Race City USA

This week, it has been 1 year since we moved to Mooresville, NC. So I thought it was time to introduce our little town to you. The town is located 25 miles north of Charlotte and has a population of approximately 35,000 and growing. It is a very transient city, meaning lots of people move here due to jobs and move away from it too. But lately, more people are making Mooresville their permanent home. The city is located right next to Lake Norman, the largest man-made lake in NC, which is great for boating and relaxing. 

Through years of change, this city went from railroad town to textile center to Race City USA. But despite the changes, it has kept a strong sense of it's past. Mooresville was founded (as a direct result of the railroad expansion) in the 1850s by John Franklin Moore and was incorporated in 1873. Today, the Mooresville Historic District represents the most intact remaining area of architecturally and historically significant structures, which reflect the early years of the town's development.  

Large scale industry began in Mooresville toward the end of the nineteenth century with the organization of the Mooresville Cotton Mills in 1893. By 1914 there were 4 cotton mills in town, 2 flour mills, two cotton seed oil mills, a furniture factory, a large lumber plant, automobile and vehicle shops,a  bottling works, an ice factory, a mattress factory, and several other minor industries. The flour mill in downtown  is still in use today and owned and operated by Bay State Milling Company since 1973.

Once part of the Mooresville Mill Village, this old cotton mill has been revamped in to an antique furniture mall. It also hosts an authentic Napoletana pizzeria.

Mill Village around 1910

Another textile mill was converted into an indoor go-kart racing hall and activity center. 

The Mooresville train depot was once an important hub for passengers and freight trains. Today, it houses an art gallery and the train tracks are only used for transporting goods to the flour mill. 

Train depot around 1940

The town's history commemorated on a wall in downtown:

Today, downtown's Main Street houses banks, shops, restaurants, art galleries, the town hall and a citizen center. 

The iconic Mooresville Ice Cream shop, which is churning out ice cream since 1924. Their Front Porch ice cream tastes delicious!

Murals can be found throughout downtown: 

 

Old fashion drive-thru burger place on Main Street:

Mooresville Public Library, which was started by a group of people around 1890. The kids and I spend many hours here and renting lots of materials from this great institution.

Nowadays, Mooresville is best known as the home of NASCAR racing teams and drivers (i.e: Kyle Bush, Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, Brad Keselowski and many more), along with IndyCar team and drivers, as well as racing technology suppliers, which has earned the city the nickname "Race City USA". Also located in Mooresville is the corporate headquarters of Lowe's Company and Universal Technical Institute's NASCAR Technical Institute.

By the way, the town's sister city is Hockenheim, Germany, which is home to a well-known German racetrack. I thought that was neat. Mooresville definitely has an interesting history and despite the city's changes throughout the years, it continues to grow and develop.