Fairfield

FAIRFIELD - A Union County community on NC 205 between Richardson and Salem Creeks.  Fairfield is home to the Fairfield Community Baptist Church.

While the naming of Fairfield is unknown, the history of the naming of Salem Creek is unfortunate.  Salem Creek was previously known as "Negro Head Creek" - a name that dated to the 1700s. Locally, it was known by the more racially offensive and inappropriate term.

That was to have changed in the 1980s - when Union County officials changed the creek's name to Salem Creek.  However, many official USGS (United States Geological Service) maps, GIS databases, and documents still used the prior name into the 21st Century.

It wasn't until 2013 - after local reporters discovered the derogatory name still in use - that both houses of the North Carolina State Legislature passed a bill formally changing the creek's name to Salem Creek and resolved the issue.

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