Southern Pines tourist information
James T. Patrick, North Carolina’s first commissioner of immigration, tackled his job with enthusiasm. Having been appointed by Governor Zebulon Vance, Patrick was responsible for bringing newcomers to the state. He set out visiting various towns and areas to decide what were the most likely locations for new towns. He felt southern Moore County had great potential for development. Late in 1870 he arrived at the train depot in Manly. Manly, now located about one mile north of Southern Pines, was founded in 1832 and was known for a number of fine vineyards. When inspecting the area, Patrick found almost all the local men were involved in the lumber and timber business. He finally found one gentleman who had come south to recover from tuberculosis. The man’s doctor had advised a relocation to Moore County's pine-covered Sandhills…and he was recovering. Patrick soon was convinced that this area could draw new residents because of its healthy climate. After visiting Southern Pines, one newspaper editor from New Hampshire wrote, "this section will soon eclipse Florida as a health and winter resort."
From the train depot in Manly, Patrick ventured south to Shaw's Ridge and decided that the area had potential. Charles C. Shaw, a first generation Scottish settler, had acquired 2500 acres around 1820. Located on its original foundation at the corner of Morganton Road and Broad Street, Shaw’s historic home is available for visiting today. Patrick bought 675 acres for $1,265, a price that was less than $2 an acre for the land that would become Southern Pines. The local residents had little faith in Patrick's project and referred to his purchase as "Patrick's Folly" for he had purchased barren wasteland whose longleaf forest had been stripped for tar, pitch, turpentine, and lumber.
The town charter of Southern Pines set the metes and bounds touching one side of the corporate limit of Manly. In 1844 when planning the town’s layout, Patrick drew a grid of squares for homelot buyers. He allowed for generous 60-foot streets and planned alleys going down the middle of each of the four sides of the grid to meet in a center square. The lettering and numbering he gave the lots remain in use today. Street names were part of his marketing plan; the streets were named for northern states. Patrick’s alleys and center squares were useful, but as homes and commercial buildings went up, it wasn't long until the alleys and back squares began to disappear. Sometime in the 1890’s according to the minutes, the town board gave up jurisdiction over them, with no reason given. The alleys and squares are described on most of the deeds.
Southern Pines was built with the railroad straight down the middle. The plan was for visitors from the North to disembark at the station and within a few blocks find lodging. Patrick’s next task was to build a hotel. He chose a spot directly across the street from the train depot and built his hotel, The Flattop. He also was hard at work advertising his new municipality of Southern Pines as a health resort. John Patrick’s advertising ideas were decidedly modern and enterprising. He contacted northern newspaper editors with a barter offer; in exchange for free advertising, he offered these editors property in Southern Pines. Doctors were targeted as useful references. Tours were offered to northern doctors highlighting the advantages of Southern Pines for their patients, especially those with tuberculosis. Patrick himself published The Southern Home Seekers' Guide, a newspaper, to draw people to the new town. His idea was good, and the timing was right. Patrick's efforts paid off, and he lived to see the town of Southern Pines become a successful thriving community. The acreage he had purchased in 1884 had grown into a healthy village of some fifty families by 1887.
Many early residents made valuable contributions to the growth and development of Southern Pines. Of those, probably the most outstanding were members of the Boyd family. In 1903, a coal merchant from Pennsylvania named James Boyd bought 2,000 acres of land on the northeast edge of Southern Pines. This location was selected as a second choice because James Tufts refused to sell Boyd any of his Pinehurst land. Boyd built his own estate that he named Weymouth Heights and developed 500 acres as lots for future homes. Southern Pines benefited from the efforts of Helen Boyd Dull, Boyd's widowed daughter. She was instrumental in starting civic organizations and beautification projects in Southern Pines, including lining the railroad tracks on Broad Street with magnolias.
The third generation of Boyds left a literary mark on Southern Pines. After the end of World War I, Boyd's grandson, James, returned to Southern Pines and began writing. James Boyd became a writer of poetry and historical novels, earning a place in American literature. Among friends of the couple were many writers and other gifted people who enjoyed Weymouth for rest and relaxation. James Boyd and his wife, Katherine, joined a colony of writers who were already living in Southern Pines. It was standard practice to find authors like Thomas Wolfe or other literary giants of the day visiting in Southern Pines staying with the Boyds. In the 1920's James Boyd wrote two best-selling historical novels, Drums and Marching On, and later became publisher of the local newspaper, The Pilot.
In addition to their literary interests, the Boyds were interested in horses. The echoes of the Boyd's influence on the Moore County Hounds are still evident on chilly, winter mornings when one can hear the baying of hounds and sounds of horses’ hooves in pursuit of their elusive foe, the fox.
Today Southern Pines is the largest municipality in Moore County with nearly 11,000 residents who enjoy its tree-lined streets, charming shops, and equally charming homes. Southern Pines is especially appealing because it is a combination of north, south, old, and new. One can enjoy the quaint Broad Street downtown area that looks the same as it did years ago or visit modern new shopping areas. Southern Pines has developed a cosmopolitan flavor with unique shopping, appealing restaurants, cultural centers, hotels, resorts, and plenty of southern hospitality. The drawing cards for this town are its horse farms, golf courses, festivals, and activities that make Southern Pines a haven for anyone interested in combining city life with the benefits of a small town.
by Sandhills Area Chamber of Commerce
Southern Pines aerial map
Please click on any icon on the Southern Pines 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 Southern Pines.
Africa | Asia | Caribbean | Central America | Europe | Middle East | North America | Oceania | South America
