Cities & Towns
Clemson
Clemson, with a population of over 15,000, is the largest of the four communities served by the Clemson Area Chamber of Commerce. This number is augmented ten months of the year by close to 20,000 plus students attending Clemson University.
The City of Clemson and Clemson University work together in a uniquely cooperative way that has created a special character for the overall community. The successful partnership is evidenced by its selection as the outstanding Town and Gown community for each of the past five years by the International Town and Gown Association.
Central
The Town of Central sits less than five miles from the City of Clemson, in between Clemson University and Southern Wesleyan University. The growth of both Universities is a contributing factor to Central’s recent growth. Additionally, the area around the Wal-Mart Center, located just south of town, has spurred commercial growth. This town of over 5,000 had a prominent role in the early development of the Pickens County area. Situated as the central point on the railroad between Atlanta, Georgia and Charlotte, North Carolina it developed as a railroad town that served as the prime terminal where engines could be fueled and changed. Hence, the name Central.
Pendleton
Pendleton is rich in history and offers a picturesque hometown square that calls to the shopper and the browser to stop and visit the unique shops, antique stores and enjoy lunch on the square.
The entire Town is listed on the national Register of Historic Places. A walk through Pendleton takes one back in time to experience some stately antebellum mansions, historic churches and cemeteries, and more than 50 buildings predating 1850. Settled in 1790 by Scots – Irish farmers who layed out the picturesque village green around which the Town developed. In the center of the green is the oldest farmers hall in continuous use in the United States. John C. Calhoun’s son-in-law Thomas Green Clemson proposed the development of a state agricultural college, now Clemson University, in the farmers hall.
Six Mile
The rural Town of Six Mile, just a short drive north of Clemson, evidences the great pride of it’s residents. Fewer than 700 call Six Mile home, yet two to three times that number turnout for the hometown style events and activities that evoke the close and personal spirit of an earlier age.
The Town is named from an old Indian legend about a Cateechee woman named Issaqueena. She fell in love with a man named Francis Allen, who had moved to Fort Cambridge.
Issaqueena later overheard her tribe elders planning an attack on the fort and traveled ninety-six miles on foot to warn her lover. Along her journey, she named the paths, landmarks, and streams, many of which still hold today, including Issaqueena Falls, Ninety-Six, and Six Mile.