Mount Pleasant

Mount Pleasant is a large suburban town in Charleston County, South Carolina, United States. In the Low Country, it is the fourth largest municipality and largest town in South Carolina. For several years, it was one of the state's fastest-growing areas, doubling in population between 1990 and 2000. The population was 90,801 at the 2020 census. The estimated population in 2019 was 91,684. At the foot of the Arthur Ravenel Bridge is Patriots Point, a naval and maritime museum, home to the World War II aircraft carrier USS Yorktown, which is now a museum ship. The site of Mount Pleasant was originally occupied by the Sewee people, an Algonquian language-speaking tribe. The first European settlers arrived from England on July 6, 1680, under the leadership of Captain Florentia O'Sullivan. In 1706 the Province of Carolina withstood several attacks by the Spanish and the French from their settlements to the south and were victorious in defeating French invaders in an area known as "Abcaw". By 1721, 107 families were living in Christ Church parish, including 400 whites and 637 enslaved Africans or African Americans. As the area was developed for large plantations, enslaved Africans and African Americans made up the chief labor force of the slave society. In 1875, African-American residents made up 73% of Charleston County's population. Some of the first freedmen to be formed after the Civil War in the early 21st century are located in Mount Pleasant.

History

Mount Pleasant is the primary city name, but also Mt Pleasant are acceptable city names or spellings. The official name is Town of Mount Pleasant. The site of Mount Pleasant was originally occupied by the Sewee people, an Algonquian language-speaking tribe. The first European settlers arrived from England on July 6, 1680, under the leadership of Captain Florentia O'Sullivan. By 1721, 107 families were living in Christ Church parish, including 400 whites and 637 enslaved Africans or African Americans. The majority of the population in the town was African American through the 19th and early 20th centuries. During the Civil War, Battery Guerry and an adjacent floating battery between Mount Pleasant and Sullivan's Island were instrumental in defense of the city. The city was defended by a line of fortifications from Elliot's Creek at Boone Hall to Copahee Sound. The original plank-and-barrel footbridge, later known as the Pitt Street Bridge at the foot of the Old Village area in Mount Pleasant, was used by the crew of the H.L. Hunley to cross to Breach Inlet to test the submarine. In 1899 the original wooden plank bridge was replaced by a trolley bridge. The Pitt Street bridge was dismantled in 1945, but the remains are visible in the Intracoastal Waterway. The area has been maintained since then as the Pickett Bridge Recreation Area. It was named for Charleston doctor Otis Pickett. In 1875 African Americans made up 73% of thePopulation in Charleston County. Today, Mount Pleasant is one of the most popular tourist destinations in South Carolina.

Historic sites

The Auld Mound, Buzzard's Island Site, Christ Church, Cook's Old Field Cemetery, Long Point Plantation (38CH321), Lucas Family Cemetery, Mount Pleasant Historic District, Oakland Plantation House, Old Berkeley County Courthouse, Paul Pritchard Shipyard, Remley Point Cemetery, Slave Street, Smokehouse, and Allee. Charles Pinckney National Historic Site, USS Clamagore (SS-343), USS Laffey (DD-724), and USS Yorktown (CV-10) are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Mount Pleasant is home to one of the largest concentrations of African-American population in U.S. history. The city is also home to the largest concentration of black residents in the United States, with more than 1.5 million people living in the area. The town is located on the banks of the Little Rappahannock River, which flows into the Mississippi River. It is also the site of the oldest black settlement in the state, the Long Point plantation, which dates back to 17th century. The community is also known as Mount Pleasant because of its association with Mount Pleasant High School, which was founded in 1788. The village is known for its black residents, many of whom went on to become prominent members of the community. It also has a large black community, with many African-Americans living in and around the town. In the early 1900s, the town was known as "Mount Pleasant" because of the town's black population.

Geography

Mount Pleasant is located in central Charleston County at 32°4923N 79°5044W (32.823189, -79.845477), on the east side of Charleston Harbor and the tidal Wando River. It is bordered to the south by the city of Sullivan's Island and to the west and northwest, across the harbor and river, by theCity of Charleston. For many years, the town was populated largely on a seasonal basis by Charleston residents wealthy enough to afford summer homes across the river from the Charleston peninsula, where they would go believing they could escape the regular summer "fevers" The population of Mount Pleasant was centered in "Old Village".According to the United States Census Bureau, the Town has a total area of 52.6 square miles (136.2 km²), of which 45.1 square miles. (116.8 km²) is land and 7.5square miles (19.5km²), or 14.30%, is water. The town limits have pushed northeastward from the Old Village area 24 miles (39 km) along U.S. Route 17, nearly as far as Awendaw. Mount Pleasant is separated from Charleston by the Cooper River, which is a tributary of the Wando. It has a population of 2,788. The Town is home to the South Carolina College of Arts and Sciences, which has a campus in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. The College of arts and sciences is a division of the University of South Carolina, where students study art and design.

Airport

Mount Pleasant Regional Airport also known as "Faison Field" and LRO, is a public airport located within the town limits 9 miles (14 km) northeast of the central business district of Mount Pleasant. The airport shares runways with the adjacent Charleston Air Force Base. Charleston International Airport is the busiest passenger airport in South Carolina (IATA: CHS, ICAO: KCHS) Both airports are owned and operated by the Charleston County Aviation Authority. It is the only airport in the state that does not share a runway with the air base. The town is served by a number of airlines, including Air Canada, United Airlines, Southwest Airlines, American Airlines, and Spirit Airlines. The city is also served by the City of North Charleston, which is about 12 miles (19 km) northwest of Mount Pleasant, and by the University of South Carolina, which has an airport on the campus of the University of Charleston. The City of North Charleston is the largest city in South Carolina, with more than 100,000 people living in its downtown area. The City of North Charleston is also home to the South Carolina Museum of Art, which was founded in 1875. The University of South Carolina has a museum dedicated to the history of the city, which dates back to the 17th century. It was the site of the first African-American settlement in the area, and is now home to a museum of African American history.

Demographics

As of the 2020 U.S. census, there were 90,801 people, 36,111 households, and 24,203 families residing in the town. The racial makeup of the city was 90.17% White, 7.25% African American, 0. 17% Native American, 1.18% Asian,0.02% Pacific Islander, and 0.39% from other races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.33% of the population. The median income for a household in theTown was $61,054, and the median family income was $71,165. The per capita income for the town was $30,823. About 3.2% of families and 5.0% of people were below the poverty line, including 5.3% of those under age 18 and 6.6% ofThose age 65 or over. The city is located on the banks of the Little Snake River, which flows into the Mississippi River. The town's name is derived from the Native American tribe of the same name, which once lived in the area. It is also the name of the town's first post office, which was established in 1881. The current mayor is the son of a former mayor, who was killed in a car accident in the early 1900s. The mayor's daughter was born in the city in the late 1950s, and her father died in the 1970s. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 67,843 people.

Broadcast television

These TV stations have studios in and broadcast from Mount Pleasant:WCBD-TV (2, NBC, CW): owned by Nexstar Media Group.WCIV- TV (4, ABC, MeTV): Owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group. WCIV-TV is a member of the American College Football Hall of Fame. WCBD is an affiliate of the National Football League, which is based in Mount Pleasant.WCBD is part of the South Carolina Sports Network, which airs the NFL's "Monday Night Football" and "Thursday Night Fights" on the NBC network. WCVB-TV also airs the "NFL Today" show on the CBS network, which broadcasts on the NFL Network and the NBA's "Thursday night Football" channel on the NBA Network. The station also broadcasts the "NBA All-Star Game," which airs on the league's network, the NBA, and the MLB's "Sunday Night Baseball" channel. The network also airs "The NBA All-star Game," a game between the NBA and the NFL. The game airs at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday nights. The NBA Network airs the NBA Finals on the Monday night slot at 8:30 p. m. ET. It is the first time the NBA has aired the finals since the NBA moved to the NBA in 1988. The first game to be held at the new NBA arena was the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, in 1998. The Barclays Center opened in 2000. It was the first NBA arena in the United States.

Government

As of August 2021, the town council is made up of eight members. The council is composed of seven men and one woman. The mayor of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, is also a member of the council. The town council was formed by a group of local residents. It is the first time the council has been made up entirely of men and women. The current council includes four men and two women, all of whom live in South Carolina. The city's mayor is a former mayor of Mount Pleasant, North Carolina, who was elected in 2008. He was re-elected in 2012. The next year, the council elected a new mayor, who is also from the town, to replace the previous mayor. The new mayor is also the son of a South Carolina woman, who moved to the town in the 1970s. The previous mayor was a South Carolinian, who had lived in the town for more than 30 years before moving to South Carolina in the 1980s. He has been in the city since 1978, when the town was founded, and has served as mayor since 2000. The Town Council was formed in 2008, and the current mayor is from the same town, which has a population of about 2,000 people. It was the first town to have a town council made up completely of men, rather than just women, as the previous one had been formed in the 1990s. In 2010, the Town Council elected a woman to be its first female member. The first woman to join the council was also a mother of three.

Public safety

The Mount Pleasant Fire Department has provided fire suppression and emergency services since 1837. Today, the fire department has 118 paid personnel augmented by 15 volunteers. It is internationally accredited by the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) The Mount Pleasant Police Department employs 132 sworn officers and 43 civilian personnel, serving the entire municipal population. Encompassing 52 square miles (135 km²), the department has split the town into eight patrol neighborhoods. Each patrol neighborhood is assigned to a specific officer on each shift. The police department, which is a nationally accredited agency, has adopted the problem-oriented policing philosophy of service delivery. In 2007, under the supervision of Chief Herb Williams and Captain Robert Wronski, the Mount Pleasant fire department established a "Paramedic Engine" program, in which firefighters trained as Paramedics will carry the same equipment on the fire engines as in the ambulances. This means in the event Charleston County EMS is delayed, Mount Pleasant will be able to provide life-saving procedures until the ambulance arrives. The fire department administrative office is located within the City Municipal Complex. The corporate area and its surroundings are served by seven strategically located fire stations. Mount Pleasant police response time to the majority of the calls for service beats the national average. The department is a 2006 CALEA Flagship Award recipient, and is sanctioned by the commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) The department has adopted a problem- oriented policing philosophy, which requires officers to work together with citizens to identify community problems.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Mount Pleasant, Charleston County, South Carolina = 38. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 50. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 51. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Mount Pleasant = 5.1 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 34,740 individuals with a median age of 38.5 age the population grows by 34.74% in Mount Pleasant, Charleston County, South Carolina population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 1,832.70 residents per square mile of area (707.60/km²). There are average 2.41 people per household in the 26,286 households with an average household income of $80,347 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 6.40% of the available work force and has dropped -4.00% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 25.60%. The number of physicians in Mount Pleasant per 100,000 population = 485.5.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Mount Pleasant = 47.5 inches and the annual snowfall = 0.1 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 104. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 211. 89 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 39.9 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 31, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Mount Pleasant, Charleston County, South Carolina which are owned by the occupant = 70.79%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 14 years with median home cost = $296,410 and home appreciation of -0.96%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $5.51 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $5,554 per student. There are 10 students for each teacher in the school, 516 students for each Librarian and 362 students for each Counselor. 7.90% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 34.72% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 19.22% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).