Waxhaw City Map Poster

About Waxhaw

The town is part of the Charlotte metropolitan area. Waxhaw was founded in 1750 by a group of Scots-Irish immigrants from Pennsylvania, led by William and John McKnitt Alexander. The settlers were granted land along the Great Wagon Road between Charleston, South Carolina and Augusta, Georgia for their service in the French and Indian War. They named their settlement after a local tribe called "Waxhaw", who lived nearby at that time; they are believed to have been Siouan speakers related to other tribes such as Catawba or Cheraw (see also: Waxhaws massacre). The name may be derived from an Anglicization of "Wa-sha" ("people"), though this is disputed among linguists because it would mean that Wa-sha would have had to become Waxa before becoming Waxha' — which seems unlikely given how closely related Siouan languages are known historically not to change sounds quickly over time.