This marker is located at the corner of 7th Street and Hawthorne Lane, adjacent to Independence…read morePark. It points out the history of a participant in the fight for Civil Rights. The marker reads, "Harry Golden. 1902-1981. Nationally known writer, humorist, & civil rights advocate. Published The Carolina Israelite, 1944-1968. Lived 1 block northeast." There is more information online. "Harry Golden achieved fame as publisher of The Carolina Israelite, which he issued from 1944 to 1968 from Charlotte to an international audience. According to Robin Brabham, retired UNC-Charlotte archivist, "At the height of his appeal, he had two books on the bestseller list at the same time; his life was depicted in a Broadway play; he appeared frequently on television talk shows, including Edward R. Murrow's Person to Person; and he testified before Congress on civil rights legislation."" "Golden used humor and satire to oppose Southern racial and political practices. Martin Luther King Jr. recognized his significance by identifying him as one of "our white brothers who have grasped the meaning of this social revolution and committed themselves to it." "Golden was born Herschel Goldhirsch in the Ukraine, then part of Austria-Hungary. In 1904 his father and his oldest brother immigrated and soon after sent for the rest of the family. Golden grew up in a tenement on New York City's Lower East Side and attended City College. He married Genevieve Gallagher in 1926, and they had four sons. "Failed business ventures led to his guilty plea to mail fraud in October 1929. Sentenced to five years in federal prison, he was released in 1933. In 1941, he moved south, first to Norfolk, then to Charlotte where he worked for the Charlotte Labor Journal, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. Golden issued the first regular number of The Carolina Israelite in February 1944. The monthly magazine initially carried the subtitle, "A Monthly Review of Jewish Affairs, Dedicated to Interfaith Amity." "In 1955 Golden addressed the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association on "The Jewish People of North Carolina." He came to national attention in 1956 after he testified before the Pearsall Commission that white Southerners did not seem to mind standing with African Americans: "It is only when the Negro 'sets' that the fur begins to fly." Thus, he suggested, public schools could be painlessly integrated by providing desks but no seats. He went on to suggest sixteen more plans that mocked Southern racial mores. "Wide circulation of his "Vertical Negro Plan" soon generated interest in his writing and in 1958 a compilation of his columns, Only in America, appeared on the best seller list. He advised Robert Kennedy in his 1964 and 1968 campaigns for the U. S. Senate and the Democratic presidential nomination. He continued to publish the Israelite until 1968 when he closed the paper. In 1979 he received the North Carolina Award for Literature. He is buried in Hebrew Cemetery in Charlotte." There is brief parking across the way at the pizza place. [Review 11 of 2025 - 4013 in North Carolina - 23584 overall]

Celriver Legacy Plaza in Rock Hill offers a thoughtful tribute to the workers and industrial legacy…read moreof the Celanese Celriver plant, which operated from 1948 to 2005. Located near the Riverwalk YMCA and Giordana Velodrome, the plaza features interpretive signage, sculptures, and a South Carolina Historical Marker that collectively honor the plant's contributions to the region. The site once housed a massive synthetic fiber operation with its own utilities and infrastructure, making it one of the largest employers in the area. Reading about its history was genuinely fascinating. Especially how the plant's presence shaped the economic development of Rock Hill and the greater Charlotte region. Beyond its physical memorials, the Celriver Legacy Project extended its impact through scholarships at Winthrop University and York Technical College, supporting descendants of former employees and students from nearby counties. The plaza stands not just as a monument to industrial achievement, but as a reminder of the community spirit and economic vitality that defined a generation of workers and helped fuel growth across the Carolinas. An interesting stop when in the area. [Review 1419 of 2025 - 1359 in South Carolina - 24970 overall]

This simple granite memorial pays tribute to an important heroine of the American Revolution…read more Largely forgotten, which is shameful. The former McDowell estate here on South Tryon has since been subdivided into a number of different housing developments. Their 200 year old house was since demolished as well to make way for "progress." https://theoldhouselife.com/2018/04/16/demolished-to-make-room-for-townhomes-charlotte-nc/ The stone reads, "1780. In memoriam. Jane Parks. Wife of Captain John McDowell who rode 10 perilous miles to notify American camp of British evacuation of Charlotte. Erected by Mecklenburg Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution." Online, there is more information. "In October of 1780 when a detachment of British troops, that were stationed in Charlotte, were pulling out and heading to South Carolina. At this time in the American Revolution, Savannah and Charleston had already surrendered to British control so it's anyone's guess where these forces were headed (Charlotte was always hostile to the British forces, which is why Cornwallis referred to it as a hornet's nest). As they were heading south, the ran across the McDowell plantation." "After they left, Jane Parks McDowell rode ten miles on horseback, with her baby, to alert the Continental troops that the British were evacuating Charlotte, NC. This allowed them to saddle up, head them off for an attack. Long considered the female Paul Revere. Her house stood quietly and unnoticed for over a century until BNA Homes decided townhomes needed to built on the 16 acres where the house stood." #InternationalWomensDay [Review 14764 overall, 265 of 2021, number 2815 in North Carolina.]

The name seemed familiar and so it is. I reviewed a marker with the same text last year that was up…read morein Raleigh, 125 miles from here: https://www.yelp.com/biz/leonidas-l-polk-historical-marker-raleigh?hrid=DnjP_pjQxiTmerbBeG_Jzw. The marker reads, "President of National Farmers' Alliance, 1889-1892; began Progressive Farmer, 1886; a founder of N.C.S.U. and Meredith College. Was born here." Online, there is more. "Leonidas LaFayette Polk was a nationally known farmer, editor and politician in the late nineteenth century. Polk founded The Progressive Farmer in 1886, and served as the president of the National Farmers' Alliance between 1889 and 1892. He contributed to the founding of what is now North Carolina State University in 1887 and Baptist Female University (present-day Meredith College) in 1891. Polk helped create the state Department of Agriculture and was the first Commissioner of Agriculture. He was the 1892 Populist Party presidential candidate but died before the general election." [Review 12280 overall, 2064 of 2019.]

This marker is in front of a mixed-use building that has some retail at the ground floor and…read moreapartments/condos on the upper floors. There are some street parking spaces and the Gold Line goes past. The marker reads, "D.A Tompkins. 1851-1914. Crusader for southern industrial development, manufacturer, engineer, author, and publisher. Grave is 1/2 mile north." There is more information online. "Daniel Augustus Tompkins, industrialist and newspaper editor, was born in Edgefield District, South Carolina, on October 12, 1851 to Dewitt and Virginia Tompkins. Interested in engineering since his boyhood, Daniel entered the University of South Carolina in 1867, but shortly thereafter transferred to the Renssalear Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York, where he graduated in 1873 with an engineering degree. "After graduation, Tompkins became a master machinist with Bethlehem Iron Works in Pennsylvania. The factory head, John Fritz, considered Tompkins one of the finest machinists in the industry, and sent him to Germany in 1877 to oversee the development of the Schwerte Iron Works. Following his return in 1879, Tompkins took a position with the Crystal Plate Glass Company of Crystal City, Missouri. Two years later, Tompkins moved to Charlotte as a machinist for the Westinghouse Machine Company. Soon thereafter, he began his own business, D. A. Tompkins Company, installing steam engines in the numerous cotton mills of western and central North Carolina. "By the late 1880s D. A. Tompkins Company had expanded operations to the construction of various mills and electric plants. By 1910, the organization had developed 250 cotton oil mills, 150 electric plants, and 100 cotton plants. Because of his success in the manufacturing industry, President William McKinley appointed him a member of the United States Industrial Commission. In addition, he served as a member of the board of trustees at what is now North Carolina State University and was instrumental in the development of the university's textile school. He also served as the director of Equitable Life Insurance. "Tompkins also understood the influence of mass media, and how he could use it to give voice to his industrial New South policies. Therefore, he obtained controlling interests in the Charlotte Daily Observer, the Charlotte Evening News, and Greenville (S.C.) News. Under the guise of several ghostwriters, Tompkins also produced a number of pamphlets and books such as Cotton Values in Textile Fabrics and History of Mecklenburg County from 1740 to 1903 (written by Charles Lee Coon). "Tompkins spoke out against compulsory public school, child labor legislation, and wage per hour regulation and sought to maximize profits and retain cheap labor in the southern mills. Tompkins retired from business in 1910, owing to poor health, and moved to his summer home in Montreat. He died of a paralytic condition on October 18, 1914, and was buried in Elmwood Cemetery in Charlotte. After the death of his fiancée in 1884, Tompkins never married and left no children." [Review 2550 of 2024 - 4002 in North Carolina - 23561 overall]

The Declaration of Independence is nice and all that but did you know that Mecklenburg, North…read moreCarolina declared independence over a year earlier? The marker reads, "Bold set of anti-British resolutions, adopted on May 31, 1775, in meeting 50 yards S.W. organized by Thomas Polk, fired spirit of independence." It is marker number L-115 and it was erected in 2015 by the North Carolina Office of Archives and History. Aadopted here in Charlotte, North Carolina, just weeks after the battles of Lexington and Concord and drafted by the Mecklenburg County Committee of Safety, the Resolves declared that all laws and commissions originating from the British Crown or Parliament were null and void, effectively ending British authority in the region. While not a formal declaration of independence, the Resolves laid out a framework for self-governance, including the establishment of local judicial and military structures. They also called on other colonies to form their own governments, signaling a significant shift toward autonomy. Though they left open the possibility of reconciliation if Britain rescinded its oppressive policies, the Resolves marked one of the earliest organized rejections of British rule in the colonies and helped ignite the spirit of independence in the American South. [Review 1425 of 2025 - 4496 in North Carolina - 24976 overall]

Dead-center Charlotte, where Trade Street meets Tryon Street. Where North meets South and East…read moremeets West. Independence Square is the "Uptown" of Uptown Charlotte. It is the very center, the core of the Queen City. The Sculpture on each of the four corners are dedicated to Transportation, Future, Commerce and Industry. Try and see if you can recognize the face of the banker in Commerce - it's supposedly retired Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, but I don't see it. It's worth a stop if you're exploring Charlotte.

This is one of Charlotte's most idiosyncratic spots. Charlotteans claim that Mecklenburg county…read moredeclared independence from Britain in 1775, one year before them Yanks at the Continental Congress stole the idea. This original and 100% not-made-up declaration was lost in a house fire 25 years later. Honest. And we commemorate this with The Sculptures at Independence Square, a quartet of vaguely bigoted statues, one of which bares its magnificent bosom to the bustling city below. I cannot explain how her breasts are related to the rampant historical revisionism capitalizing on the success of the American Revolution, but it does make me smile to see such a statue thrust upon our conservative city.

Very historical and interesting for sure, lots of older souls to see. Hope you get the same resultread more

We just walked through the cemetery to check it out very hard to read some of the tombstones. Also,…read moreI guess if you go on a tour, you get to know a little bit more information.