Concord, NC

I took a trip to Concord, NC this weekend, to visit with some of my girlfriend's family. The town is a rather typical place in many ways--it appears to be a poor Southern town filled with churches--with a very typical Pennsylvania-type story (from what I heard, a mill of some sort closed five or ten years ago, resulting in much unemployment).

Still, the town is home to the Lowe's Speedway (I stayed on Earnheardt Rd.) and seems to benefit quite a bit from NASCAR (economically benefit, that is). And, according to Wikipedia, (good news!) only 8.2% of the population is living below the poverty line, compared to our stunningly impressive 12.5% nationally.

The downtown area, while filled with bail bonds places, DUI Assessment Centers, and abandoned shops, is actually quite pleasing to the eye, and was surely at one point (though not, I'd imagine in 2004, when the town won an All-America City Award) a very pleasant place.

A few pictures below for you.