Editing Greenville, South Carolina (section)

==History==
===From Cherokee land to Greenville County===
[[File:FallsPark1844.jpg|left|thumb|Falls Park and McBee's Mill in 1844]]
The land of present-day Greenville was once the hunting ground of the [[Cherokee]], which was forbidden to colonists. A wealthy settler from [[Virginia]] named [[Richard Pearis]] arrived in South Carolina around 1754 and established relations with the Cherokee. Pearis had a child with a Cherokee woman and received about {{Convert|100000|acre}} from the Cherokee around 1770. Pearis established a plantation on the [[Reedy River]] called the Great Plains in present-day [[Downtown Greenville, South Carolina|downtown Greenville]]. The [[American Revolution]] divided the South Carolina country between the [[Loyalist]]s and [[Patriot (American Revolution)|Patriot]]s. Pearis supported the Loyalists and together with their allies, the Cherokee, attacked the Patriots. The Patriots retaliated by burning down Pearis' plantation and jailing him in [[Charleston, South Carolina|Charleston]]. Pearis never returned to his plantation but [[Paris Mountain State Park|Paris Mountain]] is named after him.<ref>Whitemire, 76; Archie Vernon Huff, Jr., ''Greenville: The History of the City and County in the South Carolina Piedmont'' (Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1995), 13.</ref> The [[Treaty of Dewitt's Corner]] in 1777 ceded almost all Cherokee land, including present-day Greenville, to [[South Carolina]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Treaty of Dewitt's Corner between the Cherokee Nation and South Carolina, 1777|url=http://www.teachingushistory.org/lessons/treatyofdewittscorner.htm|website=teachingushistory.org|publisher=Teaching American History in South Carolina Project|access-date=October 28, 2015|archive-date=October 24, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141024034720/http://www.teachingushistory.org/lessons/treatyofdewittscorner.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[Greenville County, South Carolina|Greenville County]] was created in 1786.  Some sources state it was named for its physical appearance, while others say the county is named after [[Nathanael Greene|General Nathanael Greene]] in honor of his service in the [[American Revolutionary War]], or after early settler Isaac Green.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Huff|first1=Archie Jr.|title=Greenville: The History of the City and County in the South Carolina Piedmont|date=March 6, 2017|publisher=University of South Carolina Press|page=48}}</ref><ref>{{cite book| last1=Gannett| first1=Henry| title=The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States| date=1905| publisher=[[United States Geological Survey]], [[United States Department of the Interior]]| location=[[Washington, D.C.]]| page=144| edition= Second| url=http://pubs.usgs.gov/bul/0258/report.pdf| access-date=March 29, 2016| ref=Bul258}}</ref><ref name="britannica" /> [[Lemuel J. Alston]] came to Greenville County in 1788 and bought {{Convert|400|acre}} and a portion of Pearis' former plantation. In 1797 Alston used his land holdings to establish a village called Pleasantburg where he also built a stately mansion. In 1816, Alston's land was purchased by [[Vardry McBee]], who then leased the Alston mansion for a summer resort, before making the mansion his home from 1835 until his death in 1864.<ref name="The History of Greenville" /> Pleasantburg was renamed as Greenville in 1821 and became a village in 1831.<ref name="britannica">{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Greenville-South-Carolina |title=Greenville, South Carolina |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |access-date=December 13, 2022 }}</ref> Considered to be the father of Greenville, McBee donated land for many structures such as churches, academies, and a cotton mill. [[Furman University]] was funded by McBee who helped bring the university to Greenville from [[Winnsboro, South Carolina]], in 1851. In 1853 McBee and other Greenville County leaders funded a new railroad called the [[Greenville and Columbia Railroad]]. Greenville boomed to around 1,000 in the 1850s due to the growth of McBee's donations and the attraction of the town as a summer resort for visitors.<ref name="The History of Greenville">{{cite web| title=The History of Greenville| url=http://greenvillesc.gov/DocumentCenter/View/1317| website=greenvillesc.gov| access-date=October 28, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| title=American History Greenville County, South Carolina| url=http://www.electricscotland.com/history/america/counties/greenville.htm| website=electricscotland.com| publisher=Electric Scotland| access-date=October 28, 2015}}</ref>

===Latter 19th century===
[[File:SwampRabbitGRNV1890s.jpg|thumb|The [[Greenville and Northern Railway]] in the 1890s which was converted into the [[Swamp Rabbit Trail]] in 2010]]

In December 1860 Greenville supported a convention to debate the issue of secession for [[South Carolina]]. The Greenville District sent James Furman, William K. Easley, Perry E. Duncan, William H. Campbell, and James P. Harrison as delegates for the convention. On December 20, 1860, the South Carolina state convention, along with the Greenville delegation, voted to secede from the [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]]. Greenville County provided over 2,000 soldiers to the [[Confederate States Army]]. The town supplied food, clothing, and firearms to the [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]]. Greenville saw no action from the war until 1865 when [[Union Army|Union troops]] came through the town looking for [[Jefferson Davis|President Jefferson Davis of the Confederacy]] who had fled south from [[Richmond, Virginia]]. In June 1865, President [[Andrew Johnson]] appointed Greenville County native [[Benjamin Franklin Perry]] as [[Governor of South Carolina]].<ref name="The History of Greenville"/><ref>{{cite web|title=The Civil War in Greenville|url=http://library.furman.edu/specialcollections/HST21/civil/greenville.htm|website=Furman.edu|access-date=December 4, 2016|archive-date=December 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220043257/http://library.furman.edu/specialcollections/HST21/civil/greenville.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In February 1869, Greenville's [[Municipal charter|town charter]] was amended by the S. C. General Assembly establishing Greenville, the town, as a city. Construction boomed in the 1870s such as the establishment of a bridge over the [[Reedy River]], new mills on the river, and new railroads. [[The Greenville News]] was established in 1874 as Greenville's first daily newspaper. [[Southern Bell]] installed the first telephone lines in the city. The most important infrastructure that came to the city were cotton mills. Prominent cotton mill businesses operated near Greenville making it a cotton mill town. By 1915 Greenville became known as the "Textile Center of the South."<ref name="The History of Greenville"/> From 1915 to 2004, the city hosted an important textile manufacturing trade fair, the [[Southern Textile Exposition]].

===20th century===
[[File:Greenville - North Main street 01.jpg|left|thumb|North Main Street Postcard, {{circa|1903}}]]
[[File:GreenvilleSC1910.jpg|left|thumb|Main Street around 1910]]
During World War I, Greenville served as a training camp center for US Army recruits. After World War I commercial activity expanded with new movie theaters and department stores. The Mansion House was demolished and replaced with the [[Poinsett Hotel]] in 1925.<ref name="The History of Greenville"/> The [[Great Depression]] hurt the economy of Greenville forcing mills to lay off workers. Furman University and the Greenville Women's College also struggled in the crippling economy forcing them to merge in 1933. The [[Textile workers strike (1934)|Textile Workers Strike of 1934]] had a major impact in the city and surrounding mill towns, and the [[National Guard of the United States|National Guard]] subdued the strike. The [[New Deal]] established [[Sirrine Stadium]] and a new [[Greenville Technical Charter High School|Greenville High School]]. The [[Donaldson Air Force Base|Greenville Army Air Base]] was established in 1942 during World War II contributing to the further growth of Greenville.<ref name="The History of Greenville"/>

After the war, a [[1946 Greenville propane explosion|November 19, 1946, propane explosion]] left 6 dead and over 150 injured. The explosion involved a tank containing about {{convert|3,500|USgal|m3}} of [[propane]] and could be heard from [[Gaffney, South Carolina|Gaffney]], {{convert|50|mi}} away.

[[File:Greenville Main Post Office 2017.jpg|thumb|Greenville Main US Post Office]]
On February 16, 1947, [[The lynching of Willie Earle|Willie Earle]], a black man accused of stabbing a cab driver, was taken from his jail cell by a mob of mostly taxi drivers and [[Lynching|murdered]]. Thirty-one white men were jointly tried for the crime; most of the accused signed confessions, many of them naming Roosevelt Carlos Hurd as the lynch mob leader and the person who ultimately killed Earle with the shotgun. On May 21, 1947, a jury of 12 white men returned verdicts of not guilty for every defendant.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VjYMCAAAQBAJ&q=willie+earle+greenville&pg=PT116|title=The Palmetto State: The Making of South Carolina|first1=Jack|last1=Bass|first2=W. Scott|last2=Poole|date=June 5, 2012|publisher=Univ of South Carolina Press|isbn=9781611171327|access-date=April 12, 2017|via=Google Books}}</ref><ref name="Moredock">{{cite news |last1=Moredock |first1=Will |title=The Good Fight: The Last Lynching |url=https://www.charlestoncitypaper.com/charleston/the-good-fight-zwnj-the-last-lynching/Content?oid=1108264 |access-date=November 3, 2018 |work=Charleston City Paper |date=February 14, 2007 |archive-date=February 27, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180227034246/https://www.charlestoncitypaper.com/charleston/the-good-fight-zwnj-the-last-lynching/Content?oid=1108264 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

After World War II, Greenville's economy surged with the establishment of new stores and the expansion of the city limits. Furman University doubled its student population and moved to a new location. Higher education facilities such as [[Bob Jones University]] in 1947 and [[Greenville Technical College]] in 1962 were established in Greenville. The [[Greenville–Spartanburg International Airport]] was established in nearby [[Greer, South Carolina|Greer]] in 1962. The 1966 construction of the [[Landmark Building (Greenville, South Carolina)|Landmark Building]] added what remains the city's tallest building.<ref>{{Cite news |date=July 7, 2022 |title=Local investors purchase Landmark Building |url=https://gsabusiness.com/news/real-estate-commercial/82287/ |access-date=October 16, 2023 |website=GSA Business Report |language=en |first=Ross |last=Norton }}</ref> Greenville's economy waned in the 1970s, leaving a void due to the flight of many retailers. Mayor Max Heller then began a revitalization with the [[Greenville County Museum of Art]] and the Hughes Main Library. Main Street was then converted into a two-lane road lined with trees and sidewalks. With a 1978 federal grant, a convention center and hotel were built, bringing business back to the area.<ref>{{cite web|title=Max Heller Collection: Biography|url=http://library.furman.edu/specialcollections/southcarolina/heller_biography.htm|website=furman.edu|publisher=Furman|access-date=October 29, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151121090106/http://library.furman.edu/specialcollections/southcarolina/heller_biography.htm|archive-date=November 21, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>

After a succession of several mayors in the early 1980s, [[Bill Workman]] was elected in 1983 and made economic development a priority.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/94998257/mayor-elect-targets-economic-development/ |title=Mayor-elect targets economic development |date=June 13, 1983 |work=[[The Greenville News]] |first=Claudette |last=James |access-date=February 14, 2022 |via=Newspapers.com }}</ref> He and the chamber of commerce convinced [[Michelin]] to move its North America headquarters to Greenville in 1984. Tens of other companies also moved to Greenville in following years, including pulp and paper business [[Bowater]] in 1992.<ref>{{cite news |title=S.C. Luring Corporate Headquarters – Columbia Hopes to Match the Upstate's Success in Enticing Companies to Relocate Their Home Offices |date=March 29, 1993 |work=[[The State (newspaper)|The State]] |location=Columbia, SC |first=Fred |last=Monk |page=1 |via=[[NewsBank]] }}</ref> The [[Greenville Municipal Stadium]] was constructed in 1984.<ref>{{cite news |title=Strike 2? Unlike Other Cities, Charlotte Lukewarm to New Ballpark |date=April 10, 1986 |work=[[The Charlotte Observer]] |publication-place=NC |first=Jim |last=Morrill |page=1A |via=[[NewsBank]] }}</ref> The city acted as developer for the West End Market project, which later brought an arts and entertainment district.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://saveourgateways.com/HowGreenville.php |title=How Greenville, South Carolina, Brought Downtown Back |date=Spring 2008 |work=Real Estate Review |first1=Nancy P. |last1=Whitworth |first2=Mary Douglas |last2=Neal |access-date=January 29, 2022 |via=saveourgateways.com }}</ref>

In 1990, the [[Peace Center]] arts venue opened in [[Downtown Greenville, South Carolina|downtown Greenville]]. In 1994, BMW opened its first manufacturing plant outside Germany between Greenville and Spartanburg. [[Knox H. White|Knox White]] became mayor in 1995. In 1998, [[Bon Secours Wellness Arena]] replaced [[Greenville Memorial Auditorium]] as an entertainment arena. The Poinsett Hotel was renovated in the late 1990s with Poinsett Plaza at its entryway, and the Camperdown Bridge that had crossed Reedy Falls for four decades was removed and replaced with a renovated [[Falls Park on the Reedy|Falls Park]].<ref name="glimpses"/>

===21st century===
During the 2000s, thousands of people began moving to Greenville. [[Liberty Bridge at Falls Park on the Reedy|Liberty Bridge at Falls Park]] was completed in 2004 and became a major landmark.<ref>{{cite web |title=Local News: A park's birthday, a city's rebirth - Greenville Journal |url=http://greenvillejournal.com/local/3656-a-park-s-birthday-a-city-s-rebirth.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141010063315/http://greenvillejournal.com/local/3656-a-park-s-birthday-a-city-s-rebirth.html |archive-date=2014-10-10 |access-date=2014-10-10}} A park's birthday, a city's rebirth</ref> Greenville has continued to evolve and grow with over 70,000 residents in its city limits as of 2020.<ref name="CensusCities" /> Its growth has also improved the popularity of close cities such as [[Simpsonville, South Carolina|Simpsonville]], [[Mauldin, South Carolina|Mauldin]], and [[Fountain Inn, South Carolina|Fountain Inn]]. Under the leadership of Knox White, the [[Swamp Rabbit Trail]] was opened in 2010. It is an old railroad converted into a path that attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists every year.<ref>April A. Morris, "[http://issuu.com/cjdesigns/docs/gj11302012?mode=window&backgroundColor=%23222222 Safe on the Swamp Rabbit Trail]", ''Greenville Journal'', November 30, 2012, 8–9; [http://greenvillerec.com/studies-surveys/Greenville Rec survey]; Jenny Arnold, "Swamp Rabbit Trail is worth the ride from Spartanburg", July 5, 2012, [http://www.goupstate.com/article/20120705/ent/207051004?p=1&tc=pg GoUpstate.com] The trail is planned to reach Lake Conestee to the south; and anticipating development toward the north, the mile marker at the current Travelers Rest terminus reads "23", the distance to the North Carolina border. [http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20110305/PC1602/303059954 "Bikeville, S.C.: Scenic Swamp Rabbit Trail gets Greenville moving"], ''Charleston Post and Courier'', March 5, 2011.</ref>