Coca-Cola Bottling detail (Closed)
Sanford, NC
Photo courtesy Richard Weiss

In Sanford, NC, is unquestionably the most elaborate of the Coca-Cola bottling plants. While all the others in style appear to date from the late 30's to early 50's time period, this old bottling plant in Sanford probably dates to the teens.

It looks as though an addition was built in the same style not long after the building was finished, changing the balance of the facade. If you look closely at the top, you will notice little Coke bottles along the roof line. Many thanks to Richard Weiss for photos and info. 03-08

Coca-Cola Bottling
Sanford, NC
Photo courtesy Richard Weiss

The building traces its roots back to about 1905, when it began as the Sanford Carbonating Works before becoming the local Coca-Cola bottling plant. Unlike the more common Art Deco bottling plants built during the 1930s, Sanford's facility grew over several decades, resulting in a unique design filled with decorative brickwork, terra cotta trim, and those remarkable miniature Coke bottles that still overlook Charlotte Avenue today.

Coca-Cola Bottling detail
Sanford, NC
Photo courtesy Richard Weiss

For decades, this building bottled Coca-Cola for Sanford and the surrounding communities before production moved to a larger plant in the 1970s. Like many former bottling plants, it eventually sat vacant for years, but thankfully it escaped demolition. A careful restoration preserved many of the building's original features, including old painted walls, exposed brick, massive industrial doors, and the decorative exterior that made it such a local landmark.

Today the Historic Coke Building has found an entirely new purpose as offices and creative workspaces in downtown Sanford. Inside, modern businesses occupy rooms where Coca-Cola was once mixed, bottled, and shipped across central North Carolina. Outside, those tiny Coke bottles along the roofline continue to catch the eye of anyone who slows down for a closer look.

Coca-Cola Bottling
Sanford, NC
Photo courtesy Richard Weiss

UPDATE: The beautifully restored building remains one of downtown Sanford's architectural highlights. Its rare Coca-Cola detailing has been carefully preserved, making it one of the finest surviving examples of an early independent bottling plant in North Carolina. 07-26

Coca-Cola Bottling (now Christo's Restaurant)
Lexington, NC
Photo courtesy Richard Weiss

Here is the former Coca-Cola Bottling Plant from Lexington, NC. The buildings that once housed the operations for the bottling plant are now used for Christo's Restaurant. Many thanks to Richard Weiss for info. 03-08

Built during Coca-Cola's great bottling expansion of the 1930s, the plant supplied soft drinks to Lexington and surrounding communities for decades. Like hundreds of other local bottling plants across the country, it eventually became a victim of industry consolidation as production shifted to much larger regional facilities. The bottling lines fell silent in the early 1970s, and the building spent nearly thirty years sitting empty.

Fortunately, the old plant wasn't lost. In 2002 the building was completely renovated and reopened as Christo's Original, a popular family-owned Italian restaurant founded by Christos Papaioannou. The spacious old factory proved to be a perfect fit, and today diners enjoy pizza, pasta, sandwiches, and other favorites inside a building that once bottled thousands of cases of Coca-Cola.

Coca-Cola Bottling (now Christo's Restaurant)
Lexington, NC
Photo courtesy Richard Weiss

While the familiar Coca-Cola signs disappeared years ago, the sturdy brick building still hints at its original purpose. It's another great example of how many old bottling plants have found successful second careers, allowing these familiar roadside landmarks to remain part of the community long after the last bottle rolled off the line.

UPDATE: More than two decades after its transformation, the former bottling plant continues to thrive as Christo's Original, preserving another piece of North Carolina's Coca-Cola history through adaptive reuse rather than demolition. 07-26