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B+History
History · Hope Mills

Hope Mills dates to 1766, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 73% of U.S. towns · #72 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it

2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 61 buildings. Most of Hope Mills was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1995. Below: maps from 1914 on and the census since 1890.

1766founded
2on the National Register
2%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Hope Mills began

When was Hope Mills founded?

1766

Hope Mills dates its founding to 1766 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 456 in 18902020 census: 17,808260 years

How historic is Hope Mills?

B+

More historic than 73% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1876.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Hope Mills’ History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hope Mills is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns, #72 of 290 in North Carolina. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Hope Mills’ overall grade.
Founding era1766, from Wikidata: founded before 1776, an older era than 96% of U.S. townsA+Homes built before 19402.0% of homes (±1.1) · typical NC town 4.1% · U.S. 8.4%C−National Register2 listings, 62 historic buildings, 34.6 per 10,000 residents · typical NC town 12.5 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 73%
NewerOlder
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 75%

North Carolina towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical North Carolina town has 12.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Hope Mills’ 34.6 sits above most of its state (65% of North Carolina towns have fewer) while its 62 historic buildings outnumber those of 86% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1766.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A+. The pre-1940 share (±1.1 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Hope Mills’ past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Hope Mills are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages13 hamlets and corners are still on the map.A historic districtThe Hope Mills Historic District takes in 61 historic buildings.Older than the countryEstablished in 1766, 10 years before the Declaration of Independence.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Hope Mills’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Hope Mills’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Hope Mills’s post office has been open since 1876.

Hamlets and corners on the map
ArdulusaBonair PlaceClifton ForgeCreekbendCumberlandEaglewood ForestFairway ForestGolfer AcresPine KnollPinet KnollPinewood LakersTimberlakeVillage Green
1cemetery inside Hope Mills
Adcox

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

On the National Register

2 listings protect 62 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
62
each building in a district counts
first listed
1983
Big Rockfish Presbyterian Church
Big Rockfish Presbyterian ChurchHope Mills Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival2
Federal1
Victorian1
Colonial Revival1
Gothic1
Classical Revival1
Big Rockfish Presbyterian ChurchGreek Revival
Hope Mills Historic DistrictFederal

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

The story

How Hope Mills came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Hope Mills.

Read it all →

Chartered in 1891, Hope Mills can trace its beginning back to 1766, when due to the wealth of natural water power and the abundance of timber, a lumber camp, saw mill, grist mill, and pottery business were established. In 1839, construction of the first cotton mill powered by the Hope Mills Dam was completed and was the beginning of a new era for the town. Much of the heritage and the town's name itself can be attributed to the cotton-milling industry that followed.

Before it was known as Hope Mills, the area was known as Little Rockfish Village and as Hope Mills Number One.

The local cotton mill and many other buildings were burned by General Sherman's troops during the Civil War.

Chapters21st century

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Hope Mills, 1766 to 1996

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 18th century
  2. 1766
    FoundingHope Mills is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1876Post officeThe Hope Mills post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1952Born hereRichard Holmes is born here
  7. 1959On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1996Born hereJeremy Cox is born here
By decade

Hope Mills, decade by decade

Today12 recent
Big T's x 22015Big T's x 2This is easier2013This is easierResurrection Church2013Resurrection ChurchPulling Hard2013Pulling HardHung Out to Dry - Evaporation2013Hung Out to Dry - EvaporationAzalea2013AzaleaPizza Box Oven for S'mores2012Pizza Box Oven for S'moresBig Rockfish Presbyterian Church2012Big Rockfish Presbyterian ChurchNASCAR Party Bus 20102010NASCAR Party Bus 2010Back roads of2010Back roads ofHope Mills History2008Hope Mills HistoryHope Mills Town Hall2007Hope Mills Town Hall
On the map

Hope Mills on the map, 1959 to 1986

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Hope Mills. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Hope Mills on the 1959 USGS mapHope Mills on the 1986 USGS map1959Saint Pauls sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Hope Mills.

Every building

Hope Mills, building by building, 1914

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a sheet.

Hope Mills fire insurance map, 1914, sheet 11914Sheet 1 of 3
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

People over time

Hope Mills, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,00018,000190019201940196019802000202017,808

Grew from 456 people in 1890 to 17,808 in 2020, more than tenfold.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Hope Mills’ Wikipedia page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Hope Mills

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
J
Jeremy CoxAmerican football running back · b. 1996
R
Richard HolmesCanadian football player · b. 1952
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Fayetteville56 historic placesB+

Questions about Hope Mills’ history

What year was Hope Mills founded?

In 1766, according to Wikidata. Hope Mills’ post office opened in 1876, and the census of 1890 counted 456 people here.

How does Hope Mills rank for history?

Hope Mills is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns, #72 of 290 in North Carolina. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Hope Mills?

Two places: the Big Rockfish Presbyterian Church (listed 1983) and the Hope Mills Historic District (1985).

How old are the homes in Hope Mills?

2% of Hope Mills’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.1 points), against a typical 4.1% for a North Carolina town; the median home was built in 1995.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (12), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.