Vetville:

A Progressive Community

Vetville was not only bigger than Trailwood but longer lasting. The first residents moved into their units in November 1946, and the final residents, veterans of Korea, moved out in the late 1950s. Vetville was a progressive community. Rents were scaled to income, residents could take classes on marriage and sex education, and the local branch of the YMCA claimed to be the first coed "Y" in the country. Vetville was disbanded to make room for Bragaw dorm and Edward S. King Village, which was named for the YMCA leader who had provided special cultural and social service programs for veterans and their families throughout the 1950s.

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Credit: The History of Vetville for the Vetville Council.

Welcome sign.

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Credit: Special Collections Research Center, NCSU Libraries.

Vetville units under construction.

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Credit: The History of Vetville for the Vetville Council.

Map of the "Ward Divisions of Vetville."

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Credit: The History of Vetville for the Vetville Council.

Different types of units available.

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Credit: Special Collections Research Center, NCSU Libraries.

Overview of Vetville.

"There wasn't any vegetation around. . . . The houses were up on piles of bricks and there wasn't any wood around the house to cut the draft out. Plus there wasn't anything to shield the cracks in the floor and the breeze would come up through the floor."

– Charlie McCann, Class of 1949, one of the earliest residents of Vetville.

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Credit: Special Collections Research Center, NCSU Libraries.

The Vetville YMCA, view from the front.

Located in the middle of Vetville, the West Campus Branch of the YMCA opened in May 1948, offering church services, children's play groups, arts and crafts workshops, marriage counseling, and popular weekend square dances and movies. The three-room building was financed and furnished by NC State faculty, staff, and student organizations.

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Credit: Photo by Richard M. Wooten for NC State.

Guests at a Newcomers' Party at the Vetville YMCA in 1950.

Pictured at center is James William Dickens (B.S. 1951, M.S. 1955), later an NC State professor of biological and agricultural engineering.

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Credit: Photo by Richard M. Wooten for NC State.

Virginia Wilson teaches a cooking class to Vetville wives in 1950.

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Credit: Special Collections Research Center, NCSU Libraries.

Vetville residents shop in the mutual grocery.

The grocery was located in the basement of the Vetville YMCA and was owned and operated by local residents. Trailwood also boasted its own grocery co-op.

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Credit: Special Collections Research Center, NCSU Libraries.

Visiting the butcher at the Vetville Mutual Grocery.

 

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