980 Area Code 🌍☎️

Charlotte is the most populous city in North Carolina with 874,579 residents at the 2020 census, making it the 14th-largest city in the U.S. and part of the 21st-largest metropolitan area with 2.88 million residents. The city is the second-largest banking center in the nation, home to the headquarters of Bank of America, Honeywell, Truist Financial, and Wells Fargo's East Coast operations. Charlotte's attractions include three professional sports teams - the Carolina Panthers (NFL), Charlotte Hornets (NBA), and Charlotte FC (MLS) - as well as the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Mint Museum, Billy Graham Library, and U.S. National Whitewater Center. First settled by Europeans around 1755, the city developed primarily through Scots-Irish Presbyterian migration and German immigration, with the area previously inhabited by the Catawba Indians since at least 1567. Located several miles east of the Catawba River near Lake Norman, Charlotte ranks as North America's greenest city with 66% green space coverage. Concord is the county seat and most populous city in Cabarrus County, North Carolina, with a population of 105,240 at the 2020 census, making it the second-largest city in the Charlotte metropolitan area and tenth-largest in North Carolina. Located 20 miles northeast of Charlotte in the Piedmont region, Concord was first settled around 1750 by German and Scots-Irish immigrants and incorporated in 1806, earning the All-America City Award in 2004. The city's economy historically centered on cotton cultivation and trade as the county seat, then industrialized in the late 19th century with notable mills including Coleman Manufacturing Company, believed to be the first cotton mill owned by African Americans when established in 1897. Concord is home to major tourist destinations including NASCAR's Charlotte Motor Speedway and Concord Mills shopping center. The city spans 64.04 square miles and features historic districts like North Union with significant antebellum and early 20th-century architecture along its Union Streets and Edgewood Avenue. Gastonia is the county seat and most populous city in Gaston County, North Carolina, with a 2020 population of 80,411, making it the 13th-largest city in the state and part of the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia Metropolitan Statistical Area located approximately 21 miles west of Charlotte. Named after jurist and U.S. Representative William Gaston, the city is historically significant as a textile manufacturing center and the site of the Loray Mill Strike of 1929, a pivotal labor movement event that later became an international cause célèbre featured in 1930s novels. The 1929 strike, organized by the Communist Party-affiliated National Textile Workers Union, collapsed following police chief Orville Alderholt's death and the subsequent murder trial and conviction of NTWU organizer Fred Beal, who fled to the Soviet Union. Today, while manufacturing remains important to Gastonia's economy, the city has diversified into healthcare, education, and government sectors, with multiple historic sites including the Loray Mill Historic District and Gaston County Courthouse listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Spanning 52.22 square miles across 14% of Gaston County's total area, Gastonia is situated 22 miles east of Shelby and 37 miles south of Hickory, with 99.7% of its residents living in urban areas.