NC State student creates site map of Charlotte’s lost slavery history

CHARLOTTE — A local student built a map of places around Uptown where slaves once worked, lived and worshipped.

Alexia Alexander, a veterinary student at N.C. State, created Charlotte’s Lost Slavery History Map when she was 18 for her Girl Scouts Gold Award project.

More than 100 people joined her as she hosted a walking tour to the 18 sites in Uptown on Saturday, which included a Confederate Navy Yard and Grace AME Zion Church.

Alexia, a former Myers Park cheerleader, said she wants to deepen people’s understanding of the Queen City’s full history.

“My hope with this project is just to get people informed about their local history,” said Alexia. “There’s so much unknown history that no one knows.”

The tour, which is part of the Harvey B. Gantt Center’s Black History Month program, spanned two miles and took about two hours.

Explore the map yourself:

(WATCH: Local girl scouts create documentary of Charlotte’s untold black history)