Charlotte Daily Short: How The Invention of Air Conditioning Changed The South and The Belmont Man Who Coined The Term

Belmont's Stuart Cramer. 

Did you know the term "air conditioning" was invented in the shadows of Charlotte, North Carolina?

Belmont's Stuart Cramer, an engineer who designed air-cooling and humidification systems, actually coined the term "air conditioning" in a patent he filed using the name in 1905.

Willis Carrier, an industrious 25-year old engineer, actually invented the world's first air-cooling and humidification system while working at Buffalo Forge Company in 1902.

The first Carrier air conditioning system was used at a Brooklyn, New York printing company in 1902 and the Charlotte area's first such system was installed in 1906 at The Chronicle Mills about 15 miles west of the Queen City in Belmont.

Carrier's invention was designed to regulate the temperature and humidity levels of cotton in the cotton mill as it had done for Sackett & Wilhelm's Lithography and Printing Company up North.

However, it did not take long for the mill workers in the Charlotte mills to recognize and appreciate another practical use of this invention.  Comfort!

Air conditioning has undoubtedly played a significant role in the great migration of the U.S. population to the South.

Can you imagine suffering through an entire summer anywhere between North Carolina and Texas without air conditioning?  No, thank you!

The thought is nearly as unbearable as enduring an entire summer without a drop of sweet iced tea.

Cramer was Carrier's biggest competition in the field and he is remembered today in his home county of Gaston, North Carolina as the namesake of the Town of Cramerton and Cramer Mountain Golf Club.

About the Author:

Jimmy Grappone is a Realtor® living in the Charlotte area for nearly a decade. 

His hobbies include fishing, playing golf, watching football, and exploring the Carolinas.

Jimmy is a licensed Realtor® with Allen Tate Company in North Carolina and South Carolina. 

He is a member of a nationwide and international referral network of the world's best real estate agents, "Leading Real Estate Companies of the World."

He is passionate about "Making Home Happen!"

Contact the Author:

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Email:  Jimmy.Grappone@AllenTate.com

Phone:  980-298-9385