Back in 2021, I wrote a Storied Charlotte blog post about Christopher S. Lawing and his book Charlotte: The Signs of the Times—A History Told Through the Queen City’s Classic Roadside Signage, and we have been in email correspondence ever since. I mentioned in one of my messages to Christopher that I wanted to know if he had plans to bring out another book. Well, about two weeks ago Christopher’s name popped up in my inbox. I opened his email and read the following: “I’ve promised to let you know when I had another book coming out and that time is now—at least, sort of! While I did not author it, I am publishing it. The book is titled Steele Creek: An Early History by Linda Blackwelder. Through a serendipitous chain of events over the last two months, I had the opportunity to partner with Linda to bring her 2018 book back into print, and I was honored to do so. It is at the printing house now.” Curious to know more, I asked Christopher how he came to republish a book about the history of the Steele Creek neighborhood. Here is what he sent to me:
How I came to republish this book is a fascinating story. In early August of this year, The Charlotte Ledger published an article on endangered historic properties in the Steele Creek area of Mecklenburg County, all of which were owned by the airport. One of these, the William Grier House (1828) was—and is—facing potential demolition, and it captivated me in such a way that I did a deep dive into the architectural and cultural history of the home. Ironically, I learned that the house had been moved in 2008/09 to its current location to avoid being demolished due to a development. Serendipitously, a friend at my church connected me to their cousin whose extended family was responsible for preserving the house at that time—that individual was a member of Steele Creek’s prominent Byrum family. She told me about a book that covered “anything and everything Steele Creek.” She had a copy and generously loaned it to me.
Very quickly I realized that I needed a copy for myself. It was originally published in 2018 by the author, Linda Lawless Blackwelder, and immediately sold out three consecutive times for a total of 300 copies. They are rare and hard to come by. I was smitten with the book and the meticulous detail with which it was researched and written, and I knew that this authoritative guide to the history of Steele Creek needed to be spread even further and wider to help tell the often forgotten and overlooked history of the area. I reached out to Linda through her email address which was listed in the book…and she replied!
In the couple months that followed, Linda and I became fast friends as we engaged in many conversations about our passion for history, telling the stories of our communities, the history of Steele Creek specifically, and all this ultimately led to me undertaking a republishing of her book in a limited run of 500 copies. It is an honor to combine our talents to bring Linda’s 270-page book back to the bookshelves of our greater community, being printed exactly as it was when it first came out. I have applied my printing and distribution industry knowledge to the project, experience which I gained from publishing my own book, Charlotte: The Signs of the Times, in 2017. In fact, the same local printer who printed Linda’s book back in 2018 won the bid to undertake the 2024 printing run as well, which is exciting because they are in located in the HEART of Steele Creek!
Linda is truly a wonderful walking encyclopedia of “anything and everything Steele Creek.” She has lived in and advocated for the community for over 55 years, founded the Steele Creek Residents Association and the Steele Creek Historical & Genealogical Society, and has collected memories, photographs, recollections, and stories in a way which will never be able to be duplicated again. This book is a result of her life’s research and passion, and while the book can occasionally lean genealogically heavy, it is written in such a way that it retains the interest of the reader, while weaving in stories and other historical time markers and context, all the while being very well organized. It simultaneously functions as both a riveting reading experience and as a research companion.
Pre-orders are underway, with the books arriving in time to start shipping out to customers beginning December 9th. May I suggest this book as a wonderful Christmas gift for the historian or for anyone interested in learning a bit more about the Steele Creek area and its heritage. This web address will take readers directly to the order page where they can also learn more about the book:
https://www.cltsignsproject.com/product-page/steele-creek-an-early-history-book
I am very pleased that Christopher is bringing Linda’s book about Steele Creek back into print. I often refer to Charlotte as a community, but Charlotte is really an interlinked collection of many diverse communities, each with its own history. In a sense, Linda’s Steele Creek: An Early History is an important chapter in the rich history of Storied Charlotte.