The Museum of the Waxhaws

The Museum of the Waxhaws The Museum of the Waxhaws is administered by the Andrew Jackson Historical Foundation, Inc. Recreational walking, running, hiking, dog walking, etc.
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The Museum of the Waxhaws is Union County’s cultural and history learning center. We are a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization managed by a Board of Directors. The Museum showcases and demonstrates history and culture to visitors in the context of indoor and outdoor exhibits, artistic performances, historical reenactments, and group tours. The basis of our mission is to teach residents of Union County

about our regional history. For security reasons, when our facility is closed our grounds and outdoor exhibits are NOT open to the public. are NOT allowed on museum ground at any time. Commercial/Professional photography is prohibited. Pets are not allowed on the grounds.

EXPERIENCE THE REVOLUTION BEYOND THE BATTLEFIELDStep inside the encampment and enter the world of the American Revolutio...
09/01/2026

EXPERIENCE THE REVOLUTION BEYOND THE BATTLEFIELD

Step inside the encampment and enter the world of the American Revolution during the Battle of Charlotte American Revolution Weekend, September 26–27 at the Museum of the Waxhaws.

History comes alive all around you from soldiers preparing for battle to the women, families, craftspeople, and camp followers whose lives were forever changed by the fight for independence.

Walk among the tents. Hear the crack of muskets and the roar of artillery. Watch cavalry demonstrations, explore daily life in an 18th-century encampment, and experience dramatic battle reenactments including the Battle of Charlotte and McIntyre’s Farm: The Battle of the Bees.

This is more than a battle. It is an opportunity to meet the people, witness the struggles, and experience the stories behind the Revolution. Step into the encampment. Experience the Revolution. Watch history come alive.

GOLD FEVER IN THE WAXHAWS!When you hear “gold rush,” you probably picture California. But long before prospectors headed...
09/01/2026

GOLD FEVER IN THE WAXHAWS!

When you hear “gold rush,” you probably picture California. But long before prospectors headed west, people were searching for gold right here in the Carolina Piedmont and the Waxhaws became part of that story.

North Carolina’s gold rush began with a discovery in 1799, when young Conrad Reed found a gold nugget in nearby Cabarrus County. News of gold eventually sent people searching creek beds and hillsides across the region. North Carolina led the nation in gold production until 1848.

Here near Waxhaw, one of the best-known connections is the Howie Gold Mine.

Its mining history stretched from the nineteenth century into the twentieth. NCpedia dates the Howie Mine’s operations from 1840 to 1942 a reminder that local gold mining continued long after the first excitement of the gold rush. Union County also had other operations, including the Smart Mine.

But finding gold involved far more than spotting something shiny.

Early prospectors searched stream deposits, separating heavier gold from sand and gravel. As mining expanded, workers followed gold-bearing rock underground. That meant digging shafts, hauling rock, and using machinery to process ore. Underground mining demanded much more money, equipment, and labor than searching a creek bed. 

Imagine the hope behind every shovel of earth and the disappointment when hours of work produced little to show for it.

Our gold mining exhibit pictured at the Museum of the Waxhaws invites us to explore this chapter of our area’s past. Behind the glitter of gold lies a story of hard work, ambition, and people searching for opportunity beneath the Carolina soil.

Come discover the history in your own backyard!

Visit the Museum of the Waxhaws, open every Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m., and by appointment for private tours, group tours, and field trips.

Did you know gold mining was part of the Waxhaws’ history?

BEFORE REFRIGERATORS: THE SPRINGHOUSE AT THE MUSEUM OF THE WAXHAWSImagine a hot Carolina afternoon before electricity. Y...
08/31/2026

BEFORE REFRIGERATORS: THE SPRINGHOUSE AT THE MUSEUM OF THE WAXHAWS

Imagine a hot Carolina afternoon before electricity. You’ve milked the cow, churned the butter, and worked hard for everything on your table. How do you keep it cool?

For many rural families, the answer was a springhouse.

This photograph offers a look inside the springhouse at the Museum of the Waxhaws. Its stone walls, wooden beams, and large stone basin help tell the story of a household necessity we rarely think about when opening our refrigerators today.

Traditionally, springhouses were built over a natural spring or arranged to receive flowing water. Cool water moved through a basin or channel, surrounding crocks and other containers holding milk, butter, and other perishable foods. The water helped carry away heat, keeping the contents cooler and slowing spoilage. ⁠

The secret wasn’t ice—it was moving water.

Springhouses also provided space for dairy work, making them an important part of the farm’s daily routine. Their design put a natural water source to practical use, long before an electric refrigerator became a household fixture.

Think about the effort behind a single pat of butter: tending the cow, milking, separating cream, churning, and then keeping the finished butter cool. A small building could help protect hours of a family’s work.

At the Museum of the Waxhaws, the springhouse invites us to look beyond the big events of history and consider everyday life how families worked, what they ate, and how they used the resources around them.

WHEN A WAXHAW LEGEND MET LORD CORNWALLIS!At last year’s Battle of Charlotte, one of our own local legends, Gladys Kerr, ...
08/30/2026

WHEN A WAXHAW LEGEND MET LORD CORNWALLIS!

At last year’s Battle of Charlotte, one of our own local legends, Gladys Kerr, shared a smile with Lord Cornwallis, portrayed by living historian Taylor Osborne.

A former Wingate professor, local historian, author, and keeper of old Waxhaw memories, Gladys has helped preserve the stories that connect us to this place. What a wonderful moment to capture: a woman who has spent years keeping local history alive meeting someone who brings it to life!

Come make your own memories at Battle of Charlotte: American Revolution Weekend, September 26–27, 2026, at the Museum of the Waxhaws. Experience living history demonstrations, meet the people portraying the past, and watch Revolutionary War reenactments at 2 p.m. both days.

The fife is calling. The drums are rolling. The Hornet’s Nest awaits!

BATTLE OF CHARLOTTEAMERICAN REVOLUTION WEEKENDSeptember 26–27, 2026Museum of the WaxhawsJoin us for a weekend of living ...
08/30/2026

BATTLE OF CHARLOTTE
AMERICAN REVOLUTION WEEKEND
September 26–27, 2026
Museum of the Waxhaws

Join us for a weekend of living history, demonstrations, and Revolutionary War reenactments!

PARKING & ACCESS
Museum grounds will be closed to through traffic during the event. Parking is located at 1101 Old Providence Road, in the lot adjacent to the museum.

DISCOUNTED TICKET PRESALE ENDS AUGUST 31!

General Admission:
https://square.link/u/cn5ioK79?src=sheet

Family Pass:
https://square.link/u/JkfdLFmH?src=sheet

THROUGHOUT THE WEEKEND

Enjoy ongoing living history demonstrations and visit tables featuring authors, historical organizations, and more! Your ticket is valid all day—come and go throughout the day. Coolers and chairs are welcome. No dogs or other pets, please.

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26

9:50 AM — Gates open

10:30 AM — Musket firing demonstration

11:00 AM — Artillery demonstration

11:30 AM — Cavalry demonstration

2:00 PM — Battle of Charlotte reenactment

4:00 PM — Gates close

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 27

9:50 AM — Gates open

10:00 AM — Church service

10:30 AM — Musket firing demonstration

11:00 AM — Artillery demonstration

11:30 AM — Cavalry demonstration

2:00 PM — Battle of McIntyre’s Farm reenactment
Also known as the “Battle of the Bees”

3:00 PM — Gates close

Enter the Hornet’s Nest of Rebellion!

The Ney McNeely monument was originally dedicated at the McNeely Family Cemetery in Waxhaw. It was later moved and now s...
08/28/2026

The Ney McNeely monument was originally dedicated at the McNeely Family Cemetery in Waxhaw. It was later moved and now stands at the Museum of the Waxhaws.

Ney McNeely, a teacher, lawyer, and North Carolina legislator, lost his life at the age of 32 off the island of Crete when his ship was sunk by a German submarine. His body washed ashore, and personal identification items were recovered, but before his remains could be moved, the sea reclaimed him.

History keeps turning at the Museum of the Waxhaws! Step inside and discover the people, places, stories, and artifacts ...
08/28/2026

History keeps turning at the Museum of the Waxhaws!

Step inside and discover the people, places, stories, and artifacts that have shaped the Waxhaws for generations. From everyday life in the Carolina backcountry to the events that changed our region, there is always something waiting to be explored.

Come spend a little time with history this weekend!

Museum of the Waxhaws
Open Friday & Saturday, 10 AM–5 PM

Come explore. Come discover. Come keep history alive.

BEFORE THE COUNTY LINES: THE WAXHAWS WERE A REGION, NOT JUST A TOWNToday, we think of Waxhaw, Union County, Mecklenburg ...
08/27/2026

BEFORE THE COUNTY LINES: THE WAXHAWS WERE A REGION, NOT JUST A TOWN

Today, we think of Waxhaw, Union County, Mecklenburg County, and Lancaster County as clearly separate places.

But in the 1700s, people living here would have understood the Waxhaws much more broadly.

The name referred to a region that stretched across what is now the North Carolina–South Carolina line, tied together by creeks, churches, farms, family networks, and old travel routes. A person might live in what we now call Lancaster County, worship at a church across today’s state line, trade in another settlement, and have relatives scattered throughout the Waxhaws.

Those modern boundaries came later.

Union County was not created until 1842, carved from parts of Mecklenburg and Anson counties. Even the Carolina boundary itself took years to survey and settle. Long before those lines became fixed on maps, the people here were already part of one connected Waxhaws community.

That helps explain why so many early Waxhaws stories seem to jump back and forth between North and South Carolina.

They weren’t really crossing from one community into another. They were simply living in the Waxhaws.

08/26/2026

Here’s a look back at last year’s reenactment of the Battle of McIntyre’s Farm, better known as the “Battle of the Bees.”

This Revolutionary War clash took place near Charlotte in 1780, when Patriot militia confronted British forces at McIntyre’s Farm. According to tradition, the fighting became so chaotic that disturbed beehives added to the confusion helping give the battle its unforgettable nickname.

This year, the Battle of the Bees returns on Sunday, September 27 at 2:00 PM as part of our Battle of Charlotte Living History Weekend at the Museum of the Waxhaws.

If you’ve never seen this battle brought to life, Sunday is your chance to experience one of the Charlotte area’s most memorable Revolutionary War stories in action.

History, musket fire, cavalry, and bees… this is one battle you won’t forget!

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT — WE’RE MAKING IT A FULL WEEKEND! The excitement surrounding our WWI & WWII Living History Event has be...
08/24/2026

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT — WE’RE MAKING IT A FULL WEEKEND!

The excitement surrounding our WWI & WWII Living History Event has been incredible and we have some BIG news to share!

What was originally planned as a one-day event is officially expanding to an ENTIRE WEEKEND!

For two days, the museum grounds will come alive with the sights, sounds, stories, and history of the First and Second World Wars. Meet living historians and reenactors, explore military displays and equipment, experience demonstrations, and discover the stories of the men and women whose lives were forever changed by these defining moments in history.

This weekend is about more than stepping into the past. It is an opportunity to remember, educate, and honor those who served and sacrificed and to ensure their stories continue to be told for generations to come.

With even more planned for TWO full days, this is shaping up to be an unforgettable weekend of living history at the Museum of the Waxhaws.

Address

8215 Waxhaw Highway
Waxhaw, NC
28173

Opening Hours

Friday 10am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm

Telephone

(704) 843-1832

Website

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