FLORENCE, SOUTH CAROLINA

'Florence' is the county seat of and largest city in Florence County South Carolina, United States. This 1997 All-America City finalist, with its historic homes and medical center towers, came together to form a cultural center for the northeastern portion of South Carolina. The city population was 30,248 as of the 2000 census (67,314 total pop. of Florence Urbanized Area). The Florence metropolitan statistical area, which consists of Florence and Darlington counties, was estimated at 198,443 inhabitants in 2005 by the U.S. Census Bureau, though nearly half of this population is classified as rural. Florence is the primary city of the "Pee Dee" region of South Carolina, an area that includes the eight counties of northeastern South Carolina along with sections in southeastern North Carolina.
Florence is at the intersection of I-95 and I-20, approximately halfway between New York City and Miami, Florida. The city is located 80 miles east from the state capital Columbia, 70 miles west from Myrtle Beach and 110 miles southeast of Charlotte, North Carolina.

Contents

Geography

History

Economy

Government

Healthcare

Transportation

Highway

Mass transit

Rail

Air

Bus

Sports

Professional sports teams

Media

Television

Print

Radio

Higher education

Attractions

Famous residents and natives

Crime

Demographics

External links

Geography

Florence is located at (34.184088, -79.774147).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 45.9 km² (17.7 mi²). 45.8 km² (17.7 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.17%) is water.
Florence is located in the coastal plain of South Carolina. The terrain is mostly flat. The average elevation above sea level is around 140 ft. Jeffries Creek is a tributary of the Great Pee Dee River and is the main waterway that flows through the city of Florence.

History

Though Florence was part of one of the original townships laid out by the Lords Proprieters in 1719, it was only slowly and thinly settled until the coming of the railroads. Prior to them, the Pee Dee River was the route of most commerce. Early settlers practiced subsistence farming and produced indigo, cotton, naval stores and timber, which was shipped downriver to the port at Georgetown and exported.
In the mid-19th century two intersecting railroads were built, The Wilmington and Manchester, and the Northeastern. Gen. W. W. Harllee, the president of the W & M road built his home at the junction, and named the community Florence, after his daughter.
During the Civil War the town was an important supply and railroad repair center for the Confederacy, and the site of the Florence Stockade, a prison for Union prisoners of war. Many of the prisoners died during the latter years of the war, and the burial ground adjacent to the stockade was to become the Florence National Cemetery, which continues to be a national burial ground for veterans of all wars since.
The Civil War also brought to prominence Henry Timrod, also known as ''The Poet Laureate of the Confederacy'', who taught at a schoolhouse on the Cannon Plantation nearby.
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 Florence grew into a major medical center, of far greater importance than its size. Industry grew, especially after World War II, when Florence became increasingly known for textiles, pharmaceuticals, paper, manufacturing and in addition to agricultural products, which makes it the hub for business in the northeastern portion of South Carolina.

Economy

Florence has become a major biomedical and financial center of the Eastern Carolinas. Many financial institutions and banking centers have regional offices located in the city, as well as a number of large local banking services. Many of the regional centers are either located in Florence's downtown area or I-95 and I-20 connector. Many medical centers and medical services companies are located in Florence, including two major hospitals and two major pharmaceutical companies. With Florence growing into a major medical center many new hospital towers and research towers have been built or are under construction, helping transform Florence's skyline in the last 10 years.
The following companies are headquartered or have a large regional office in the Florence area:

★ Hoffmann–La Roche

★ IRIX Pharmaceuticals

★ BellSouth

★ First Reliance Bank

★ Progress Energy

★ GE Medical Systems

★ HealthSouth

★ Carolinas Hospital System

★ Honda

★ McLeod Regional Medical Center

★ Washington Mutual

★ Maytag

★ DuPont-Teijin Films

Government

The City of Florence is currently a Council-Manager form of government. Florence is served by a seven-member city council, three members are elected to represent a district and three others are elected to an at large seat on the council. Each Council member is elected to a 4 year term. The Florence mayor is elected at-large to a four year (renewable) term, and may vote with council only in the event of a tie vote. The Florence city manager is employed by council to run the day-to-day business of the city, and serves at the pleasure of council.

Healthcare

Florence is a well respected medical center. There are two major hospitals located here. McLeod is a non-profit medical center located in Downtown Florence, and also operates campuses all over the Pee Dee region of South Carolina. The center has the only Children's Hospital unit in the Northeastern portion of South Carolina. Carolinas Hospital System is the other major hospital in Florence. It is operated by Triad Hospitals, Inc. Carolinas formed in 1998 when Florence General Hospital and Bruce Hospital merged and opened in 2000 with a new medical tower and center in South Florence. Mcleod and Carolinas are two of the largest employers in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina.

Transportation

Highway

Florence is located on the Interstate 95 corridor, linking it to Miami and New York, and Interstate 20, which ends in Florence (David McLeod Blvd), linking the city to the Midwest. Other major roadways that service the Florence area are U.S. Highway 301 linking Florence to Florida and the Northeast, U.S. Highway 52 linking Florence to Canada and Charleston, U.S. Highway 76 which links Florence to Chattanooga, Tennessee and U.S. Highway 378 that links Florence with Columbia. The proposed Interstate 73 is planned to pass just north of the City of Florence.

Mass transit

Florence is also served by the Pee Dee Regional Transportation Authority (PDRTA) which is South Carolina’s Oldest and Largest RTA. PDRTA runs a bus system that serves the Florence area and nearly all of Florence County and Pee Dee Region as well. The system operates routes to Columbia, Myrtle Beach and Sumter.

Rail

Amtrak's The Palmetto train and the The Silver Service trains connect Florence with the cities of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, Jacksonville, Tampa and Miami.

Air

Florence is served by the Florence Regional Airport (FLO), which is located 2 miles east of downtown Florence on US 76. It is the second-busiest airport in the region, served by Delta Airlines Connection and US Airways Express.

Bus

Florence is served by Greyhound.

Sports

Professional sports teams

Club	Sport	League	Stadium	Logo
Florence Phantoms	Indoor football	American Indoor Football Association	Florence Civic Center	Phantoms Logo
Florence Redwolves	Baseball	Coastal Plain League	American Legion Field

Florence is home to the AIFL's Florence Phantoms, which debuted in the league in 2006. The Phantoms play in the Florence Civic Center.
Florence was also home to the Southern Professional Hockey League's now-Twin City Cyclones, who played from 2005-07. This team was part of a two evet package in 2004 to replace the now defunct Pee Dee Pride (to be the Myrtle Beach Thunderboltz) from the ECHL. The building was also the home of the South Carolina FireAnts of Major League Roller Hockey in 1998 [1].
Darlington Raceway is officially in the Florence market, ten miles to the west of the city, and was the home of the Southern 500 until the Ferko lawsuit eliminated the race in favour of a second race at Texas Motor Speedway, irritating many long-time NASCAR fans.
Baseball has a long and rich history in the Florence, dating back to 1920’s when the Florence Swampfoxs were founded. The Toronto Blue Jays had a minor league team that played in Florence from 1981 to 1986 and included a stop by major league players Jimmy Key, Cecil Fielder and Fred McGriff. Also playing in Florence was the shortlived Florence Flame independent Class A team from the Atlantic Coast League. Adding to the tradition of baseball in Florence, the Flame led the league in attendance in 1995, their one year in existence. Today, the Coastal Plain League Florence Redwolves carries on that long tradition. The team, founded in 1998, is summer baseball team for SEC and ACC players from around the Southeast. The team's stadium was home to the 2004 all star and home run derby.

Media

Television

★ WBTW Channel 13, CBS affiliate.

★ WPDE Channel 15, ABC affiliate.

★ WWMB Channel 21, CW affiliate.

★ WMBF Channel 32, NBC affiliate.

★ WJPM Channel 33, PBS affiliate.

★ WFXB Channel 43, FOX affiliate.

Print

The Florence area is served by the Florence Morning News, a daily newspaper, as well as the News Journal, a weekly newspaper.

Radio

Qantum Communications of Florence LLC owns and operates eight radio stations serving the "Pee Dee" region and surrounding areas in both North and South Carolina they include;

★ WEGX-FM 92.9 Format: Country,
http://www.eagle929online.com

★ WJMX-AM 970 Format: New/Talk
http://www.newstalk970online.com

★ WJMX-FM 103.3 Format: Contemporary Hit Radio
http://103xonline.com

★ WDAR-FM 105.5 Format: Adult Contemporary
http://www.sunny1055online.com

★ WZTF-FM 102.9 Format: Urban AC
http://www.theflo1029.com/

★ WDSC-AM+ WWRK-AM + WGSS-FM = Simulcast Format: Southern Gospel

★ WYNN-FM 106.3 Format: Urban

Higher education

The area is served by Francis Marion University, a public liberal arts school, and Florence-Darlington Tech. Coker College at Hartsville and Coastal Carolina University at Conway are nearby.

Attractions

★ Florence Civic Center

★ Florence Public Library

★ Freedom Florence Ballpark

★ Florence Museum of Arts and History

★ Florence National Cemetery

★ Timrod Park

★ War Between the States Museum

★ Florence Regional Airport

★ Pee Dee Farmers Market

★ Darlington Raceway

Famous residents and natives

★ Reggie Sanders, professional Baseball Player

★ Harry Carson, professional Football Player

★ Buddy Baker and Ron Barfield, NASCAR drivers

★ Lilian Garcia, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) ring announcer and Diva

★ Kellie Rasberry, Kidd Kraddick In The Morning radio show, National radio personality

★ William Johnson, painter

★ Ron Turner, U.S. Swimming National Team Coach

★ Brad Land, author of best-selling book "Goat"

★ Darian Durant, Canadian Football League player

★ Philip B. Meggs, historian of design

★ Melvin Purvis, FBI agent

★ Trey Lorenz, R&B singer

★ Bruce E. Miller, United States Army

★ Cale Yarborough, only NASCAR driver to ever win three straight championships.

★ Donald Henry "Pee Wee" Gaskins, notorious serial killer.

★ Lawrence Timmons, NFL Player

★ Justin Durant, NFL Player

Crime

In 2005 Florence had the highest number of total violent crimes per 100,000 residents according to the "Crime In the United States" publication released by the FBI (http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/05cius/index.html). Florence had 1,286.4 violent crimes per 100,000 residents. This number was up from approximately 1,132 violent crimes per 100,000 residents in 2004. Florence has the highest aggravated assault rate in the United States.
In 2005 there were 16 murders, 102 rapes, 445 robberies and 2009 aggravated assaults in the Florence area. Additionally, there were 11,463 property crimes, including burglaries, thefts and motor vehicle thefts. Property crimes occurred at a rate of 5733.4 per 100,000 residents. The population of the area included in the survey was 199,935.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 30,248 people (estimated as 30,883 in 2004), 11,925 households, and 7,882 families residing in the city. The population density was 659.8/km² (1,709.4/mi²). There were 13,090 housing units at an average density of 285.5/km² (739.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 52.96% White, 44.77% African American, 0.18% Native American, 1.16% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.21% from other races, and 0.71% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.76% of the population.
There were 11,925 households out of which 30.2% had children living with them, 41.9% were married couples living together, 20.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.9% were non-families. 29.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.03.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.0% under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 23.0% from 45 to 64, and 15.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 82.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $35,388, and the median income for a family was $42,250. Males had a median income of $35,633 versus $23,589 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,336. 19.3% of the population and 15.3% of families were below the poverty line. 28.2% of those under the and 15.9% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
Florence is the central city of a metropolitan area with a total population of 198,443 (2005 estimate), including the entire populations of Florence and Darlington counties. However, in the more detailed 2000 Census data, only about 54% of this metro was urbanized, consisting of the urban areas Florence (2000 pop.: 67,314), Hartsville (14,907), Darlington (12,066), and Lake City (8,728). The remainder of the Florence metro is considered rural.

External links

★ Florence School District 1 Site