Bishopville, South Carolina

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"Bishopville" redirects here. For the Bishopville meteorite of 1843, see Meteorite falls.

Bishopville is a city in Lee County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 3,670 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Lee County^GR6.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 Early History
4 Parks and Outdoor Attractions
5 External links

[edit] Geography

Bishopville is located at 34°13′8″N, 80°14′56″W (34.219027, -80.248877)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.2 km² (2.4 mi²). 6.1 km² (2.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (1.26%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 3,670 people, 1,438 households, and 907 families residing in the city. The population density was 600.4/km² (1,554.8/mi²). There were 1,616 housing units at an average density of 264.4/km² (684.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 32.83% White, 65.83% African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.44% Asian, 0.22% from other races, and 0.57% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.31% of the population.

There were 1,438 households out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 29.8% were married couples living together, 29.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.9% were non-families. 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.12.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.2% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 19.9% from 45 to 64, and 19.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 78.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 69.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $24,400, and the median income for a family was $37,660. Males had a median income of $31,005 versus $18,635 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,140. About 23.7% of families and 28.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 42.7% of those under age 18 and 27.3% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Early History

For more than a decade before Bishopville got its name in the honor of Jacques Bishop, it was known as Singleton’s Crossroads. The 465 acres of land was granted to Jacob Chamber by the state of South Carolina in 1786. Daniel Carter later purchased the property and it was once again sold to William Singleton in 1790. This was where the name Singleton’s Crossroads originated.
The tavern owned by Singleton and his wife sat at the intersection of what was once known as Mecklenburg Road, now named Church Street, and McCallum Ferry Road, now known as Main Street. During that time, the tavern was a stopping place for the stage coach between Georgetown and Charlotte. (Now this intersection involves Highway 15, which at one point was the premier north-south route from New York to Miami.) In 1798, William Singleton died, leaving his wife owner of the tavern until her death in 1820. One year later the land was sold to Jacques Bishop. During this time period the area around present-day Bishopville was said to be comprised of mostly wilderness, with only a few scattered, primitive houses. Although voting for the creation of Lee County and for making Bishopville its county seat occurred in 1892, there was a delay in enacting these votes until February of 1902, when it was ruled that Bishopville had met all requirements to be a county seat. This led to the marking of county boundaries, which were along Lynches River, Black River, Scape Ore Swamp, Sparrow Swamp, Long Branch, and Screeches Branch, as well as the development of a courthouse and jail. As surveyed in the parent counties, the main limits followed old roads and artificial limits. It wasn’t until December 15, 1902 that Bishopville received the good news of their success. To celebrate, the town hosted speeches and the shooting of the old cannon many times repeatedly. This same old cannon is located on the concrete base in front of Lee County’s Courthouse in Bishopville. Lee County has historically been a leader in cotton production in the state and is the home of the South Carolina Cotton Museum.

[edit] Parks and Outdoor Attractions

Pearl Fryar's Topiary Garden is the home to one of the most breath-taking attractions in South Carolina. Located at 165 Broad Acres Road in Bishopville, South Carolina, this 3 acre garden is visited annually by many tourists. Fryar and his carefully sculptured topiary garden has been featured many times on television specials and in dozens of magazines. His garden offer 3 acres of trees and scrubs formed into fanciful spirals, 3-dimensional pieces, pom poms, and other extraordinary shapes that always seem to render visitors awestruck. Fryar is known nationally for live topiary sculptures. He’s also won many awards as well as being named as South Carolina Ambassador for Economic Development by Mark Sanford in 2003. Fryar revealed that all he wanted to do was have a nice yard and win yard of the month from his hometown of Bishopville, SC.

Lee State Park is one of the best known parks in Lee County. Located at 487 Loop Road in Bishopville, this park hosts just about everything from lake swimming, river fishing, boating, nature trails, show ring, and stables. Year-round, daylight hours, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) workers built the Park during the great Depression. This attractive park is approximately 2,500 acres of land . This park offers picnicking in shelters, camping, and a playground. Picnic tables and serene environments are stationed around the 5.6 miles of Lynches River that's owned by Lee State Park. There are available pedal boat rentals and horse rentals through the nearby Pleasant Valley stables.