Deputies ID Durham man after body found at nature preserve near Hillsborough.
A Durham man who went missing the day before was found dead Friday morning in a rural nature preserve between Hillsborough and Durham, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said.
Calvin Demond Smith-Taylor, 36, was found just before 7:30 a.m. near the parking lot for Brumley North Nature Preserve, on the north side of Old N.C. 10. His body was sent to the N.C. Medical Examiner’s Office in Raleigh to determine when and how he died, according to a Sheriff’s Office news release.
Smith-Taylor’s family reported him missing Thursday to the Durham Police Department, the release said.
The Brumley North Nature Preserve is part of the George and Julia Brumley Family Nature Preserve, owned by Triangle Land Conservancy. The nonprofit conservation group posted to its Facebook page shortly after 9 a.m. Friday that the Brumley North Nature Preserve was closed to the public. The preserve was reopened a couple of hours later.
The South Nature Preserve, which has entrances off New Hope Church and University Station roads, remained open to the public throughout the investigation.
“Triangle Land Conservancy is aware that law enforcement is currently investigating an incident at our Brumley North Nature Preserve,” the nonprofit conservancy group said in its initial Facebook post. “We are fully supporting their efforts and, out of respect for the investigation, the preserve [was] closed to the public.”
There “is no danger to the public,” TLC officials wrote in an 11:22 a.m. update.
Anyone with information about Smith-Taylor’s death can call Investigator E. Campbell at 919-245-2907.
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
This story was originally published September 19, 2025 at 10:22 AM.
