Bynum, NC – There’s a piece of Bynum that has stood longer than any of us—taller than the trees, quieter than the mill, steadier than the river. It’s the old water tower, rising over the heart of the village like a sentinel from another time.
And now, Chatham County plans to tear it down.
They say it’s about maintenance. Liability. Budget lines. But we know better. This tower is not a burden—it’s a blessing. It’s part of our living story.
For more than a hundred years, the water tower has watched over this town. It saw the mill workers come and go, children growing up in mill houses, laundry flapping on clotheslines, and muddy baseball games played in the patch of field just beneath it. It was there for the Friday night lights, the church picnics, the first kisses, the long summer evenings when a worn-out ball hit the grass and someone’s grandpa shouted “safe!” from the porch.
It’s one of the last of its kind in North Carolina—and a big reason Bynum earned its place on the National Historic Register. When the state reviewed our application, they noted the tower’s historic role in mill life: providing shared water through outdoor spigots, fighting fires, and anchoring the architecture of a true Southern mill village. Without it, that history fades.
But here’s the good news: we can save it.
Back in 2023, Chatham County agreed to encapsulate and preserve the tower. Bynum Front Porch, our community nonprofit, promised to take on its future upkeep. We’ve stuck to that promise. Experts have told us the tower won’t need another encapsulation—just repainting every 10 to 15 years. And we’re ready to do it. We’ll even raise the extra $20,000 needed to preserve it—through grants, donations, whatever it takes.
This tower isn’t just steel and bolts. It’s the spine of a story. It’s a landmark that welcomes you home.
Taking it down would be a mistake—one that can’t be undone.
So we ask: let it stand. Let the old tower keep watch over ballgames and bonfires and music from the General Store porch. Let it stay for the kids who still chase fireflies in its shadow. Let it be part of Bynum’s future, not just its past.
Let it stay. We’ll take care of it.
—Your neighbors at Bynum Front Porch