North Charleston, SC

North Charleston is the 3rd largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina with incorporated areas in Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester counties. On June 12, 1972 the city of North Charleston incorporated and was the 9th largest city in South Carolina. According to the 2010 Census, North Charleston has a population of 97,471 with a current area of more than 76.6 square miles (198 km2). As defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, and used by the U.S. Census Bureau for statistical purposes only, North Charleston is included within the Charleston – North Charleston – Summerville metropolitan area and the Charleston-North Charleston urban area. The city is considered one of the state's major industrial cities and it is the state's major retail center.
From the 17th century until the Civil War, this area was occupied primarily by plantations. Some of the plantations located in what is now North Charleston were:
The large plantations were continually subdivided into smaller farms as the population began moving northward. After the Civil War, phosphate fertilizer plants began to spring up, with extensive strip mining occurring between the Ashley River and Broad Path (Meeting Street Road). The main route for transportation of these phosphates would eventually become known as Ashley Phosphate Road.