cary began in 1750 as a settlement called bradford's ordinary. about 100 years later, the north carolina railroad was built between new bern and hillsborough and the railroad went through the settlement. allison francis page, a farmer and lumberman, and his wife, catherine raboteau page bought 300 acres (1.2 km²) of land surrounding the railroad in 1854 and named it cary. page made the first streets in cary and built a sawmill, a store and a post office. in 1868, he built a hotel for railroad passengers coming through cary. cary officially became a town on april 6, 1871, and page became the first mayor.