Burlington is a city in Alamance and Guilford counties in the state of North Carolina. Burlington began as a place for the North Carolina Railroad to build, repair, and do maintenance on its track. The company purchased land to the northwest of Graham, NC in the 1850s. The railroad company used this land to build a repair shop but also a blacksmith shop, housing, company headquarters, and carpentry shop. The area was called the Company Shops. In 1187, an appointed committee for the town voted to rename the town to Burlington, NC.
In the early 1900s, E.M. Holt built the first cotton mill in Alamance County which contains the majority of Burlington. From this, eventually, 30 cotton mills began operating in the county. The textiles industry continued to dominate the local economy up until the 1970s, but the city couldn’t survive off one industry. During World War II, the city began to expand its economy thanks to the opening of an aircraft manufacturing facility which later was leased to the firestone tire company after 2 years of production. Today, Burlington has become a vibrant city with libraries, small shops, financial services, and plenty of employment opportunities.