Unfortunately there is little left of the "old part" of Charlotte. It was razed over the years in favor of the almighty dollar. Charlotte was rebuilt as new and glitzy. Our uptown is primarily office buildings, restaurants, bars, and hotels. Charlotte is the epitome of "new suburbia".Our "history" is housed at the library, The Museum of the New South, and History Museum out on Shamrock Dr. ( sigh).

What you seek does not really exist in Charlotte anymore. There are a few spots - such as South End - that have a few quaint shops in an old cotton mill. That's a daytime activity only.

Best wishes.

Sorry to say but I do not think you will find old charlotte because it has long since been leveled. Anything that had history had to be distroyed. the closest thing left to old charlotte would be dilworth but it is a housing neighborhood and not what you are looking to find. You can find some shops and restuarants around the southpark mall area but not neccessarally anything fundimentally charlotte. Concord has maintained its old downtown if you care to go there. Fort Mill has also kept the buildings of its old downtown but not much retail action there. Good luck and I hope you enjoy your trip to the area.

Three great areas come to mind for historic neighborhoods in Charlotte. First is 4th Ward, located near the center city. A lot of Victorian homes and restored mill buildings. Not too many shops, but a couple good bars/restaurants including Alexander Michaels. www.charlottecentercity.org/nav.cfm…

Second is Southend. Southend is a bit spread out, but generally stretches along the light rail line from Bland St. station to the East/West Blvd station. Several art shops and a lot of good restaurants. Southend is experiencing huge growth right now thanks to the transit. http://www.historicsouthend.com

The next would be NoDa, Charlotte's arts district. Two of Charlotte's most popular live music venues are located here; Neighborhood Theater and the Evening Muse, along with unique shops, art galleries, and some of the best dining in the city. http://www.noda.org

Dilworth and Plaza-Midwood are two other very desirable historic neighborhoods that offer unique shops.

Caveat - be careful at night walking around. Neighborhoods around areas mentioned are crime-ridden.