People across Charlotte are remembering the formerly homeless, wild-haired man known as “Chilly Willy,” who died Thursday night after being hit by a car on East Seventh Street, a perilous spot for pedestrians in recent years.

The 58-year-old, whose real name was William “Larry” Major, had panhandled on Charlotte’s streets for more than 20 years. Police and social workers knew him by name, and his struggles with alcoholism and homelessness were widely known.

“Larry was just an individual who wanted to do what he wanted to do,” said his sister Joan Armstrong of Fort Mill, S.C., explaining that her brother had refused to move in with family over the years. “That was the life he chose to live.”

But in the final months of his life, Major found a home. He’d moved into Moore Place, a Charlotte apartment building for the chronically homeless run by the Urban Ministry Center.

“He could be cantankerous and cranky, but he had a heart of gold,” said Caroline Chambre, director of Moore Place.

Major was hit just after 9 p.m. in front of Jackalope Jack’s in the Elizabeth neighborhood. Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said he stepped onto East Seventh Street and was struck by a 65-year-old woman driving a Hyundai Sonata headed away from uptown. Paramedics rushed Major to the hospital, but he was pronounced dead around 9:30 p.m.

Joe Hinson, who was sitting on the patio at Jackalope Jack’s with his back to the road, said he heard the crash behind him and turned around to see Major lying on the ground.

Hinson said Major had walked up and down the sidewalk on Seventh Street earlier in the evening. A manager at the bar had told Major to be careful, Hinson said.

After hearing that the victim was “Chilly Willy,” several bystanders stopped to ask officers how he was doing.

Police said the driver, who stopped at the scene and called 911, is not facing charges, but the investigation is ongoing.

Another pedestrian death

The crash came just 12 days before the one-year anniversary of another pedestrian’s killing in the same area.

Autumn Lynn Soyka, 31, was struck and killed there last Oct. 30 by an alleged drunk driver in front of Jackalope Jack’s. A year earlier, another driver was charged with DWI after hitting and injuring three pedestrians in the same vicinity.

Flowers placed alongside the road in Soyka’s memory remained there Thursday night, as police closed part of the road to investigate the crash that killed Major.

The Charlotte Department of Transportation will also investigate the incident. Crash data showing the number of crashes involving pedestrians on Seventh Street wasn’t immediately available.

The street in that area has three lanes, with several restaurants nearby. At night, some patrons park in a small strip mall’s parking lot and walk across Seventh Street, heading to Jackalope Jack’s or Philosopher’s Stone Tavern on Seventh Street, and Kennedy’s bar and grill around the corner on North Caswell Road.

There is no crosswalk in front of Jackalope Jack’s, but there is one about 200 feet away at the intersection of Seventh Street and Caswell Road.

Linda Durrett, a spokeswoman for CDOT, said the department recently installed a pedestrian signal and pedestrian markings at that intersection.

‘Love-hate’ relationship

Some have said the area needs better lighting. Josh Settle, owner of Philosopher’s Stone Tavern, said he’d like to see a crosswalk in front of the restaurants, although a crosswalk may not have prevented Major’s death.

Settle said he’d known Major for about 12 years, and the pair had a “love-hate relationship.”

Major tested Settle’s patience at times, hassling customers at the bar or cursing at people on the street, Settle said. But often, Major was friendly, and Settle gave him food and let him pick out clothes from the bar’s lost and found collection at the end of the year.

“I was either running him off or shaking his hand,” Settle said, smiling. “You never knew what you were gonna get. But he’ll be missed.”

To many, Major was a harmless fixture around the area, easily recognizable by his disheveled hair and a tattoo on his forehead. His death sparked a flood of posts on social media, with some describing him as the “coolest guy in Charlotte.”

Kennedy’s wrote on its Facebook page Friday that it was running its “Chilly Willy” burger on special in honor of Major.

Major spent much of his life in trouble with the law, with a criminal record that dated back to the 1970s. Records show he served time in prison for armed robbery and other offenses, including trying to escape from prison.

In recent years, Major found himself in jail time and time again, but mostly for nonviolent crimes. His most recent arrest was in August, when he was charged with being intoxicated and disruptive.

In 2007, a local study examined 81 chronic offenders who clogged Mecklenburg County jails. Major was among them.

In an interview with the Observer that year, Major said he slept behind a liquor store or snuck into the back of cars or a hospital waiting room. When asked why he wouldn’t stop drinking, he said, “I wish I could tell you.”

Father was a minister

Major grew up in Charlotte as the middle child in a family with seven children. His father was a minister, and he was raised in the church, where he often played guitar, said Armstrong.

After he was released from prison, Major didn’t want to feel closed in. She said that’s why he stayed on the streets.

“He touched a lot of hearts,” she said. “If his shirt was clean, he’d take it and give to you.”

She last saw him about a month ago in church. He’d started coming back to church recently, she said.

“Larry knew the way… He still had a good heart,” Armstrong said. “Larry’s demon was the bottle.”

Chambre said Major had continued to struggle with alcohol but had made progress since moving into Moore Place, where social workers help people transition from homelessness. She said he frequently talked about wanting to “better himself.”

The day he moved in eight months ago, he announced that his name was William “Larry” Major, she said.

He said, “I am not ‘Chilly Willy’ anymore.”

Chambre initially worried that the program would have to constantly replace his apartment key.

“He never once lost his key,” she said. “That key was like gold to him.”

Major’s family plans to have a visitation from 6-7:30 p.m. Monday at the Church of Jesus Christ on East 36th Street. They asked that donations be made in his honor to the Urban Ministry Center. Donations can be mailed to 2435 Lucena St., Charlotte, NC, 28206.