Irmo is the place to be in the
21st Century. Having
developed as a serendipitous
meeting place of rivers, Indian
trails,
 railroads and interstate
highways, it is situated on the
shores of Lake Murray only ten
miles from Columbia, the capital
of South Carolina.
Location, history and people have inspired a tradition
of excellence culminating in a
suburban success story. As
recently as the early 1970's,
this was a sleepy little town of
around 500 people. Today Irmo is on of the most sought
after places in which to live.
The Cherokee Indians first roamed the waterways and
woodlands of this area, following the Cherokee Trail in
Central South Carolina long the west bank of the Saluda
River. Spanish explorers passed through in the
1500's.
German/Swiss immigrants were the first westerners to
settle the area bounder by the Broad and Saluda Rivers
and extending to the Newberry County line. These
"Deutsch" (Germans) discovered the misnamed "Dutch
Fork" in the mid-1700's after having received land
grants of approximately 200 acres each from the English
King, Small, self-sufficient farms were established in
spite of the rocky, red clay which was unsuitable for
plantation farming. Homes were simple structures
of unpainted hear pine.
The neighborly community's peace was devastated by
General Sherman's March to the sea.
_small.jpg) Looting,
burning, slaughter and destruction defined February,
1865, for Dutch Fork inhabitants. One of the few
antebellum homes to escape Sherman was the
Lorick Home,
whose owners extinguished the fire the departing
officers set as they broke encampment there.
This
historical house is now located near the intersection of
Lake Murray Boulevard (Highway 60) and Highway 6 and is
used as the Lake Murray Tourism office.
The origin of the place name
"Irmo" tells the story of the
railroad's influence. The
town was incorporated in 1890
and grew up along the tracks of
the Columbia Newberry and
Laurens railroad on the high ridge
between the rivers. The site was chosen because it
was the precise distance from Columbia for refueling the
wood-burning locomotives.
The Columbia Register of Jan 15,
1890 stated that the Columbia,
Newberry and Laurens Railroad
had begun work on the first
depot of the new railroad at
Irmo, 10 miles from Columbia in
Lexington County.
The lumber for the new railroad,
including crossties,
Broad
River Trestle wood work and
depots for stations along the
line, came from the sawmills of
the Piedmont, Land Improvement &
Investment Co. (The Piedmont
Co.) located 12 miles from
Columbia. The October 2,
1899 edition of The News and
Courier of Charleston reported
that the Piedmont Co. owned and
developed a town site on the new
railroad about 11 miles from
Columbia and had the new town or
Irmo laid out. Irmo
legally became a town on
Christmas Eve of 1890.
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The distances of 10,11 and 12
miles from Columbia represented
mile markers from the location
of the CN&L Railroad depot at
630 Gervais St. in Columbia.
Today these markers are located
respectively 100 feet south of
Irmo Town Hall, directly in
front of S&T equipment Co. and
halfway between North Royal
Tower Road's juncture with
Woodrow Street and Friarsgate
Plaza. The town was named by
combining the first two letters of the names of two
railroad company men, C.J. Iredell and H.C. Moseley.
The next major
change for Irmo occurred a
quarter of a century later when
the largest earthen dam in the
world was built across the
Saluda River. This dam
formed the lake which came to be
called Lake Murray, after
William S. Murray, one of the
dam's engineers, Heavy
equipment and construction
supplies came in by rail though
the Irmo station. The
modern-day events causing Irmo's rapid development was construction
of I-26 adjacent to Irmo about 1960 and the intersection
of I-20 a few years later. Once again, location
was important to destiny.
 Formal education began here in the 1800's
with
a one room school located near
the present Irmo Elementary
School. Now part of the award
winning School District 5 of
Lexington & Richland counties,
Irmo educates its many talented
young people at eleven
elementary schools, four middle schools, Chapin, Crossroads,
Dutch Fork and Irmo, three High
Schools, Chapin, Dutch Fork and
Irmo, and one Alternative Academy.
Midlands Technical College is also
located in Irmo on the campus of the
former Harbison Junior College.
The town's administrative offices
are located on Woodrow Street in the
Mathias/Lown house. It was
moved to its present site and
restored as part of the Centennial
Celebration in 1990.
Click here to see the Irmo Town
Hall
An annual event, the
Okra Strut is a parade and festival
used for a variety of community projects.
Thousands come to Irmo in the early fall for a weekend
of live music, arts and crafts displays and an okra
eating contest. The Green Giant, Okra Man, also
makes his yearly visit, eagerly agreeing to be
photographed with visitors to the Irmese fair.
Travel & Leisure magazine named the Okra Strut as one of
the top 10 Food Festivals in the U.S.A. Today, Irmo means excellent schools, municipal services,
recreational opportunities, health services and dynamic
businesses such as those in and around Columbiana
Centre, a regional shopping mall and the largest in the
midlands. Over 400 members comprise the rapidly
growing Greater Irmo Chamber of Commerce, which is
focused on the future development of Irmo. The
Greater Irmo Chamber of Commerce operates a
Tourist/Information Center at 1246 Lake Murray Boulevard
- Maps, brochures and development information are
available as well as promotion video of the Greater Irmo
area.
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