Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission

The Fowler Building was designed by noted Charlotte architect Louis H. Asbury and built 1921-1922. It was built to serve as the Charlotte branch of national building/plumbing supplier Hajoca and later housed local business and office supplier Pound & Moore and Fowler's Office Furniture and Supplies. This building is located in South End at 1447 S. Tryon Street, Charlotte.

Want to learn more about this property? The Historic Landmarks Commission's Survey Committee will meet tomorrow, June 24, at 6 p.m. to consider several items, including the potential historic landmark designation of this property.

If you'd like to join us: https://meck.co/43IzEZO

This past weekend, the Town of Davidson, NC held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the re-opening of the Davidson School Gymnasium, located at 251 South Street.

The ca. 1937 Davidson School Gymnasium was designed by prominent architect Willard G. Rogers in a classically-inspired manner with arched windows and solid masonry walls. The building was large enough to handle basketball games with built-in wooden bleachers surrounding the main floor on three sides. Since the school didn't have a football team, its basketball teams were important and the games were popular.

And now, this historic gymnasium has been adaptively reused and will serve as the Town of Davidson’s first indoor recreation center. Thank you to everyone who helped ensure the preservation of this building!

For more on the Davidson School: https://meck.co/4aew6Cf

The original Siloam School building was built in 1903 to provide Black students a quality education despite segregation. The school's original building, believed to have been a log structure, was replaced with the current building in the 1920s using a design very similar to the Rosenwald Schools, a collaborative effort by Sears-Roebuck president Julius Rosenwald and Tuskegee Institute founder Dr. Booker T. Washington. However, there is no known evidence that the Siloam Schoolhouse was funded by the Julius Rosenwald Fund.

As rural schools were consolidated into modern, centralized facilities in the mid-20th century, the Siloam School closed. The building was converted into a residence and, later, an auto shop. In 2005, a developer bought this property and several adjoining acres to construct an apartment complex.

The building deteriorated and was at risk of being demolished before the Charlotte Museum of History relocated it to the museum's campus in 2023. It was extensively renovated and now serves as a center for history education.

The Siloam School is located at 3500 Shamrock Drive, Charlotte. For more on its history: https://meck.co/4uEyJ7w

On June 16, 2003, Bryant Park was designated as a local historic landmark.

Bryant Park was one of Charlotte's first small-scale public parks, constructed to serve the Wesley Heights neighborhood. Its creation helped popularize the idea of small neighborhood parks, which provided recreation space for many Charlotte residents throughout the 20th century. Previous city parks were large, sprawling expanses of carefully landscaped natural areas, like Independence Park. If you live in Charlotte and have a neighborhood park nearby, its thanks to Bryant Park!

Bryant Park was established on 16 acres donated by prominent developer E.C. Griffith. Construction of the park started in 1930 but wasn't completed until about the mid-1930s due to the scarcity of public funding. The park offered some relief from industrial noise for west Charlotte residents with its softball field, horseshoe pits, and volleyball and tennis courts. Although much of the land and recreational amenities have been lost, the park's intricate stonework and terraced hillside leading to green playing fields remain.

Bryant Park is managed by Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation and is located at 1701 W. Morehead Street, Charlotte. For more on its history: https://meck.co/4p0iss4

The Faires Farm Silos are Mecklenburg County's newest designated historic landmarks!

These silos are the last known existing structures of the 330-acre Faires cattle farm, operated by Frank and Viola Faires. The silos stand less than two feet apart and represent the two most prominent construction technologies used for silos during the 20th century: one made from stacked rings of poured concrete that were shaped using concentric steel-plate circles; the other consisting of rows of interlocking square-shaped concrete staves pieced together by hand and reinforced with exterior steel bands.

Although the rural area where the Faires Farm was located has been developed and is now part of University City, the silos remain in their original location on a nearly four-acre lot, making them prominent yet isolated reminders of the County's agricultural history.

Historic Preservation Specialist Tommy Warlick provides a close-up view of the silos in this short and engaging video: https://meck.co/4xlRC1I

The Faires Farm Silos are located at 9520 Faires Farm Road in Charlotte. For more on their history: https://meck.co/4uLYSlb

East Charlotte is home to the unique Cohen-Fumero House, a rare surviving architect-designed Modernist house in Mecklenburg County.

This house was designed ca. 1961 by renowned architect Murray Whisnant for his friends, artists Herb Cohen and Jose Fumero, who wanted a place that was simple yet suitable for entertaining. The couple allowed Whisnant creative independence, telling him only that they wanted the design "as far out as possible." The house quickly became a social hub for Charlotte's artistic community.

In 2013, the Cohen-Fumero House became the first designated historic landmark associated with the history of Mecklenburg County’s LGBTQ+ community. The house remains a private residence and was recently and thoughtfully renovated by its current owner.

The Cohen-Fumero House is located at 1154 Cedarwood Lane, Charlotte. For more on its history: https://meck.co/4g5VnSC

The Historic Landmarks Commission welcomes your thoughts on two recommended historic landmark designations.

You're invited to attend the Historic Landmarks Commission's meeting on June 8, where public hearings for the designations of the Dilworth Methodist Church South (1829 Cleveland Avenue, Charlotte) and the Foard House (7410 Shady Lane, Charlotte) will be held.

Visit HL.MeckNC.gov for information on attending this meeting or to learn more about these properties.

We're excited to share that Settlers' Cemetery has been chosen as one of the sites for the Atlas Preservation 48 State Tour 2026! Only one cemetery in each of the contiguous 48 states is chosen annually, so this is a big deal for Settlers' Cemetery, which is the final resting place for many of Charlotte's early settlers.

This interactive event held on June 11 will include demonstrations on how to properly clean headstones using safe cleaning techniques. Participants will also have the chance to clean and help repair headstones.

The event is free and open to the public. For more details: https://meck.co/4vfFayL or 48 State Tour Archives

Thanks to those who rode along with us on our latest history bike tour as we celebrated both Historic Preservation Month and National Bike Month!

This ride went from South End through Uptown Charlotte and into NoDa, discussing how different modes of transportation shaped the Queen City.

A special thanks to our event partners, Charlotte Department of Transportation and Charlotte Spokes People, for helping plan this fun and informative bike tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgJwWFbRgnk

Want to join us next time? Sign up for our newsletter to keep up with our happenings: https://meck.co/4cHWbKd

May is not only Historic Preservation Month, but also part of snake season!

We’re here with a friendly reminder that if you see a snake or a historic landmark, or a snake ON a historic landmark!, stop and admire, take a picture, and go on about your day. They're both just doing their best trying to survive in the modern world.

A big thanks to our friends at Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation for letting us hang out with some corn snakes!

A few fun facts about corn snakes:
- They're also commonly called “red rat snakes.”
- Although they may resemble our local venomous snake, the copperhead, corn snakes are actually constrictors and are non-venomous.
- While they're generally fairly docile, they can bite if they feel threatened so giving them some space is appreciated!