Neighborhoods developed around church congregations and these churches became the centers of the outlying communities.  County residents established seven Presbyterian churches prior to the Revolution.  The first area to establish a church was Rocky River in the southwestern portion of what is now Cabarrus County.  The Presbyterian congregation formed in 1750, but did not have a minister until 1758.  In 1755, Sugaw Creek Presbyterian became the second church in the county, located 3.5 miles northeast of Charlotte.  Between 1775 and 1828, three Presbyterian, two Methodist, and a Lutheran Church also emerged in the outlying regions of the County.  Few churches existed less than ten miles away from Charlotte, which contributed to dispersed communities outside of town.