Carthage tourist information
Carthage is the perfect destination for your next vacation, weekend getaway or a business meeting! You'll find unending attractions, events, hotels, meeting facilities, sports, dining and shopping in Carthage, Missouri -
There's plenty to do in Carthage. From angels to battle sites, museums to Victorian architecture... you will find an abundance of activities to educate and entertain you. Choosing what to do first may be your biggest challenge.
Area restaurants provide a variety of dining choices including down-home country cooking, authentic Mexican food, Oriental cuisine, smoky barbeque and tantalizing steaks. In addition to these gourmet delights, we also have a variety of national quick serve restaurant chains to select from.
Carthage has so many sights to see, shops to explore and friendly people to meet that you will want to stop and stay a while. To make your time with us as enjoyable as possible, you will find a number of fine lodging establishments, excellent Bed and Breakfast Inns and an abundance of RV and campground facilities in the area.
The tale of Carthage is the tale of courthouses. In the early days of our history, hardy Scottish immigrants trudged their way up the Cape Fear Valley reaching the Moore County area in the mid-1780s. These settlers found the perfect location for a new town on a high hill. They established their community and named it Faginsville after an early pioneer, Richardson Fagin. Moore County’s first courthouse was built on Killetts Creek in 1785. Through the years, activities in Carthage have revolved around the courthouse and still do today.
Moore County was created by dividing Cumberland County. The North Carolina legislature officially recognized Moore County on July 4, 1784, but there was a problem. There was no incorporated town in the new county to serve as the county seat and no spot to hold court. After an attempt in 1796 to solve this dilemma failed, a committee was appointed by the legislature to come up with a site for the new county seat.
The site selected was in the center of the new county, and the name given the new courthouse was Carthage, which was confirmed by an act of the General Assembly in 1818. No one seems to know why the name Carthage was chosen. The remainder of the town was not laid out until 1803, and Carthage did not officially become the county seat until 1804.
Ten years later in 1814, the courthouse was moved to the present location of the historic courthouse at the intersection of the main avenues of Carthage. Carthage is on a high commanding ridge, and the courthouse site marks the highest elevation in that part of the county, an altitude of almost 900 feet. The 1814 courthouse was made of wood and was called The Red House. In 1837 the floor of The Red House collapsed, and a third courthouse had to be built. This one was made of brick. In 1889 even though this third courthouse was brick, it burned destroying many valuable papers and documentation of the county’s early history. Within a year the fourth courthouse, also of brick, was built. The fourth courthouse was replaced in 1922 with the large building in the center of the town that stands today and we call the historic courthouse. Moore County’s sixth county courthouse and government building was erected across the street leaving the historic courthouse standing in the middle of the circle. Today both the fifth and sixth courthouses serve as government offices and court facilities.
Carthage’s growth from the 1850's -1929 was due to its successful buggy manufacturing industry. In 1856, two leading citizens of Moore County, Thomas Tyson and Alexander Kelly, decided to buy a small wheelwright business. The long-term economic impact of this event was not known at the time, but in a short time the town could see that the business of these two gentlemen was going to be profitable. Tyson and Kelly transformed the wheel-wright shop into one of the most well-known carriage factories in the United States. The company evolved to the Tyson and Jones Buggy Company. This major Carthage enterprise remained the largest factory in Moore County far into the 20th century. The factory reached its peak in 1890 turning out about 3,000 vehicles a year. The Tyson and Jones Buggy Company earned the reputation for producing the "Cadillac of carriages."
The horse-drawn buggy factory brought prosperity to Carthage that is still apparent today when looking at many of the old homes around the town. The advent of the automobile spelled doom for the buggy company. The last buggy was delivered in 1925 to Neil S. Blue of Raeford. Mr. Blue was eighty years old and had declared that he would never own an automobile. Technology emerged and eventually the demand for automobiles destroyed the market for carriages, and the factory property was sold.
Carthage itself has a very attractive appearance with its commanding location, wide, tree-bordered streets, and remarkable number of handsome residences. The National Historic District of Carthage is very proud that it has over fifty buildings and residences of historical significance.
Presently the town of Carthage has a population of about 1,600. Carthage is seen as one of the fastest growing towns in the county with an 80% population increase from 1990 to 1998. Carthage has a long and rich heritage, and its citizens can take pride in the part their town has played in the history of Moore County since colonial days.
by Sandhills Area Chamber of Commerce
Nestled in the majestic hills of Middle Tennessee, Carthage is a small, farming community on the North bank of the Cumberland River. Throughout the past two centuries, the Cumberland River has played a crucial role in the development of commerce in Carthage. Located only 50 miles East of Nashville, Carthage provides beautiful scenery, a wealth of commerce, and plenty of recreation opportunities.
In 1783, Colonel William B. Walton arrived in the future land area of Carthage, Tennessee and built a log cabin on the northeastern bank of the Cumberland River. During this period, the land of present-day Carthage, Tennessee was owned by North Carolina. When North Carolina joined the twelve other existing states in 1789, it donated future Tennessee land area including the area we now know as Smith County to the United States government as a territory.
In 1796, Colonel Walton's future Carthage, Tennessee land area became a part of the new state of Tennessee under the presiding of George Washington. In 1804, Colonel Walton sold 50 acres of his land for 1˘ to create the new community of Carthage, Tennessee.
During the late 19th Century, the Smith County government developed a road leading to South Carthage, western Smith County, and eastern Smith County which provided access for rural residents to the county seat of Carthage. In 1923, Governor Austin Peay extended this Smith County roadway from Knoxville to Nashville and named it US Hwy. 70. Highway 70 was used extensively from the 1920's to the 1960's. The construction of Interstate 40 in the late 1960's caused a decline of traffic on Highway 70 by fifty percent .
In 1938, Albert Gore, Sr., a Carthage citizen, won the United States Congressional race in the 4th District. Congressman Gore won reelection to Congress in 1940, 1942, 1944, 1946, 1948, and 1950. In 1952, Albert Gore, Sr. was elected and served until 1970 in the US Senate. His son, Albert Gore, Sr. was elected to Congress in 1976. He served in the Senate from 1985 to 1992. On January 20, 1993, Senator Albert Gore, Jr. was sworn in as Vice-President of the United States of America.
Carthage became the county seat of Panola County due to the generosity and foresight of one man, Jonathan Anderson, who donated 100 acres to create the town in 1848. Pioneer families had staked their claims to homesteads and farms in the surrounding acreage by that time, including the temporary county seat of Pulaski on the Sabine River.
From those humble beginnings, Carthage has grown and prospered. Now a designated state and national Main Street City, the town boasts a population of 6,664 people, according to the 2000 census.
The newest star in the Carthage crown is the Texas Country Music Hall of Fame and Tex Ritter Museum, just completed this year, which joins the Jim Reeves Memorial as popular tourist destinations for country music fans.
More than 3,040 students attend the Carthage Independent School District, which is ranked as a 3-A school by the state. The school district's five campuses include Carthage High School, Carthage Junior High School, Baker-Koonce Intermediate School, Libby Elementary School and Carthage Primary School. Northside Christian Academy, a private Christian school, and Panola Charter School, offer other educational opportunities to students in the area. In addition, the Carthage Home Schoolers Association provides resources and support for parents who choose to teach their children at home.
Panola College's wide-ranging curriculum offers two-year associate degrees, foundation courses that lead to university degrees, certificate programs for trade and technical careers, a nursing school, adult and continuing education classes, as well as ever-growing distance learning opportunities.
Carthage aerial map
Please click on any icon on the Carthage aerial tourist map, to find close by places, offering hotels and tourist information. You can zoom in and zoom out our touristical map as well as switch between satelite and map view of Carthage.
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