‘Hometown feel’: Historic downtown Fort Mill sees local business boom

FORT MILL, S.C. — Fort Mill is one of the fastest growing areas in the country, and the downtown area is no exception.

By percentage, the U.S. Census says Fort Mill is in the top 20 for population growth.

On Main Street in downtown Fort Mill, Bricks and Minifigs, a Lego toy store, is the new kid on the block. It opened a little over a year ago and has already become a destination for locals and visitors.

“It’s really cool to see how many families come down there,” Travis Tolson, a nearby brewery owner, told Channel 9’s Deneige Broom. “They’ve done really good for Main Street, as far as getting traffic down here.”

Tolson has watched the growth along Main Street from his brewery, Amor Artis.

“We’re not a cookie cutter strip mall,” he said. “These are buildings that are 120-130 years old.”

Fort Mill’s history has largely been preserved in these buildings, which house mostly locally owned and operated businesses today.

Tolson’s first brewery location was an old projection room for a long-gone movie theater.

He decided to bring his brewing skills back to his hometown about eight years ago. Alongside his wife and brother, they’ve brewed more than 300 beers, and top of the board is the “Fort Millsner.”

“When you walk in here and you sit at the bar, you’re going to recognize almost everyone,” Tolson said. “It’s like the local cheers.”

The same can be said for the Fort Mill Barbershop on the other end of Main Street.

“I came here in 1993,” Jeff Ferrell, the barbershop owner, said. “I’ve been here ever since, right here in this chair.”

Ferrell made Fort Mill his home more than 30 years ago to raise his family. He says while ownership has changed hands, the Fort Mill Barbershop has been operating under the same name, in the same place, since 1910.

“Everybody knows everybody,” Ferrell said. “I’m cutting kids’ hair, I cut their grandfather’s hair, and I cut their dad’s hair, you know? It’s generation after generation.”

He’s watched Main Street change from boarded-up buildings to a more lively strip. Even still, Ferrell is true to the area’s roots — walk-ins only, cash payments and prices of a bygone era.

“It’s just a hometown feel that you get in Fort Mill,” he said.

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