Travelers Rest is a city in Greenville County, South Carolina. Its population was 7,788 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Greenville-Mauldin-Easley Metropolitan Statistical Area. Travelers Rest, the northernmost city in Greenville County, is located 10 miles north of Greenville and around 20 miles south of the North Carolina border. The town was founded by J.W. Donaldson, founder of a bloodstock cattle empire. Initially built as a reprieve for his oxen and coach herd, the family eventually did yoke and axle repair for settlers headed out on the Oregon Trail. Later, the Dry Goods Warehouse became the start to the Swamp Rabbit Trail. Furman University, a private liberal-arts university, was annexed into the city limits of Travelers Rest in April 2018 and North Greenville University, a private Christian institution, is located in nearby Tigerville.

History

In 1794, the South Carolina General Assembly appropriated $2,000 to construct a wagon road from Greenville, SC, north into the Blue Ridge Mountains, through Asheville, North Carolina, ending in East Tennessee. This road, once fully completed in the mid-1850's, was full of wagon traffic. For those going north into the mountains from the coast through Greenville, Travelers Rest was the first well-equipped stop to prepare for the several thousand-foot climb ahead of them. Travelers Rest was most recently incorporated as a city in 1959, although there was an 1891 incorporation that expired. While unincorporated, most of the area was known as Bates Township during the 19th and early 20th centuries.

The John H. Goodwin House and George Salmon House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. American Revolutionary heroine Dicey Langston's home, now site of a historical marker, is located just north of the city proper.

Transportation

U.S. Route 276-N enters connects Downtown Greenville with the city and becomes Travelers Rest's Main Street before heading northwest past Caesar's Head State Park, and into North Carolina to Brevard, NC. U.S. Route 25-N, enters the city from West Greenville, then turns north into the Blue Ridge Mountains, connecting to Asheville, NC, 54 miles away.

As of the 2010 census, the city had a total area of , of which , or 0.54%, were water.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Travelers Rest had a population of 7,788, a median age of 22.9 years, 17.5% of residents under the age of 18, 15.5% of residents 65 years of age or older, 76.8 males for every 100 females, and 72.0 males for every 100 females age 18 and over.

{| class="wikitable"

|+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census

! Race !! Number !! Percent

|-

| White || 6,129 || 78.7%

|-

| Black or African American || 888 || 11.4%

|-

| American Indian and Alaska Native || 26 || 0.3%

|-

| Asian || 151 || 1.9%

|-

| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 5 || 0.1%

|-

| Some other race || 154 || 2.0%

|-

| Two or more races || 435 || 5.6%

|-

| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 391 || 5.0%

|}

There were 2,257 households in Travelers Rest, of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 44.4% were married-couple households, 14.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, 35.9% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present, and 1,171 were families. About 31.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

2000 census

thumb|A 2016 snow and ice storm in Travelers Rest

As of the census

References

  • City of Travelers Rest official website
  • TravelersRestHere.com - Destination Information for Visitors
  • Greater Travelers Rest Chamber of Commerce
  • Travelers Rest Tribune
  • ExploreTR