history of the depot and mooresville arts

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1865: Atlantic, Tennessee & Ohio Railroad completed the track from Charlotte to Statesville.

1872: The rails were removed during the Civil War and rebuilt.

1873 to 1883: The Depot was built by John F. Moore and owned and operated by the Town. Mooresville was incorporated in 1873 and had a population of 25. The original town limits were a one-mile radius of the Depot in the center of the Town.

1883-1974: The Depot was owned by the railroad company, which started as the South Carolina Cana and Rail Road Company (SCCRRC). 

1894: SCCRRC became Southern Railway after a merger of several Virginia railroad companies, including Carolina and Northwestern. Additional railroad companies were also in the mix, but in short, it later became one organization—the Norfolk Southern.

1925: There was a fire at the Depot, and it burned to the ground. 

1955: Six local artists gathered in the War Memorial basement to plan and exchange ideas. The group grew from there, and on November 17, 1966, the group expanded to 20 artists and became known as the "Mooresville Artist Guild.

1974: On May 6, Southern Railway Systems (which would become Norfolk in the 1990s) offered to donate the depot building and lease the property immediately adjacent (the land it sits on) to the Town of Mooresville for $1.00 per year.

1975: The railroad and the Town reached an agreement on a lease for fifteen (15) years starting on January 14, 1976, at a rent of $1.00 a year.

1978: The Town of Mooresville passed a motion adopting making the Mooresville Artist Guild a quasi-function of the Town and approving the sublease of the Depot to the Artist's Guild.

1982: On May 24, the IRS determined Mooresville Artist Guild as a nonprofit with tax-exempt status.

1984: Consideration was made at a request from the Mooresville Artist's Guild to include a Historical Museum in the warehouse section of the Depot. A motion was made to negotiate a more favorable land lease, which was unanimously adopted.

1985: The Mayor was authorized to execute an agreement with Southern Railways for a 25-year lease on the Depot. The Board agreed and passed the resolution.

2010: The Depot received Historic Building designation. Volunteers entirely run Mooresville Arts and The Depot.

2014: Mooresville Artist Guild changed its name to "Mooresville Arts" and incorporated all visual arts by offering free exhibits that changed monthly or bi-monthly, with receptions open to the public. Art classes for children and adults were provided at all levels, and summer camps were offered for youth and teens.

2019-2020: Mooresville Arts conducted its first capital campaign. In conjunction with the Town of Mooresville's support, electrical and HVAC systems were upgraded, new lighting fixtures and ceiling fans were installed, and a renovation of flooring and walls, ADA-compatible bathrooms, and ramps were built. The old "Warehouse" was established as the new "Center Gallery."

March-August 2020: Mooresville Arts was closed due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic and reopened in September.

July 2021: the first Executive Director was hired, new policies were introduced, and by-laws were updated. In late 2022, the traveling exhibit of the American Watercolor Society was exhibited in the Center Gallery.

2022-2023: An executive assistant was hired to support the operational and administrative functions of Mooresville Arts. A private grant supported the hiring of a part-time gallery director and a part-time education director..

Additional Notes:

The Depot has been used many times for filming movies and TV shows. (Banshee, Paper Towns, commercials). A new deck around the building was built as a platform for Banshee