Charlotte Mecklenburg Library

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Nation: America 1782-1819

1803 - Louisiana Purchase

All of the land from the mouth of the Mississippi River in Louisiana, north to Canada and west to the Rocky Mountains -- 828,000 acres -- becomes part of the U.S. The Louisiana Purchase will be the largest expansion to the country's boundaries at a cost of $15 million, or about 3¢ per acre.

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1791 - Washington's Visit

May 28, 1791 - George Washington, who has promised to visit all of the states, arrives in Charlotte. People have lined up for hours to catch a glimpse of our nation's first president. Washington dines with Thomas Polk, and calls on prominent citizens. While staying at Cook's Inn, he leaves behind a powder box, which contains the white powder used to adorn the wigs worn by both men and women. But he is most remembered for describing Charlotte as a trifling place.

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1819 - Economic Depression

North Carolina is in financial trouble. Many people do not like the paper money, called bank notes. Citizens demand that banks give them instead the gold or silver that the money represents. But there is not enough of the gold and silver to give everyone. Instead of spending their money, people hoard it. North Carolina slumps into an economic downturn, called a depression.

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1792 - Cabarrus County

December 29, 1792 -  Cabarrus County is formed, created from the north-western section of Mecklenburg. No one yet suspects that in just a few years, the new county will draw everyone's attention when an important discovery is made there. The land in Cabarrus County contains gold.

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