Locate in Greenwood

Strategic Location

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Situated close to all major Southern markets, Greenwood is a short commute to Greenville, Columbia, Spartanburg, Asheville, Augusta, Atlanta, and Charlotte.

Greenwood County is located in the Piedmont Region of South Carolina and serves as a hub for a seven county region including Abbeville, Edgefield, Laurens, McCormick, Newberry, and Saluda counties, all of which feature numerous lakes, attractions, and state recreation areas for regional visitors to experience and explore. Greenwood’s own Lake Greenwood is just a few miles from the city limits of Greenwood and has recently become a desirable place to live, work, and play. A wide range of communities are being established near the lake.

The city of Greenwood, the county seat, is located near the center of the county. Ware Shoals, in the northeast corner of the county, is 17 miles north of Greenwood and Ninety Six is 9 miles east of Greenwood. The area is accessible to three major interstates and only hours away from both the mountains and the coast.

Weather

Stoney Point Golf Course

Greenwood’s climate is mild and seasonable, with an average temperature of 68 degrees. While the summer can bring heat and humidity, the spring and fall exhibit mild temperatures and many days filled with sunshine and beauty. Winters in Greenwood are comfortable, with very little precipitation or snow. For visitors, year round outdoor activities are common and popular at local Greenwood attractions.

History

Considering the number of people building homes in the Greenwood area today for the purpose of vacationing and future retirement, it comes as no surprise that the first residence here was built in 1823 by John McGehee, Jr. as a summer home for him and his bride. This 600-acre plantation was named Green Wood by McGehee’s wife, Charlotte. This area today, called Green Wood Village located in the East Cambridge Avenue area, is designated by the state of South Carolina as a historic neighborhood. When the first railroad came through in 1852, it moved the center of the village to its present-day location since stores and businesses began to locate around the depot. This marked the beginning of developing the “widest Main Street in the world” and the Square, now referred to as Uptown Greenwood.

During the last half of the nineteenth century in Greenwood, considered a railroad town, merchants dealt in groceries, general merchandise, dry goods, farmer’s supplies, furniture, rice, and cotton. There were also banks, insurance companies and undertakers. The Greenwood community was becoming known throughout the state as “preeminently an example of what can be accomplished by unremitting energy and boundless self-reliance” and Greenwood’s “hospitable and progressive” people welcomed “all who may come to” their town. These characteristics are still present in today’s Greenwood residents.

Area historians have credited several “pillars” with shaping the Greenwood of today, and those were in place from the outset. One was an early special interest of Greenwood residents in educating students. By the time of its chartering in 1857, Greenwood had schools that were already 25 years old.

A second foundation for Greenwood’s continued prosperity was the initiative and hard work of its founders and early settlers in providing transportation facilities; first railroads, then highways and an airport.

A third key part of Greenwood’s development was the area’s textile industry, which remains a vital economic block supporting the Greenwood Community.

Community Development

The Emerald Triangle

Music On Maxwell, Photo Credit: Jon O. Holloway

Identified in the 2004 Greenwood, South Carolina City Center Master Plan, The Emerald Triangle is a nine-acre triangular shaped area in the heart of Greenwood’s downtown business district. The Emerald Triangle is generally the area bounded by the railroad to the north and west, Main Street to the east, and Maxwell Avenue to the south. Oregon Avenue intersects the triangle.

As a part of the master planning process, community leaders sought a way to develop a cultural district in the downtown that would serve as a catalyst to fuel new economic development and investment. The plan was built on the revitalization of three key cultural facilities – the Greenwood Federal Building, the Greenwood Community Theatre, and the Greenwood Museum. Surrounding these buildings along Oregon and Maxwell Avenues are suitable areas for new and enhanced artisan and retail development. The buildings, particularly along Maxwell Avenue, have a tremendous amount of historic architecture and character. The average construction date of the buildings within the area is 1906.

In February 2006, the Arts Center at the Federal Building opened after renovations that cost approximately $2.2 million. The Greenwood Community Theatre reopened in February 2007 after a $1.2 million dollar renovation. Renovations to the Greenwood Museum were completed in the summer of 2008.

Today, one instantly feels the energy and life growing in Greenwood’s downtown core. The Music on Maxwell concert series, hosted by Photographer Jon Holloway, began in 2007. The inaugural year hosted musicians including Johnson City, Tennessee’s The Everybody Fields, New York City based Jesse Harris, Minneapolis, Minnesota’s Romantica, and Columbia, South Carolina’s Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion. An old auto parts store has been transformed into Meridian, a collection of artisan studios and shops located in the heart of the Emerald Triangle at 140 Maxwell Avenue. The studio is sure to be a magnet for artists who express their creativity through painting, sculpture, metal works, photography, jewelry, and more.

To learn more about the Emerald Triangle, feel free to call the offices of Uptown Greenwood Development Corporation at (864) 942-8448 or email uptown@cityofgreenwoodsc.com.

Transportation

Airports

Greenwood County Airport Hangar

Greenwood County Airport:
Charter/Corporate Air Service

Runway Length: 5,003 feet
Surface: Asphalt
Facility Includes: Lighting, Jet Fuel, Repair & Maintenance, Conference Room, Pilots’ Lounge, Vortac, Unicom, Taxi Service, Rotating Beacon
Greenville/Spartanburg (GSP): One hour’s drive offering regional, national, and international flights on most major airlines.

Greenwood County Airport Runway

Atlanta – Hartsfield International Airport:  Within a three hour’s drive.
Charlotte – Douglas International Airport: Within a three hour’s drive.

Rail Service

Nearest Amtrak station location - Greenville, SC – One hour’s drive
Ground Access to Interstates 85, 26, and 385