Huntersville, NC - Information and Links
The Town of Huntersville, North Carolina is a growing community, nearly 12 miles north of Charlotte. The Town’s population is approximately 30,000.
Huntersville was incorporated in 1873 and is believed to have been named for Robert Boston Hunter, a large landowner, and cotton farmer. the land around Huntersville was ripe for farming, and with close proximity to a railroad, the town quickly grew.
Life in Huntersville’s early days was built around farming, family, and church. Originally called Craighead, the Hunter family became such a large presence in the community, the town was renamed. Farmland was fenced in with split rail fences (some still remain today), and animals grazed freely. Families often shared their beef in the autumn and looked out for their neighbors. In the truest sense, Huntersville was a community.
The Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church was the first church built in Huntersville around 1875 and backed two local schools – the McClintock Academy and the Orr School. Both schools were similar to junior colleges and Huntersville boasts of educating a number of ministers, professional men, teachers and business leaders in the late 1800s.
As the town grew larger, so too did its business community. the Virgin Manufacturing Company, a cotton mill, encouraged the development of Huntersville’s “mill town” on the east side of the railroad tracks. A brickyard business, located in both Huntersville and neighboring Cornelius, helped provide the bricks for many local buildings. Many of the older brick buildings and some remaining chimneys can still be seen today in the older section of town.
Today, older generations of Huntersville residents are mixed about the tremendous growth the town is experiencing. Many people will claim that Huntersville has always poised itself for such progress. Others reminisce about “the good old days” when traffic was easy and farmland was untouched.
It is the sense of Huntersville’s past that has brought so many new residents to this town. The allure of the remaining farmland, the simple commute into the city of Charlotte and the proximity to the relatively new Lake Norman are just some of Huntersville’s enticements.
Government Links
- Town of Huntersville
- Huntersville Police
- Mecklenburg County
- Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office
- HuntersvilleWeather.com