Johnston County's Rural Lifestyle Beckons Highly Skilled Workers
Growing up beside the world’s largest research park has been good for the 141‚640 residents of Johnston County.
But the reverse is true‚ too.
Durham‚ Chapel Hill and Raleigh – home to Duke‚ North Carolina and North Carolina State universities – surround the Research Triangle Park where such firms as IBM‚ GlaxoSmithKline and Cisco Systems have helped generate a $2 billion capital investment and $3 billion annual payroll.
Increasingly‚ Triangle residents relocate just east to Johnston County‚ where strong schools and bedrock values beckon them.
“We’ve been here almost 27 years now – and to be really honest – we thought it would be a place I’d work a couple of years while I was in seminary‚” says the Rev. Lee Colbert‚ pastor of Smithfield’s First Baptist Church. “But we’ve got a lot of tar on our heels now in Johnston County.”
Colbert and his wife‚ Alice‚ raised two kids here‚ and Alice commutes to a Raleigh medical practice for work as a therapist. For them‚ the arts‚ recreation and health care exhilarate a region with a rich history‚ firm foundation and an exciting grip on the future.
Colbert once quizzed a doctor about the region’s attraction‚ and the answer amazed him.
“I started looking around‚” the doctor told him. “And I realized there are more people per capita with M.D.’s and Ph.D.’s in the Research Triangle than anywhere else in the world.”
The value of education isn’t lost on Johnston County’s smaller communities‚ either. At the county’s base‚ Benson boasts a traditional Main Street on the National Register Historic Places in a town of 3‚100. But there’s a population of 201‚000 within a 20-mile radius and a sterling academic record to boot.
“Our South Johnston High School‚ which serves the Benson population‚ has some of the highest SAT scores in the state‚” says Loretta Byrd‚ the Benson Area Chamber of Commerce executive director. “There are millions of dollars of scholarships given to our students every year. And our elementary school students are at the top in testing.”
Countywide‚ SAT scores beat North Carolina’s average and math proficiency scores for third- through eighth-graders top 90 percent.
Closer to Raleigh‚ Talecris Biotherapeutics is the county’s largest industrial employer with 1‚200 jobs and joins expanding drug makers Hospira and Novo Nordisk to form their own biotech triangle between Clayton and Smithfield‚ the county seat of 11‚702.
And though they prize cutting-edge jobs‚ Johnston Countians know respect for the past makes good sense. Adjoining Smithfield is the industrial center of Selma (pop. 6‚502)‚ where a downtown rebirth beckons heritage lovers.
“About six years ago‚ they came up with a niche market … and decided to offer antique dealers complementary rent on the buildings for one year‚” says Donna Bailey-Taylor of the Johnston County Visitors Bureau. “It’s really a nice experience: You can eat‚ drop in on some antique stores and stay for the American Music Jubilee.”
A tearoom‚ grill and cheesecake company complement 16 antique stores‚ while the year-round musical smorgasbord at the Rudy Theater culminates with “A Southern Christmas.”
Johnston Countians eagerly share their hospitality with the 6 million tourists who navigate Interstates 40 and 95 each year. The Ava Gardner Museum in Smithfield and Tobacco Farm Life Museum in Kenly draw thousands annually.
“What Smithfield has been to us is the small-town atmosphere‚” says Colbert‚ the Smithfield pastor. “You have to be very intentional about how you build communities: You have churches to keep up‚ schools to keep up. And at this point‚ I think we’re doing a good job of saying this is who we are and we want to keep some of those good things.”
