Editing Florence, South Carolina (section)

==History==
[[File:Florence - Evans Street.jpg|thumb|Evans Street {{circa|1910}}]]
The City of Florence was chartered in 1871 by the Reconstruction government and incorporated in 1890<ref name=florence>{{cite book| first1=Brenda| last1=Harrison| first2=Jennifer| last2=Leach| title=Florence| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bqo0JADAF9MC&pg=PA7| access-date=28 April 2013| date=1 February 2004| publisher=Arcadia Publishing| isbn=978-0-7385-1609-7}}</ref>{{rp|7}} following the 1888 creation of Florence County. Prior to its charter, the city was part of one of the original townships laid out by the [[Province of Carolina|Lords Proprietors]] in 1719. The area was gradually settled through the late 19th and early 20th century. Early settlers practiced [[subsistence farming]] and produced [[indigo]], cotton, [[naval stores]] and timber, which were shipped down the [[Great Pee Dee River]] to the port at [[Georgetown, South Carolina|Georgetown]] and exported. In the mid-19th century two intersecting railroads were built, the [[Wilmington and Manchester Railroad|Wilmington and Manchester]], and the [[Northeastern Railroad (South Carolina)|Northeastern]].<ref name="greatamericanstations.com">{{cite web| url=http://www.greatamericanstations.com/Stations/FLO/Station_view |title=Florence, South Carolina – Great American Stations (Amtrak) |publisher=Greatamericanstations.com |access-date=October 14, 2011}}</ref> General [[William Harllee]], the president of the W & M, built his home at the junction, and named the community "Florence", after his daughter.<ref name="greatamericanstations.com"/>

===American Civil War===
During the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], the town was an important supply and railroad repair center for the [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]], and the site of the [[Florence Stockade]], which held between 12,000<ref name=touring>{{cite book| first1=Clint| last1=Johnson| title=Touring the Carolinas' Civil War Sites| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YDH9alTwl-8C&pg=PA102| access-date=28 April 2013| date=May 2011| publisher=John F. Blair| isbn=978-0-89587-475-7| page=102}}</ref> and 18,000 [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] [[prisoner of war|prisoners of war]].<ref name="DabneyCoker2006">{{cite book| first1=Eric| last1=Dabney| first2=Mike| last2=Coker |title=Historic South Carolina: An Illustrated History| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B-_6PlxEruYC&pg=PA51| access-date=28 April 2013|date=31 January 2006| publisher=HPN Books| isbn=978-1-893619-52-4| page=51}}</ref> Over 2,800 prisoners died of disease and were buried there.<ref name=touring/> The burial ground adjacent to the prison became the [[Florence National Cemetery]] after the war and now has expanded.

===Early 20th century===
After the war, Florence grew and prospered, using the railroad to supply its cotton, timber, and by the turn of the century, tobacco. During the 20th century the economy of Florence came to rely heavily on the healthcare industry, driven by two major hospitals and a number of pharmaceutical plants.<ref name="Felder2012">{{cite book| first1=James| last1=Felder| title=Civil Rights in South Carolina: From Peaceful Protests to Groundbreaking Rulings| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NIH2FBSZbzYC&pg=PA83| access-date=28 April 2013| date=22 May 2012| publisher=The History Press| isbn=978-1-60949-686-9| page=83}}{{Dead link|date=April 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Industry grew, especially after World War II, when Florence became increasingly known for textiles, [[pharmaceuticals]], paper, and [[manufacturing]], in addition to agricultural products.

Florence also has a budding theater scene, starting with creating the Community Players in 1923. Over the years, the theater troop had several names, such as the Pinewood Plays, the Little Theater Guild, and eventually, the Florence Little Theater Guild. After a fire that took their original performance home at the Pinewood Club, the troop used spaces like the YMCA, high school gyms, and the Army Air Base movie house to perform. In 1968 the first Florence Little Theater was built, but in 2008, they built a new Florence Little Theater due to a need for more space where it is still being used. In 2023 the Florence Little Theater celebrated 100 years of performances opening with The Sound of Music. <ref>{{Cite web |title=Florence Little Theatre - Florence, SC |url=https://www.florencelittletheatre.org/about |access-date=2024-10-10 |website=www.florencelittletheatre.org |language=en}}</ref>

===Downtown revitalization===
In 2010, the city of Florence began a massive redevelopment of Downtown Florence. The city has completed several notable projects and has several more planned. The Downtown Redevelopment District was originally a seventy square block area encompassing some {{convert|500|acre|km2}} in the heart of the City of Florence, but now has added over 100 more acres of the Timrod Park area with its historic homes. The redevelopment of Florence has even created a new branding effort, to include new city department logos (not to be confused with the city seal) way finding signs and repainting of water towers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.florencedowntown.com |title=Florence Downtown Revitalization |publisher=Florencedowntown.com |date=May 28, 2010 |access-date=October 14, 2011}}</ref>

The historic downtown district running from the central business district toward the McLeod Medical Center, features a number of historic buildings that have been rehabilitated. The redevelopment started with the $18 million Drs. Bruce and Lee Foundation Library, and today now has the new Florence Little Theater, some 60 new apartments and the Francis Marion University Performing Arts Center which opened in September 2011, as well the new Florence Museum of Art, Science & History which opened October 11, 2014. New office space has emerged from once abandoned buildings, and a police substation was added on once crime-ridden Dargan Street.

Special efforts are being aimed at the downtown area, which was once the center of the city's activity but remains dormant after retailers and shoppers left for suburban malls. The goal is to re-establish Evans as a vibrant commercial and residential corridor, and five blocks of Evans Street will be streetscaped.<ref>[http://www.florencedowntown.comflorence-development-projects.aspx] {{dead link|date=January 2017|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref>