8 Towns
and How
They Grew
Flora Macdonald College al Red Springs.
Fairmont has record
for number of ware¬
houses; three colleges
in Robeson: only one
of the Red Springs is
now visible.
By SUE Mcl.EOI»
In 1899 ihc first tobacco auction
warehouse opened at Fairmont, and
from that day to this, the town has
waxed and waned with the volume of
tobacco it sold and the prices the crop
brought. With 24 warehouses, it has
the most complete auction facilities in
North Carolina, and is one of the lead¬
ing markets in the south. Sales in
1952 amounted to nearly 51.000.000
pounds at an average of $52.82. It
takes no mathematician to figure that
in a space of a few weeks, the market
put into circulation in Fairmont around
$27,000,000, which is almost equal to
the value of all Robeson's farm prod¬
ucts combined. With Lumbcrton. it is
in the Border Belt, and the two mar¬
kets together sell enough tobacco to
lead all North Carolina counties in
volume of sales. Depending so heavily
on tobacco for a living, the town sup¬
ports an aggressive promotion program.
The place was settled before the
Revolution by a South Carolinian, one
Isham Pittman, and was called Ash-
pole. for the nearby swamp which was
cluttered with ash trees. The name
somehow caused their neighbors to
poke fun at Ashpoleans. and it was
changed to Fairmont, later to Union
City, and back to Fairmont. It was
incorporated in 1899. At an altitude
of 105, it has a population of 2.319
(in 1940 1.993). and 1.055 arc Indian.
1.102 are Negro.
The settlement grew slowly, picking
up momentum with coming of the rail¬
way in 1898. and consequent exploita¬
tion of the lumber resources, which
continued until about I '>25. Its old
28
school, Ashpole Institute, was noted
50 years ago.
St. Pauls
In 1799 there was a Presbyterian
church called St. Pauls, then a school
and then the community grew around
it. took the name, and became a trad¬
ing and industrial center. Incorporated
in 1909. it has 2.251 persons. In 1907
J. M. Butler built a cotton mill. Later
three textile mills were combined un¬
der Burlington Mills management and
now constitute the town's big indus¬
try. though it once had a tobacco auc¬
tion market. It received stimulus in
1909 when the Virginia and Carolina
Railway, a branch connecting with
ACL, was built from Lumbcrton, later
on to Elizabethtown and Hope Mills.
St. Pauls is unusual in Robeson in
one respect. Of its inhabitants, only
178 arc Negro, and not a single In¬
dian lives within its limits.
Kc«l Springe
Red Springs was founded by "Sail¬
or" Hector MacNcill in 1775, who
obtained the land which had been
granted by the king to George Size¬
more in 1767. The place got its name
from the minerals in the springs, which
stained containers. These springs led
to establishment of a hotel in 1S52
and another later, and for a hundred
years Tar Heels came to drink the
water. The only one of the original
springs now' extant is on the campus
of Flora Macdonald College, but plans
are underway to restore two others.
The town (204 alt., pop. 2,245) was
incorporated in 1887. and the post
office first was called Dora. Of the
population 876 are Negro, 4 Indians.
After the railway came in 188*1. it
grew into a flourishing farm and trad¬
ing center. It also has always been an
educational center, and was the site
of several academics.
Red Springs people are proud of
many things — but especially of the
tidy and popular Flora Macdonald
College, a 350-student Presbyterian
school founded in 1896. Ihc col¬
lege is credited with attracting to the
community many substantial citizens
who moved here so their daughters
might be educated. It is proud also of
its Robbins Mill, a major contributor
to the town's stability, and of its
thorough Scotch background. With a
mature looking, shaded residential sec¬
tion. this is a sober, industrious,
church-going and ambitious town with
a cultural and religious atmosphere. It
is growing fast. too. with a gain of 44
per cent since 1940.
Rowland
In 1940 Rowland had 999 persons,
and so the town adopted the motto:
THE STATE. NOvrMOCR 29. 1952
