"Queen City of the South" a Charlotte Travel Page by etfromnc

Founded in 1769 and named for Queen Charlotte of England, wife of King George III, the city of Charlotte has a heritage strongly influenced by an influx of Scots and Irish settlers, the late 18th Century discovery of gold, and development of a variety of industries, especially agriculture, textiles, and financial services.

The North Carolina Department of Tourism describes Charlotte as follows:
"Charlotte, with a booming population of 500,000, has become the second-leading financial center in the nation, second only to New York City. But many decades earlier, in the aftermath of the Civil War, Charlotte was a village of 5,000. Vast cotton fields across the Piedmont led to a focal point in and around the Charlotte region."

Charlotte does not have a RiverWalk, an Inner Harbor, nor any world famous historic relics. Have you ever been anywhere and enjoyed the visit but knew that you would not want to live there? Charlotte is just the opposite. It offers all of the amenities of other large cities and is conveniently located near three lakes, which offer every imaginable opportunity for water sports from fishing and swimming to waterskiing, but it is still not the most exciting place in the world to visit. It is a wonderful place to live, however. I know because I grew up here, literally lived all around our country plus two other continents and chose to return to Charlotte. I may not live here forever but for now I am here. Give me a call if you are in the area, or better yet send me an e-mail beforehand and we will try to help you have a memorable time while you are here.
Although my home is literally in Matthews, I consider Charlotte my "home town" because I grew up there and because Matthews is a small town on the outskirts of Charlotte.

Charlotte is ranked the 6th ‘brainiest’ city among America’s largest municipalities based on residents with higher education degrees, but the 38th ‘smartest’ large American city when it comes to becoming a healthy and sustainable community positioned for success in the 21st century. Why the gap? Are we at risk of rapidly losing our quality of life because we are not creative enough? What can we do to infuse our city with the intelligence needed for resilience and positive change? How can Charlotte enhance and effectively draw upon its intelligence to thrive?