Pfafftown.org is a site dedicated to the Village of Pfafftown, a former unincorporated community nestled in the hills fringing of the Yadkin Valley, west of Bethania. Muddy Creek forms its eastern border. More to the point the site is designed specifically to perpetuate the notion of the proposed Village of Pfafftown made by the Pfafftown Steering Committee in late 2000, an idea that should have put Pfafftown on the map permanently.
Residents of Pfafftown know that unfortunately this isn’t how history played out. In actuality, Pfafftown has been reduced to a mere Zip Code Tabulation Area meaning that it exists only by virtue of having a post office (27040). The attempt to incorporate failed because senate bill 676 was allowed to wither on the vine. Worse, the bill wouldn’t have been necessary had the property deed granted to Peter Pfaff been found. It has now been located at the Surry County Register of Deeds. You can view it online here.
And to pour salt on the wound the majority of the community (and the businesses necessary to qualify for incorporation) has been annexed by both Winston-Salem and Lewisville to the tune of around 18,000 residents. This dealt a devastating blow to Pfafftown while other local communities like Midway and Wallburg fared much better. At some point in the future, the “belt” I-74 will pass through Pfafftown serving only to further mar its identity. It pangs me to watch all of this happen, to let Pfafftown go the way of Oldtown or other local communities engulfed by these municipal titans. Of course any local will tell you this info is old hat (though I’ll be expounding on it through the wiki here) and seven years have passed since the community submitted to the annexation after fighting tooth and nail in the Supreme Court. To be honest, I’m not sure how many people still care.
This site is to help preserve the remnants of Pfafftown and the vision of Pfafftown. It is meant to be used as both a historical resource and a practical tool to be utilized as a shared resource. I will be posting local news, pictures and tons of great information about Pfafftown’s history. There is a message board for chatting with locals and even a business directory to fill your needs through local businesses first. This site is optimized for both desktop and mobile viewing so be sure to check it out on your smart phone. Eventually, the plan is to host the site in Pfafftown.
As with any such endeavor the site is also driven by personal motives. I have lived in Pfafftown with my family since 2003 and I intend to live in this area permanently. I’d like to see its history maintained. My great grandmother Emma Gray Whitman was born in Pfafftown exactly 100 years ago. She even attended Vienna Elementary School, the same school attended by all three of my sons. So I have roots here and I intend to stay planted.
