This year’s July Fourth celebrations mark the nation’s 250th anniversary of independence. At the Charlotte Museum of History, a new exhibit is giving community members a closer look at the American Revolution.
Inside the museum on Shamrock Drive, visitors are handed a tablet as they enter.
“If you slide it, it will show you what that area looked like back then as well as today,” a museum representative said.
The technology lets visitors see what Charlotte looked like more than 200 years ago and play a game.
“So, you have a little treasure map. You can collect a bunch of little treasures, like a scavenger hunt,” the museum representative said.
Wandering through the American Revolution exhibit is Lynn Kelly, a retired attorney. Kelly stops at a small sculpture of Capt. James Jack. The captain wears a hat and holds a sword as he rides a horse.
“I’ve never heard about Captain Jack,” Kelly said.
Jack was a local Revolutionary War hero who rode from Charlotte to Philadelphia in 1775 to deliver documents that helped Mecklenburg County in its push for independence. Kelly said the story shows what freedom meant to people in the region.
“They were serious about independence,” Kelly said. “They were organized and heroic.”
Nearby, a nest displayed in a glass case explains why Charlotte is often called the Hornet’s Nest. In 1780, British Lord Cornwallis and his army occupied the city. After facing intense resistance from locals, Cornwallis fled and reportedly called Charlotte a “hornet’s nest of rebellion.”
“I think it shows you need vast participation,” Kelly said. “By grassroots and community organizing, you can’t have these kinds of changes come from the top down. It has to be vast and enthusiastic and community-based.”
The exhibit also features a letter from Queen Charlotte of Great Britain, the city’s namesake and the wife of King George III.
“Honestly, having to tie up to the crown and name your city after the crown in order to gain favor with them is probably one of the reasons that some of the people in Charlotte felt like they should organize a revolution,” Kelly said.
At the center of the exhibit, a detailed diorama helps visitors imagine what uptown Charlotte looked like more than two centuries ago. Nolan Dahm, a historian with the museum, points out key locations.
“You’re looking at a courthouse that the patriots defended and then the British occupied,” Dahm said. “You’re looking at a local college that folks here had set up that the British used as their hospital, and then they buried their dead there. There are still British soldiers buried underneath uptown Charlotte, right off Tryon Street.”
A few feet away stands a model of the Rock House, the oldest home in Mecklenburg County and the oldest surviving house from the Revolutionary War era in Charlotte. The home was built by enslaved people.
“Charlotte is a place with a lot of diverse history,” Dahm said. “Charlotte is a place where you can learn about civil rights, but Charlotte is also a place where you can learn about the revolution.”
Down the hallway, the exhibit widens its focus. A large American flag hangs in a room that shifts attention from Charlotte to the broader war for independence. Audio plays recounting major moments, including British army movements near Philadelphia.
The room also highlights national events such as the decisive Battle of Yorktown, which helped end the war.
Seventy-year-old Richard Ames said ancestors in his family fought in the American Revolution, and Ames hopes the exhibit helps others feel connected to that history.
“Looking back at our history, understanding where we’ve come from, I think it’s important,” Ames said. “History tends to repeat itself, and we need to be aware of what’s happened in the past and make sure we don’t make the same mistakes in the future.”
As the country approaches its 250th Independence Day on July 4, Ames said he hopes more community members walk away with a clearer sense of where they come from and what freedom means today.
