I went to Charlotte today, to visit a couple of their museums.

The Levine Museum of the New South in downtown Charlotte featured the history of the Old South from the Civil War (ca. 1865) to today (hence the name) and the evolution of the region from cotton to banking. The special exhibit was from Cambodia to Carolina - a story about immigrants coming to our fair state.

The Charlotte Museum of History is well-worth visiting. The exhibits are very Charlotte and Mecklenburg County-centric but there is a guided tour that lasts about 1.5 hours where you get to see the rock house that is at least 250 years old. Our guide, Gary, told us about the history of many words and expressions during the tour, such as "sleep tight" (when rope beds had to be tightened) and "curfew" (a fire blocker that had to be used in certain hours of the night).

Gary told us that he thinks the Charlotte Bobcats, New Orleans Hornets and Utah Jazz should trade names. (The previous NBA franchise was the Charlotte Hornets before they moved to the Big Easy, and the hornet is an important symbol for the Queen City.)