After World War II, my family lived for a while in Horry County, SC, near my Mom’s childhood home. In the late 1940s we moved to Raleigh and lived in a garage apartment that my Uncle Roland Bryan owned. Dad got a great job at Wayside Furniture House as a salesman, and later manager, and we moved to Cary, which was near Dad’s job. We moved to 315 S. Harrison Ave in late 1951. The population of Cary was 1,460. The house was only a few years old, and had been built by Mr. Rogers, who later owned Rogers Motel and Restaurant in downtown Cary. I had two brothers, Wade and Marc, and our childhood was great to say the least. Friends say we were the “Leave It To Beaver” family of the 1950s.
When we first moved in, the back of the property was the remains of an old cow barn and milking facility for a small dairy that had been located there in the early 1900s. Later, Dad built us a basketball goal near the edge of the original flooring and we had a great concrete basketball court for years.
I started my first grade at Cary High School (grades 1-12) just 1 ½ blocks away. I would walk to school each day, but would walk home each day and have lunch with my brothers and Mom, and then return to school. My brothers and I attended Cary High School and all of us graduated there—me in 1964, Wade in 1965, and Marc in 1971.
Dad always loved gardening, and for many years had a large garden that covered about half of the back yard. He grew wonderful corn, beans, greens, and tomatoes. One year, he had a bountiful crop and sold more than 150 pounds of tomatoes to the local restaurants.
After high school, I was married and had my first child while I was attending NC State University. We lived with Mom and Dad at the Cary House. My brother Wade, also attended NC State, but brother Marc left to attend UNC Chapel Hill.
We had many happy times in Cary and especially at 315 S. Harrison Ave. Graduations, weddings, family reunions, childhood friends, and lots of visitors.
In 1999, Mom and Dad decided that they wanted to downsize a little, and I offered to buy the property from them, and to build two houses on the back of the property where the garden and dairy had been. The new 317 property was the home for Mom and Dad, and the new 315 B property was my office and studio for Media Consultants, my business for 49 years. We had many famous radio and TV personalities that worked there narrating, appearing in scripted roles, and doing A/V production for us.
Dad passed away in 2006 and Mom in 2019. They always loved their home and the time they spent there.
In 2016, my wife Louise and I decided to downsize and move to the 317 property, and run the 315 and 315 B properties as Vrbo and Airbnb rental units. It was a big success immediately. Someone once said to us in the beginning, “No one comes to Cary for a vacation!” NO, maybe not, but they DO come to visit family, spend time with grandchildren, look for jobs, look for a new place to live, attend great cultural and sporting events, leave their home for necessary repairs, to create TV films and commercials, to visit sick in the hospital, etc. We have a 5-Star rating on Vrbo and Airbnb, and have many loyal and returning guests.
Currently, we are moving to a nearby location, and 317 will become a new Airbnb rental in July. We are also expanding the 315 B property to include the upstairs 2nd floor, and that will add a new bedroom to that rental.
