Charlotte was settled in 1755 by Thomas Polk and Thomas Spratt between two Native American trading posts. The North/South trading post is now known as Tryon Street —named after William Tryon, former Governor of Colonial North Carolina. The East/West trading post is the modern Trade Street . The majority of settlers were of Scottish, Irish, and German descent. Many of the settlers moved to the area to gain economic and religious independence. In addition, they moved for the fertile soil.

During the Revolutionary War, Charlotte was the site of both British and American military encampments. “Hornets Nest” was the nickname given to the area because of the many skirmishes between the troops. The city and the county were named after Queen Charlotte Mecklenburg-Sterlitz, the wife of the King George the III of Britain. Many of the streets and landmarks have names based on Revolutionary War themes of independence and freedom.

Charlotte expanded primarily with an agricultural economy. The invention of Eli Whitney’s cotton gin in the 1793 propelled Charlotte into a ginning center which led to the area’s leadership in the textile industry. Many of these old mills are still standing and have been converted into high end condominiums and trendy retail space.

The discovery of gold in the Concord area (just north of Charlotte ) in the 1800s led to the original Gold Rush in America . Many veins of gold were found in the area. North Carolina led the nation in gold production until the California Gold Rush of 1848. Charlotte Mint, now the Mint Museum of Art, opened in 1837 to process the gold. The banking industry also began to flourish in the 1800s with the opening of Charlotte National Bank in 1897. Since then Charlotte has grown to be the second largest banking area in the country.


African Americans in Charlotte

North Carolina was a slave state. In 1764 the first slave, an African American male, was sold for 75 pounds. Once the slave trade ended in 1808, freed slaves were given 90 days to leave the state. Freed slaves from other states were not allowed to enter North Carolina . Slave owners feared that the freed slaves would cause those who were still enslaved to rise up against their owners. Though the Emancipation Proclamation was signed in 1863, slaves were not emancipated in North Carolina until December 1865. Two years after slaves were emancipated, the Biddle Institute was established. That institute is now Johnson C. Smith University. In 1868 blacks were given the right to own property. The first school for blacks was founded in 1882 in the basement of an Episcopal church with 253 students. African Americans have made major strides in Charlotte since 1882. Integration paved the way for Mel Watts and Eva Clayton to be elected to national offices. In addition, Charlotte elected a black Mayor, Harvey Gantt. On the economic front , Charlotte is home of Mechanics and Farmers Bank— a thriving black owned bank— as well as many other thriving black-owned businesses.