Mecklenburg People

John Alexander

An 1852 honors graduate of Davidson College, this Mecklenburg native came from one of Charlotte's most prominent families. He was descended from Rev. Alexander Craighead and Mecklenburg patriot John McKnitt Alexander. John Brevard Alexander (1834-1911) graduated from the Medical College of South Carolina at the top of his class in 1855. He was a Civil War surgeon with Company C, NC 37th Infantry. He returned to Charlotte after the war and in 1890 moved to North Tryon Street. Until ill health befell him in 1898 he managed a Charlotte drug store. Also a historian, Dr.

Charles Chesnutt

Charles Waddell Chesnutt (1858-1932) was born during the era of slavery to parents who were free Blacks. He was the best known North Carolina author of African-American descent in his era. As a young man, he worked in his father's Fayetteville grocery store. By the age of 16, he had come to Charlotte to teach the city's black schoolchildren. He had an intense thirst for knowledge. At a time when few educational opportunities existed for black Americans, he studied math, music, literature and languages.

Wilbert Harrison

Wilbert H. Harrison (1929-1994), the son of James William and Nancy Grafton Harrison, was born on January 5, 1929, in Charlotte, NC. One of 22 children, Wilbert spent his early childhood at 936 Oliver St. in Charlotte. His mother also raised 25 foster children and died at age 90. Many of his family still live in the Charlotte area.

John Alexander

John McKnitt Alexander (1733 - 7/10/1817) was one of the original signers of the Meckenburg Declaration of Independence.He is probably one of the most famous signers. Born in Maryland, his came to Mecklenburg County with some siblings. His brother, Hezekiah, built a home that is reportedly one of the oldest homes in the county. When he arrived, he settled in the Hopewell section (north) of Mecklenburg County, before it was established in 1762. After arriving he left the occupation of tailor and became a surveyor.

Grady Cole

Grady Cole (1906-1979) was one of WBT's most popular personalities in the early days of the radio. From 1931 until his retirement in 1961 his radio program was heard throughout the southeast. His popularity with listeners made him such a well known figure that it was once estimated that seventy percent of the Charlotte radio audience listened to his noon news and farm reports and that eight out of ten people in the WBT listening area instantly recognized his voice.

Waightstill Avery

Waightstill Avery (May 10, 1741-March 13, 1821), the first attorney general of North Carolina, was born in Groton, Connecticut. He attended Princeton College and later taught at the college. He then studied law. After completing his training, he moved to North Carolina. He lived in Salisbury and then moved to Charlotte where he boarded with Hezekiah Alexander. He was a resident of Charlotte when he was elected to the provincial assembly. Avery served on the committee that passed the Mecklenburg Resolves in May of 1775. He served on the provincial council.

Nathaniel Alexander

Nathaniel Alexander (1756-1808) was the first Charlottean to be elected North Carolina's governor. Born in Mecklenburg County, he was first educated in a log schoolhouse but graduated from Princeton University at the age of 20. During the Revolutionary War despite a scarcity of medical supplies, he was a surgeon with the NC Regiment of the Continental Army fighting the British. He practiced medicine in South Carolina after the war but returned to Charlotte. He was elected to the NC House of Commons (1797), the state Senate (1801 and 1802) and the U.S. Congress (1803-05).

John Davidson

Born in Pennsylvania, John Davidson (1735-1832) moved with his family to Rowan County around 1750, after his father's death. Davidson became a blacksmith and arrived in Mecklenburg County about 1760. He sold grain and livestock, and along with Thomas Polk, helped establish Charlotte as the Mecklenburg County seat.

William "LeGette" Blythe

Perhaps the most respected journalist and versatile author in Mecklenburg County's history, LeGette Blythe, as he was known, (1900 - 1993) got his professional training at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. There he studied with Thomas Wolfe, another famous North Carolina writer. Journalism was his first career, having worked for The Charlotte News and The Charlotte Observer.

Louis Asbury

Lewis H. Asbury (1877-1975) was one of Charlotte's first architects and, as the first North Carolina member of the American Institute of Architects, had a significant impact on the development of the organization in North Carolina. Lewis Asbury was a native Charlottean. He was a graduate of Trinity College, now Duke University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He opened his office in Charlotte.

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