“S” is for Simpsonville [Greenville County; population 14,352]. Incorporated in 1901, Simpsonville began many decades earlier as a crossroads hamlet where the Old Stage Road intersected a former Cherokee trail. In 1838, Peter Simpson established a blacksmith operation at the crossroads. Other enterprises soon followed and the settlement became known as Simpsonville. In the mid-1880s, the completion of the Greenville and Laurens Railroad near the town brought growth and development. In 1886, the post office officially became known as Simpsonville. By 1900, the town had become a cotton-processing hub with three gins and a cottonseed oil mill. A cotton mill remained the largest employer until after World War II. Between 1970 and 1990, the town’s population grew 254 percent. An additional increase of thirteen percent from 1990 to 1992 made Simpsonville the fastest-growing city in South Carolina.