The History of Concord
Although Cabarrus County government was organized by the newly formed Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions at its first meeting on January 21, 1793. The dispute over the location of the seat of government continued until 1795. A town to be named "Concord" was laid off on a 26 acre tract of land lying on the ridge near the old Indian Trading Path and to the west of Three Mile Branch. Concord was incorporated in 1806. During the early years several churches were built in Concord. Industry began in Concord with the organization of the first cotton mill in 1839 to the north of the town limits on a location which is now the site of Locke Mill Plaza. Later, the city limits and Union Street were extended to the factory. By 1842 machinery had been installed, during the 1850's the location of the railroad helped the mill grow. Following the end of the Civil War, Jim Cannon, at age 16, followed his older brother David to Concord. The small town had muddy streets and frame buildings, without sidewalks or street lamps, but had the small cotton mill which was started in 1839 and another valuable asset: the North Carolina Railroad ran just to its west, so cotton and other goods could easily be shipped to market. Captain J. M. Odell, a native of Randolph County, purchased the Concord Cotton Factory at a distress sale in 1877. Before he was 21, Jim Cannon had already established a reputation for hard work and integrity. In 1887 he organized the first of his textile companies in Concord. As demands for "Cannon Cloth" grew, he opened a new plant in Concord in 1892. With the success of the great mills, no city in North Carolina had more vitality and excitement than 1890 Concord. The town's population had more than doubled to 1600 persons in 1880, and then to 4,000 persons by 1890. Near the depot, R. A. "Bus" Brown was forming 35,000 bricks a day at his new steam-driven plant, trying to keep up with all the construction in town. From the depot, visitors to town could ride on the new steam street railway. By 1900, Concord's population had swelled to 8,000 persons. Concord's excellent public school system was established in Concord in 1891. A city fire department was officially organized on December 21, 1900, replacing the all volunteer Concord Hose and Reel Company which had operated since its organization in 1887. Concord was also moving from the days of the horse and buggy into modern transportation during those first decades of the new century. In 1908 the Board of Aldermen approved a franchise for a street railway. The inaugural run of the battery operated street car in the United States was made in Concord in the fall of 1910. The battery needed constant recharging, however, and the car proved to be unsatisfactory. It was replaced in 1912 by a traditional trolley car which operated along the old tracks for about a decade longer. The city continued its steady growth, its population increasing from 7,910 in 1900 to 8,715 in 1910 and 9,903 a decade later. During those decades of growth, the population of Concord had increased from about 9,000 persons in 1916 to about 13,500 persons in 1936. The city's principal industries included cotton manufacturing and hosiery mills, bleachery and finishing plants, an oil mill, ice plant, lumber mills, foundry and gas plant, and two wholesale grocery houses which served Cabarrus County and parts of all the surrounding counties. Concord's population in 1986 increased from 18,465 to 26,149 due to annexation. The highly developed area was rich in industry, and included the huge $100 million Phillip Morris, U. S. A., cigarette manufacturing complex, earlier the giant motorsports complex centered around the Charlotte Motor Speedway had been added to the city. Concord continues to grow due to its location to Charlotte and the Racing Industry, and its small town charm.