Discover Our Towns
The focus is usually Fayetteville, but don't forget about other towns that call Cumberland County home.
HOPE MILLS
When speaking about Hope Mills, many people may envision the small town that several cotton mills used to call home.
The Hope Mills of today is very different. The town's first large-scale chain hotel is expected to open this year, as is a large shopping center with a 14-screen movie theater. A new Lowe's Home Improvement store is also planned.
If traffic on Main Street and Rockfish and Camden roads is used as a barometer for the town's population, you might think more than 13,000 people live here.
But Hope Mills still has many of the small-town qualities that make it a popular place to live. You can get a snowball at Big T's at Hope Mills Lake and enjoy a free movie in the adjoining park or take a dip in the lake that many locals affectionately call "the pond."
Hope Mills also is known for its parks and recreation programs, especially youth baseball and softball. The town works with the Hope Mills Youth Association to provide one of the top youth baseball programs in the state.
And there are plenty of local eateries along Main and Trade streets where you have your choice of home cooking or your favorite fast food.
The Hope Mills area has some of the top performing schools in Cumberland County, both academically and athletically.
Bringing it all together, it is easy to see why so many people choose to call Hope Mills home.
SPRING LAKE
With a population of about 8,000, this town is known for its close proximity to Pope Air Force Base and Fort Bragg.
Founded in 1923 by Arthur Priddy, Spring Lake grew rapidly during World War II with the military influx, and was incorporated in 1951.
The town's main corridors are lined with stores and restaurants, from fast food to Thai cuisine. Hotel offerings accommodate families visiting service men and women stationed at the nearby military bases.
You'll find plenty of recreational activities for youth, senior citizens and families at Mendoza Park, Wilson Avenue Park, Odell Road Park and Ruth Street Park, near the Multipurpose Community Center. Older residents find fun-filled activities at the Senior Enrichment Center.
The town is gearing up for greater growth with the base realignment initiative that is expected to bring active-duty soldiers, civilian employees and private defense contractors to the area.
EASTOVER
You'll love this little community that sits between two exits on Interstate 95.
It's neighborly.
It's friendly.
Folks know one another by name, and it's a place where they'll throw up their hand as you pass by.
You'll see horses grazing in pastures, cornfields and plenty of farmland.
Don't look for an overabundance of shopping plazas or retail stores.
There's a grocery store, a furniture store, a frame shop, a dress shop and a place to get your hair done. And convenience stores for quick items and gas.
But this is a community, and townsfolk like it that way, which is why they incorporated in 2007.
Eastover Central and Armstrong Elementary are community schools, where teachers know not only their students, but parents and grandparents.
The Eastover Community Center is the gathering place, while golfers converge on Baywood golf course.
Heritage Day, a celebration of the community and its past, is held each spring with crafts, exhibits, entertainment and food.
STEDMAN
If you are looking for city life east of the Cape Fear River, forget it.
The closest you'll come is Stedman, about 10 miles outside of Fayetteville. You'll find a grocery store, a pharmacy and an ice cream shop, but don't look for the Wal-Mart.
Stedman was founded in 1841, when John Culbreth Blocker purchased land and built a stagecoach house and post office. It was incorporated in 1917.
It is known for its churches and its schools, primarily Cape Fear High and Stedman Elementary. The late Charles Kuralt of CBS TV News fame grew up here.
Other small towns in the county include Godwin, Wade, Falcon and Linden.