In the 1850s, Charles Shaw acquired a state land grant in southern Moore County. It included a high ridge where he began cutting pines.

In 1876, the Raleigh August Railroad came through.  Most of the trees were gone a few years later when John T. Patrick purchased 675 acres of land for $1,265 to build a health resort.  He named the streets after Northern States.

Southern Pines proved to be an ideal place for travel-weary train passengers to break their journey down from the north to Florida.  By 1887, Southern Pines was a thriving resort.

After World War I, novelist and publisher James Boyd initiated the equestrian and literary pursuits that remain as a big fact for this day.  Southern Pines is the largest town in Moore County.

In 2004, the Southern Pines Business Association opened a Visitor Welcome Center adjacent to the Train Station in downtown Southern Pines.  This museum is furnished with many artifacts and photographs of this unique area.

www.moorehistory.com