Southmont is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

(CDP) in Davidson County,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 1,470. It is located along

North Carolina State Highway 8 North Carolina Highway 8 (NC 8) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The route connects the cities of Lexington and Winston-Salem to various recreational and natural sites including Uwharrie National Forest, ...

on the northern shores of

High Rock Lake High Rock Lake is a reservoir located on the Yadkin River in central North Carolina in the counties of Davidson and Rowan. Built in 1926-27 by the Tallassee Power Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa), the ...

. There is an organized effort underway to incorporate the community as "The Village of Southmont".

Demographics

History

The community was founded in 1883 as "Fairmont" with the approval of a post office. The postmaster was Samuel S. Peacock from April 19, 1883, until it closed August 30, 1906. It was located in a country store operated by Mr. Hedrick near where the railroad crosses Hwy 8 today. Within 10 years, however, the community had failed to thrive and the store closed, with the post office surrendering its charter. Just after the turn of the 20th century, another store opened where the previous store stood, and an attempt to reopen the post office was declined by the postmaster general. It seems that another community had claimed the name "Fairmont". The name "Southmont" was chosen instead to receive the approval of a post office with Meriles S. A. Michaels as the postmaster on March 11, 1911. A village grew up around the crossroads of where the new

Winston-Salem Southbound Railway The Winston-Salem Southbound Railway is a short-line railroad jointly owned by CSX Transportation and the Norfolk Southern Railway (NS), which provide it with equipment. It connects with NS at the north end in Winston-Salem, CSX at the south ...

rail line had crossed the road to Lexington. During the 1920s the town had multiple stores, the county's first consolidated brick school, various churches, the Star Furniture Company, and the Wall Lumber Company. The hotel thrived for a time. Dr. Alvin York set up a practice in town. The

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

churches of the area included Holloways Baptist Church, Stoners Grove Baptist Church and the First Baptist Church of Southmont. Macedonia

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

Church was also active by the time the lake was created. By 1926, with the creation of

, many of the bridges and roads changed or closed, the railroad was elevated, and the route crossing the river changed. Other roads were rerouted as the geography changed. Coupled with the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

, much of the town died, but the school and churches remained. Fires claimed the two industries and the famous eight-gable hotel building, and by the early 1950s with train travel no longer being the favored means of travel, the station closed. The new

Central Davidson High School Central Davidson High School (commonly referred to as "Central", "CHS" or "CDHS") is a public high school in Lexington, North Carolina. Central was established in 1957 and is located along NC HWY 47. It is part of the Davidson County Schools syst ...

opened in 1957, with students from the Southmont High School now attending CDHS. The school became grades 1-8 and by the early 1960s people began to build summer cottages at High Rock Lake. 1967 witnessed

racial integration Racial integration, or simply integration, includes desegregation (the process of ending systematic racial segregation). In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportunity ...

of the schools. By 1972, a temporary middle school was created using an abandoned school at the Junior Order Children's Home, and the 8th grades were consolidated there creating CDJH. During a 1979 bridge repair, Hwy 8 was closed for nearly two years and much of the lake was found to have

mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

contamination from a battery plant upstream. Again, businesses closed and the school closed in 1981, consolidated with Linwood near Cotton Grove, known as Southwood. The Southmont Volunteer Fire Department was created in 1958. Over the past 10 years the community has again seen a resurgence of growth, with multiple small businesses, a new school, new post office, expanded churches, a new fire station, an array of other local civic and community groups, and significant population growth to the lake areas in and around Southmont.

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Davidson County, North Carolina Census-designated places in North Carolina