Historical Photos of The Depot

 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 was owned and operated by the Town; Mooresville was incorporate in 1873 – population was 25. The original town limits were 1 mile radius of the depot – which was exactly the center of the town.

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

1894: SCCRRC became Southern Railway after a merger of several Virginia rail road companies of which Carolina and Northwestern was a part of the new organization. There were additional railroad companies 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 started gathering 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: May 6 Southern Railway Systems (it would become Norfolk in the 1990s) offered to donated the depot building and lease the property immediately adjacent (the land it sits on) for $1.00 per year to the Town of Mooresville.

February 7  The railroad and the town reach an agreement on a lease for fifteen (15) years starting on January 14th, 1976 at a rent of $1.00 a year.

March 6, 1978  A motion was passed with the Town of Mooresville that adopted making the Mooresville Artist Guild a quasi-function of the Town and to approve the sub-lease of the Depot to the Artist’s Guild. 

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

1984: February 6 Consideration was made at a request from the Mooresville Artist’s Guild to include a Historical Museum in the warehouse section of the The Depot. The motion was made for this and to negotiate a more favorable lease of the land; this unanimously was adopted.

1985:  February 4 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. Mooresville Arts and The Depot completely run by volunteers.

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 offered at all levels as well as summer camps 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 - Present: The first Executive Director was hired, new policies were introduced and by-laws updated. In late 2022 the traveling exhibit of the American Watercolor Society was exhibited in the Center Gallery.

Additional Notes:

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