Greenville, South Carolina

File:GreenvilleSC skyline.jpg

File:GreenvilleSC skyline night.jpg

Greenville is a city located in Greenville County, South Carolina. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,002. It is the county seat of Greenville County⁶. Greenville is also the one of the central cities of the Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson metropolitan, also known as "The Upstate" is a large metropolitan area with a population near 1 million that covers the counties of Greenville, Spartanburg, Anderson, Pickens, Cherokee, Oconee (even though its technically not part of the metropolitan area) in the northwestern corner of South Carolina.

Attractions

For its size, Greenville has an atypically large number of activities in its area. Greenville has played host to many national tours of major recording artist to Broadway shows in its major entertainment venues. There also are four independent theatres which put on several theatrical presentations a year.

• BI-LO Center is a large arena that is located in downtown Greenville that been host to a number of major artists including Janet Jackson as Greenville on their tours.

• Falls Park on the Reedy, a large regional park with beautiful gardens anand home of the Liberty Bridge, a pedestrian suspension bridge. It is located on the Reedy River just south of Downtown Greenville.

• Greenville County Museum of Art is the only museum of art located in the area. Home to the highly acclaimed Southern Collection of art that feature art of the South dating as far back as the 1700's.

• Greenville Zoo, the only zoo located in the Upstate, features many of the world's wildlife in this open-air zoo located in Cleveland Park.

• Peace Center is a performing arts center in downtown Greenville that hosts national broadway shows that usually only come to cities several times larger.

• Roper Mountain Science Center is the home many fascinating exhibits and it is also home to the largest planetarium in South Carolina.

Education

The city of Greenville as well as many of its suburbs in Greenville County is served by the Greenville County school district.

Greenville is not a "college town" per se, but the students of both Furman University (in Greenville) and nearby Clemson University enjoy Greenville's downtown area for weekend entertainment. The streets of downtown are filled with people every weekend visiting the restauraunts, small shops, and bars.

Greenville is also home to many of the area's institutions of higher education.

• Bob Jones University
• EPI College of Technology
• Furman University
• Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary
• Greenville Technical College
• ITT Technical Institute
• North Greenville College
• University Center of Greenville, a branch of USC system
• Webster University

Economy

From its beginning, Greenville has been a city with a mainly industrial economy mainly in the area of textiles. But in the mid-1990s, BMW built a large manufacturing plant in suburban Greer, just east of Greenville's city limits. This plant has been a major boom to the area and can be attributed with the amazing growth rate the city has experienced. Also other manufactures located in the area includes General Electric. Recent developments in the area have come through a partnership of Clemson University and BMW that has led to the development tentatively named Clemson ICAR, an automotive research park, located on the city's southern end off of I-85.

Greenville also has a bustling economy in the field of healthcare. The area's largest hospital, Greenville Memorial Hospital, is part of the large Greenville Hospital System. Also other medical facilities includes Bon Secours Saint Francis Health Systems' 2 hospitals: Saint Francis Hospital and Saint Francis Women's & Family Hospital. Greenville's growing healthcare sector has also led to many pharmaceutical companies to locate in the Upstate.

Transportation

Greenville is located on primarily on the Interstate 85 corridor which connets it to Spartanburg and Anderson, but it is also on the northern terminus of the Interstate 385 corridor. Other freeways located in the Greenville area includes Interstate 185 and US Highway 123.

Also of note is the city's proximity to other interesting locations.

• 45 minutes to the Blue Ridge Parkway
• 2.5 hours to Atlanta
• 2 hours to Charlotte
• 1.5 hours to Asheville
• 4 hours to Charleston
• 3 hours to Knoxville

The major airport that serves Greenville and Spartanburg, South Carolina, Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport, the state's busiest, is located in its suburb of Greer.

History

The area was part of the Cherokee nation's protected grounds after the treaty of 1763 ending the French & Indian War. No white man was allowed to enter, though some families already had settled just within the boundary, and white traders regularly crossed the area. The first white man to settle permanently in the area was Richard Pearis, who settled at the falls of the Reedy River sometime after 1770. Paris Mountain, the mountain overlooking the city, is named for him.

During the Revolution, the Cherokee (and, incidentally, Pearis) sided with the British. After a campaign in 1776, the Cherokee agreed to the Treaty of DeWitt's Corner ceding territory that includes present-day Greenville County to South Carolina.

Greenville County was created in 1786, but was called Greenville District from 1800 until 1868. The area is named for General Nathaniel Greene, who led Revolutionary troops in the Carolinas.

Geography

Location of Greenville, South Carolina

Greenville is located at 34°50'40" North, 82°23'8" West (34.844313, -82.385428)¹.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 67.7 km² (26.1 mi²). 67.5 km² (26.1 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.23% water.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there are 56,002 people, 24,382 households, and 12,581 families residing in the city. The population density is 829.4/km² (2,148.0/mi²). There are 27,295 housing units at an average density of 404.2/km² (1,046.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 62.12% White, 33.94% African American, 0.14% Native American, 1.27% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 1.37% from other races, and 1.11% from two or more races. 3.44% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 24,382 households out of which 22.3% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.7% are married couples living together, 15.5% have a female householder with no husband present, and 48.4% are non-families. 40.8% of all households are made up of individuals and 12.8% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.11 and the average family size is 2.90.

In the city the population is spread out with 20.0% under the age of 18, 13.8% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 35 years. For every 100 females there are 89.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 86.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $33,144, and the median income for a family is $44,125. Males have a median income of $35,111 versus $25,339 for females. The per capita income for the city is $23,242. 16.1% of the population and 12.2% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 22.7% of those under the age of 18 and 17.5% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

External links

• The Official Website of the City of Greenville and the Greenville CVB
• Greenville SC : business directory & community guide
• Greenville County Museum of Art : Free to the public
• Greenville News : Local Newspaper
• Greenville County System Library