WHAT INDUSTRY HAS DONE IN THE
DEVELOPMENT AND PROGRESS OF
SAMPSON COUNTY
Sampson County courthouse, modern in every detail of equipment, located at Clinton.
WHEN a community takes root
— grows and branches out, the
direction of its progress is
largely determined by its early settlers
and their descendants. Thus, the
"twig’’ of Clinton was early l>ent to¬
ward a place in the sun, and the
“tree’* into which this thriving com¬
munity has grown during the past 01
years, is straight, tall and sturdy. To¬
day it stands a living monument to the
hardy pioneers ami to the contempo¬
rary citizens, merchants and manu¬
facturers who have contributed to its
nourishment.
Clinton had its actual beginning in
1852, when a charter for the town was
granted. It was named in honor of
General Richard Clinton, who donated
a 5-acre tract of ground on which the
first courthouse, a log structure, was
built. An old court record, written in
longhand, tells of the first meeting on
June 21, 178-1, of the commissioners
for the uowly established county of
.Sampson, and lists the signature of
Clinton’s namesake as chairman.
Sampson County was carved out of
Duplin in 17S-I — 159 years ago by
legislative enactment and was named
in honor of Colonel John Sampson, a
prominent leader in Duplin and New
Hanover counties. lie organized a
company that drove the Spanish Buc¬
caneers out of the month of the Cape
Fear River. Sampson presided over
the county court for the first ten years
of its existence, and the First Minute
Book, now in the Clerk's Office, covers
the court’s history during this period,
and therein lie many interesting bits
of information about the first history
of the county.
The courthouse formed the nucleus
for the town of Clinton and soon peo¬
ple moved in from all sections of the
county; laid off streets, built homes,
stores and churches. While the growth
of the town was not rapid for a long
]>eriod of time, Clinton has enjoyed re¬
markable growth during recent years,
and now has a population of approxi¬
mately 5,000. Although Clinton still
likes to be called a country town, it
has modern stores, residences,
churches, schools, theatres, and miles
of paved streets and sidewalks. The
town has but few industries, but is
backed by a rich and progressive rural
countryside, and many who are in a
position to know, declare that it is
easily one of the best small towns for
business in the state. Being dependent
to so large an extent upon agriculture
for its business life, Clinton is known
as one of the best produce markets to
he found anywhere and is classed as
the largest green corn and huckleberry
market in the world.
Clinton enjoys an equable and
healthy climate the year 'round with
severe storms a rarity. Situated 31
foot above sea level with an average
season rainfall of 45-31 inches, year-
round crop production is customary.
One of the largest produce auc¬
tion markets in the world is located
here as well as a thriving livestock
market and an old established cotton
market, which is probably the largest
wagon market in the state.
Tabulated figures for the past year
show that approximately 10,000 acres
of commercial vegetables were pro¬
duced in this county, bringing a cash
total of $033,300.40 into the bands of
growers.
Usually beginning in the month of
May, the chant of the auctioneer is
sweet music to the ear of Sampson
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