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BUILDING HISTORY
The buildings on Main Street in Pineville, NC have served as a hub for commercial, social and political activities for over a century. In the 1920’s, the Niven family purchased 320 Main Street from W. A. Yandell. The Niven family, consisting of E. E. Niven and his wife Theresa, owned Niven-Mercantile Company. The Nivens later leased 320 Main Street to Charlie Howie, who owned and operated a hardware store. Howie’s store served as a gathering place for local farmers, and on Saturdays, the store was filled with customers until it closed at midnight. In 1932, E. E. Niven passed away and his wife, Theresa, inherited the property.
In 1947, Theresa sold the property back to the Yandell family. In 1958, Kenneth Wilkerson purchased the hardware business from Howie. Wilkerson and his son, Ken, continued to run the business for 31 years until it closed in 1989 due to the influx of larger home-improvement stores in the area. Since the hardware store closed in 1989, the building has served as an antique store, followed by a furniture store. The building was purchased in 2021 with hopes to revitalize its mercantile and gathering hole history for the local community.
To learn more about the history of Main Street, visit Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission.
