens 14 days in advance. Walk-ins and on-site registration are also allowed if space is available. Beginning

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‘Beauty and the Beast’ starts free movie nights

The Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department will host a free, monthly outdoor movie series from May through August at E. Carroll Joyner Park, 701 Harris Road. Family Movie Nights at Joyner Park will feature a variety of family-friendly film favorites and genres, including comedies, dramas, and action, all projected on a 26-foot inflatable movie screen in the park’s amphitheater. The first in the series of Family Movie Nights will feature the 1991 animated version of the film “Beauty and the Beast” this Saturday, May 25, at 8:30 p.m. Future film screenings are scheduled on the following Saturdays: June 15 (Minions: The Rise of Gru), July 20 (Kung Fu Panda 4), and August 3 (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3). Showtime is 8:30 p.m. Anyone planning to attend is urged to arrive early as viewing space may be limited. Family Movie Nights are free and open to the

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NECC and town are hosting Juneteenth

The Northeast Community Coalition is partnering with the Town of Wake Forest to host Wake Forest’s 2024 Juneteenth Celebration on Friday and Saturday, June 14-15. Free and open to the public, the two-day event will officially get underway with a “Community Gathering” Friday, June 14, from 4-6:30 p.m. at Taylor Street Park, 416 N. Taylor St. Offering food, fun, and fellowship, the occasion will include arts and crafts and other activities for all ages. Jay’s Italian Ice will also be onsite. The Juneteenth festivities will resume Saturday, June 15, at 10 a.m. with a walking parade from Hope House, 334 N. Allen Road, to the Dubois Center, 518 N. Franklin St. The parade lineup begins at 9 a.m. at the corner of East Pine Avenue and North Allen Road. The walking parade will be followed by a “Freedom Historical Walk” that begins and ends at The Dubois Center. Anyone wishing

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The Magnificents on stage at Six Sundays

You’re invited to help celebrate three decades of foot-tapping, finger-snapping good times during the 30th anniversary of Six Sundays in Spring. Sponsored by the Town of Wake Forest and ARTS Wake Forest, the free outdoor concert series will be offered from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on consecutive Sundays from April 28 through June 2 at the Joyner Park Amphitheater, 701 Harris Road. From big band and R&B to beach and jazz, there’s something for all music lovers at this year’s Six Sundays in Spring. The remaining musical group is the Sensory Expressions Band on June 2. A variety of food and dessert trucks will be on site for each concert. Concert goers are also invited to bring a picnic from home but are reminded that alcoholic beverages, unleashed pets, and grills of any kind are prohibited. Two large charcoal grills are provided on site. For more information about this year’s Six Sundays

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Gazette needs some new advertisers

The number of Wake Forest Gazette advertisers has dwindled to two — Bright Funeral Home and Wake Electric — and the editor is encouraging local businesses to consider advertising with this online newspaper. (The Wake Forest Historical Museum and the Wake Forest Chamber of Commerce were added by the editor years ago because they are important parts of the town; Redwood Productions set up the current Gazette website.) The Wake Forest Gazette has been a reliable source of information about the town of Wake Forest since 2003. The free online weekly newspaper is always available at www.wakeforestgazette.com. The Gazette is the only Wake Forest newspaper consistently offering news about the Wake Forest Board of Commissioners and Planning Board, events in town, calendar, obituaries and a list of community organizations and meeting times. There are also articles about town history, opinion from readers and once in a while we even print

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RenCen offering concerts and special events

The Wake Forest Renaissance Centre is introducing a series of concerts and special events from June through August featuring nationally renowned acts and performers. The “Summer at the Centre” Performance Series gets underway with The Embers: Featuring Craig Woolard on Saturday, June 8, at 7:30 p.m., continues with Malpass Brothers concerts on Saturday, July 27, at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., and concludes with Murder Mystery Dinners on Saturday, Aug. 24, at noon and 6:30 p.m. Tickets to these events and performances are now on sale and can be purchased online at www.wakeforestrencen.org, in person at the RC Box Office, or by calling 919-435-9458. Renaissance Centre Partners, Patrons, and Friends can purchase their tickets now. For more information about ways you can support the Renaissance Centre, visit https://www.wakeforestrencen.org/donate. For more information about the “Summer at the Centre” Performance Series, email Renaissance Centre Director Debbie Dunn at ddunn@wakeforestnc.gov.

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Free Expressive Art Series in May and June

The Town of Wake Forest, the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre, and Resources for Seniors are partnering with Village of C.A.R.E. to offer a free Expressive Arts Series at the Northern Wake Senior Center, 235 E. Holding Ave., from 10 a.m.-noon on the following Saturdays in May and June: May 4, 11, 18 and June 1, 15, 22, and 29. Open to families and people of all ages, the intergenerational arts classes will encourage participants to discover how expressive arts can be therapeutic and foster meaningful connections by creating their own music, paintings, poetry, ceramics, quilting, dances, and more. Online registration is required at www.ohwci.com/events. For more information, call 919-714-3854. This event is part of the Town of Wake Forest’s “Focus on Mental Wellness” series. For more information about the Town’s commitment to mental wellness, visit https://bit.ly/FocusonMentalWellness or email Community Outreach Manager Andrew Brown, Jr. at abrown@wakeforestnc.gov.  The Town of Wake Forest, the Wake Forest

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Town seeks help with website update

The Town of Wake Forest is updating its website, and we need your feedback! Here’s your chance to help shape the Town’s online future by sharing what you like and don’t like about the Town website. You’re invited to visit https://engagewakeforest.org/town-website-upgrade to complete a brief survey concerning how you currently interact with the Town online. Available through Friday, May 17, the survey takes about five minutes to complete. Wake Forest is planning to redesign its website over the next several months and will utilize citizen feedback to improve the design, navigation, and content. The Town plans to unveil its new site later this year. For more information, contact Communications & Public Affairs Director Bill Crabtree at 919-435-9421 or bcrabtree@wakeforestnc.gov. ###

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Fishing events for teens and younger

From June 3-16, the Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources (PRCR) Department will host a Bass Fishing Tournament for ages 13 and older and a non-competitive Youth Fishing Tournament for ages 12 and under. Over this two-week period, local anglers can visit any public fishery in Wake or Franklin County to try and catch the biggest fish. Participants in the Youth Fishing Tournament may catch any species of fish, while anglers in the Bass Fishing Tournament will be limited to bass only. Online registration for both tournaments is available through Monday, May 20, at https://wakeforestnc.recdesk.com/Community/Home (search “fishing”). The cost to participate is $10 for the bass tournament and $5 for the youth tourney. Participants in the bass tourney will receive a fishing scale to be used in the competition, while contestants in the youth tournament will receive an “Early Angler” gift bag. Fishing scales and “Early Angler” gift bags will be available for

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