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Fort Mill also known as Fort Mill Township is a fast-growing suburban town in both York and Lancaster counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina, and a suburb of the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, and Rock Hill. Approximately 10,811 people live inside the town's corporate limits as of the 2010 Census with a total of 36,119 people residing within the entire urban area.^[1]

Fort Mill township is home to notable businesses such as Continental Tire the Americas, LLC., Muzak, Springs Industries, URS Corporation's Nuclear Center, and serves as the headquarters of Carolina Crown Drum and Bugle Corps.

History

The town of Fort Mill was established in 1873, taking its name from a colonial-era fort built by the British and a grist mill on nearby Steele Creek. The Catawba Indians made their home in present-day Fort Mill for many years. Scotch-Irish settlers began arriving in the 1750s and 1760s and a small settlement soon developed. Fort Mill grew rapidly in the late 19th century as textile mills were established. After many textile mill shut-downs the town continued to grow rapidly and became a major suburb of Charlotte.

Highlights in Fort Mill's history include:

• In the mid-18th century, Thomas Spratt and his wife Elizabeth were traveling through upper South Carolina in their wagon. They spent a night among the friendly Catawba Indians and were invited to stay and live in the area on a large tract of land given to them. They became the first white settlers in the Fort Mill area and their descendants still reside there.

• The town of Fort Mill was the site of the last Confederate Government Cabinet meeting (1865).^[1] Jefferson Davis and the Confederate Cabinet passed through the area during their flight from Richmond in 1865. The last meeting of the full Confederate Cabinet was held at the White Homestead in Fort Mill. Fort Mill's Confederate Park contains the nation's only monument to slaves fighting on the Confederate side of the American Civil War.

• In the 1980s, Fort Mill was the home to TV evangelist Jim Bakker's now defunct Heritage USA (now reopened as Heritage International Ministries).

Geography and climate

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 4.6 square miles (12.00 km²), of which, 4.6 square miles (11.8 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (1.30%) is water. Interstate 77 passes through the western portions of the town, and exit 85 is signed "South Carolina Highway 160/Fort Mill." SC 160 is the main east-west street in Fort Mill.

The town of Fort Mill will be holding a final public hearing in October on a proposed annexation that will effectively double the town's physical size. Fort Mill has three golf courses. The city also maintains three parks, Harris Street Park, Steele Street Park, and Doby Bridge Park. All three parks have picnic shelters, children's playgrounds, and restrooms. Doby Bridge and Harris Street Parks have lighted baseball fields, Steele Street and Harris Street Parks have basketball courts, and Steele Street Park has a small water park.^[1] The town also maintains a banquet hall rentable through the parks and recreation department.

Fort Mill is located in a humid subtropical climate, Cfa in the Köppen climate classification. This means that the city experiences four distinct seasons, although the variation between the seasons is not as pronounced as in other parts of the United States. Generally, daily maximum temperatures in the summer are around 90°F (32°C), with nighttime low temperatures of approximately 70°F (21°C). In winter daily maximum temperatures average around 50°F (10°C) while nighttime low temperatures are near 30°F (-1°C). Occasional readings as high as 105°F (41°C), reaching a high of 108°F in 2007 or as low as -5°F (-20°C) in 1989. Summers are generally humid and prone to thunderstorms, while winters are rainy with sleet and occasional snow. Snow might fall 1 or 2 times during the winter, but usually does not accumulate or persist as ground cover and is generally gone by the afternoon. Fort Mill experiences rainfall related to tropical cyclones but is generally too far inland to experience damaging winds from same. Fort Mill has not had any direct hits from any tropical systems since 1989, when Hurricane Hugo devastated the area.

Government

The government of Fort Mill takes place within the framework of a mayor-council system. Currently, the town council of Fort Mill consists of six board members, two of whom serve from at-large districts, while the remainder of the council represent each of four wards. Elections are held in accordance with United States election regulations every two years, and council members serve staggered four year terms.^[1] The town council currently meets the second Monday of each month. The town of Fort Mill currently has five boards and commissions. These are the Zoning Board of Appeals, the Planning Commission, the Historical Review Board, the Elections Commission, and the Housing Authority Board. Members of boards and commissions are appointed on a volunteer basis.

Fort Mill is the primary community within the Fort Mill School District, which also serves children from the nearby community of Tega Cay. The Fort Mill school district is considered one of the best school districts in the state of South Carolina.^[1]

The current mayor is Danny P. Funderburk, who was sworn in January 14, 2008.^[1]

Fort Mill is currently represented by the following legislators:^[1]

• US Senate: Senior Senator Lindsey Graham (R) and Junior Senator Jim DeMint (R)
• US House: J. "Mick" Michael Mulvaney (R), as part of South Carolina's 5th congressional district
• South Carolina Senate: Chauncey K. Gregory (R) as part of South Carolina Senate District 16
• South Carolina House of Representatives: Deborah Long (R) as part of South Carolina House District 45

The northern portions of Fort Mill Township are represented in the South Carolina House by Carl L. Gullick (R) as part of South Carolina House District 48.^[1]

Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 7,587 people, 2,914 households, and 2,141 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,662.7 people per square mile (642.4/km²). There were 3,063 housing units at an average density of 671.3 per square mile (259.3/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 81.69% Caucasian, 15.99% Black, 0.20% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.70% from other races, and 0.94% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.30% of the population.

There were 2,914 households out of which 41.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.3% were married couples living together, 17.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.5% were non-families. 23.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.09.

In the town the population was spread out with 31.1% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 32.4% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 86.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.0 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $44,627, and the median income for a family was $56,538. Males had a median income of $42,469 versus $27,253 for females. The per capita income for the town was $20,519. About 8.1% of families and 10.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 33% of those under age 18 and 11.7% of those age 65 or over.

Attractions

Fort Mill is home to numerous attractions and while a small town, Fort Mill has access to many amenties outside the town in nearby Charlotte and Rock Hill.

• Charlotte Knights AAA minor league baseball team, who play at Knights Stadium.
• Cedar Fair's popular Carowinds amusement park is located in Fort Mill.

Fort Mill is also known for its peach orchards and the Anne Springs Close Greenway. The Greenway is an extensive protected natural area consisting of approximately 2,300 acres (9.3 km²) of lakes, forests, and pastures that provide trails for hiking, biking, and horseback riding.

Notable people

• Randy Primas - First African-American Mayor of Camden, New Jersey (1981-1990)^[4]
• Elliott White Springs - WWI flying ace, author, industrialist, and a member of the South Carolina Hall of Fame.

References

External links

• Official website

Charlotte Metropolitan Area Counties Anson Cabarrus Catawba Chester Cleveland Gaston Iredell Lancaster Lincoln Mecklenburg Rowan Stanly Union York Major city Charlotte Cities and towns 20k-99k Concord Gastonia Hickory Huntersville Kannapolis Matthews Monroe Mooresville Rock Hill Salisbury Shelby Statesville Cities and towns 5k-20k Albemarle Belmont Bessemer City Cherryville Chester Conover Cornelius Davidson Fort Mill Indian Trail Kings Mountain Lancaster Lincolnton Mint Hill Mount Holly South Gastonia Unionville Wadesboro Weddington York Footnotes Bold = principal metro cities Italic = places and counties part of CSA

Municipalities and communities of Lancaster County, South Carolina, United States County seat: Lancaster City Lancaster Towns Fort Mill‡ Heath Springs Kershaw CDPs Elgin Irwin Lancaster Mill Springdale Unincorporated communities Buford Indian Land Van Wyck Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

Municipalities and communities of York County, South Carolina, United States County seat: York Cities Rock Hill Tega Cay York Towns Clover Fort Mill‡ Hickory Grove McConnells Sharon Smyrna‡ CDPs India Hook Lake Wylie Lesslie Newport Riverview Unincorporated communities Catawba Filbert Holy Islamville Hopewell Ogden Red River Smith Tirzah Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

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