Mount Holly, NC

I lived in Mount Holly 47 years of my 75 years. It is a small, Southern town that has revitalized itself in recent years and that is still going on with additions monthly and many renovations. But it’s the people that are the cornerstone here and that make it such a great place to live. Charlotte is only 18 miles away, but here it is, a small Southern town with grace.

Stories About Mount Holly

There are many places of worship in Mount Holly and I believe that accounts for the way people respect and respond to one another.

About 18 months ago, the First Baptist Church caught fire and the sanctuary was damaged. The other churches in town invited members to use their facilities, and the Grand Hall, which is part of an old renovated mill on East Central and which also now hold our police department as well as some medical facilities, was given to the Church for services until they could upgrade another room in their facility that was not damaged into a place for services. Plans are on the board for the sanctuary to be rebuilt using the former frame, which was declared safe.

I teach in an art studio called Create In Us that was started by three young women in their 30’s who are still having children. Their studio embodies that strength that is here with caring owners. We have a prayer wall in the studio and people know they can come to Create In Us and find support and help for a variety of things — not just art.

We have a venue twice a year called Merry Market, which is an indie market where everything is made by hand and people come from all over to see what new things are there for spring or Christmas. The ladies who run it try to include all kinds of treasures so people are always surprised by what is there.

A few years ago we founded a foundation that is taking the lead in getting the town up and running with improvements and downtown stores going again. They just opened a new section of a greenway down the side of the Catawba River (which runs beside our town) that will eventually run all the way to Interstate 85. The Arts are becoming a real part of our little town with a newly opened gallery on Central Avenue. Charlie’s Drug Store has been in this town since the 1940’s and although it has changed locations a couple of times, it is a center for the best Orange Aide you will ever drink (from the real thing), and you can get a fantastic hotdog every day until 4 p.m. Several years ago the old Train Depot was turned into a Hair Salon called Eduo. It is a place of business but the history remains intact. In the late Spring and Summer on Friday nights, you can find a host of people in downtown enjoying the food trucks and a band. Some dance, some watch, some just enjoy being a part of Friday Night Fun.

Every Saturday Morning you will find a host of people at our farmer’s market, where vendors come from near and far to sale their produce during late spring, summer and early fall. White Tents dot the parking off Main Street and it is fun to see what new cooking chef will show us their latest craft under the main tent. Every Fourth of July many young parents, older seniors, wagons, tricycles, bicycles and anything that can move forms a parade to go through town waving flags and celebrating our nation’s founding. Bright Star is a local hamburger place that has been a part of the landscape since the early 50’s, maybe longer. It is on a side road and not part of downtown, but people flock there daily.