Statesville tourist information
History surrounds all that live in Statesville and Iredell County. This city and county have triumphed, have suffered tragedies and there are memories and monuments to those occasions.
1753, Scots-Irish Presbyterians and German Lutherans who originally settled in Pennsylvania began arriving here to plant their crops in fertile soil where game and water were plentiful. The settlement, which became known as Fourth Creek Congregation, was named for the fresh water stream, the fourth creek west of the neighboring settlement of Salisbury. The center of the settlement was the log cabin where the Presbyterians worshiped and where First Presbyterian Church is located today. Adjacent to this church is the original cemetery where many of those pioneer settlers are buried.
In 1755, the royal Governor Arthur Dobbs authorized the construction of a frontier fort, which was, located approximately three miles due north of the Fourth Creek settlement. Named after the governor, Fort Dobbs was the western most U.S. fort and provided barracks for the militia and for citizens who needed occasional protection from the many active native Americans who roamed the area. Daniel Boone and his family stayed within the protective walls of the fort.
By 1788 the state legislature divided Rowan County and the new county was named Iredell for James Iredell, associate justice of the first Supreme Court during the presidency of George Washington.
One year later the legislature selected a spot for the county seat. The Fourth Creek Congregation was chosen and the settlement became known as Statesville.
As early as 1833, Statesville's leaders were pursuing the idea of railroads to connect the Piedmont area of North Carolina with the rest of the country. The only immediate benefit from this effort was improved stage routes. When the rails arrived in Statesville in 1858, the town was small and struggling to recover from a disastrous fire six years earlier that destroyed virtually everything. Located at the end of the rail line, Statesville soon began growing, leading the state in the production of tobacco and tobacco products, the manufacture and blending of whiskey, and was the largest distribution center of roots and herbs in the world. By 1862 there were two railroads operating in Statesville.
Following the Civil War, all rail lines to Statesville were severed, primarily to provide replacement railing in the areas where it was destroyed.
After struggling through the war, Statesville encountered its greatest damage four days after Confederate troops surrendered at Appomattox. Yankee invaders burned the two railroad depots and freight buildings and their contents, the local newspaper office, and stole everything of value they could find. Statesville, once larger than neighboring Charlotte, began rebuilding.
Preserving history is an important part of life in Statesville. Future generations, visitors and residents all enjoy a wide variety of historic places and cultural events.
Designed as a Main Street City in 1982, Statesville has been busy promoting growth and revitalization of the downtown retail district, now listed on the National Register of historic places, through the efforts of the Downtown Statesville Development Corporation (DSDC). Since that time, downtown has seen over 110 building renovations, constituting an investment of over $23 million.
Four residential districts represent housing as old as the mid-1800s. The Commercial Historic District in Downtown Statesville contains important buildings including the old First National Bank building with its landmark clock tower and City Hall, (the first post office/courthouse) the finest example of Romanesque architecture in the state of North Carolina.
The Mitchell College Historic District, just west of the Central Business District, surrounds Mitchell Community College and contains approximately 170 structures dating as far back as the mid 1800s. This district boasts the oldest homes in Statesville. The Lowenstein-Henkel House on Walnut Street is the most ornate Queen Anne Victorian in Iredell County and ranks among the top ten in North Carolina.
by Statesville Chamber of Commerce
Statesville aerial map
Please click on any icon on the Statesville aerial tourist map, to find close by places, offering hotels and tourist information. You can zoom in and zoom out our touristical map as well as switch between satelite and map view of Statesville.
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