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CHistory
History · Kannapolis

Kannapolis dates to 1906, and 11% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 31% of U.S. towns · #174 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it

Its Register listings are the Harvey Jeremiah Peeler House, the Gem Theatre and the Meek House. Below: 8 old photos and papers, maps from 1969 on, and the census since 1990.

1906founded
3on the National Register
11%homes built before 1940
8old photos & papers
23famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Kannapolis’ archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Kannapolis began

When was Kannapolis founded?

1906

Kannapolis dates its founding to 1906 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1990.

First census: 29,696 in 19902020 census: 53,114120 years

How historic is Kannapolis?

C

More historic than 31% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1838.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Kannapolis’ History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Kannapolis is more historic than 31% of U.S. towns, #174 of 290 in North Carolina. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Kannapolis’ overall grade.
Founding era1906, from Wikidata: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 194010.6% of homes (±1.8) · typical NC town 4.1% · U.S. 8.4%B−National Register3 listings, 5 historic buildings, 0.9 per 10,000 residents · typical NC town 12.5 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 31%
NewerOlder
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 40%

North Carolina towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical North Carolina town has 12.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Kannapolis’ 0.9 sits near the middle of its state (39% of North Carolina towns have fewer) while its 5 historic buildings outnumber those of 70% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B−. The pre-1940 share (±1.8 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1906.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Kannapolis’ past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Kannapolis, and 8 old place names are still on the map.Famous sons and daughtersGeorge Clinton, Dale Earnhardt and 21 more were born here.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Kannapolis’s post office has been open since 1907. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Coleman
1838–1843
Glass
1898–1919
Kannapolis
1907–today
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
CenterviewColemansGlassHeilmans MillNorth KannapolisRoyal OaksShady BrookWest Brook
Gone or out of use
McIver Schoolschool
1cemetery inside Kannapolis
Carolina Memorial Park

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Famous people

23 famous people were born in Kannapolis

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
George ClintonAmerican funk musician, singer, songwriter and … · b. 1941
Dale EarnhardtAmerican racing driver · b. 1951
D
Dale Earnhardt Jr.American racecar driver · b. 1974
Britt NicoleAmerican Christian singer-songwriter · b. 1985
E
Eddie MillsAmerican actor · b. 1972
Katie Geneva CannonAmerican theologian, first African American wom… · b. 1950
The story

How Kannapolis came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Kannapolis.

Read it all →

Early meaning and usage of the city's name was a direct reference to Cannon Mills Corporation, or James William Cannon himself. Early published name variations include "Cannon-opolis" and "Cannapolis". A widely accepted origin of the word "Kannapolis" comes from the combination of the Greek words kanna (reeds, not looms) and polis (city), which some believed meant "City of Looms". Dr. Gary Freeze, Catawba College history and politics department chairman, said a Concord newspaper used the name "Cannon City" in 1906. After mill workers or newspapers called the town "Cannapolis", J.W. Cannon asked Cabarrus County commissioners to give the town the name, but starting with a "K". Kannapolis historian Norris Dearmon said the K might have been to distinguish the town from his Concord mill village. Since, Freeze said, "Jim Cannon didn't study Greek," Cannon did not name the town "city of looms"…

ChaptersName

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Kannapolis, 1838 to 1985

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1838Post officeThe Coleman post office opens
  3. 1843Post officeThe Coleman post office closes
  4. 1898Post officeThe Glass post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1906
    FoundingKannapolis is established
  7. 1907Post officeThe Kannapolis post office opens
  8. 1912In the archiveThe Logical Conclusion of the Lassez (i.e., Laissez) Faires Policy. Herman Parker, said s…
  9. 1919Post officeThe Glass post office closes
  10. 1941Born hereGeorge Clinton is born here
  11. 1942In the archiveEleanor Roosevelt at YMCA in
  12. 1951Born hereDale Earnhardt is born here
  13. 1953In the archiveTelephone Directory for Kannapolis-China Grove N.C. [1953]
  14. 1969On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  15. 1974Born hereDale Earnhardt Jr. is born here
  16. 1982In the archiveWhat-A-Burger sign
  17. 1985Born hereBritt Nicole is born here
By decade

Kannapolis, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1910s to the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s5 items
The Logical Conclusion of the Lassez (i.e., Laissez) Faires Policy. Herman Parker, said six years old, and he and other…1912The Logical Conclusion of the Lassez (i.e., Laissez) …The Logical Conclusion of the Lassez (sic) Faires Policy. Herman Parker, said six years old, and he and others said he …1912The Logical Conclusion of the Lassez (sic) Faires Pol…The Logical Conclusion of the Lassez [sic] Faires Policy. Herman Parker, said six years old, and he and others said he …1912The Logical Conclusion of the Lassez [sic] Faires Pol…The Logical Conclusion of the Lassez [i.e., Laissez] Faires Policy. Herman Parker, said six years old, and he and other…1912The Logical Conclusion of the Lassez [i.e., Laissez] …A group of children attending the public school1912A group of children attending the public school
1940s–1980s3 items
Eleanor Roosevelt at YMCA in1942Eleanor Roosevelt at YMCA inTelephone Directory for Kannapolis-China Grove N.C. [1953]1953Telephone Directory for Kannapolis-China Grove N.C. […BookWhat-A-Burger sign1982What-A-Burger sign
1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today10 recent
Cooperative Extension training at PHHI2012Cooperative Extension training at PHHIUntitled photo2012Untitled photoLibrary2011LibraryKimball Memorial Lutheran Church, Kannapolis, N. C2011Kimball Memorial Lutheran Church, Kannapolis, N. CKannapolis NC 12011Kannapolis NC 1First Presbyterian Church, Kannapolis, N. C2011First Presbyterian Church, Kannapolis, N. CEM Ralph Earnhardt Grave2008EM Ralph Earnhardt GraveUS Navy 070519-N-3750S-254 These guys are really great, says a cub scout from Pack 315 while singing along and playing …2007US Navy 070519-N-3750S-254 These guys are really grea…Kannapolis Amtrak Station2006Kannapolis Amtrak StationNCMap-doton-Kannapolis2004NCMap-doton-Kannapolis
On the map

Kannapolis on the map, 1969 to 1985

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Kannapolis. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Kannapolis on the 1969 USGS mapKannapolis on the 1985 USGS map1969Concord sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Kannapolis.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

The Logical Conclusion of the Lassez (i.e., Laissez) Faires Policy. Herman Parker, said six years old, and he and other…
Retake this viewThe Logical Conclusion of the Lassez (i.e., Laissez) Faires Policy. Herman Parker, said six years old, and he and other…, 1912

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Kannapolis’ page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

3 historic places in Kannapolis

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
5
each building in a district counts
first listed
2001
Meek House
Harvey Jeremiah Peeler HouseGem TheatreMeek House
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Craftsman/Bungalow1
Colonial Revival1
Federal1
Greek Revival1
Harvey Jeremiah Peeler HouseCraftsman/Bungalow
Gem TheatreBuilding
All 3 listings
Meek HouseBuilding · listed 2001

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Kannapolis, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00045,00050,00055,00020002020Peak: 53,114

Between 29,696 and 53,114 people in every census since 1990.

4 censuses, 1990–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Kannapolis’ Wikipedia page.

Help out

Finish Kannapolis’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
4 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewThe Logical Conclusion of the Lassez (i…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Concord13 historic placesA−LandisIts storyDEnochvilleIts storyCDavidson6 historic placesB+

Questions about Kannapolis’ history

What year was Kannapolis founded?

In 1906, according to Wikidata. Kannapolis’ post office opened in 1838, and the census of 1990 counted 29,696 people here.

How does Kannapolis rank for history?

Kannapolis is more historic than 31% of U.S. towns, #174 of 290 in North Carolina. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Kannapolis?

Three places: the Harvey Jeremiah Peeler House (listed 2007), the Gem Theatre (2019) and the Meek House (2001).

How old are the homes in Kannapolis?

11% of Kannapolis’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.8 points), against a typical 4.1% for a North Carolina town; the median home was built in 1989.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (15), the Library of Congress (3), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.