Editing Waxhaw, North Carolina (section)

==History==
The original inhabitants of the region were a Native American people group known alternately as either the Wysacky or the Waxhaws. The first European to record contacting the group was the Spanish [[conquistador]] [[Juan Pardo (explorer)|Juan Pardo]]. In 1711, the Waxhaw aided the British colonists of North Carolina in their war against the [[Tuscarora people|Tuscarora]], a decision that antagonized the Tuscaroras [[Iroquoian people|Iroquoian]] allies in New York,<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E-IiOoGJHoYC|title=The Yamasee War: A Study of Culture, Economy, and Conflict in the Colonial South|last=Ramsey|first=William L.|date=January 1, 2008|publisher=U of Nebraska Press|isbn=978-0803237445|language=en}}</ref> who subsequently began raiding the Waxhaw tribe. These raids continued until 1715, when the Waxhaw joined the [[Yamasee]] war effort against the British colony of South Carolina. The tribes involvement in the [[Yamasee War]] led to their destruction at the hands of South Carolina's Catawba allies and the freeing of their land for European settlement.

The area was first settled by colonists in the mid-eighteenth century. Most settlers were of [[Germans|German]] and [[Ulster Scots people|Scots-Irish]] origin. Settlers became subsistence farmers and were known for being independent. [[Andrew Jackson]], who later would become the seventh [[President of the United States]], was born nearby in 1767, prior to the American Revolution. There is some disagreement as to which of the Carolinas was his birthplace because of the proximity of the border between the two. However, there are historical marker signs around Waxhaw, North Carolina describing Andrew Jackson's early connection to the area. His relationship to the area also is documented at the Museum of the Waxhaws.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Waxhaws |first1=Museum of the |title=President Andrew Jackson's Connection to Waxhaw |url=http://museumofthewaxhaws.org/local-history/andrew-jacksons-birthplace/ |website=museumofthewaxhaws.org/ |access-date=April 9, 2020}}</ref> [[Andrew Jackson State Park]] is minutes from downtown Waxhaw, which has a memorial and other information about [[Andrew Jackson]]<ref>Further information: [[McKamie Farmhouse]]</ref>

[[File:Waxhaw, NC, Bridge.jpg|thumb|Footbridge over the railway tracks]]
The arrival of the [[railroad]] in 1888 created access to the markets of [[Atlanta]] and helped the town reach prosperity. The railroad tracks were laid through the center of town to show the importance of the railroad system to the community. The railroad remains in the center of town and now, is bordered by a broad landscaped area that divides the rows of stores on either side.

Beginning in the late nineteenth century, the community began to develop [[cotton mill]] factories for manufacturing [[textile]]s. The railroad helped increase access for the products of this industry. Cotton manufacturing was important to the region through the 1940s. Postwar changes in the economy, with shifts of the textile industry to jobs in other areas of the country and out of the country, required the community to adapt to new conditions.