Brief Histories & Local Map

A Brief History of Union County

Union County was amicably formed from western parts of Mecklenberg and eastern sections of Anson counties. It’s an area of roughly 643 square miles, unchanged since its founding in 1842. It could have been named after Andrew Jackson, a native of the Waxhaw settlement, or for Henry Clay, his political rival, but a compromise was reached with the name Union County.

According to the website Union County, NC | Union County, NC Homepage (unioncountync.gov) in March 2024, the population was 244,562; annual GDP was $7B; high school graduation rate was 89.6%; and the unemployment rate was 2.8%.

A Brief History of Wesley Chapel

Our community is located in the Village of Wesley Chapel, approximately 20 miles south of uptown Charlotte. The unincorporated area of Union County now known as Wesley Chapel was originally populated by the Waxhaw Indians who succumbed to the smallpox disease introduced by European settlers in the early 1700s.

In 1832, a Methodist congregation built the first church, now called Wesley Chapel United Methodist Church, and named it for the founder of Methodism, John Wesley.

In the 1990s, citizens concerned about unrestricted growth in nearby areas decided to incorporate as an independent municipality. The Neighborhood Captains went door-to-door collecting signatures to petition the state’s General Assembly to become the Village of Wesley Chapel. They were so persuasive they garnered 52% of the registered voters, far more than the 15% required for a hearing. The bill passed easily.

The Village of Wesley Chapel, declared a municipality on July 15, 1998, is bounded by Indian Trail, Mineral Springs, Waxhaw and Weddington. The irregular border of the Village is the result of voluntary annexations by adjacent communities in the 1990s. In less than three years, it grew to more than twice its original size.

It is served by Wesley Chapel Volunteer Fire Department, which provides service in roughly 48 square miles to over 50,000 people. There are four fire stations protecting the Village of Wesley Chapel, the Village of Marvin, the Town of Weddington, a small portion of Indian Trail and areas of Unincorporated Union County.

Dogwood Park on Lester Davis Road is part of the Village and has 22.5 acres with paved and unpaved trails, picnic and grilling areas, an amphitheater, accessible fishing piers at the pond, a playground and a dog park with separate areas for large and small dogs. The Village celebrated its 25th anniversary in July 2023 at the park.

The consensus of the eight hundred Village property owners in 1999 was to “Preserve Rural/Small Town Atmosphere; Maintain Rate of Growth; Maintain Low Tax Rate.” The Village is primarily low-density residential by intention, with its motto, “A Great Place to Live and Raise a Family.”