Yesterday, while I was driving to school, I got the shock of a lifetime when I saw signs that read "Charlottetowne Avenue." Before that, they read "Independence Boulevard."

No one got any advance notice of the name change, and a lot of people, locals and out-of-towners alike, are sure to be confused by it. Compared to Independence, Charlottetowne sounds very generic, and it couldn't have come at a more inconvenient time. The name was chosen to honor the original name of Charlotte, which was divided into four wards, bounded by what are now Stonewall Street, Smith Street, 9th Street and McDowell Street. Of course, this area is now called Uptown Charlotte.

As for Independence, there's a story behind it as well. The boulevard, as well as the park that shares its name, was named for the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, which preceded the one in Philadelphia. And the reason May 20, 1775 appears on the North Carolina state flag is because that's the date the Mecklenburg Declaration was signed.

Independence Boulevard still exists, but is a little shorter now, since Charlottetowne Avenue took a good piece of the boulevard between 7th Street and Kenilworth Avenue (near the I-277 interchange). Like all new things, this'll take some time to get used to. We'll see in a year whether or not everyone is familiar with it. But for now, the new name is sure to bring on a lot of confusion and lost drivers, as I wasn't aware of the change until I actually saw it in person. The name change even made the news last night!

It may be Charlottetowne Avenue to them, but to us, it'll always be Independence Boulevard. Oh, well...