KANNAPOLIS, N.C. -- As photographer Chad Mitchell walks outside the large North Carolina Research Center in downtown Kannapolis, he can't help but picture what this land used to look like.
- Cannon Mills filed for bankruptcy and closed shop. Without warning 4,300 people were suddenly without a job.
- Armed with his camera and Hardees sausage biscuits to convince security guards to let him behind the fence, he began shooting a lot of photos of the property
- Today, the city is trying to bring the busyness of the property back. Part of the property is being converted into a new baseball stadium. There are also plans to build restaurants and apartments.
“There was a whistle that signaled the end of the shift,” Mitchell said. “And you could hear it.”
The daily call came from Cannon Mills, the textile plant built in the early 1900s and known for making items like towels and bed linens. At one point the plant employed nearly 5,000 people.
In 2003, the owner filed for bankruptcy and closed shop. Without warning 4,300 people were suddenly without a job.
“It totally blew my mind,” Mitchell said.
It shocked most people in town. Demolition started two years later which was a wake up call of what was being lost.
Mitchell realized something had to be done so he did what he does best and grabbed his camera.
“I know the newspaper photographers weren't going to be able to come up every day every other day, maybe an individual who was retired could do it but I just didn't see those folks,” Mitchell said.
Armed with his camera and Hardees sausage biscuits to convince security guards to let him behind the fence, he began shooting a lot of photos.
He took 25,000 photos over two years.
Today, the city is trying to bring the busyness of the property back. Part of the property is being converted into a new baseball stadium. There are also plans to build restaurants and apartments.
“Hopefully there's staying power with these photos wherever they may be,” Mitchell said.
It’s given Mitchell's photos an even bigger responsibility, giving people an image of history that's hard to forget.
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