Charlotte Historian Digitizes Thousands of NC Maps, Plans Book Release

Chuck Ketchie owns thousands of old maps showing North Carolina. Most focus on Charlotte. He's scanning them so anyone can see them online. The Charlotte native wants to publish a book with some of these maps.

One map from 1917 shows Camp Greene, a big military base that helped Charlotte grow during World War I. Another from 1924 displays Charlotte's first speedway in Pineville, where racers broke a world record in 1924. Maps of gold mines from 1905 sit in his stacks, too.

Ketchie got hooked on maps after meeting Garland P. Stout. Stout was an engineer who drew thousands of maps about North Carolina's past. They started putting Ketchie's mill research onto Garland's drawings.

Rick Brooks entered the picture in the early 2000s. Brooks descended from the Spratt family, who surveyed Mecklenburg County for years and years. Brooks had thousands of Spratt maps. Those ended up with Ketchie.

 His love of history began on family trips when he was young. His father picked out historic sites to visit. Years later, a college research paper sent him hunting facts about Carolina gristmills, places where workers ground grain.

"I ate those words in 1992," Ketchie told Axios about his vow never to return to his hometown after leaving in 1975. He now lives in South Charlotte with his wife and two golden retrievers.

Mills and maps drive him now. He edits Old Mill News, a magazine that comes out four times each year and tells stories about gristmills. His Etsy shop sells gristmill items — coasters, Christmas ornaments, and more.

UNC Charlotte and other schools have tapped into his map stash. Scanning everything means Charlotte's past won't fade away. Residents and scholars alike can dig into what came before.