I don't know about you guys, but I find that old maps are just fascinating in terms of the history they represent. Perusing old maps and seeing how names of places have changed over time is something that always intrigues me.
Here's an example: The closest intersection to where I grew up was the corner of Civietown Road, Shellpoint Road and Holden Beach Road. As long as I can remember, the whole area was always referred to as "Civietown" and there are a couple of stores right on the corner, and the fire station for Civietown Volunteer Fire Department. OK, boring enough, except I always wondered WTF "civietown" meant.
Then, one day, I got hold of some WWII era USGS maps and started poking around and noticed that in the 1940's things were subtly different. The intersection we call "Civietown" now was called "Fulford" back then. Now that's very common family name in the area, so that part isn't terribly surprising. But curiously, "Civietown" was about two miles further away, at the intersection of Mt. Pisgah Road and Empire Road, and was spelled "Sivey Town". Huh, what? And the area near the end of Shellpoint Road was named "Monogram" for no apparent reason.[1]
This stuff fascinates me. My grandmother can remember the Monogram business, but has no idea when exactly, or why, the name went away. And I haven't found a good explanation yet for why "Sivey Town" became "Civietown" and relocated itself by two miles. I also still don't know exactly what either "Sivey Town" or "Civietown" actually means. An older relative told me it has something to do with a kind of bean called a "Seve bean" that was farmed in the area, but I can't really find much to back that up.[2]
So yeah... browse around old maps, who knows what kind of mystery you might stumble upon.
[1]: this post actually inspired me to take the time to download a "historical survey of unincorporated communities" that was put together a while back. There's no definitive answer on how "Monogram" got its name, but there is some interesting history associated with it. http://www.brunswickcountync.gov/planning/files/2015/04/plan...
[2]: To the extent that it's been researched, the "Seve Bean" story is widely acknowledged as a popular local legend, but that's about the extent of it as far as I know. http://www.myreporter.com/2013/01/is-it-spelled-civietown-an...