Pickles are the bread and butter of Mount Olive
Pickles define the life and culture of Mount Olive, a small town in rural eastern North Carolina. The community is home to the Mt. Olive Pickle Company, the largest independent pickle producer in the United States. The company has operated here since 1926, and Mount Olive relishes its identity as Pickletown. A pickle-jar mural decorates a building in the community’s downtown, and popular events like the North Carolina Pickle Festival and the New Year’s Eve Pickle Drop attract visitors from across the state. The town is also home to the University of Mount Olive and is a 14-mile drive from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base.
Ranch-style and turn-of-the-century homes in town or nearby
Mount Olive’s grid of streets spreads out from the train track that passes through the town’s center. Most homes in the community are ranch-style and manufactured houses, and there are also early 1900s Italianate, Craftsman and Greek Revival homes that sit along downtown’s sidewalk-lined streets. The rural areas surrounding the town feature ranch-style, Cape Cod and custom homes that are far from neighbors. The land here is primarily used for farming, and many of the homes have views of the flat fields filled with corn and soybeans. Most homes range from $110,000 to $350,000, while fixer-uppers typically cost between $40,000 and $110,000. Homes on several acres, on a golf course or with luxury finishes can range from around $400,000 to $730,000. Apartments are available for rent on the town’s north and south sides.
Pickle-themed events draw big crowds
Each April, the North Carolina Pickle Festival attracts people from across the state to try pickle-flavored foods, vendors and kids’ activities. Athletes can take part in the Tour de Pickle bike race, the Cuke Patch 5K and a pickleball tournament. There’s also a pickle-eating contest, a costume contest and carnival rides. On New Year’s Eve, residents gather for the Pickle Drop, where a 3-foot pickle is dropped into a jar to celebrate the new year. Other popular events include the Black History Parade in February and a Juneteenth celebration in Westbrook Park.
Global eats, national retailers and locally owned businesses
Mount Olive’s walkable downtown is lined with brick storefronts housing locally owned thrift stores, a pharmacy and restaurants. The Mt. Olive Pickle Parlor is a pickle-themed gift shop here that offers pickle tastings and a history room that charts the company’s growth. R & R Brewing makes a variety of craft beers, including Pickletown, a light lager brewed with dill pickles. Diners can find classic Mexican comfort food at Maya Bistro and a Chinese food buffet at Yummy Orient. National retailers like Walmart are along state Route 55. Grocery stores here include Food Lion and Piggly Wiggly.
Kids attend public schools in Wayne County or Duplin County
Kids attend either Wayne County Public Schools or Duplin County Schools; both earn a B-minus from Niche. They might start at the C-plus-rated Carver Elementary and then go to the C-rated Mount Olive Middle. At the C-rated Southern Wayne High, students can join the Air Force JROTC and take courses in leadership and aerospace science. The University of Mount Olive of a private Christian school that offers over 30 undergraduate degrees, a flight school and an online graduate school.
Playgrounds, golf and nearby hiking areas
Westbrook Park features a fenced-in toddler playground and a wooden play structure for older kids. Daughtry Field hosts youth athletic leagues in sports like baseball and T-ball. Steele Memorial Library has programs for kids and adults, including art classes, story times and book clubs. At the Southern Wayne Country Club, the 18-hole course is open to the public, and members get access to unlimited golf, an Olympic-size swimming pool and invitations to events like the Annual Pickle Classic Golf Tournament. Nearby, the nearly 1,100-acre Cliffs of the Neuse State Park is a popular hiking area known for its river access and views.
A mostly car-reliant community with bus service to Goldsboro
U.S. Route 117 is the community’s main thoroughfare, leading 15 miles to Goldsboro. Interstate 40, which leads about 69 miles to Raleigh, is around 9 miles from town. A train track carries freight trains through town, which can cause traffic delays and create noise for residents. The Goldsboro-Wayne Transportation Authority has bus routes from Mount Olive to Goldsboro. Sidewalks make the downtown area pedestrian friendly. Houses of worship here include First United Methodist Church and First Pentecostal Holiness Church of Mount Olive. UNC Health Wayne, the closest hospital, is about 19 miles away. The Mount Olive Municipal Airport is a regional airport that serves private planes; Raleigh-Durham International Airport is a roughly 82-mile trip.
Written By
Annie Franklin
