Traveler’s Rest, South Carolina
If you go south from western NC into SC, en route to Greenville, SC, you might encounter a crossroads town with a very interesting name. Traveler’s Rest, South Carolina was established in the late 1800s as a place for people going back and forth across the mountains to stop and spend the night. The first businesses there to cater to travelers were inns that served meals and drinks. Soon the place became a popular stopping spot for the drovers who herded livestock through the area, as they tried to get chickens, pigs, cattle, horses, sheep, and other commodities to markets in other towns.
Eventually the little settlement grew into a full-fledged town, and the name Traveler’s Rest endured. Nowadays you can still travel through and get some rest at one of the local motels, most of which are rather simple and border on being somewhat seedy. There are a few eating places there, most notably the little roadside diners that specialize in barbecue, and the rest of the town is pretty much dedicated to a hodge podge of farming, light industry, and Mom and Pop businesses to serve the little community of Traveler’s Rest.
One thing that’s fun to do if you find yourself on the road near there is to stop for a meal or for the night in Traveler’s Rest and buy postcards to send to your friends. Tourists enjoy sending picture postcards, and everyone appreciates a message written from a place named Traveler’s Rest, from a loved one who is away from home.