Grover is a town in Cleveland County,

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, United States. The population was 708 at the 2010 census.

History

Grover is classified as a small town where railway and highway routes Interstate 85 and

U.S. Route 29 U.S. Route 29 or U.S. Highway 29 (US 29) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs for from Pensacola, Florida, to Ellicott City, Maryland, just west of Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland, in the Eastern United Stat ...

cross the state line between

and

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

. It was previously named Whitaker and legally was in South Carolina. The name change to Grover in 1885 was in honor of President

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first U.S. president to serve nonconsecutive terms and the first Hist ...

. Gingerbread Row, (Cleveland Avenue - NC Highway 226) has an antique look with many restored homes in beautiful colors. A railroad-dominated town started when the Atlanta Charlotte Airline Railway placed a turntable for engines to be spun. They operated from the 1880s to the 1920s and

Southern Railway (U.S.) The Southern Railway (also known as Southern Railway Company; ) was a class 1 railroad based in the Southern United States between 1894 and 1982, at which time it merged with the Norfolk and Western Railway (N&W) to form the Norfolk Southern R ...

continues to carry passengers to this day (now known as

Norfolk Southern The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...

). Mail drops and pickups by train occurred several times per day in Grover often with the mail bag put on a hook while the train came through at speed.

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

also operates on the line (under permission) and carries passengers from

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

to Charlotte,

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, and

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

made a rail stop in Grover during his U.S. Presidential campaign. Grover is also home to international companies like Eaton, Commercial Vehicle Group, Southern Power, 84 Lumber, Uniquetex, and the US Presidential Culinary Museum and Library. Hatcher Hughes previously lived in Grover and won the

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

in 1924 for his Broadway play, '' Hell-Bent Fer Heaven'', a show about his own people from the area of the foothills - where Grover is located. He was a professor at the Ivy League college

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

. The Hambright (Hambrecht) family of

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

and

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

lives in Grover and built the tallest and largest mansion there in 1879 under the guidance of Doctor Alfred Frederick Hambright (Hambrecht). Grover also hosts a former

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

Chef and manager of the Presidential resort and conference center

Camp David Camp David is a country retreat for the president of the United States. It lies in the wooded hills of Catoctin Mountain Park, in Frederick County, Maryland, near the towns of Thurmont, Maryland, Thurmont and Emmitsburg, Maryland, Emmitsburg, a ...

, Martin CJ Mongiello, who lives there. Grover is a part of

Cleveland County, North Carolina Cleveland County is a County (United States), county located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the western Piedmont, on the southern border of the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, t ...

. The county is named after Colonel Benjamin Cleveland (Cleaveland - Thorkil de Cleveland of Cleveland County York, England in the year 1066) - of the King's Mountain battle - a companion of Colonel Frederick Hambright (with his son John by his side) during the Revolutionary War. Grover holds as many North Carolina Official Historical Markers as the county seat of Shelby. It was the town of entry by The Marquess, Lord Charles Cornwallis when he invaded North Carolina with his cavalry, artillery, and army. The butcher of New Jersey, Major Patrick Ferguson, also camped near parts of present-day Grover, prior to battle on King's Mountain, a local mountain range named after the King Family that lived there. In 1887, the legislature voted to change the name of Grover's County - to the more utilized English word version of, "Cleveland", from its previous version of Cleaveland. President Grover Cleveland had been in office since 1885 (the first Democrat elected after the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

Map of Cleveland County North Carolina With Municipal and Township Labels

This portion of history affected local matters. A German bachelor, Grover Cleveland, was ill at ease at first with all the comforts of the

. "I must go to dinner," he wrote to a friend, "but I wish it was to eat a pickled herring, a Swiss cheese, and a chop at Louis' instead of the French stuff I shall find." He gained advance publicity and coverage as did the town of Grover. A portion of the original plan encompassed renaming the town after the President's first name to attain notice. In June 1886, this predicament would be fixed for Grover. President Cleveland married 21-year-old Frances Folsom; he was the only President ever married in the

. This historic event and the ensuing honeymoon took on news attention. The name change of Grover's county took on epic proportions shortly after this event. The town, White House and county historically affected each other in an unpredicted manner. In 1887, Cleaveland County held a referendum and vote to change its name to the more popular spelling of, "Cleveland". The latest, mistaken report of this (verified July 2008) with a letter delivered by the US Postal Service, from the White House Historical Society to The Inn of the Patriots, 301 Cleveland Avenue, Grover Cleveland, NC 28073. No such town exists in America. Cleveland Avenue (Route 226) runs through Grover - parallel to Main Street. Many Hambright's (Hambrecht's), Hamrick's and Herndon's lived on Cleveland Avenue. Today, the Shiloh Presbyterian Church (built in 1905) remains next to Doctor Alfred Hambright's (Hambrecht) home that was built after the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. A statue was dedicated to Colonel Frederick Hambright (Hambrecht Prussian family) and US Marine Corporal, Clyde Furman Horton on July 1, 2008. The Shiloh Presbyterian Church Cemetery was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 2011. Many other prominent names dominate the makeup of Grover and are listed repeatedly in reference level books of the Cleveland County Library System, families like Herndon, Hambright (Hambrecht), Hamrick, Rountree, Keeter, Graham, Cleaveland, Cleveland, Scruggs, and Goforth. Within the history of Grover - it is often confused with President Grover Cleveland versus Benjamin Cleveland and where the names came from. Although, each Cleveland are related - going back to Amos Cleveland, of Massachusetts and Cleveland, Ohio. Grover is in the process of restoring itself to a town with a 'turn-of-the-century look and feel'. Its train and spinning engine turntable with history applied for such in a 2010 North Carolina Main Street program. The current mayor is Bill Willis. The town historian for a long period was Doctor Cobia Goforth who died in late 2017.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , of which is land and (2.94%) is water.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 802 people, 272 households, and 187 families residing in the town.

2000 census

At the 2000

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, there were 698 people, 280 households and 206 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 313 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 91.12%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 7.16%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.72% Asian, 0.29% from other races, and 0.72% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.43% of the population. There were 280 households, of which 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.0% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 13.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.1% were non-families. 23.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.92. 26.8% of the population were under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 29.1% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.9 males. The

median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of und ...

was $32,083 and the median family income was $43,000. Males had a median income of $33,977 and females $25,769 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

was $16,132. About 13.5% of families and 12.9% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 14.8% of those under age 18 and 11.4% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

* I-85—Exits SC 106 & NC 2 serve the town. There is an SC Welcome Center at milemarker SC 103 and NC 3. Grover straddles the state line. * US 29

US 29—two and four lanes. Runs through the downtown area and serves next to the CSX railroad tracks and alongside Main Street.

Education

There is one public elementary school, Grover Elementary, located in the town. Numerous, public, middle and high schools are located nearby in Kings Mountain, NC. Kings Mountain High School is the largest in the region and is listed as the 199th best high school in North Carolina.

References

* ''Kings Mountain Mirror'' newspaper, Page 12 A, September 26, 1973 * ''The Charlotte Observer'' newspaper, Gaston Section, Page 1, December 13, 1996 * U.L. Rusty Patterson and Barry E. Hambright, ''Shelby and Cleveland County, North Carolina'', Arcadia Publishing, 2000 * Joe DePriest
"A Heaping Helping of History"
''The Charlotte Observer'', July 6, Neighbors section] * M. A. Andrews
"Unique, Grover's the Inn of the Patriots"
''The Shelby Shopper'' newspaper, June 26, 2008 * Allison Flynn

''The Gaston Gazette'' newspaper & ''The Shelby Star'' newspaper, July 11, 2008 * Bernie Petite and Allison Flynn

''The Gaston Gazette'', July 13, 2009 * Rebecca Piscopo, "Inn to History", ''Kings Mountain Herald'' newspaper, July 3, 2008 * ''Gaston Woman'' magazine, August 2008 issue * Crystal Champion
"The Inn of the Patriots"
''The Foothills Spotlight'' magazine, summer issue, 2008 *

'. Retrieved February 22, 2005.

External links

The Southern Railway Historical Association
{{authority control Towns in North Carolina Towns in Cleveland County, North Carolina