Agriculture

The railroad also changed agriculture. Now farmers could ship their crops out of the county instead of going by wagon to the markets in Greenville and Spartanburg.
Throughout the 1800s until about 1990 agriculture was always the No. 1 industry in the county. The majority of the population was still self-sustaining farmers throughout the 1800s.
Flavius G. Hart began a business in Hendersonville for farmers to bring their surplus vegetables and fruits to town and ship them by train out of the county. Most of the vegetables and fruits were shipped to South Carolina markets. As farmers began shipping their surplus vegetables and fruits, they began making a larger profit.
The No. 1 crop was cabbage, followed by other vegetables. Fruits were of lesser importance. The No. 1 fruit crop was peaches, followed by plums, grapes, pears and strawberries. Apples followed strawberries.
Farmers were still raising hogs to sell. The No. 1 livestock in the late 1800s, and throughout the entire 1800s, was hogs. Sheep became a large income-producer in the late 1800s. The mutton was sold to summer residents and sheep for mutton were shipped to South Carolina markets. People also began selling their surplus wool. With the money sold from surplus wool, people could now buy cotton cloth. As more cotton cloth could be shipped via the train to stores within the county, the price of cotton cloth dropped. More people could then make cotton clothing.

 Business and Commerce

There is reference to one bank in Hendersonville prior to 1900. In 1888, the State Bank of Commerce was located at the corner of Main Street and Fourth Avenue West.
By 1900, there were 17 stores in Hendersonville. There were also small country stores in every community in the county, thanks to the railroad.

 Health Care

In 1887 there are references to a Samaritan Hospital in Hendersonville. Details on this early hospital are sparse. The location is not certain. There are indications that it was possibly located at the same location as the first building in Hendersonville, what is today referred to as the Shepherd-Drake Store. It is also documented that this location was used as a makeshift hospital to house the yellow fever refugees from Jacksonville, Fla., who began arriving in Hendersonville in large numbers in 1888. This hospital was short-lived and possibly only existed during the yellow fever epidemic.
There are more doctors arriving in Hendersonville prior to 1900. One of the early doctors who set up practice in town prior to the Civil War was Dr. William Davis Whitted. Dr. Thomas A. Allen was also an early mayor and moved to Hendersonville after the Civil War. Dr. George Washington Fletcher was a doctor in the Fletcher area.
There were still “granny” doctors and folks were still treating the sick at home with herbal and other remedies.