History of Charlotte

[KJHburg]

I think some of those churches are still around like the one at the corner of College and 7th and St Peters on N tryon.  

[Nick2]

A cool video of driving around in 1986 CLT.

 

[nakers2]

On 10/13/2018 at 11:49 PM, Nick2 said:

A cool video of driving around in 1986 CLT.

 

The year my parents got married at the Gastonia Courthouse. They would move to Charlotte later that same year.

[Nick2]

2 hours ago, nakers2 said:

The year my parents got married at the Gastonia Courthouse. They would move to Charlotte later that same year.

That's awesome! It's cool to see how much the city has transformed over the years.

Here's a video of CLT in 1991:

https://youtu.be/rVmcF7qS3Vs

[NCMike1990]

35 minutes ago, Nick2 said:

That's awesome! It's cool to see how much the city has transformed over the years.

Here's a video of CLT in 1991:

https://youtu.be/rVmcF7qS3Vs

Here's a video of the city from 1969. 

 

[videtur quam contuor]

Sears store on North Tryon, opened 1949. This photo is credited to the Charlotte historic landmarks commission.

Sears Roebuck, as it was at the time. Although I lived n Charlotte during the life of this store I never went there as the SouthPark and Eastland stores were convenient. The story of commerce is whatever is easier for the consumer will be the winner.

 

 

 

[KJHburg]

I couldnt find the Latta Arcade thread but here are shots of this historical gem in the heart of uptown.  Today.  

[Windsurfer]

On 10/17/2018 at 7:32 AM, tarhoosier said:

Sears store on North Tryon, opened 1949. This photo is credited to the Charlotte historic landmarks commission.

Sears Roebuck, as it was at the time. Although I lived n Charlotte during the life of this store I never went there as the SouthPark and Eastland stores were convenient. The story of commerce is whatever is easier for the consumer will be the winner.

 

 

 

And, sadly, Amazon, Alibaba, Google, etc, will kill much of the retail that killed uptown shopping.   And, we enable with the huge tax incentives....but that's another story.  (They're killing my business)

I remember going to that Sears while it was open. Never seemed as large at the Southpark Store.  The ones I miss the most are Belks and Ivey's up town.  I still remember being a brat and pulling Santa's beard and being chased out of Belks.  Okay, I have other more pleasant memories there like buying my BoyScout clothes.

[Bikeguy]

53 minutes ago, Windsurfer said:

And, sadly, Amazon, Alibaba, Google, etc, will kill much of the retail that killed uptown shopping.   And, we enable with the huge tax incentives....but that's another story.  (They're killing my business)

I remember going to that Sears while it was open. Never seemed as large at the Southpark Store.  The ones I miss the most are Belks and Ivey's up town.  I still remember being a brat and pulling Santa's beard and being chased out of Belks.  Okay, I have other more pleasant memories there like buying my BoyScout clothes.

...and don't forget the creaking wooden floors in the Tryon facing portion of Belks as well as the clackity clack of what must have been one of the first escalators in downtown.  

[Hcubed]

Just now, Hcubed said:

Crockett Park, Dilworth.

Formerly Griffin Park Built in 1941, burned in 1985

Home of the Charlotte Orioles

 

[Matthew.Brendan]

Found on Reddit. 

“Crowds witness the ceremonial last running of streetcars in Charlotte. March 15, 1938”

[videtur quam contuor]

Scholtz Flowers is prominent in this photo. The Scholtz family lived on East Boulevard and had their greenhouses there for many years. The family sold the land in about 1980 and the Dilworth Gardens shopping is on that land now. Rountree Plantation, a general plant and landscape supply company, isoff of Old Pineville Road, behind the Cargill vegetable oil refinery on Scholtz Road. I am uncertain of the relationship between Scholtz and Rountree.

[Norm2]

3 hours ago, Matthew.Brendan said:

Found on Reddit. 

“Crowds witness the ceremonial last running of streetcars in Charlotte. March 15, 1938”

Anyone know where this photo was taken? I would assume it would have been somewhere on Tryon, but I am unsure of what the cross street would be

[KJHburg]

I think that would be Tryon and Tryon because I think the Central Hotel was where the Omni and Bank of America Plaza is today.  

http://digitalcollections.uncc.edu/cdm/ref/collection/p15483coll1/id/816

and no I did not stay at the Central Hotel or have a drink at their bar LOL 

[NCMike1990]

Trade & Tryon, ca. 1955 and today:

Source: Charlotte Over The Years


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[DMann]

Trees are taller down by the Hall House!

[QCxpat]

Today - December 3, 2018, is Charlotte's 250th Anniversary.

I.  Moving Dirt & Real Estate Speculation from the Very Beginning.  

North Carolina's colonial General Assembly, sitting in session in far-off New Bern in the late fall of 1768, passed a Bill which stated, in part:  "Be it therefore Enacted, by the Governor, Council, and Assembly, and by the Authority of the same, that the said 360 acres of land, so laid off by the Commissioners or Trustees as aforesaid, be, and the same is hereby constituted, erected, and established, a Town and Town Common, and shall be called by the name of Charlotte."  To curry favor with the British crown, the new town was named for Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Queen Consort of the ruling British monarch.  The General Assembly sent the Act on to the royal governor, Lt. Gen. William Tryon, who made it effective on December 3, 1768.   

Local landowners, Thomas Polk, John Frohock, and Abraham Alexander pooled enough money to buy 360 acres on the main road at the intersection of two trading paths (Trade & Tryon).  They built a log courthouse, with 10-foot tall brick pillars, in the middle of the Square to symbolize Charlotte's new status as  the county seat, a center of political power in colonial America.  Noted historian, Chuck McShane, made the following observation: "Unsurprisingly, perhaps, Charlotte owes its existence to speculative real estate development."

Replica of the First Mecklenburg County "very ordinary built of logs" Courthouse.

 

Image of Col. Thomas Polk (1732-1794), one of 28 Signers of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence ("MecDec"- May 20, 1775), and Polk's tombstone in Old Settlers Cemetery.

 

          

   

II.  Spirit of Charlotte. 

Leave it up to a member of UP to capture Charlotte's can-do spirit, irrepressible optimism and fighting spunk with these words:  

"My favorite thing about Charlotte is that I always believed its best day was tomorrow. Nobody beats our aspiration."

Post by @ah59396 in "Ideas for Creating Culture, Temporary and Permanent in Charlotte," 07/16/17,  p. 6.  Great post!

 

III.  A dozen Heart-stirring Photos of Charlotte by UP's inimitable KJ  @KJHburg          

(1)  "Charlotte Rising!"-Tryon Place & BOAT at Legacy Union (632', 35 stories) by @KJHburg "Tryon Place-Crescent Project Tryon & Stonewall," 11/07/18, p.  166

 

 

(2)  Bechtler Museum of Modern Art & Niki de Saint Phalle's Sculpture "The Firebird" by @KJHburg "Charlotte Photo of the Day," 10/07/18,  p. 175

 

(3)  300 S. Tryon Barings (463', 25 stories) by @KJHburg "Charlotte Photo of the Day," 10/07/18, p. 175

 

(4)  First Ward Park & the 3 Amigos:  BOACC, Hearst Tower & 1 BOAC by @KJHburg "First Ward Urban Village," 10/07/18, p. 119

 

(5)  BOACC, Tallest Tower btw. Philadelphia & Atlanta (871', 60 stories) by @KJHburg "Charlotte Photo of Day," 10/07/18, p. 175

 

(6)  Spectrum Ctr, Arena, LYNX Blue Line, & SpringHill Suites (Charlotte's "Flatiron" Bldg) by @KJHburg "Charlotte Photo of the Day," 10/07/18, p. 175

 

(7)  Museum Tower (447', 42 stories) by @KJHburg "Museum Tower-Childress Klein Apts" 10/29/17, p. 20

 

(8)  The Green,  DEC (786', 48 stories) & Museum Tower by @KJHburg "Charlotte Photo of the Day," 10/07/18, p. 175

 

(9)  BOAT at Legacy Union (632', 35 stories), DEC (786', 48 stories), & 1 Wells Fargo Ctr. "The Jukebox Bldg" (588', 42 stories) by @KJHburg "Charlotte Photo of the Day," 11/21/18, p. 180  

 

(10)  Ascent Uptown (345', 33 stories), Kimpton Hotel (239', 18 stories), & 300 S. Tryon Barings (463', 25 stories) by @KJHburg "Charlotte Photo of the Day" 11/21/18, p. 180

 

(11) Birds Eye View of Charlotte's Newest High-rise, BOAT at Legacy Union (632', 35 stories) by @KJHburg "Charlotte Photo of Day," 10/12/18, p. 175  

 

(12)  Charlotte's Oldest House built in 1774, The Hezekiah Alexander House by @KJHburg "Charlotte Photo of the Day," 07/04/18, p. 162 

Thanks KJ for these beautiful photos of the Queen City, and Happy Birthday to you!  Both Charlotte and KJ got their starts on December 3rd, albeit separated by a couple of centuries. 

Guess that makes UP and Charlotte doubly lucky!!

 

IV.  A Toast.  Dear Charlotte, Happy 250th Anniversary and many happy returns!  Mazel tov!

        

                 

 

V.  Links to Charlotte's history

(1) http://landmarkscommission.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/History-of-Charlotte-and-Mecklenburg-County.pdf -  "A History of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County," by Dr. Dan L. Morrill, Univ.  of North Carolina at Charlotte

(2)  http://landmarkscommission.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/THE-GROWTH-OF-CHARLOTTE.pdf  - "The Growth of Charlotte: A History," by Dr. Thomas W. Hanchett, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Preservation Commission

(3) https://www.cmstory.org/history-timeline  -  History Timeline, The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Story, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Library, 2018 (Right click open in new tab)

(4)  https://www.cmstory.org/exhibits/history-timeline-rural-beginnings-1730-1772/1768-charlotte-chartered - Text of NC General Assembly law chartering Charlotte, 1768 (Right click open in new tab)

(5) http://www.charlottemagazine.com/Charlotte-Magazine/April-2015/The-Story-of-Charlotte/  - "The Story of Charlotte," Charlotte Magazine, by Chuck McShane, April 2015

(6) https://www.cmstory.org/exhibits/robinson-spangler-north-carolina-room-image-collection-hornets-nest/courthouse-replica

(7) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Polk

(8) http://clt250.com/ - CLT250: 250 Years In The Making

(9) http://www.charlottemagazine.com/Charlotte-Magazine/December-2018/A-Snapshot-of-Charlottes-Birth/  - "The Birth of a City: Charlotte turns 250 this month," by Chuck McShane, Charlotte Magazine, Dec. 2018

Edited December 3, 2018 by QCxpat

[NCMike1990]

A member posted a link to an episode of the 1970s series “Movin’ On” in another thread. I took some screenshots to compare them to the present day. Really incredible how much the city has changed since 1975. A bonus shot of the elephant that caused trouble for Charlotteans.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Edited December 3, 2018 by NCMike1990

[KJHburg]

Good article and radio interview about the history of Charlotte on WFAE  http://www.wfae.org/post/charlotte-talks-happy-birthday-charlotte-local-historians-queen-citys-250th-anniversary?fbclid=IwAR2BecoTia0doE3JVyvp2E78rp7ajQQbvjD1ylp2DWZx9_NDfWUSlOP0HdY#stream/0

[NCMike1990]

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[NCMike1990]

View from Morehead St. bridge, 1986 vs 2018. Exact spot. Wow!

Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/488570259554354424/#details?amp_client_id=fVBvArW3QVnsbNYCgrq6rRrO-sFAi1DgoXE1K5iEfsua6FN7cBEDjnZNvGpxhRUo&mweb_unauth_id=b87b1aa65902f1de7765720634b4f910


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[SentioVenia]

On 12/6/2018 at 6:23 AM, NCMike1990 said:

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Hcubed]

South Tryon looking north 1950's

North Tryon looking south 1940

 

[videtur quam contuor]

Oh. My. Gawd. Look at all that retail.

2 restaurants, 2 major KODAK retailers, Sterchi and Haverty furniture and home furnishings, Bridges which may be furniture, 2 florists, Sherwin Williams paint (I think), Western Auto, We Give Green Stamps, Sinclair oil and gas, Masonic Temple, Movie theater with William Powell and Myrna Loy so for sure the The Thin Man series of films. (A great series, catch them on Turner Classic), Women's clothes.

Hole-lee-cow

Edited December 10, 2018 by tarhoosier

[DMann]

Keep in mind the city was not surrounded by multiple shopping malls back then, downtown is where you went to shop.