Trail of History Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
270978923
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2010
Location
Charlotte, NC, USA
Phone
7043677030
Rating
70
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Arts, Cultural Organizations - Multipurpose

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$337,892
Expenses
$176,400
Assets
$921,581
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

20 people listed

People named in this filing

  • GARY RITTER (SECRETARY)
  • MATTHEW RIDENHOUR (VICE CHAIR)
  • NATALIE CENTENO (TREASURER)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To recapture and preserve the significance of key people who contributed to the history, growth, and development of mecklenburg county by erecting larger than life representative statues along the urban section of the little sugar creek greenway.

What it reported doing in 2025

The organization solicited funds from select private donors for the purpose of commissioning the construction and installation of bronze statues representing prominent charlotteans who shaped our region's history and culture. The statues will be installed along the greenway in charlotte. The organization installed no statues in 2025, but plan to install 3 statues in 2026.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 91% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 49
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Accountability: 76
  • Sustainability: 83
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 43.8%; rating input score 44
  • Program expense ratio: 73.5%; rating input score 73
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 3 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 43
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 47.8%; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 5.22; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -5.5% per year; rating input score 0; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -4.4% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.2% per year; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 43.8% of revenue deployed · 73.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 20 of 20 board members independent · 3 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $130K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 20 people listed
  • Consistency: 18 of 18 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 44/100.
  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.