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History Timeline

1903 - Flight in Kitty Hawk

December 17, 1903 - On a windy bluff on North Carolina's outerbanks, Orville Wright takes flight in a powered airplane. He is the first person to accomplish this feat. His 100-foot trip lasts 12 seconds. Orville and his brother, Wilbur, traveled here from their Ohio bicycle shop to take advantage of the coastal winds at Kill Devil Hills.

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1921 - Governor Morrison

Cameron Morrison is the third Charlottean to serve as North Carolina's governor. His tireless campaign for better roads will earn him a nickname: the Good Roads Governor. In 1926, he will build a farm southeast of Charlotte and call it Morrocroft. It will have 750 cattle, 300 pigs, and 50,000 chickens. Within 50 years, the Morrocroft farm will give rise to some of Charlotte's most prestigious suburbs: Southpark, Barclay Downs and Foxcroft.Governor Cameron Morrison

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1938 - A Room of Her Own

In a boarding house on East Boulevard, author Carson McCullers is at work. She will win national acclaim when her novel, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, is published in 1940. McCullers is one of many writers who spend time in Charlotte during their careers.

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1914 - Archduke Killed

July 28, 1914 - The European nation of Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, one month after a Serbian kills the Archduke of Austria-Hungary. World War I begins. The deadliest war in history to date, it will last nearly five years. The U.S. will remain uninvolved, or neutral, for three years.

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1922 - Charlotte Airwaves

April 10, 1922 - With 100 watts of power, WBT signs on the air. It is one of the nation's first radio stations. By the 1930s, WBT will be broadcasting the popular adventure series, The Lone Ranger. Country music artists who hope to find success play and sing as devoted listeners tune in. By 1992, WBT will broadcast its signal with 98,000 watts of power, nearly 100 times more than when it began.

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1938 - Trolley Service Ended

March 14, 1938  - Old #85 makes its last run as buses replace Charlotte's streetcars. The city continues to grow, and the streetcars that made turn-of-the-century suburban development possible are being replaced. In a poignant ceremony at the city's crossroads known as the Square, people bid goodbye to the beloved trolley. Charlotte Streetcar

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1914 - Women's Suffrage

November 9, 1914 - Across the nation, a movement called Suffrage has been gathering support since Revolutionary days. Women are allowed to vote in some states, but not in North Carolina. Today, Charlotte's Selwyn Hotel hosts the state's first suffrage convention. Only when the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution passes will women win this crucial right in 1920.Suffragettes

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1923 - Good Works

Charlottean I.D. Blumenthal opens Radiator Specialties. He will begin a legacy of charity and goodwill, called philanthropy. The Blumenthal family will help raise money for community education and to care for the elderly. A modern performing arts center will bear the Blumenthal name.

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1939 - War in Europe

September 1, 1939 - After years of growing tensions among European countries, Germany invades neighboring Poland. This marks the beginning of World War II. Over the next two years, Germany will invade nine other countries. The U.S. will try to remain uninvolved, or neutral, in the fighting. 

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1915 - Sinking of the Lusitania

May 7, 1915 - Germany dominates Europe's war. A German submarine sinks a British passenger ship, the Lusitania. Nearly 1,200 non-military people, or civilians, die, including more than 100 Americans. Germany claims the ship is carrying war supplies. But the British deny it. The American public begins to support U.S. involvement in the war.

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