Storybook Farm

Hand-hewn beams from an early-1800s cabin still form the core of the Stone Cottage at Storybook Farm, a structure that predates the property's founding by more than a century. Moses Atwater and Amy Wilson were among the original settlers of the land in the early 1800s; Warren and Mary Barrett later established Storybook Farm in 1955, running a preschool and summer camp there from the early 1960s through the 1980s before Bryan and Lisa Lowrance took over the property in January 2020. Set minutes from Chapel Hill and Carrboro, North Carolina, the farm today pairs overnight cabin lodging with a dedicated outdoor event space: a covered picnic shelter and 32-by-20-foot stage inside a 27-by-72-foot pavilion, equipped with a stainless-steel prep station, brick furnace, and firepit. The space has hosted concerts, weddings, festivals, corporate conferences, and workshops, including ProgDay, described by the farm as the world's longest-running progressive rock festival. Four rental cabins on the property - Stone Cottage, Barrett Lodge, Warren's Landing, and Rick's Roost - offer additional lodging, with Warren's Landing occupying the site of the farm's former school cafeteria and classrooms.