UNC Charlotte Campus Walking Tour

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The UNC Charlotte Main Station is the northern terminus of the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) Lynx Blue Line. This light rail service connects UNC Charlotte’s main campus with its Center City Campus and extends to I-485, 18.9 miles to the south. The 9.3-mile section that links the main campus to uptown Charlotte, known as the Blue Line Extension (BLE) opened for service on Friday March 16, 2018. On that day UNC Charlotte’s Main Station was packed with approximately 1,000 students, faculty, and staff eager to be among the first to take the 22-minute ride to Center City and to enjoy the many festivities organized along the line.The distinctive sculptural seating located in the plaza on Cameron Boulevard between Main Station and Wallis Hall was commissioned by CATS and designed by Boston artist Mikyoung Kim, who also created the images on the station platform shelters. The undulating perforated stainless steel seating becomes even more dynamic at night when a choreographed lighting program is activated by pedestrians tripping motion sensors. The platform images, which are inspired by maps and time zones, respond to the shifting light cast by the daily movement of the sun shining through the glass. The installations are intended to communicate a message of movement, transformation, and flux.

2. Jerry Richardson Stadium, UNC Charlotte

UNC Charlotte broke ground on the Jerry Richardson Stadium and McColl-Richardson Field in 2011. The football field complex spans 25 acres of land and was completed in 2013. The stadium officially opened with an inaugural game against Campbell University’s Campbell Fighting Camels on August 31, 2013. The stadium is located near the campus entrance at Highway 29 on North Tryon Street.

3. James H. Barnhardt Student Activity Center, UNC Charlotte

The James H. Barnhardt Student Activity Center is a social and recreational center on campus, built in 1996 to be the “living room” of campus. The 232,000-square-foot center contains the 9,000-seat Halton Arena, the campus fitness center, an indoor track, recreational courts, a 50-foot indoor climbing wall, a group fitness studio, and meeting facilities. The center initially had a food court as well, along with a game room equipped with arcade games, ping pong tables, and pool tables.

4. Holshouser Hall, UNC Charlotte

Holshouser Hall represents the first phase of UNC Charlotte’s residential building program. The last of four 11-story high rise facilities constructed between 1969-1973, Holshhouser Hall was designed to accommodate 500 students in two hundred and fifty student rooms. Holshouser, like the preceding high-rise dormitories before it, also featured air conditioning--distinguishing them as the first residence halls constructed with state funds to offer the amenity.

5. Hechenbleikner Lake, UNC Charlotte

This scenic lake was named for Professor of Biology Herbert Hechenbleikner in 1975. “Dr. Heck,” as he was affectionately known, created the lake from his own imagination and constructed it with the help of students and volunteers in 1964. The lake is but one of several projects initiated by Hechenbleikner, who guided the early landscape planning for the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

6. J. Murrey Atkins Library, UNC Charlotte

At the heart of the UNC Charlotte campus, J. Murrey Atkins Library is one of the largest research libraries in the state with a permanent staff of about 90. It offers over 3.8 million volumes, including 1.2 million e-books and 222,000 (mainly electronic) journals. The building comprises 285,000 square feet. Services include research and publishing support, library instruction, technology to enhance learning and scholarship, and the preservation of local and campus history. The library welcomes 1.5 million visits per year.Atkins Library, its collections, and many events are open to the public. The first floor atrium features exhibits as well as busts of the university’s founder, Bonnie Cone, and each of the chancellors who have completed their service. On the tenth floor, extensive archives document the history of the university and the Charlotte region, and visitors can also enjoy a panoramic view that includes Uptown Charlotte to the southwest and Charlotte Motor Speedway to the northeast.

7. College of Health and Human Services (CHHS) Building, UNC Charlotte

The CHHS Building is the home of UNC Charlotte’s College of Health and Human Services, which includes the Department of Public Health Services, the Department of Kinesiology, the School of Social Work, the School of Nursing, the Gerontology Program, and its newest addition, the School of Data Science. It was designed by Pease Associates and built by Turner Construction, and is one of the last buildings on campus that was authorized by the North Carolina General Assembly's 2000 Higher Education Bond Bill. It was completed in 2006 and was dedicated in April 2007.

8. Niner Miner Sculpture, UNC Charlotte

This bronze sculpture depicts the mascot of UNC Charlotte, the 49er Miner. Completed in 1991 by Oregon sculptor Lorenzo Ghiglieri, the piece was commissioned by the university to create a focal point for the campus. It is located at the foot of the staircase that leads from the plaza between Atkins Library and the Barnhardt Student Activities Center down to the plaza between the College of Education and the College of Health and Human Services.

9. Popp Martin Student Union, UNC Charlotte

The Karen A. Popp and Demond T. Martin Student Union was built on the campus of UNC Charlotte in 2009. In 2016 it was dedicated to notable university alumni, Karen Popp (Class of 1980) and Demond Martin (Class of 1997). In addition to being a gathering place for students, it houses a dining hall, passport services, a salon, a movie theater, an art gallery and the offices of the student government association, student organizations, and university units focused on the student experience.

10. UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens

The UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens is a stand alone garden founded in 1966 on the UNC Charlotte campus. This garden features three locations including a 4,500 square foot greenhouse, the Harwood Gardens and the Van Landingham Glen. Each of these locations is distinctive. The greenhouse features showy tropicals, the Harwood Garden is a formal designed Garden, and the Van Landingham Glen is a forested area filled with native trees and shrubs. A number of different collections are on display including bog plants, natives, orchids, unusual fruits, and many others. Use the source cited below (https://panorama.uncc.edu/GardenTourNew/gardenindex.html) to virtually tour the gardens and see some of our most interesting garden spots and collections.

11. Cyrillic Projector, Jim Sanborn, UNC Charlotte

Cyrillic Projector is a sculpture located between the Friday and Fretwell Buildings on the campus of UNC Charlotte. It was created by American artist Jim Sanborn, and was purchased by the university in 1997. The bronze artwork is eight-feet tall and features two encoded messages. The codes remained a mystery until they were solved by a group of cryptographers in 2003.

12. Storrs Hall, UNC Charlotte

Storrs Hall is the home of UNC Charlotte’s College of Arts + Architecture, which includes programs in architecture, art and art history, dance, music, and theatre. Designed by the College of Architecture; Charlotte architectural firm Ferebee, Walters and Associates; and New York architects Charles Gwaltmey and Robert Siegel, Storrs Hall was intended to be “an instrument for architectural education.” It was completed in 1990.

13. Rowe Arts Building, UNC Charlotte

The Rowe Arts Building was the first home for UNC Charlotte’s departments of performing and visual arts. In addition to offices and classrooms, the building features a 350-seat theater, a recital hall, a scene shop, practice rooms, darkrooms for photography, a ceramics shop, and a large lobby that doubled as a gallery. Designed by Charlotte architect Murray Whisnant, the building was completed in 1972 and named for Oliver Reagan Rowe, who is remembered as “a major visionary in the development of UNC Charlotte.”

14. Belk Plaza, UNC Charlotte

The Belk Plaza at UNC Charlotte opened to the public in October 2018, featuring a fountain and a large open area providing students a place to hold events and hang out. But from 1970-2015 where the plaza now stands, Belk Tower was an iconic structure on campus where students gathered to hold events and make their voices heard.

15. Macy Building, UNC Charlotte

The Macy Building was one of the first two buildings on the UNC Charlotte campus. Both Macy and Kennedy were constructed in 1961, designed by Odell Associates, Inc. and built by F. N. Thompson, Inc. The 18,000 square foot research and instructional facility cost $418,000 and existed without a name for ten years, known simply as building “L.”

16. Kennedy Building, UNC Charlotte

The Kennedy Building was one of the first two buildings on the UNC Charlotte campus. Both Kennedy and Macy were constructed in 1961, designed by Odell Associates, Inc. and built by F. N. Thompson, Inc. The 42,000 square foot research and instructional facility cost $897,000 and was named in honor of Woodford “Woody” A. Kennedy, a man who called his devotion to Charlotte College, UNC Charlotte’s predecessor, “something between a hobby and an obsession.”

This Tour is a Walking Tour.

UNC Charlotte Campus Walking Tour

Created by Special Collections on August 24th 2021, 4:00:03 pm.

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The University of North Carolina at Charlotte dates its founding to 1946, when the Charlotte Center opened its doors as a night school for returning World War II veterans. Three years later, the state declared the Center was no longer needed and decided to close it, which would have left the state’s largest city again with no public institution of higher education. In 1949, after intensive lobbying by founder Bonnie Cone and her allies, the state backed the establishment of Charlotte College. In 1961, the college moved to its present location, and in 1965 it became the fourth campus of the UNC system. This virtual tour can be enjoyed from any location, and includes navigation for those taking the tour in-person. The tour can be downloaded as a PDF and printed, or saved to a mobile device.

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UNC Charlotte Campus Walking Tour

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