Getting to have both: my love of Tarboro and Philadelphia

December 8th, 2024

Writer: Georgia Mears

Editor: Jada Eible Hargro

Many spaces are waiting to be discovered within the attics, crawlspaces, skyscrapers, and abandoned lots of Philadelphia. Two years after moving here, I still find myself discovering new places. 

This past month I explored a dive bar on Sansom Street where I tried my first boilermaker (gross!) I tried a new (to me) Moroccan restaurant in Old City, where we danced the night away with belly dancers. The month prior, I was introduced to a pool hall for a double date followed by a trip to Rosy’s Taco Bar for the obligatory post-date debrief. Since then, Rosy’s has developed into a retreat for friends and sorority sisters alike to gossip over a pitcher of spicy margaritas. Safely hidden in the dark booths with a photo of our Heavenly Father, Elvis Presley, smiling down upon us, we spill secrets and gulp mezcal. 

Before moving to University City, I’d never ordered a hoagie from Wawa, and “Acme” was the name of explosive products from Tune Town. I’ve learned that this city provides ample opportunities to reinvent oneself, sometimes in a single evening. Between Spruce Street’s crypts and South Street’s bodegas, wanderers are rewarded with music, Philly pride, and oftentimes just, a much-needed, dark corner and a beer away from campus.  

These spaces are wildly different from the town I call home. Tarboro is situated along the banks of the Tar River in Eastern North Carolina. We like to brag about our Town Common as one of the two remaining original commons on the East Coast. Our Town Common is meant for daily off-leash dog roaming, Thanksgiving football games, and late June North Carolina Orchestra performances. The Tar River is meant for fishing in Jon boats, and lazy beers on sand bars.

This Thanksgiving break, I shared my home with a born and bred-Philadelphian. Instead of Oscar’s Tavern and Buffalo Billiards, I showed him TBC (Tarboro Brewing Company), his first oyster roast, and my family’s hardware store – which my great-great-great grandfather started in 1913. 

I’m thankful for the spaces we discover and create for ourselves. At this point in my life, this includes the bars, museums, and green spaces of Philadelphia, as well as the Town Common, churches, and Marrow-Pitt Ace Hardware of Tarboro. Whether it’s Main Street or Broad Street, there is something special about the duality of the two – getting to have both big-city Philadelphia and small-town Tarboro without compromising the joy of either.