Last month, my husband and I spent a week in Charlotte, N.C., on a work trip. Several members of his work team work in the Charlotte office and this was his first visit to that campus and first time meeting the majority of his team in person. I tagged along.
Each morning, I’d drop him off at his office, which was located in a very beautiful campus surrounded by lots of trees and greenery, and then spend the morning exploring some of what Charlotte has to offer. Then each afternoon, I’d head back to the hotel to get my own work done. He typically worked until about 7 p.m. then I’d pick him up and we’d try a different restaurant each night.
I thought I’d share a recap of my visit in case there’s anyone who reads this who is planning a trip to Charlotte and is looking for things to do.
History
Charlotte Museum of History
Aptly named, the Charlotte Museum of History is a good place to learn about Charlotte’s history. I started off with an exhibit about the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence. This disputed document allegedly was adopted on May 20, 1775, when residents of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, declared their independence from Great Britain.
However, this wasn’t widely known until more than 40 years later, in 1819, when a newspaper article was published that was written by a man who claimed that his father was present at the meeting where North Carolina citizens wrote this declaration of independence. This would mean that North Carolina was the first colony to declare its independence; nearly a full year before the official Declaration of Independence was officially adopted on July 4, 1776. The reason it’s disputed is because the document was supposedly destroyed in a fire and it was never verified.
Despite the dispute, there’s an option to have a “First in Freedom” message on the state’s license plate; the date is displayed on the state flag; and Meck Dec Day is still celebrated in the county each year on May 20.
While there are exhibits inside the museum building, what made the visit especially memorable was that the museum is located on the grounds of the oldest surviving house in Mecklenburg County – the 1774 Alexander Rock House.
As you walk along a path behind the museum building, an audio tour (on your phone) guides you through the history of the Alexander Homesite, a small plantation. The house was the home of Hezekiah Alexander, his wife, Mary, and their 10 children. He was one of the signers of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence. “Enslaved men and women helped build the site and their labors ensured that the farm flourished,” according to the museum, who also makes a point to share their names and stories, although the museum says there’s very limited information about them.
Walking on the grounds of a plantation was a powerful reminder of that inhumane period of American history when slavery was considered a “normal” part of life. Made me wonder how future generations will look at today’s American society.
Historic Rosedale
Another opportunity to learn more about life in Charlotte in its early days is Historic Rosedale. The Rosedale house was completed in 1815 and once stood on 900 acres. After the original owner, Charlotte postmaster and tax collector Archibald Frew, was about to go bankrupt, his brother-in-law, state senator William Davidson, gave him a loan to help prevent foreclosure. After Frew’s death, Davidson still owned it and eventually passed the property along to his daughter Harriet’s husband, Dr. David Caldwell.
The descendants of the Frew, Davidson and Caldwell families lived in the home for more than 150 years, until the last two remaining members of the family, two sisters, decided to sell the home and the remaining nine acres, in 1986. They sold it to the Mecklenburg Committee of the Colonial Dames of America, who restored the house to its early 1800s appearance. In 1993, Historic Rosedale opened to the public as a living museum and it’s the oldest Federal frame home still standing in Charlotte.
In addition to touring the house, you can also tour the gardens and “treasure trees,” which are trees throughout the county noted for their old age, historical significance, great size or unusual species.
As with the Alexander Homesite, there is ongoing research to learn more about the history of the enslaved (and eventually freed) individuals who lived at Historic Rosedale. A memorial to the 48 known enslaved individuals is on display in the garden. Guided tours of the house are available, where you learn more about the families and individuals who lived there.
Sullenberger Aviation Museum
Since my husband enjoys aviation museums, I planned a visit to the Sullenberger Aviation Museum for Sunday, the only day he had to do some sightseeing. The museum, located at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, opened in June 2024, and was previously known as the Carolinas Aviation Museum.
In case you don’t recognize the name, the museum’s namesake is Captain Chelsey “Sully” Sullenberger, the pilot known for the “Miracle on the Hudson.” After birds disabled both engines of Airways Flight 1549 on Jan. 15, 2009, Sully safely landed the plane into the Hudson River and all passengers survived. (Actor Tom Hanks portrayed the pilot in the film, “Sully.”) Since I both remember when that happened and saw the movie, I was especially intrigued with seeing that exhibit, which included the actual plane – and the destroyed engine.
There are a variety of military and commercial aircraft, as well as replicas of the Wright Brothers’ first glider and flyer. (Their first successful flight happened in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, which is why some North Carolina license plates say “First in Flight.”)
There was also an interesting exhibit about Charlotte’s aviation history that includes interactive displays.
Art
Charlotte Studio Artists
After the aviation museum, we thought we’d check out NoDa, an arts and entertainment district in North Charlotte. (Later in the week, I found out that NoDa is short for North Davidson, a street in the neighborhood, and that the Rosedale Plantation was on the land that later became the NoDa area. Though I haven’t found any evidence that Davidson Street was named after the Davidson family, I did wonder about that.)
When we were looking for parking, we saw a sign for an art show so we thought we’d check it out and that’s how we learned about Charlotte Studio Artists. The group of local artists has space in the Y in the NoDa neighborhood, where they have studios and display their work. Artist Walter Sanders kindly welcomed us and graciously also guided us through figuring out the parking situation. (FYI: Here and in other areas, signs in the parking lot have QR codes and you pay with your phone and enter your license plate.)
Not many artists were present on the day we visited, but their galleries were open so we could walk through them and view the art. Walter gave us a tour of the building and we got to see the wide variety of mediums, from paintings and ceramics to jewelry and mixed-media. The space not only features the work of the artists who have studios there, but they invite other artists to present their work in monthly exhibits and offer workshops.
The Mint Museum
I saved The Mint Museum for my last day, as it meant driving Uptown (Charlotte’s name for its downtown) and the crowded one-way road driving downtown usually stresses me out. I had considered taking the light rail instead, but then saw that that would mean a one-hour ride each way instead of an 18-minute drive so I decided to drive. (Though it ended up being longer than 18 minutes after a couple of missed turns and several loops throughout the parking garage, which is conveniently connected to the museum.)
There were lots of pretty things at the museum that were fun and interesting to look at. (OK, I’m not an art critic, so I’ll just share some pictures of some of the artwork I enjoyed rather than try to explain it.) But I especially enjoyed the Annie Leibovitz exhibit and seeing her photographs.
The museum has two locations, Uptown and Randolph, and they are both free on Wednesday evening so we had planned to go to the Randolph on Wednesday, but my husband ended up working late. So I’ll have to save that one for a future visit. The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art is also Uptown near The Mint Uptown so maybe I’ll try that next time, too.
The Evening Muse
I thought it would be fun to hear some music when we were in town and came across a band that was having a release show on our last night at The Evening Muse in the NoDa neighborhood. I checked out the band’s music, as well as songs by the opening band, and really liked both of them so put that on the calendar. Although we ended up getting there late (again, a later-than-expected work night, though of course that was actually the reason we were in Charlotte, so no complaints), we did get to hear a few songs and really enjoyed them. True Optimist released their song “Make Money All Day” the day before the show. Sorry we missed your set, Modern Moxie, maybe we’ll be able to catch you next time!
Lots of green
UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens
Coming from a Phoenix summer, being surrounded by so much greenery felt like such a luxury. Although the temperatures were in the 90s and humid, I decided to start the week off with a visit to the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens, which was a short drive away from our hotel.
The self-guided tour on the campus of The University of North Carolina at Charlotte starts with greenhouse rooms in the McMillian Greenhouse, that includes a dinosaur garden (with prehistoric vegetation), a collection of carnivorous plants and tropical plants, as well as orchids and a reminder of home (desert succulents).
Behind the greenhouses, you cross the campus road and enter the woodland garden to view Carolina-native plants and lots of trees. Despite the temperature, the morning walk wasn’t too hot since it’s mostly shaded – and if you miss dodging the sprinklers throughout, the splashes can cool you off.
On my husband’s last day of the work visit, we spotted a deer as we were leaving the campus!
Food
When traveling, we try to eat at restaurants we can’t find at home since part of the fun of traveling to different places is trying new restaurants. Here’s a roundup of some of the places we tried.
Oh My Soul: I first found about this vegan South African restaurant online before the trip and knew I wanted to try it. It’s located in the NoDa neighborhood and was delicious. Definitely will plan to return next time since there were so many things on the menu I wanted to try.
Optimist Hall: One of my husband’s co-workers recommended trying this place and I’m so glad they did. The building was formerly home to Charlotte’s largest textile mill built in 1892 is located north of Uptown. It’s a food hall – basically a fancy food court – so you get to pick from a wide variety of different restaurants. We opted for Bao and Broth, where we tried vegan ramen and a trio of buns: falafel, vegan BBQ (with jackfruit) and thai chili tofu. Yum!
Another highlight was Amelies, a French bakery in the NoDa neighborhood. From the moment I first saw the website before the trip and saw the pictures of macarons, I started craving them. When I realized the Historic Rosedale was less than five minutes away, I decided to pick up lunch from there to bring back to the hotel. Well, lunch, as well as a sample of treats to share with my husband later. They were all delicious!
After the show on Thursday night, we wanted to grab a bite to eat, again in the NoDa district. We decided to give Cabo Fish Taco a try. Another success!
The other restaurants we tried were near (or inside) our hotel, which were all good and convenient: Magic Sushi (which also offers an all-you-can-eat option though we didn’t try it), Mezeh Mediterranean Grill, Piada Italian Street Food and Edgewater Bar & Grille, which was in our hotel.
I hope you enjoyed this little tour of Charlotte! Thank you for your hospitality, Charlotte! (And a shoutout to Iris at Hilton Charlotte University Place for your cheerfulness and thoughtfulness each morning at breakfast!)
This article first appeared on the “Medley of Moments” Substack.
Leisah Woldoff 