Indian Trail
is a town with a rich heritage. Most people know Indian Trail for the trading
route which was established in the seventeenth century. This path ran between
Petersburg, Va. to the Waxhaw Indian settlement; thus, the name "Indian
Trail." Prior to permanent white settlement, the region was primarily the
province of the Waxhaws. Due to its geographic location settlers
came to the area from three sources....Highland Scots of the Sandhills
region, German settlers who came down from the Catawba Valley, and others
who traveled water routes from South Carolina. Land grants
were issued to newcomers in 1752 and continued for another quarter century.
The
first post office in Indian Trail was established on March 12, 1861 with
Cyrus Stevens as postmaster. It was discontinued in 1866, but reopened
under Henry Stevens in 1870 and flourished into modern times.
In 1912, James Orr built a commercial block which still stands. It
was used for various establishments, including a general store, post office,
and movie theatre.
Before the town was incorporated, it was a big farming community. Scotch-Irish
and German settlers moved into the area before the American Revolution.
In 1874 the Seaboard Railroad was completed in the county. It ran from
Charlotte to Monroe and went through Indian Trail. The railroad helped
the town prosper by making it easier for people to get in and out of town
and making goods and services more available. Gold mining was
important to the community...about 100 residents strong in 1897.
A business directory lists W.H. Phifer and Co., Eli Hemby and Co., and
Thing and Co. as local mining enterprises. General stores were
operated by A.J. Williams and Hemby & Leonard.
The
first church was built in 1901, the Indian Trail Methodist, followed by
the Indian Trail Presbyterian Church in 1913. The Indian Trail Presbyterian
Church (shown here) met in a nearby school until the congregation voted
to build a church in 1916. History records that William
Henry Belk, the founder of the Belk Department Store chain, offered to
furnish either the bricks for the church or a sum equivalent to the cost
of bricks. The congregation, when discussing construction,
voted unanimously for stone....a decision which has made the church a landmark
in North Carolina.
The town became incorporated in 1907, with the city limits being designated
as a circle one-half mile in radius from a point in the center of the railroad
tracks.
In 1912 the population of the town was about 300. Things continued to
look bright until the Great Depression when all fell apart. It wasn't until
the 1960's when the future appeared brighter. Both people and industries
began to see advantages in residing outside large cities. Indian Trail's
growth began to spurt again.
The Indian Trail school was erected in 1923 although it had been organized
since 1903. Originally all grades were taught at this school. (The
photo at right is the sixth grade class of 1928). Now, however, growth
has been so substantial that only grades K-5 can be taught. The original
building still stands among the new additions of recent years.
Electricity came to Indian Trail in late 1927. Telephone service is
reported to have started in approximately 1900 and in 1901 shared the only
direct line to Charlotte with Matthews. The phone system changed hands
several times between then and 1955 when purchased by the North Carolina
Telephone Company, which has evolved into present day Alltel system.
The Town of Indian Trail has a wonderful park. Cecil Rogers provided
the town with 15 acres of land for an athletic field. He named the park
after his wife and used her maiden name - Edna Love.
We wish to thank Eagle Scout Nick Jones and Michael Hill of the N.C.
Department of Cultural Resources for their research. A "Corner
Museum" of the history of Indian Trail is located at Town Hall.
The
lines separating the Indian, Tree and Cotton represent the Indian path
which ran through the area. This path formed a link between Indians living
in the Catawba River Basin and natives of the Rocky River Valley. In the
17th Century this path served as a colonial trading path between Petersburg,
Virginia to the Waxhaw Indian Settlement.