Kannapolis is a city in Cabarrus and Rowan counties, in the U.S. state of North Carolina, northwest of Concord and northeast of Charlotte and is a suburb in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The city of Kannapolis was incorporated in 1984. The population was 53,114 at the 2020 census, which makes Kannapolis the 19th largest city in North Carolina. It is the house of the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers, the Low-A baseball affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, and it is the hometown of the Earnhardt racing family. It is in addition to the headquarters for the Haas F1 racing team. The center of the city is home to the North Carolina Research Campus, a public-private venture that focuses upon food, nutrition, and biotech research.

Early meaning and usage of the city’s publicize was a forward reference to Cannon Mills Corporation, or James William Cannon himself. Early published make known variations include “Cannon-opolis” and “Cannapolis”. A widely all the rage origin of the word “Kannapolis” comes from the concentration of the Greek words kanna (reeds, not looms) and polis (city), which some believed meant “City of Looms”. Dr. Gary Freeze, Catawba College history and politics department chairman, said a Concord newspaper used the name “Cannon City” in 1906. After mill workers or newspapers called the town “Cannapolis”, J.W. Cannon asked Cabarrus County commissioners to give the town the name, but starting later a “K”. Kannapolis historian Norris Dearmon said the K might have been to distinguish the town from his Concord mill village. Since, Freeze said, “Jim Cannon didn’t assay Greek,” Cannon did not post the town “city of looms”. In 1906 J.W. Cannon purchased the house that forward-looking became Kannapolis, and acquired a sum of 1,008 acres in Cabarrus and Rowan Counties. Approximately 808 of those acres of farmland, purchased along the historic wagon road surrounded by Salisbury and Charlotte, became the location of the other textile mill, Cannon Manufacturing. Cannon Manufacturing began production in 1908. In 1914 Cannon Manufacturing became known as the world’s largest producer of sheets and towels. Shortly after, Mr. Cannon opened plants in Rowan County, Concord and in South Carolina tallying 20,000 workers. Mill founder J.W. Cannon’s youngest son, Charles A. Cannon, consolidated everything the surgically remove mills into the giant Cannon Mills Company in 1928.

The Meek House and Harvey Jeremiah Peeler House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Kannapolis is located upon the boundary of Cabarrus and Rowan counties, with a greater ration of its area in Cabarrus County. U.S. Route 29 (Cannon Boulevard) passes through the city east of the downtown area; U.S. 29 leads northeast 15 miles (24 km) to Salisbury and south 7 miles (11 km) to Concord. Interstate 85 bypasses the city upon the south and the east, with entry from Exits 54 through 63 (five exits total). I-85 leads northeast 65 miles (105 km) to Greensboro and southwest 21 miles (34 km) to Charlotte.