A brand new 5-part series comes to the Mint Hill Library featuring Dr. Tom Hanchett, formerly of the Levine Museum of the New South and now the first Historian in Residence for the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library. The series will take place on the first Tuesday of each month to discuss history.
This is the only series Dr. Hanchett is doing for the library and it is ONLY here in Mint Hill! Below is the tentative schedule of topics to be discussed. We will have a casual atmosphere where folks are welcome to come to chat with Dr. Hanchett about their historical interests and learn more about our larger community. The programs will begin at 1 p.m. and run for roughly an hour or more.
January 7 — Queen King Duke Crown: Mecklenburg History 101. Join community historian Dr. Tom Hanchett for a fun and informative journey through our area’s history, from Colonial-era Queen Charlotte up to today’s newest immigrants. Bring your questions about this place we call home!
Feb 4 — Rosenwald Schools: remembering rural education. For Black History Month, Dr. Hanchett looks back at country schools — both white and black — with emphasis on the Rosenwald School movement which built more than 5000 African American schools across the South.
March 3 — Women Changing Charlotte. March is Women’s History Month, a great time to see how women have moved into leadership roles — from TV news to non-profit management to politics — especially in the 1970s – 1980s. Please share your own memories!
April 7 — Our Charlotte Region. An overview of the historic forces that tie together Charlotte and its surrounding communities. Discover stories of Indian trading paths and Colonial settlement, gold mines and cotton mills, banking and booming expansion today. Based on Dr. Tom Hanchett’s book Sorting Out the New South City — he’ll have copies of the new edition available.
May 5 — The South in the Funny Pages. If you are of a certain age, you grew up reading Snuffy Smith, Lil’ Abner and Pogo in the daily newspaper. Delve into the history behind those comic strips – and how they shaped both positive and negative images of the South and Southerners.
