Levine Museum of the New South

The Levine Museum of the New South, is a history museum located in Charlotte, North Carolina whose exhibits focus on life in the North Carolina Piedmont after the American Civil War. The museum includes temporary and permanent exhibits on a range of Southern-related topics.[1] Founded in 1991 as the Museum of the New South, it was renamed after museum patron and Family Dollar founder Leon Levine in 2001,[2] also the year the current facility at 7th and College Streets downtown opened.[3]

Levine Museum of the New South
EstablishedApril 25, 1991 (1991-04-25)
LocationCharlotte, North Carolina
Coordinates35°13′41″N 80°50′19″W
TypeLocal history museum
Public transit access 7th Street

Overview

The museum's permanent exhibit is called "Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers: Charlotte and the Carolina Piedmont in the New South", and features period displays that reflect regional history. The displays include a one-room tenant farmer's house, a cotton mill and mill house, an African-American hospital, an early Belk department store, and a civil-rights era lunch counter. Changing exhibits focus on local culture, art and history.[4]

In March 2013, the Charlotte Museum of History announced plans to move its administrative offices to the Levine Museum.[5]

In 2019, the museum had an exhibit "The Legacy of Lynching: Confronting Racial Terror in America", prepared in collaboration with the Equal Justice Initiative, who created the National Memorial for Peace and Justice.[6]

Relocation was considered in 2020 because the site had no room for expansion and was worth $7.7 million according to county records. The COVID-19 pandemic was one reason for considering more virtual options.[7] On June 16, 2021, the museum announced it would sell the downtown location and look for a new home. This news comes as the museum adds virtual activities such as the digital walking tour starting in August 2021. These changes come with the help of a $600,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.[3]

  • Entrance of Levine Museum of the New South
  • Entrance of "Cottonfields to Skyscrapers"
  • Cotton-Machine
  • Model of plantation
  • Welcome-Sign for President Roosevelt
  • Explanation-Sign
  • Model of Bank of America Corporate Center

References
  1. An Enigmatic Land of Great Expectations, Edward Rothstein, New York Times, Feb. 12, 2012.
  2. "Levine Museum of the New South | NCpedia".
  3. "Levine Museum of the New South selling uptown Charlotte facility, embarking on digital transformation". WBTV. June 16, 2021. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  4. Archived 2016-10-22 at the Wayback Machine Levine Museum: Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers. From 1865 to today.
  5. Price, Mark (March 9, 2013). "History museum to give up its building: New director will take over the mostly shuttered Charlotte history center". The Charlotte Observer. p. 1B.
  6. Arrowood, Maddy (May 31, 2019). "Exhibit traces legacy of lynching in North Carolina through the stories of victims". The Charlotte Observer.
  7. Chemtob, Danielle (August 12, 2020). "Big changes for Levine Museum, as it weighs move and rethinks use of its uptown site". The Charlotte Observer.


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