High School Graduates
The senior class of Charlotte High School of 1900 posed together. with Superintendent Alexander Graham. Young women wore lacy, white summer dresses with high collars.
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Turn of the 20th Century: Life in Charlotte 1900 - 1910
Rural Life
According to the 1900 United States Census, 55,628 reside in Mecklenburg County. Of these, only 18,091 live in Charlotte. There are 4,190 farms in the county, and that’s where most people live. A farm laborer earns approximately $14.64 a month.
Celebrating Meck Dec Day in Charlotte
Back in the day, everyone in the county celebrated on May 20th, the day the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence was signed. We have been doing so since 1825. It is to honor the men who signed the declaration in 1775. Throughout this week in May there were eating contests, races, patriotic bands and orators. This postcard captures how the town decorated during the 1908 celebration.
United States Post Office & former branch of the US Mint
This picture was taken along the 400 block of West Trade Street in the early 1900s. On the left is the United States Post Office and on the right is the United States Mint, which at this time was an Assay Office. The Post Office was built in 1881 and demolished in 1915. A fire in 1844 destroyed the first Mint, but it was rebuilt and completed by 1846, and resumed minting coins. By the time, this postcard was taken, coins were no longer being minted here.
North Carolina Medical College
The North Carolina Medical College receives a charter in 1892. Originally the medical school is located at Davidson College, but the upper classes attend school in Charlotte near the Presbyterian Hospital at Trade and Mint Street. In 1907, all of the medical students occupy this building on Sixth and Church Streets.
Working on the Railroad
The first passenger train arrived in Charlotte in 1852. The second passenger depot was the Southern Railroad Depot that was designed by Frank Milburn in the Spanish Mission style. It was built in 1905 and was located at 531 West Trade Street. A railroad crew posed for this photograph in front of their locomotive.
"To Serve and Protect"
The Charlotte Police Department posed for this picture in 1910. Seated, from left to right: Hugh Shields, Cliff Bell, J.T. Farrington, J.D. Johnson, B.J. Summerow. Standing left to right: M.M. Earnhart, Charles Ayers, Lee Hargett, J.E. Crowell and J.M. Earnhart.
Biddle University (Now Johnson C. Smith University)
First known as Biddle Memorial Institute, the school was founded in 1870 on Beatties Ford Road by the Catawba Presbytery. Colonel W.R. Myers donated the land. The school was named for Henry Biddle husband of its financial benefactor, Mary D. Biddle of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
A New Invention: The Automobile
The turn-of-the-century saw the arrival of a new invention, the automobile and the truck. Some were powered by electricty while other inventors experimented with steam power. In the end, gasoline soon became the major source of fuel for cars and trucks. Although there were just a few dealerships in Charlotte in the early 1900s, this new way of transportation quickly became popular. Soon horse driven wagons, carriages and buggies disappeared, a long with livery stables, blacksmiths, and saddle makers.
County Courthouse
Charlotte has been the county seat of Mecklenburg County since 1762. The first courthouse was a log structure built in 1766. By the time the turn-of the-century, the city had its Fourth County Courthouse that was located on the southeast corner of Tryon and Third Streets. Local lawyers occuped the building to the right.
