"THE LITTLE TOWN WITH THE BIG HEART!"
St. Pauls dates back to 1799 when the St. Pauls Presbyterian Church was built on land donated by William Davis. During the early 1800's only four buildings comprised the town: the church, the post office, a livery stable, and Davis' home. The first community and businesses grew up around the sixteen-mile post on the stage road from Fayetteville to Lumberton, where coaches changed horses at Davis' livery stable.
The town's growth resulted in the establishment of an academy, Robeson Institute, in 1845. A 1925 paper reports that "It was a mixed school (gender), but was taught by competent teachers." In 1885 the academy burned and was never rebuilt. A new school, combined with the Masonic Lodge, was built in 1886.
The textile industry flourished during the early part of this century with the building of three cotton mills by 1920. The worldwide depression of the 30's helped contribute to the selling of the mills in 1943 to Burlington Mills Corporation. While the textile industry has been in decline, other industries such as Watts Water Technologies and Prestage Farms have located and prospered in this area.
The railroad industry contributed much to the history of St. Pauls. The Virginia and Carolina Railroad, connecting St. Pauls with Lumberton and Elizabethtown and branching with the Atlantic Coast Line at Hope Mills, was built between 1907 and 1910 by the Atlantic Improvement Company. This influenced the surveying and sale of home lots and establishment of the business section next to the railway station. The town was incorporated in 1909, the same year of the town's first telephone line. An electric light line came to St. Pauls in 1912. Both of these local companies were bought in the 1920's by companies offering statewide service.
In 1923 St. Pauls was described as a "rosebud of nature's beauty "with its three cotton mills, flour mill, bank, newspaper, lumber company, ice company, three doctors, and three lawyers and "nice wide streets with plans to pave". Today, the area surrounding St. Pauls is known for its diversified farming and improving economic base.
WHO WE ARE
It's all about Location! Our town is located in the northern area of Robeson County directly on I-95, situated between Lumberton and the City of Fayetteville. Shopping and more is just a few minutes away. St. Pauls is also located 70 miles southeast of Raleigh via I-95 and I-40. Other major cities include Charlotte, 165 miles via U.S. 74 and the port of Wilmington, 90 minutes by U.S. 74 or NC 87. Just to our south is Florence, South Carolina and I-20. To our east and southeast are two great coastal vacation spots. The Wilmington, North Carolina coastal area includes many beautiful beaches such as Wrightsville, Holden, Kure and many more. For families, you can't beat Holden Beach. Then there is the famous "Gold Coast" which includes Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Murrells Inlet, Garden City Beach, Surfside Beach, Atlantic Beach and the Little River. Easily accessible and only 90 minutes away, you'll be able to enjoy day trips to one of the finest beaches on the east coast.
If you enjoy golf, then you've found your heaven. From Pinehurst and Southern Pines , conveniently located just 45 minutes west, the Cypress Lakes Golf Course home to Raymond Floyd just up the road, down to the hundreds of courses surrounding Myrtle Beach, Hilton Head and areas south, you'll be able to play all day, every day and never on the same course!
Businesses will love our area due to the tremendous savings having major carrier routes located just minutes away! With plenty of available space to locate any size enterprise, and with our Industrial Park offering access to I-95 just 2 minutes away, you've got the room to spread out and grow the way you need to. But it gets even better!
Because we are located in a select economic zone, your business will qualify for a number of Federal, State and local incentives. And with our large available work force, technical colleges, Universities and training centers, you can rest assured your work force will be trained and ready to go! We'll even work on specialized training if your business requires it. We've got buildings and more available for your business to move in right away!
The Town of St. Pauls provides the water and sewer while Lumber River Propane supplies tank gas, Piedmont Natural Gas provides gas lines and hookups, DukeEnergy Progress supplies the electricity, Time-Warner Cable supplies high-speed internet and CenturyLink has a substation located in the center of town for high-speed DSL connections. While other municipalities are looking for ways to cut back on services, St. Pauls continues to improve ours. Currently the Town is undergoing a major upgrade to it's water and sewer systems. Storm water drainage is also being upgraded. Recycling has just recently been added to residential curb-side pickup service. Sidewalk reconditioning and other improvements are being made as needed. Overall, the town has placed a greater emphasis on quality of life issues for our citizens under the current Town Board and Town Administrator.
Cablevision is available in St. Pauls. The system offers a 32-channel service which includes the three major broadcast networks, five independents, an educational network, a package of sports, news, music, and children's programming, and four premium pay channels.
The three major broadcast networks, Public Broadcast Network and seven local independent networks are available over-the-air without Cablevision.
St. Pauls has two medical doctors, two physician assistants (P.A.), one chiropractor, one dental office, one optometrist, onedialysis clinics and four drugstores. Hospital facilities are provided in Lumberton, 11 miles away at Southeastern Regional Medical Center. SRMC with a medical staff of 60 physicians, provides health care services which include: Carolina Manor Treatment Center, HealthHorizons Home Health Agency, Hospice of Robeson, HealthHorizons Uniforms and Medical Supplies, Woodhaven - a 116 bed long-term care facility and SRMC Lifestyle Fitness Center. St. Pauls is also served by Cape Fear Hospital Systems in Fayetteville.
The Public Schools of Robeson County located in St. Pauls includes one elementary, one middle and one high school. Higher education is provided by Robeson Community College in Lumberton, NC 11 miles away. UNC at Pembroke, 15 miles from St. Pauls is a 4-year institution which offers 53 undergraduate degrees and nine graduate programs. St. Andrews Presbyterian College in Laurinburg is 20 miles from St. Pauls. Fayetteville State University, Methodist University and Fayetteville Technical Community College are located 20 miles away. The big four: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina State University, Duke University and Wake Forest University are located within a good driving distance of St. Pauls. Carolina, State, and Duke are 90 minutes driving time and Wake Forest is approximately a 3 hour drive.