Charlotte Mecklenburg Library

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Charlotte Postcard Collection

Johnson C. Smith University

 
First known as Biddle University, Johnson C. Smith University was founded in 1870 on Beatties Ford Road. Colonel W.R. Myers donated the land. The school was named for its financial benefactor, Mary Biddle. On March 1, 1923, the school changed its name to Johnson C. Smith University in honor of another donor. In the center of the postcard is Biddle Hall (1884), and on the right is the Carnegie Library (1911).

Physical Description: 3 x 5 postcard

Publisher:

Liberty Life Building

A night time view of the Liberty Life Building in Charlotte at 112 South Tryon Street. Originally known as the First National Bank in 1927, the name changed in 1940 when Liberty Life Insurance Company of Greenville, South Carolina purchased the property.

Physical Description: 3 x 5 postcard

Publisher:

Catawba River

The postcard is misleading as there is no Lake Catawba in Mecklenburg County. It is in fact a portion of the Catawba River. The latter rises in the Blue Ridge Mountains on the Buncombe-McDowell County line and flows through McDowell and Burke County before continuing down through Caldwell, Alexander, Iredell, Lincoln, Mecklenburg and Gaston. It enters South Carolina approximately twenty-one miles west of Charlotte and joins the Big Wateree River.

Physical Description: 3 x 5 postcard

Publisher: Curteich Company, Chicago, Illinois

Joseph Benjamin Ivey's Tulip Garden

Joseph Benjamin Ivey (d. 1958) opened his tulip garden to the public each April. The garden contained over 35,000 tulips of different varieties.

Physical Description: 3 x 5 postcard

Publisher:

YWCA Hostess House at Camp Greene

YWCA established a facility at Camp Greene during World War I. Organized sports activities were available. The Hostess House enabled soldiers to entertain visiting family members and write letters home using YMCA stationary.

Physical Description: Postcard with photograph

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Douglas Municpal Airport

The Charlotte Municpal Airport opened in 1936 under the auspices of the city of Charlotte. During World War II, the United States Army Airforce  took over the management of the airport and established Morris Field Air Base in 1941. The airfield was used by the Third Airforce for antisubmarine patrols and training. After the war, a passenger terminal was added, and the airport was renamed the Douglas Municipal Airport in honor of Mayor Ben E. Douglas (1894-1981).

Physical Description: 3 x 5 postcard

Publisher: Dexter Press

Central High School

Central High School was opened around 1908. Located on Elizabeth Avenue, the building is now part of the Central Piedmont Community College's campus.

Physical Description: 3 x 5 postcard

Publisher:

Clark Griffith Baseball Stadium

From 1941 to 1971, the baseball stadium was known as Clark Griffith Stadium in honor of the Washington, DC baseball owner. Jim Crockett purchased the ball park in 1971, and thereafter was known as Crockett park. The stadium was the home of the Charlotte Hornets from 1941 to 1976 when the Orioles took over the baseball team. In 1985, three arsonists burned down the facility, and it was not rebuilt.

Physical Description: postcard packet

Publisher: Dexter Press

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