Chesnee, South Carolina

Chesnee, South Carolina
City
Location of Chesnee, South Carolina
Coordinates: 35°8′54″N81°51′43″W / 35.14833°N 81.86194°W / 35.14833; -81.86194
Country	United States
State	South Carolina
Counties	Spartanburg, Cherokee
Government
• Mayor	Bruce Mahaffey
Area [1]
• Total	1.07 sq mi (2.77 km2)
• Land	1.07 sq mi (2.77 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation [2]	892 ft (272 m)
Population  (2020) [3]
• Total	829
• Density	774.04/sq mi (298.92/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP Code	29323
Area code	864
FIPS code	45-14050 [4]
GNIS feature ID	1221550 [2]
Website	www.cityofchesnee.org

Chesnee is a city in Spartanburg and Cherokee counties, in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 868 as of the 2010 census. ^[5]

History

The Zeno Hicks House is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In the early 20th century, the Chesnee Land Company bought a sizeable acreage at what is now Chesnee. A leading member of the company was John B. Cleveland of Spartanburg. Cleveland named the company - and later the town - after his great-grandmother, Margaret Chesnee, who was born in Scotland. She married Alexander Vernon, also born in Scotland. ^[6] The Clinchfield Railroad ran an excursion train over the newly laid rails to Spartanburg on October 23, 1909.

The Chesnee post office was established in 1910, ^[7] and the town was chartered in 1911. Early businesses included a hotel, pharmacy, cotton mill, and lumber mill. ^[8]

The Cowpens National Battlefield and Zeno Hicks House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. ^[9]

Geography

Chesnee is located near the northeast corner of Spartanburg County, and a small part of the city extends east into Cherokee County. U.S. Route 221 passes through the city as Alabama Avenue and Hampton Street, leading north 18 miles (29 km) to Rutherfordton, North Carolina, and south 16 miles (26 km) to Spartanburg. South Carolina Highway 11 (Cherokee Street) crosses US 221 in the center of town and leads west 19 miles (31 km) to Campobello and east past Cowpens National Battlefield 14 miles (23 km) to Gaffney.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Chesnee has a total area of 1.14 square miles (2.94 km²), all land. ^[5]

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1920	600		—
1930	764		27.3%
1940	827		8.2%
1950	1,051		27.1%
1960	1,045		−0.6%
1970	1,069		2.3%
1980	1,069		0.0%
1990	1,280		19.7%
2000	1,003		−21.6%
2010	868		−13.5%
2020	829		−4.5%
U.S. Decennial Census [10] [3]

2020 census

Chesnee racial composition ^[11]

Race	Num.	Perc.
White (non-Hispanic)	549	66.22%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	191	23.04%
Native American	1	0.12%
Asian	4	0.48%
Other/Mixed	37	4.46%
Hispanic or Latino	47	5.67%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 829 people, 324 households, and 159 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the census ^[4] of 2000, there were 1,003 people, 396 households, and 239 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,116.4 inhabitants per square mile (431.0/km²). There were 460 housing units at an average density of 512.0 units per square mile (197.7 units/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 68.20% White, 27.52% African American, 0.30% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 1.99% from other races, and 1.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 4.69% of the population.

There were 396 households, out of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.6% were married couples living together, 17.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.4% were non-families. Of all households, 35.4% were made up of individuals, and 13.4% 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 3.18.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.3% under the age of 18, 9.9% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $25,089, and the median income for a family was $33,438. Males had a median income of $30,000 versus $17,500 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,993. About 16.5% of families and 24.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 37.6% of those under age 18 and 6.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Public education is administered by Spartanburg County School District 2. ^[12] Three schools are located in Chesnee, including Chesnee High School.

Chesnee has a lending library, a branch of the Spartanburg County Public Library. ^[13]

Notable people

• Woody Abernathy, repaired broadloom in Chesnee for 30 years after retiring from pitching with the New York Giants ^[14]
• Sonja Glenn, 1998 Miss South Carolina USA ^[15]
• Stephen Twitty, decorated U.S. Army major general ^[16]

References

1. "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
2. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Chesnee, South Carolina
3. "Census Population API". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
4. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
5. "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (G001): Chesnee city, South Carolina". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
6. Names in South Carolina, pp 136-137 (Claude Henry Neuffer, ed.) (1967) Columbia, SC: Department of English, University of South Carolina, based on A Brief History of the First Fifty Years of Chesnee, South Carolina, 1911-1961 by Helen Hicks Ezell.
7. Helbock, Richard W. (2007) United States Post Offices, Volume VIII - The Southeast, p. 55, Scappoose, Oregon: La Posta Publications.
8. "Chesnee, South Carolina". SCIWAY.net. Retrieved October 1, 2013.
9. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
10. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
11. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 10, 2021.
12. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Spartanburg County, SC" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau . Retrieved July 5, 2021.
13. "South Carolina libraries and archives". SCIWAY. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
14. "Virgil Abernathy". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. December 7, 1994.
15. "Miss Massachusetts Crowned the Winner". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. March 11, 1998.
16. Burge, David (May 27, 2013). "Departing Brig. Gen. Stephen Twitty recalls his troops". El Paso Times.

External links

• City of Chesnee official website
• Governmental information on City of Chesnee
• History and community information about Chesnee