Shelby Once Turned Down Becoming Half Lincoln County and Half Rutherford County

When commissioners were deciding where to locate the new county seat of Cleveland in 1841, one serious proposal was to place the town directly on the old county line between Lincoln and Rutherford counties. This would have made the new town half in one county and half in the other, with the center near what is now Elizabeth Church and the present county home. The idea was suggested as a compromise because both sides wanted control of the new county seat. In the end, the Rutherford County group won, and Shelby was placed entirely on former Rutherford territory instead of being split between two counties.
Source: Mamie Jones