Glenwood

Glenwood is a streetcar-era residential suburb on a ridge at the northwest edge of old Raleigh. Attorney James H. Pou bought the land in 1905-06, and the engineering firm Riddick and Mann platted it that June along Glenwood Avenue. Lots sold briskly, and a large auction in 1908 was reported as the biggest land sale in the city to that date. Water, sewers, sidewalks and streetcar service came with the lots. Narrow, deep lots, shallow 20-foot setbacks, rear service alleys and street trees still give the area a dense, walkable character. Houses range from large Queen Anne/Colonial hybrids along Glenwood Avenue to two-story Colonial boxes, Craftsman foursquares and many small bungalows. Early residents included carpenters, railroad workers, teachers, a bacteriologist and small businessmen. Deed covenants set minimum house costs and excluded Black buyers. The district is recognized for community planning, architecture and its place in Raleigh's early twentieth-century urban growth, alongside Boylan Heights and Cameron Park.