The
American Iris Society Region 4
The History of the Charlotte Iris Society
The first recorded mention of the
Charlotte Iris Society was on Page 15 of the April 23, 1933, edition
of the Charlotte Observer:
IRIS SOCIETY TO HAVE SHOW HERE Exhibition of Flowers Will Be Held at Ratcliffe's Next Tuesday
Billed as the largest show of the kind ever held in this part of the South, this show featured between 100 and 150 varieties of irises on display at Ratcliffe's florist shop. Society officers: A. C. Sheldon, President; Dr. R. H. Lafferty, Vice President; W. A. Carriker, Secretary and Dr. George Pettaway, Treasurer, worked to organize this purely educational show. There were no admission, no prizes, no judging, the purpose of the show being solely educational. "There will be no individual exhibits and a cordial invitation is extended to all flower lovers to visit the show.”
Later the next year, the Charlotte Observer reported that "Hundreds of persons, many of them from out-of-town, attended the second annual exhibition of the Charlotte Iris Society yesterday and last night at Efrid's Department Store". According to the article on Page 10 of the May 9, 1934, edition over 200 standard varieties and more than 100 seedings were on display.
The Charlotte Iris Society was officially organized on March 1, 1948, to promote the culture and improvement of the iris. Mr. W. J. McKee, a nationally known hybridizer and a director of the American Iris Society (AlS), spoke to a joint meeting of the Charlotte Garden Club and the Garden Department of the Charlotte Women's Club. A nominating committee was appointed, and a second meeting was held March 11, 1948. The name Charlotte Iris Society (CIS) was chosen and officers were elected and installed. The first president was Mrs. S. L. Whitmore (who became Mrs. S. A. Oscar a few months later). Individual dues were set at $3.00 per year. There were 32 regular members and five honorary members at that time.
The first iris garden tour held in May 1949 was an out-of-town trip to Spartanburg, SC. The first iris show was held in 1951 at the local Sears store. A spring show has been held most years since that time with the exception of 1963, 1992, 2005, 2017, and 2020. In 1963 a very late frost on May 3rd caused the show to be canceled. The 1992 show was canceled to avoid conflict with the AlS meeting in Atlanta. The 2005 Show was canceled to avoid conflict with the Region 4 meeting hosted by Eastern North Carolina Iris Society. By the 2010s the show was held at the Blacklion home furnishings store in Pineville. The 2017 show was cancelled because Mother Nature did not cooperate and everyone's irises were bloomed out by the last Saturday in April. The coronavirus pandemic caused the cancellation of the 2020 show and the use of a virtual-only format in 2021. Providence United Methodist Church became the show site in 2022. The 2024 show took place at the Hilton University Place in conjunction with the spring regional meeting.
IRIS SOCIETY TO HAVE SHOW HERE Exhibition of Flowers Will Be Held at Ratcliffe's Next Tuesday
Billed as the largest show of the kind ever held in this part of the South, this show featured between 100 and 150 varieties of irises on display at Ratcliffe's florist shop. Society officers: A. C. Sheldon, President; Dr. R. H. Lafferty, Vice President; W. A. Carriker, Secretary and Dr. George Pettaway, Treasurer, worked to organize this purely educational show. There were no admission, no prizes, no judging, the purpose of the show being solely educational. "There will be no individual exhibits and a cordial invitation is extended to all flower lovers to visit the show.”
Later the next year, the Charlotte Observer reported that "Hundreds of persons, many of them from out-of-town, attended the second annual exhibition of the Charlotte Iris Society yesterday and last night at Efrid's Department Store". According to the article on Page 10 of the May 9, 1934, edition over 200 standard varieties and more than 100 seedings were on display.
The Charlotte Iris Society was officially organized on March 1, 1948, to promote the culture and improvement of the iris. Mr. W. J. McKee, a nationally known hybridizer and a director of the American Iris Society (AlS), spoke to a joint meeting of the Charlotte Garden Club and the Garden Department of the Charlotte Women's Club. A nominating committee was appointed, and a second meeting was held March 11, 1948. The name Charlotte Iris Society (CIS) was chosen and officers were elected and installed. The first president was Mrs. S. L. Whitmore (who became Mrs. S. A. Oscar a few months later). Individual dues were set at $3.00 per year. There were 32 regular members and five honorary members at that time.
The first iris garden tour held in May 1949 was an out-of-town trip to Spartanburg, SC. The first iris show was held in 1951 at the local Sears store. A spring show has been held most years since that time with the exception of 1963, 1992, 2005, 2017, and 2020. In 1963 a very late frost on May 3rd caused the show to be canceled. The 1992 show was canceled to avoid conflict with the AlS meeting in Atlanta. The 2005 Show was canceled to avoid conflict with the Region 4 meeting hosted by Eastern North Carolina Iris Society. By the 2010s the show was held at the Blacklion home furnishings store in Pineville. The 2017 show was cancelled because Mother Nature did not cooperate and everyone's irises were bloomed out by the last Saturday in April. The coronavirus pandemic caused the cancellation of the 2020 show and the use of a virtual-only format in 2021. Providence United Methodist Church became the show site in 2022. The 2024 show took place at the Hilton University Place in conjunction with the spring regional meeting.