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Hope Mills, North Carolina facts for kids

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Hope Mills, North Carolina
Street in Hope Mills
Street in Hope Mills
Motto(s): 
"Where Families Live and Grow"
Location in Cumberland County and the state of North Carolina.
Location in Cumberland County and the state of North Carolina.
Country United States
State North Carolina
County Cumberland
Area
 • Total 8.64 sq mi (22.38 km2)
 • Land 8.48 sq mi (21.96 km2)
 • Water 0.16 sq mi (0.42 km2)
Elevation
157 ft (48 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total 17,808
 • Density 2,100.25/sq mi (810.90/km2)
Time zone UTC−5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP code
28348
Area codes 910, 472
FIPS code 37-32640
GNIS feature ID 2405861

Hope Mills is a town in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. Its population was 15,176 at the 2010 census.

Geography

Hope Mills is located in western Cumberland County south of Fayetteville, the county seat. The town center is next to a dam on Little Rockfish Creek, forming Hope Mills Lake. Little Rockfish Creek flows southeast to Rockfish Creek, a tributary of the Cape Fear River.

North Carolina Highway 59 (Main Street) runs through the center of the town, leading north 5 miles (8 km) to U.S. Route 401 in western Fayetteville, and south 2.5 miles (4.0 km) to Interstate 95 at Exit 41. Several pieces of land around Exit 41 are within the town limits, although not connected to the town center.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 7.0 square miles (18.2 km2), of which 6.9 square miles (18.0 km2) are land and 0.08 square miles (0.2 km2), or 1.40%, is covered by water, including Hope Mills Lake.

History

Chartered in 1891, Hope Mills can trace its beginning back to 1766, when due to the wealth of natural water power and the abundance of timber, a lumber camp, saw mill, grist mill, and pottery business were established. In 1839, construction of the first cotton mill powered by the Hope Mills Dam was completed and was the beginning of a new era for the town. Much of the heritage and the town's name itself can be attributed to the cotton-milling industry that followed.

Before it was known as Hope Mills, the area was known as Little Rockfish Village and as Hope Mills Number One.

The local cotton mill and many other buildings were burned by General Sherman's troops during the Civil War.

The Big Rockfish Presbyterian Church and Hope Mills Historic District are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Today

While the town is small, it offers its residents a full variety of services and recreation. Public parks and recreational facilities are located throughout the town. These facilities provide walking trails to tennis courts. Hope Mills has its own police and fire departments and is only minutes away from four major hospitals. The new county library provides a number of special services, including summer reading programs and public meeting rooms. Five shopping centers, the historic downtown district, a post office, two medical clinics, elementary schools (Baldwin, Rockfish, Collier, and Cashwell), middle schools (South View and Hope Mills), two high schools (South View and Gray's Creek) and more than 20 churches round out the community.

Hope Mills Lake, January 2009, after a rare snowfall

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1890 456
1900 881 93.2%
1910 964 9.4%
1920 783 −18.8%
1930 971 24.0%
1940 900 −7.3%
1950 1,077 19.7%
1960 1,109 3.0%
1970 1,866 68.3%
1980 5,412 190.0%
1990 8,184 51.2%
2000 11,237 37.3%
2010 15,176 35.1%
2020 17,808 17.3%
2022 (est.) 17,824 17.4%
U.S. Decennial Census

2020 census

Hope Mills racial composition
Race Number Percentage
White or Caucasian (non-Hispanic) 7,686 43.16%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 5,804 32.59%
Native American 285 1.6%
Asian 409 2.3%
Pacific Islander 49 0.28%
Other/Mixed 1,402 7.87%
Hispanic or Latino 2,173 12.2%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 17,808 people, 5,759 households, and 3,834 families residing in the town.

Notable person

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Hope Mills (Carolina del Norte) para niños

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