GLMC - Trip 1

Each year, I sign up for the GLMC Grand Tour. It is kind of like a rally except you need to ride around and collect photos of the theme for the year. This year the theme is Obscure Oddities and Attractions. The purpose is to go out and find the themed items (in this case oddities) and take a photo of your bike, your rider number, and the oddity and then send it back to the rally master. The hitch is that whatever the theme, it must be in a city that begins with a G, a L, a M, or a C. Last year it was dive restaurants and bars. It usually begins on March 1st and extends thru September 30th.

This is a great idea since it forces me to create rides with a purpose. Now I map out the 'things' I need to photograph. It is a great way to generate a ride with a purpose. I love this rally and started my journey this weekend. Luckily for me I live in a city that starts with a C so the first few items are local. I had a bit of time after work on Friday and decided to go ahead and knock out a couple of local places.

Southern Grace Distiller

The first place I chose was Southern Grace Distiller. It is located in Mt Pleasant, NC. This used to be the Mt. Pleasant Prison. The slang name for this place is the the 'Whisky Prison" but the liquor they create uses the name Conviction. I used to drive by this prison many times a week when I took my dauther to the barn. In 2011 they closed down the prison (it was opened in 1929) and it was bought in 2016 and turned into the first legal distillery in Cabarrus County.

They mainly concentrate on aging bourbon in the old jail cells. They moved here for expansion. You can take a tour of the place (not sure on the hours) but also there is a paranormal aspect to this place. It has been featured by many paranormal investigators. It is told that this was a brutal place and the hauntings include physical attacks, voices, banging, unexplained objects moving, and apparitions. Pretty damn cool.

So with its history, I thought this would be a great place to start off my obscure and oddities hunt. I rode out Friday afternoon (taking the long route to get in more ride time) and took a few photos.

Once I got the photos, I kept on to the Stonewall Jackson Training School.

Stonewall Jackson Training School

Now known as the Cabarrus Youth Development Center (same place - different name). This was a prison for boys (they added girls later). It opened in 1909. It mainly housed troubled youths to keep them away from adult prisoners. Most were houses for minor offences (including truancy). They were to get an education or learn a trade. There was also an agricultural section where students worked on the farm (including cattle).

What is interesting is that back in 1948, sterilization was used to prevent 'feeblemindedness'. Typically performed on women/girls, they wanted to improve the population. It was performed on a number of boys at this school. One issue at this school (any many like it) was over crowdedness and violence. The conditions were at times inhumane and rape was a common occurence. In the 70s, times began to change and incarcerating youths for minor offences declined. The name changed to the Stonewall Jackson Youth Development Facility and it began to house more serious offenders (drugs and weapon charges). The size reduced from a high of 500+ to about 150. They also began dropping many of their programs (such as the farm).

In the early 90s, the program changed again and the number of youths declined even further. It was not long after that the detention center was no longer used to house youths but became more of a storage center for the county. As expected, the property began to decline rapidly.

There are a number of the building that were used for detention that were no longer used. Many have fallen into disrepair. You are not allowed on the campus but I was able to take a picture to give you an idea of what it looks like. There must be at least 8 or more buildings just like this.

This place is quite creepy. I have had to drive by it many times at night. It has a reputation of being haunted. Many believe it is due to the violence and psycological trauma. This place has a very dark history. Many claim it was a brutal place. Adding to that, the abandoned buildings contribute to it's spooky aura. Although some say there are apparitions, many say that this place is just a place of deep, dark, and uncomfortable history that still "haunts" those who know its story.

After visiting, went down the street to the Old Charlotte Pub for a quick beer and headed back home. Notch two places on for this years total.