Catsburg Store

"Catsburg Store" is located at the junction of Old Oxford Highway and Hamlin Road in Durham County, North Carolina. The "Catsburg Store" is about halfway between Durham and Butner, and is near historic Stagville.

This two-story, hip-roofed, frame structure is a well-preserved box-and-canopy store. Built in the 1920s by Sheriff Eugene G. Belvin, it has a high false front, and a one-story gable-roof supported by large wooden posts.

Though no longer open for business, the "Catsburg Store" is still widely recognized as a local landmark. Its renown comes from the large painted image of a black cat on the front parapet above the word Catsburg, which has led to the building becoming a favorite of local photographers and artists. This part of town is called "Catsburg" as a tribute to the late Sheriff Belvin, whose nickname was "Cat." Belvin was an extremely popular sheriff in Durham County who earned his nickname through his ability to sneak up on bootleggers and moonshiners in the 1920s. [cite web
title =Durham County Historic Architecture Inventory (p10)
publisher =Durham County Planning Department
date =
url =http://www.durhamnc.gov/departments/planning/hi/hi_3.pdf
accessdate = 2008-07-27]

Surrounding the old store, Catsburg Natural Area contains a Basic Mesic Forest with two rare plant species. The site is a Registered Heritage Area owned in part by the Army Corps of Engineers; the remainder is privately owned. [cite web
title =The Durham County Inventory of Important Natural Areas, Plants and Wildlife
publisher =North Carolina Natural Heritage Program
date =
url =http://www.ncnhp.org/Images/Durham10-24-2005.pdf
accessdate = 2008-07-27]

References