Inspiring Iredell: Dr. Steve Hill Built a Home for Statesville’s History
Now the local historian and storyteller invites the community to explore its crimes, scandals, ghosts, characters and music in Statesville After Dark.
By C. Sutton, Editor-in-Chief | CONNECT Iredell, NC
Local historian and storyteller Steve Hill will celebrate the launch of Statesville After Dark on Friday, October 23, at the Statesville Historical Collection.
Some people tell the stories of a community. Others help a community understand itself.
Steve Hill has always been one of those people for me.
Steve is a dear friend and a mentor in community building. He understands, as I do, that communities are filled with people, places and stories that can easily become disconnected from one another. He has devoted decades to gathering those pieces, preserving them and helping the rest of us understand how they fit together.
What inspires me most is not simply what Steve created. It is how he created it.
A Dream Built Without Waiting for Permission
Steve had a dream of preserving Statesville’s history and making it available to everyone. He did not wait for public funding, formal permission or someone else to build it for him. He began with what he had and invited others to believe in the vision.
Over the years, Steve collected photographs, documents, artifacts, newspaper clippings, books and pieces of local history that might otherwise have been lost. What started with one man’s passion grew into the Statesville Historical Collection, which now has a permanent home at 117 S. Center Street in Downtown Statesville.
I have tried for years to convince Steve that he should charge admission to the collection. Every time, he gives me that familiar smirk and offers the same response:
“Never a Fee for History.”
(Read Never A Fee For History by Alexis Mason)
That is more than a clever phrase. It is a commitment Steve has kept.
Visitors can experience the Statesville Historical Collection without paying an admission fee. The collection has been brought to life through Steve’s determination and the generosity of private donors, without public funding. He believes our community’s history belongs to everyone and that everyone should be able to experience it.
That independence makes what Steve has built even more remarkable.
Watching him turn a deeply personal passion into a permanent community resource has shaped the way I think about my own passion projects. He reminds me that meaningful work often begins with a person who sees a need, believes in an idea and starts building before anyone else understands what it could become.
Our shared commitment to preserving and connecting community stories has also given us opportunities to work together. One of the most meaningful was helping bring the North Carolina Civil Rights Trail marker commemorating the 1960 Woolworth’s lunch counter sit-in to Statesville.
Together, we helped ensure that an important act of courage by four Black student teachers from Unity High School received a permanent and visible place in our community’s story.
That is why I consider Steve a mentor.
He did not just dream about preserving history. He built the place where history could live.
On Thursday, February 26, 2026, community leaders, local organizations, residents, and students gathered on South Center Street for a moment decades in the making.
Steve Hill and Cindy Sutton celebrate the installation of Statesville’s North Carolina Civil Rights Trail marker, which recognizes four Black student teachers whose 1960 sit-in helped lead integration efforts at the Woolworth’s lunch counter.
The Stories Beneath the Surface
Steve is now inviting us to experience another side of the community he loves through his new book, Statesville After Dark: The Worst of the “Best Town in North Carolina.”
For generations, Statesville proudly called itself “The Best Town in North Carolina.”
Steve knows that history well. He also knows about the crimes, scandals, tragedies, ghosts, unusual characters and supernatural lore that rarely made it into the polished version of our community’s story.
Published by Redhawk Publications, Statesville After Dark grew from years of research Steve conducted for his popular nighttime walking history tours through Downtown Statesville. The book brings together documented history, oral traditions, folklore and Steve’s unmistakable sense of humor.
The result is part local history, part true crime, part ghost story and part unconventional love letter to a hometown with a few skeletons in its closets.
Steve does not tell these stories to diminish the community he loves. He preserves them because they belong to the community’s complete history.
He has often said that “all history is local history.” His work reminds us that the stories that seem small, strange or even uncomfortable today may help future generations understand who we were.
Steve Hill stands among the photographs, documents and stories he has spent decades collecting and preserving at the Statesville Historical Collection.
History With Its Own Soundtrack
This is unlike any local history book I have encountered.
Throughout its pages, readers will find QR codes connecting them to 43 original songs about the people, places and events they are discovering. Steve performs approximately a dozen of the songs, while many others feature musicians from the Statesville area.
I had the privilege of helping Steve behind the scenes by creating the QR codes that connect readers with the music. I do many things that begin as passion projects, but this one brought me a special kind of joy.
There was something meaningful about helping Steve connect the written stories of Statesville with the voices and talents of people from our community. Every QR code became another bridge between history, music, technology and the people who make this place what it is.
I was touched to learn that Steve credited me in the book for that contribution. It means more to me than he probably realizes.
The work was never simply about generating a set of codes. It was about helping a friend bring his vision to life and making local history more accessible, engaging and connected.
Cindy Sutton with local historian, mentor and friend Dr. Steve Hill inside the Statesville Historical Collection, celebrating the release of his new book, Statesville After Dark.
Continuing the Story of Downtown Statesville
Statesville After Dark follows Steve’s earlier book, In the Shadow of the Clock: The History of the Square, Statesville, North Carolina, 1790–1990.
Together, they reflect Steve’s lifelong commitment to preserving the history of the place he calls home.
Published in 2022, In the Shadow of the Clock chronicles the history of the downtown square and the community that grew around it. It follows Statesville as the town established its identity, experienced prosperity and worked to remain relevant through generations of change.
The two books offer different views of the same place.
In the Shadow of the Clock explores the square that became the heart of Statesville. Statesville After Dark takes us beyond the familiar storefronts and public history to meet the characters, confront the scandals and explore the mysteries found beneath the surface.
Together, they reflect Steve’s lifelong commitment to preserving the history of the place he calls home.
A Teacher Who Never Stopped Teaching
Long before many people knew Steve as the founder and guiding force behind the Statesville Historical Collection, he served this community as an educator.
He is a retired teacher, principal and Iredell-Statesville Schools administrator. Although his formal career in education ended, Steve never stopped teaching.
He simply expanded his classroom.
Today, that classroom includes the Statesville Historical Collection, his walking tours, public programs, conversations and books. Through each of them, Steve makes history personal. He helps us recognize familiar streets, buildings and names while encouraging us to look more closely at the stories we thought we already knew.
He collects more than artifacts and photographs. He preserves connections.
That is the kind of work that strengthens a community.
Join Steve for the Book Launch
The community is invited to celebrate the launch of Statesville After Dark on Friday, October 23, 2026, from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Statesville Historical Collection, located at 117 S. Center Street in Downtown Statesville.
Guests will have an opportunity to purchase the book, meet Steve, have their copies signed and hear some of the colorful stories behind the people, places and events featured in its pages.
The evening will also include live performances by musicians whose work appears in the book.
Proceeds from Statesville After Dark will benefit Preservation Statesville, the nonprofit organization that operates and supports the Statesville Historical Collection. By purchasing the book, readers will help support the continued preservation of the stories, images, documents and artifacts in the collection.
As we reinvigorate Connect Iredell and bring back our Inspiring Iredell stories, I cannot think of a better person to represent what this series means.
Steve Hill embodies so much of what Connect Iredell was created to celebrate: people who love their community, preserve its stories, connect its pieces and generously share what they know with others.
I am proud to call him a mentor. I am grateful to call him a friend. And I cannot wait for our community to experience Statesville After Dark.
Join Steve Hill for the official launch of Statesville After Dark on Friday, October 23, from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Statesville Historical Collection.
Book Launch Details
Friday, October 23, 2026
5 to 8 p.m.
Statesville Historical Collection
117 S. Center Street, Statesville, NC 28677
To learn more or order a copy of Statesville After Dark, visit tinyurl.com/StatesvilleAfterDark.