After the war, villages grew up all over the place, and the new district began to take shape by establishing its own government. Spartanburg was called after the construction of a new courthouse.

The town was founded in 1831, and a few decades later it was dubbed “Hub City” due to the wheel hub shape made by the numerous railroad lines that came into the area.

Spartanburg was defined by the textile industry throughout the late 1800s and the early 1900s. During this time, about 40 textile mills were erected, providing the area’s economic and social structure.

During World War I, Camp Wadsworth—now Westgate Mall—became a second home for almost 100,000 men preparing for service. During WWII, nearly 200,000 men were trained at Camp Croft, located south of the city. This region is now Camp Croft State Park, where you may go hiking, fishing, biking, or horseback riding.

After WWII, mill life began to wane as wages increased and the automobile sector grew in the 1950s. Mill society disappeared by the end of the decade, while a new multinational industry began to emerge in the 1970s and has persisted ever since.
Visit The Zentrum, BMW’s one-of-a-kind visitors center and museum, which is housed here at the automaker’s sole North American manufacturing plant. Wander through the arboretum of Milliken & Co., one of the world’s largest privately held textile and chemical corporations, with its global headquarters in Spartanburg.

Chapman Cultural Center is an 86,000-square-foot complex that houses the visual and performing arts, science, and history communities. Among its many attractions are the Spartanburg County Museum of Art, the Regional History Museum, Ballet Spartanburg, and the Spartanburg Science Center. Spartanburg County is one of South Carolina’s most culturally varied communities, rooted in the country’s early past while aggressively striding into the twenty-first century.