Belmont in Gaston County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Belmont City Hall
(Former United States Post Office)
Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, February 3, 2024
1. Belmont City Hall Marker
National Register
of Historic Places
by the United States
Department of the Interior
Erected 1939
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Arts, Letters, Music • Communications. In addition, it is included in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1939.
Location. 35° 14.631′ N, 81° 2.283′ W. Marker is in Belmont, North Carolina, in Gaston County. It is at the intersection of North Main Street (State Road 7) and Catawba Street, on the right when traveling south on North Main Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 115 N Main St, Belmont NC 28012, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the Piedmont and in Greater Charlotte. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within one mile of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Piedmont & Northern RR Depot (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); William Chronicle (about 500 feet away); Belmont World War II Memorial (about 700 feet away); S.P. & E.P. Stowe House (approx. 0.6 miles away); Goshen Presbyterian Church (approx. 0.7 miles away); Belmont Abbey College (approx. 0.7 miles away); South Fork Boys (approx. one mile away); Andrι Michaux Visit (approx. 1.1 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Belmont.
Regarding Belmont City Hall. Excerpts from the National register nomination:
The Belmont City Hall is the only Depression-era federal public works project building in the city of Belmont, and its wall painting depicting a local historical scene is unique in the city.
Built in 1939 in a visibly prominent place in the town center, the building retains much of its original post office exterior and lobby interior. Money for the project was obtained through the efforts of localCongressman A.L. Bulwinkle through appropriations for the public buildings program of the U.S. Treasury department.Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, February 3, 20242. Belmont City Hall Marker
The lobby mural is an oil-on-canvas painting which was part of the federal public buildings art program administered by the Section of Fine Arts of the Treasury Department. Unlike the WPA, which tried to find work for artists on relief, the artwork for public buildings projects was chosen by juried competition. The painting depicts Major Chronicle's South Fork Boys in their Revolutionary War encampment. Major Chronicle was from a prominent Belmont family, and he, along with his locally-recruited troops, played an important role in the crucial Battle of King's Mountain, where the twenty-five-year-old major was fatally wounded. The former post office faces the former site of the Chronicle house Peter DeAnna (1920-1980), a Washington, D.C. artist, painted the mural in 1940.
The building was used as the town post office until 1970, when the postal service moved to its present location. It was subsequently purchased by the city through a grant from the Lineberger Foundation in 1971. After renovations, it was rededicatedas the new city hall on April 10, 1973.Jimmy Emerson, DVM via Flicker (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0), January 15, 20103. "Major Chronicle's South Fork Boys" MuralIt depicts Maj. William Chronicle (in black, standing at table) and his troops at camp before the pivotal Revolutionary War Battle of Kings Mountain. The mural was painted by Washington, D.C. artist Peter DeAnna in 1940.
Also see . . .
1. (Former) United States Post Office (PDF). National Register nomination for the building, which was listed in 1995. (Prepared by William H. Huffman; via North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office) (Submitted on February 10, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
2. Chronicle, William. William Chronicle, a Lincoln County citizen-soldier of the Revolution, one of the heroes slain in the Battle of Kings Mountain, was the only son of William Chronicle, Sr. (ca. 172286), of Lincoln County and his wife, Dinah McKee Chronicle (ca. 172786), farmers of Pennsylvania Dutch origin. (Charles R. Holloman, Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, 1979; via NCpedia) (Submitted on February 10, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 10, 2024. It was originally submitted on February 10, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 522 times since then and 100 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on February 10, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
