Pacolet (pronounced /ˈpækʔlɪt/, PACK-lit) is a town in Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 2,274 at the 2020 census. Several historical examples exist of individuals in the area using Pacolet or Packolette as a first or middle name. Another theory states that the word is Cherokee in origin, although there is no substantial evidence to support this claim. According to C. Bruce Littlejohn in his memoir Pacolets I Have Known, a person from Pacolet is called a Pacoletian, either pronounced /pækʔ'leʂɪn/ (pack-LAY-shin) or /pækʔ'lɛtiɪn/ (pack-LET-ee-in).

History

Precolonial

The area that would become Pacolet was seldom occupied for thousands of years, only occasionally passed through by American Indians. The local Catawba and Cherokee would almost exclusively use the land as hunting grounds, with the exception of soapstone quarries around the Pacolet River established approximately 3,000 to 5,000 years ago. The soapstone mined in the area would be used to make storage vessels and tools. It is believed that one of the quarries in the Pacolet area was the largest American Indian soapstone quarry in the United States. They would be present in many battles across the Eastern theater, including General Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Courthouse. On May 6<sup>th</sup>, 1896, Pacolet Station became incorporated.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which 0.01 square miles (0.03 km²) (0.34%) is water. The most common soil series is Cecil, although there is a significant amount of Bethlehem in the area surrounding the Pacolet River.

Climate

The town of Pacolet has a humid subtropical climate with long, hot, and humid summers and cool to semimild winters. The average annual temperature is 61.6 °F (16.4 °C). In the summer from June through September, average highs are in the 80s °F (20s °C) to low 90s °F (30s °C), while in the winter, average highs are in the mid-50s °F (10s °C). Annual rainfall is spread fairly evenly throughout the whole year. Pacolet receives very little snowfall, with the annual average being under 2 inches (5 cm). Annual precipitation is around 50 inches (127 cm), and the average growing season is about 235 days.

Demographics

2020 census

{| class="wikitable"

|+Pacolet racial composition

!Race

!Num.

!Perc.

|-

|White (non-Hispanic)

|1,650

|72.56%

|-

|Black or African American (non-Hispanic)

|427

|18.78%

|-

|Native American

|13

|0.57%

|-

|Asian

|15

|0.66%

|-

|Other/Mixed

|107

|4.71%

|-

|Hispanic or Latino

|62

|2.73%

|}

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,274 people, 957 households, and 590 families residing in the town.

2010 census

As of the census

  • Pacolet Farmers Market, operating on the second Saturday of every month from May to August.
  • Movies by the River, a showing of various family movies by the river on the second Saturday of every month from May to August.
  • The Pacolet Amphitheater, a historic amphitheater that is decorated every Christmas using lights and inflatables.thumb|166x166px|Pacolet Trojan Horse
  • The Pacolet Trojan Horse, a fiberglass statue of a white horse placed atop the foundation of the old bridge, which commemorates the Pacolet Trojans baseball teams.

Education

Pacolet currently has one school, Pacolet Elementary School. The town is in Spartanburg County School District 3. From 1953 to 1970, Pacolet was the home of Benjamin E. Mays Consolidated School, which served Black students in Pacolet in grades 1-6 and all Black students in the district in grades 7-12. After the school’s closing, it became a middle school from 1976 to 2021.

Pacolet has a lending library, a branch of the Spartanburg County Public Library.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Major Highways

Notable people

  • George Banks (1938 – 1985), baseball player
  • Robert Henry Best (1896 – 1952), American broadcaster of Nazi propaganda during World War II.
  • C. Bruce Littlejohn (1913 – 2007), Chief Justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court
  • Joe Littlejohn (1908 – 1989), racing driver
  • Ricky Smith, member of the National Sporting Clays Association Hall of Fame
  • William Westmoreland (1914 – 2005), United States Army general, most notably the commander of United States forces during the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1968
  • Ernie White (1916 –1974), baseball player
  • Charles "Spades" Wood (1909 - 1986), baseball player

References

  • Town website