A Hometown Tribute to a Legend

Kannapolis, NC, a city of 39,000 people just north of Charlotte off I-85, offers fans two opportunities to pay tribute to racing legend and hometown hero Dale Earnhardt, Sr.

To visit Dale Earnhardt Plaza, the home of the 900 pound, nine foot tall statue by sculptor Clyde Ross Morgan, take I-85 to exit 60, Dale Earnhardt Boulevard. Follow Dale Earnhardt Boulevard and the signs for Cannon Village to Main Street. Turn right onto Main Street. Go about a half mile. On the left, you will see Dale Earnhardt Plaza.

The Dale Earnhardt Tribute Center by Sam Bass is a block down from the statue on West Avenue in the Cannon Village Visitor Center.

There is plenty of parking in the area. Cannon Village has unique gift shops, two restaurants and a home furnishings market.

Thank You to Our Contributors and Supporters

As of March 29, 2004, $199, 395.31 has been raised for the Tribute from all over the United States and Canada. Thanks goes to the members of the Dale Earnhardt Tribute Steering Committee for leading the effort:

John Lequire, chairman and owner of Sonic Drive-in
Paul Bessent, State Farm Insurance and City Councilman
Bob Misenheimer, City Councilman
Cathy Earnhardt-Watkins, Action Sports Image
Troy Day, Day Enterprises
Ray Moss, Mayor of Kannapolis
Phyllis Beaver, Marketing Director Cannon Village
Lynn Scott-Safrit, President Atlantic American Properties
Butch Critz, M & IS - Pillowtex Plant 1
Jack Cuff, NASCAR correspondent for Pontiac
Roger Haas, Motor Sports Destinations
The Tribute is made possible by the generous contributions and the work of:

Fans from all over the United States and Canada. To see the cities and states where contributions have come from, click here.

Our unending thanks goes to:

Sam Bass, motor sports artist, www.sambass.com, or visit his gallery in Concord, NC.
Clyde Ross Morgan, sculptor, www.clyderossmorgan.com, Sedona, AZ.
Site Solutions, landscape architect and civil engineering firm based in Charlotte, NC, www.sitesolutionspa.com.
Cannon Village, www.cannonvillage.com or call 704-938-3200.
The Cabarrus County Convention and Visitors Bureau, www.visitcabarrus.com or 1-800-848-3740.
Atlantic American Properties (AAP), Kannapolis, NC, and owner David H. Murdock
Dale Earnhardt, Inc, Mooresville, NC
Concord Printing
NewTech Graphics
Kannapolis Country Club
Joe H. Ervin Grading
Beckwith Homes
Surveying Consultants
CW Patterson Builders
Parker Crane Services
APAC Carolina Inc-PAPCO
O'Kelly Electric
Looper Landscaping
Jay Howard Events
Cabarrus Regional Chamber of Commerce
Cabarrus County Convention and Visitors Bureau
Time Warner Cable
America Charters
Party Time Rental
Johnson Concrete Company
CFP Geotechnical and Environmental Supplies
General Shale Brick
Metromont Materials
Baucom Nursery
SMI Properties
McGee Brothers
Elkins Group
Charlotte Printing
Omega Graphics
Northern Light and Sound
Norman Sound

All the businesses, individuals and race teams who donated items to the auction held December 2001.

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Tribute History

February 28, 2002, the Dale Earnhardt Tribute Steering Committee approved a recommendation from their site selection subcommittee to move the Dale Earnhardt Tribute from its original site in 16-acre Village Park near downtown Kannapolis to Funderburk Park, on Main and B. Streets in Cannon Village. Atlantic American Properties (AAP), owners of Cannon Village, offered the site to the Tribute Steering Committee in January 2002. AAP also donated and renovated a portion of the Cannon Village Visitors Center, a block away from the park on West Ave., as a Tribute Center by motor sports artist Sam.

The idea for the Tribute came as a result of the outpouring of fans that came to Kannapolis the week after Earnhardt's death and attended the memorial service at Fieldcrest Cannon Stadium held by the City of Kannapolis. The community realized the unique connection Kannapolis has with the Earnhardt family and NASCAR racing. As a result, citizens asked Mayor Ray Moss to pursue the possibility of the City building a permanent memorial to Dale Earnhardt.

The Mayor formed a citizen's group in March 2001. In support of the committee's efforts, Kannapolis City Council passed an ordinance on May 14, 2001 that established a restricted fund to accept donations for the project. The ordinance also established an official Steering Committee.

The Steering Committee met for the first time in June 2001 and outlined an artist selection process. In July, the committee unanimously selected motorsports artist Sam Bass and sculptor Clyde Ross Morgan. Morgan's experience with memorials and monuments, his thorough research and ability to incorporate that research into his work, his talent for capturing the essence of his subjects in a moving and real manner impressed the Committee. Bass' friendship with Earnhardt, his status as Earnhardt's artist and his ability to capture the action and person of Earnhardt led the committee to select him without considering any other motorsports artist.

Through the remainder of 2001 fundraising for the project continued. In May 2002 L.A. businessman and owner of companies and property in Kannapolis, David H. Murdock contributed $200,000 to create the statue. The design process was able to begin. Morgan spent hours with the Earnhardt family designing the statue. Earnhardt's wife even flew to Morgan's studio in Arizona to examine and adjust the fine details of the statue. Also in May 2002 Sam Bass working with AAP and Cannon Village opened the Dale Earnhardt Tribute Center.

On Aug. 21, 2002, ground was broken on the statue site. Daughter Kelley Earnhardt and brother Danny Earnhardt rode the bulldozers that turned the first ground. Companies volunteered time and materials to complete as much of the site work as possible for the statue to be ready for its unveiling.

The nine-foot tall, nine hundred pound bronze statue of Dale Earnhardt was unveiled on Mon., Oct. 14, 2002 in downtown Kannapolis at the Dale Earnhardt Plaza on Main St. The crowd of 3,000 enjoyed the program that featured former Winston Cup Champion and NBC racing analyst Benny Parsons, owner of Atlantic American Properties and Castle and Cooke, Inc. David Murdock, Executive Vice-President of Lowe's Motor Speedway Doug Stafford, driver Kevin Harvick, singer John Daniel Coe, Mayor Ray Moss, Dale Earnhardt Tribute Steering Committee Chairman John Lequire and Executive Officer of DEI, Inc and wife of Dale Earnhardt Teresa Earnhardt. Dale Earnhardt's mother Martha, brothers Danny and Randy, sisters Cathy Watkins and Kaye Snipes, Teresa Earnhardt and Dale Earnhardt Jr., unveiled the statue. Fans from Canada, England, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and most of the states in the country were part of those in Kannapolis for the unveiling.

Prior to the statue unveiling on Wed, Oct 9, 2002 premiere motorsports artist Sam Bass unveiled four wall size murals in the Dale Earnhardt Tribute Center by Sam Bass in the Cannon Village Visitor Center on West Ave in Kannapolis just one block from the statue. The unveiling marks what Bass considers a lifetime commitment to making the Tribute Center the most comprehensive record of Earnhardt's life and career. The Tribute Center opened in May 2002 with an exhibit of 15 of Bass' most recognized portraits of Earnhardt.

The Cabarrus County Convention and Visitors Bureau Board of Directors in 2003 provided a $50,000 grant to the Tribute, $30,000 to help complete site work around the statue and $20,000 to help with marketing efforts.

Fans from around the country, Canada and other countries continue to come to Kannapolis to share our Tribute to one of the most beloved stockcar drivers ever.

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Kannapolis and the Earnhardt's
To view an article about Ralph and Dale Earnhardt and the early days of racing in Kannapolis as well as pictures contributed by long-time friends of the Earnhardt's, Marshall Brooks and Gregg Dayvault, click here.

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