Kannapolis (/kəˈnæpəlɪs/) is a city in Cabarrus and Rowan counties, in the U.S. state of North Carolina, northwest of Concord and northeast of Charlotte and is a suburb in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The city of Kannapolis was incorporated in 1984. The population was 53,114 at the 2020 census, which makes Kannapolis the 19th-most populous city in North Carolina. It is the home of the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers, the Low-A baseball affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, and it is the hometown of the Earnhardt racing family. It is also the headquarters for the Haas F1 racing team. The center of the city is home to the North Carolina Research Campus, a public-private venture that focuses on food, nutrition, and biotech research.

History

Name

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". In 1906 J.W. Cannon purchased the land that later became Kannapolis, and acquired a total of 1,008 acres in Cabarrus and Rowan Counties. Approximately 808 of those acres of farmland, purchased along the historic wagon road between Salisbury and Charlotte, became the location of the new textile mill, Cannon Manufacturing. Cannon Manufacturing began production in 1908. In 1914 Cannon Manufacturing became known as the world's largest producer of sheets and towels. Shortly after, Cannon opened plants in Rowan County, Concord and in South Carolina totaling 20,000 workers. Mill founder J.W. Cannon's youngest son, Charles A. Cannon, consolidated all the separate mills into the giant Cannon Mills Company in 1928.

Geography

Kannapolis is located on the boundary of Cabarrus and Rowan counties, with a greater portion of its area in Cabarrus County. U.S. Route 29 (Cannon Boulevard) passes through the city east of the downtown area; U.S. 29 leads northeast 15 miles (24 km) to Salisbury and south 7 miles (11 km) to Concord. Interstate 85 bypasses the city on the south and the east, with access from Exits 54 through 63 (five exits total). I-85 leads northeast 65 miles (105 km) to Greensboro and southwest 21 miles (34 km) to Charlotte.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 34.06 square miles (88.2 km²), of which 33.50 square miles (86.8 km²) is land and 0.56 square miles (1.5 km²) (1.64%) is water.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1990	29,696	—
2000	36,910	24.3%
2010	42,625	15.5%
2020	53,114	24.6%
2023 (est.)	59,321	39.2%
U.S. Decennial Census 2020

2020 census

Kannapolis racial composition
Race	Number	Percentage
White (non-Hispanic)	29,003	54.61%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	11,636	21.91%
Native American	159	0.3%
Asian	1,301	2.45%
Pacific Islander	23	0.04%
Other/Mixed	2,530	4.76%
Hispanic or Latino	8,462	15.93%

As of the 2020 census, there were 53,114 people, 17,248 households, and 12,092 families residing in the city.

Arts and culture

National Register of Historic Places

The Meek House and Harvey Jeremiah Peeler House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Museums

Curb Museum for Music and Motorsports

Sports

Kannapolis Cannon Ballers, Class "A" Baseball Affiliate of the Chicago White Sox
Stewart-Haas Racing, a NASCAR Cup Series team established by Gene Haas
Haas F1 Team, a Formula One team, also established by Gene Haas

Parks and recreation

Public

Kannapolis has several public recreational areas. These include parks, athletic fields and greenways. One public park in the city, Vietnam Veterans Park (formerly, North Cabarrus Park) is maintained and operated by Cabarrus County.

Bakers Creek Park
Dale Earnhardt Plaza
Veterans Park
Vietnam Veterans Park (formerly, North Cabarrus Park)
Village Park
Walter M. Safrit Park

Private

The Club at Irish Creek (formerly, Kannapolis Country Club)
Kannapolis Recreation Park

Education

K-12

Kannapolis City Schools is the primary school system for the city. Two additional systems also serve its jurisdiction: Cabarrus County Schools and Rowan–Salisbury School System.

Faith Christian Academy (FCA) is a private, non-profit Christian educational institution that is operated by Faith Baptist Church. Faith Christian Academy offers a combination of the A Beka program (K5-2nd grade) and the Alpha-Omega computerized, individual learning program (3rd-12th grade). FCA was organized in 1982.

Franklin Heights Christian Academy (FHCA) is a private, non-profit Christian educational institution that is operated by Franklin Heights Baptist Church. FHCA was organized in 2009. This school is now closed.

Higher education

Shaw University has an extramural site in Kannapolis offering undergraduate, graduate and continuing educational programs.

Ambassador Christian College has a campus in Kannapolis offering undergraduate and graduate degrees in theology. The school was founded in 2003 by Dr. Keith Slough.

North Carolina Research Campus

Aerial image of the North Carolina Research Campus

The North Carolina Research Campus in Kannapolis is a 350-acre (140 ha) research center.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Kannapolis is located adjacent to Interstate 85, approximately 20 miles (32 km) northeast of Charlotte.

Concord Kannapolis Area Transit, also known as Rider, provides multiple local bus routes, with its farthest point reaching Concord Mills Mall.

Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) provides multiple transportation options including bus, vanpool or carpool. CATS provides a bus stop and parking at Kannapolis' Home Depot parking lot.

The Kannapolis Amtrak station is located at 201 South Main Street.

Notable people

Tavis Bailey, Olympic discus thrower representing Team USA, competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics
George Clinton, leader of Parliament-Funkadelic
Dale Earnhardt, former 7-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame
Dale Earnhardt Jr., former NASCAR driver, member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame
Kelley Earnhardt Miller, businesswoman and vice president of JR Motorsports
Kerry Earnhardt, former NASCAR driver
Ralph Earnhardt, former NASCAR driver
Carl Ford, member of the North Carolina Senate
Daniel Hemric, current NASCAR driver
Ethan Horton, former NFL tight end
Skip Hollandsworth, writer
Argie Johnson, educator
Kameron Marlowe, country music singer-songwriter
Glenn McDuffie, retired World War II sailor, picture subject of V-J Day in Times Square
James McDuffie, North Carolina Senator
Eddie Mills, actor
Melissa Morrison-Howard, track hurdler and winner of two Olympic bronze medals
Mike Morton, NFL linebacker, Super Bowl XXXIV champion with the St. Louis Rams
Brandon Parker, NFL offensive tackle
Corey Seager, MLB shortstop, 2020 World Series champion and MVP for the Los Angeles Dodgers
Kyle Seager, MLB third baseman
George Shinn, former owner of the Charlotte Hornets
Haskel Stanback, former NFL running back
Dixie Upright, former MLB player

In popular culture

In 2004, a silent film about Kannapolis, showing the everyday behavior of ordinary people, which was made in 1941 by itinerant filmmaker H. Lee Waters, was selected by the Library of Congress for listing in the United States National Film Registry, as a representative of this kind of filmed "town portrait" popular in the 1930s and 1940s.

Kannapolis, North Carolina facts for kids

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