Spartanburg, South Carolina
Downtown Spartanburg, South Carolina
Downtown Spartanburg, South Carolina
Nickname: 
Sparkle City
Motto: 
Service is Our Business
CountySpartanburg County
Founded1883
Government
 • MayorWilliam Barnet III
Population
 (2000)
 • City39,673
 • Metro
264,230 (2,004)
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (Eastern)
Websitewww.cityofspartanburg.org

Spartanburg is a city in Spartanburg County in South Carolina, a state of the United States of America, and 98 miles (158 km) northwest of Columbia. The population was 39,673 at the 2000 census. Spartanburg's Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) population is 264,230 and the Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson Combined Statistical Area (CSA) population is 1,173,433 according to 2004 estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau. It is the county seat of Spartanburg CountyTemplate:GR and the second largest city of the three primary cities in the Upstate region.

History

175th anniversary logo
175th anniversary logo

In order to establish rule over the lawless backcountry of South Carolina, in 1789 a courthouse and a jail were established near a spring. These buildings were in the center of a large rectangular plot of land around which lots were laid out. The spring acted as the settlement's water supply, and over time, more people began to settle in the area. The village of Spartanburgh was established in 1831 (2006 marks the City's 175th anniversary). Over time the "h" was dropped. In the 1870s the village's status was changed to "city," which was a testament to the rapid growth that was occurring in the area.

When the United States entered World War I in 1917 one of the 16 divisional cantonments, Camp Wadsworth, for the training of National Guard troops, was established near the town in the vicinity of present Westgate Mall. A South Carolina historical marker is located on W.O. Ezell Boulevard. Most of the New York State troops were trained there.

During World War II Camp Croft south of the city trained Army recruits. This is now a SC State park with the same name. Some portions of the park contain the original kwanza (1/2 metal tube structures).

Hampton Heights was the first historic district in Spartanburg listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Facts:

Origin of Name

The name Spartanburg is believed to be derived from the Spartan Regiment, which was formed in this area in 1776. The regiment served with distinction throughout the American Revolution. This explanation appears both in the WPA History of Spartanburg County and in J.B.O. Landrum’s History of Spartanburg County. Mr. Landrum goes on to state that the people of this area "[w]ere indeed a Spartan people, and were willing to sacrifice their lives, if necessary, to meet all the difficulties which surrounded them. They had already, in previous wars with the Indians, undergone trials and sacrifices which justly entitled them to this honored name. Like the ancient Spartans of Greece, they were inured to hardship and sacrifices, and cherished the heroic virtues of courage, fortitude, patriotism, and public spirit."

Geography

Spartanburg is located at 34°56′48″N 81°55′39″W / 34.94667°N 81.92750°W / 34.94667; -81.92750Invalid arguments have been passed to the ((#coordinates:)) function (34.946771, -81.927603)Template:GR.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 49.9 km² (19.2 mi²). 49.6 km² (19.1 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (0.47%) is water.

The average annual temperature is 60.6 °F (15.9 °C), with the average January temperature being 41.8 °F (5.4 °C) and the average July temperature as 80.5 °F (26.9 °C). There are four distinct but not extreme seasons. Average precipitation is 47.5 inches (1206 mm) and the average growing season is 231 days.

History

More than 100,000 people have worked in the 50+ Spartanburg cotton mills since 1816, thereby earning the reputation as the "Lowell of the South." There were few mills in the area before the Civil War. After 1870 new technological advances that simplified the work, northern capital, and out-migration from the poor farms created a wave of postbellum mill development here and in much of the piedmont South. This favorable manufacturing climate persisted through the mid-twentieth century, but as international market forces began to shift the bulk of textile production to developing countries, Spartanburg witnessed a series of mill bankruptcies and closings.

Government

The mayor, elected in January 2002, is William Barnet III. City Hall is located at 145 West Broad St.

The County Administration Building (this is the old Sears building which was vacated in the mid-1970s when Sears moved to Westgate Mall and renovated in the late 1980s or early 1990s)is located at 366 North Church Street. It is across the street from the Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium.

Economy

File:BMWZentrum.jpg
BMW Zentrum, the visitor center of BMW's Spartanburg, South Carolina manufacturing plant

The economy of Spartanburg benefits from the BMW manufacturing facility located in the western end of Spartanburg County. Manufacturing began in 1996 with certain types of the 3 Series (from the E36 platform) and with the Z3 roadster. However, a year later when the newer 3 Series (E46) platform emerged, BMW decided not to build it at the Spartanburg plant, but instead exclusively manufacture variants of the popular Z4. The plant currently manufactures its Z4 roadster and X5 SUV.

Spartanburg is also home to the world headquarters and research facility for Milliken & Company. With over 12,000 associates located at more than 60 facilities worldwide, Milliken is one of the largest privately held textile and chemical manufacturers in the world. Milliken is consistently recognized as an industry leader, and has received numerous awards for its leadership and contributions in the areas of quality (including the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award), safety, and innovation. Milliken has also been recognized as one of the top employers in the U.S.; it was ranked 16th and 38th in FORTUNE Magazine’s 2004 and 2006 lists of the “100 Best Companies to Work For”.

The world headquarters of Denny's restaurants is also located in Spartanburg. QS/1 Data Systems and Extended Stay America have each constructed new office buildings downtown to serve as their respective headquarters.

Spartanburg is serviced by two airports: Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport, a small, mostly private airport, and the larger Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport (GSP) that services most major airlines.

Education

College Town

Spartanburg is a "College Town", and it has six institutions of higher learning:

Public & Private Schools

Spartanburg is served by the Spartanburg County School System, which is divided into seven individual districts. Some of the districts share a vocational school. The city of Spartanburg is located in primarily in District 7 of and partially in District 6.

Spartanburg also holds the Spartanburg Day School, a K-12 private school with multiple recent state championships in several sports. Its headmaster is Chris Dorrance.

Spartanburg is home to the South Carolina School for the Deaf and Blind.

Attractions

Spartanburg is home to many of the Upstate's attractions and arts/cultural venues as well as Greenville.

Spartanburg is home to many events throughout the year:

Other attractions include:

Sports

Spartanburg is host to the Carolina Panthers Training Camp each year at Wofford College's Gibbs Stadium.

Historic Duncan Park Stadium is home to the Spartanburg Stingers in the Coastal Plain League and the Spartanburg Crickets in the Southern Collegiate Baseball League.

USC Upstate Spartans, Spartanburg Methodist College Pioneers, and the Wofford College Terriers offer a variety of sports for both men and women.

Spartanburg is also located an hour away from the Clemson Tigers and about an hour and a half away from the University of South Carolina Gamecocks.

Arts/Culture

File:ExtendedStayAmericainSptbg.jpg
Extended Stay America Headquarters

Spartanburg is experiencing major changes in its downtown area as of recent times. The 'Renaissance Project' is a large-scale revamping plan. A nine-floor, 240-room Marriot has been built downtown. The historic downtown is centered around Morgan Square, which was rennovated in late 2006. QS/1 Data Systems completed construction of their new regional headquarters in late 2004, at the intersection of North Daniel Morgan Avenue and West St John Street (see photo, above). Extended Stay America and Advance America have both built their world headquarters in recent times downtown.

Media

Spartanburg is part of the much greater Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson-Asheville DMA which is the nation's 35th largest and is served by the following major network television affiliates:

WYFF 4 (NBC)

WSPA 7 (CBS)

WLOS 13 (ABC)

WHNS 21 (FOX)

WBSC 40 (WB)

WASV 62 (UPN).

Transportation

Spartanburg is located along the Interstate 85 corridor, between Charlotte, North Carolina and Greenville, South Carolina. Two spurs of Interstate 85 are located in the area: Interstate 585, which morphs into Pine Street and carries traffic downtown, and the Interstate 85 Business Loop, which brings traffic closer to Spartanburg, following the previous course of the interstate, while the primary route of Interstate 85 loops to the north of Spartanburg. Interstate 26 is the other major interstate on which Spartanburg lies, allowing commuters to travel to Asheville, North Carolina, to the north, and Columbia, South Carolina, to the south.

Spartanburg has access to two airports.

Spartanburg is served by the Spartanburg Area Regional Transit Agency or SPARTA. SPARTA serves the City of Spartanburg and the surrounding urbanized area with 8 routes leading to a wide variety of destinations. The new SPARTA Passenger Center is located at 100 North Liberty St.

Amtrak's Crescent train connects Spartanburg with the cities of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, Charlotte, Atlanta, Birmingham and New Orleans. The Amtrak station is situated at 290 Magnolia Street.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 39,673 people, 15,989 households, and 9,721 families residing in the city. The population density was 799.9/km² (2,066.3/mi²). There were 17,696 housing units at an average density of 356.8/km² (923.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 47.15% White, 49.55% African American, 0.18% Native American, 1.33% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.76% from other races, and 0.96% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.78% of the population.

There were 15,989 households out of which 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.0% were married couples living together, 23.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.2% were non-families. 34.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.2% under the age of 18, 12.2% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 79.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 73.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,735, and the median income for a family was $36,108. Males had a median income of $30,587 versus $23,256 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,136. About 19.4% of families and 23.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 34.6% of those under age 18 and 15.4% of those age 65 or over.

List of Neighborhoods

Famous People from Spartanburg

References

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Categories