posted by maggie on Mar 23
In 1755 a man named Thomas Polk traveled through North Carolina and found a homely spot along a wagon road. Between two rivers, the Yadkin and the Catawba, were the native Americans traveled to do their trading is were he built his new home. The man, who was United State President James K Polk’s uncle, was the first of many settlers to come to the area that grew to be called Charlotte Town. It was named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, who was the wife of King George III. This area was still under British influence and the settlers wanted to have favor with the King so they named it after his German born wife. Over time, however, there came tensions between the British King and the small Charlotte Town. The King tried to impose some laws on the towns people who wanted their independence and it didn’t go over well. In May of 1775, the men of Charlotte Town signed a proclamation called Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence . It was the first declaration of independence created and signed by one of the thirteen colonies. It was said to have been put into play a year before the U.S. Declaration of Independence but there is no real reference to that claim. Historians still debate this declaration because if it was truly written first than that would make the North Carolinian’s the first to declare their independence from Britian. During the Revolutionalry War there were camps of both British and American armies. They had many smaller fights between the troops and Lord General Charles Cornwallis , frustrated with the situation, called the town the Hornet’s Nest. Religion is also a major part of the development of North Carolina. This is were many of the different Christian sects developed. Most of them were Presbyterian but there were also many Baptists, Methodists, Lutherans, Episcopalians as well as Catholics. This is why the city also carries the name The City of Churches. This area also had a great Gold Rush during the 1800s which led to the Charlotte Mint opening in 1837. This was the place to mine for gold until the California Gold Rush happened. The Mint was seized by the Confederate forces during the Civil War and was not reopened again. The town went on to become a cotton processing center as well as a railroad hub when those industries were strong. Now the city is filled with luxurious hotels and lots of banking activities. It is the second largest banking headquarters in America.