Early settlers called the south central part of North Carolina the “pine barrens” because it was covered with extensive open forests of longleaf pine trees. It was the hardy Scottish Highlanders that settled in the area during the mid 1700’s that were willing to farm the poor sandy soil of the area, and who dubbed it the “Sandhills”. The area was hardly anything but barren and more than 1,000 species have been found in the region. The Siouan Indians knew that, and archaeologists believe that they inhabited the area as early as the 6th century. With rolling hills that rise to an elevation of 500-600 feet above sea level, they are said to be dunes left from an ancient sea. After the sea retreated eastward, weather and erosion shaped the landscape into the ridges and valleys known of the area today. Moore County was carved out of Cumberland County on July 4, 1784 and named after Alfred Moore, a Revolutionary war hero. In the era of the 1800’s, the turpentine, tar and timber industries flourished. By 1850, North Carolina’s pine forests were producing one-third of the world’s supply of naval stores. When the railroads arrived in the Sandhills by the 1870’s, large-scale logging and lumbering began. As a result of this human exploitation, the longleaf pine forests had nearly disappeared from the Sandhills region by 1900.

The town of Southern Pines was founded by John Patrick as a health resort in 1887. James Walker Tufts of Boston, Massachusetts visited the area in the 1890’s and fell in love with the place. Eight years later he bought nearly 6,000 acres of land in 1895 for $1.00 an acre in the “pine barrens” Sandhills of South Central North Carolina. The site that Tufts bought had lain barren by years of timber harvesting and was in ruins. He then enlisted the services of fellow Bostonian, Frederick Law Olmsted to design a village as a winter resort where his northern friends could spend their winters in a mild climate. Olmsted’s New England village design included the planting of over 247,000 trees and shrubs; over 50,000 of which came from foreign countries. It took years of planning, planting and building until the historic Olde Towne Village of Pinehurst was finally born.

Frederick Law Olmsted was responsible for over 2,000 landscape architectural designs of parks, villages, universities, residential communities, and public grounds. His most famous works include the Biltmore Gardens, the Washington Capitol grounds, Central Park in New York City as well as the olde towne historic Village of Pinehurst.

North Carolina brought golf over from Scotland and was the first place in the United States that golf was ever played. There soon came reports at the winter resort that guests were disturbing the cows by hitting little white balls around the pasture. So, Tufts brought in the famed Scottish architect and golf pro Donald Ross to design several golf courses on the resort property. Ross was given sole authority to develop golf for the resort and the renowned Pinehurst No. 2 was built in 1902 with only man and mule power and is still consistently listed among the worlds’ finest courses. Donald Ross liked the area so much that he decided to make the Olde Towne Village of Pinehurst his headquarters and remained here for 48 years until his death in 1948 at the age of 75. Ross quickly became the country’s preeminent and most prolific golf architect traveling widely promoting golf. He is credited for designing and the revision of over 400 courses.

Thought by many to be some of the earliest horse shows in the country Pinehurst has also hosted equestrian activities from polo to harness racing since the early 1900’s and the tradition still carries on today at the famed Pinehurst Harness Track, part of the oldest continuously operating equine sports complexes in the state of North Carolina. Horses were at the center of early resort life. The Pinehurst Race Track (circa 1915) was the winter home of polo ponies, hunters, running horses and standardbreds. By the late 1930s the track was exclusively used for the winter training of standardbreds. Pinehurst was becoming well established as a golf resort. In 1952, in order to insure a future for the horses and the track, the resort placed it in the hands of the Pinehurst Driving and Training Club under a forty year lease until 1992. Located within the confines of Harness Track is The Fair Barn which was built by the Tufts family in 1917 as an exhibition hall for the Sandhills Fair, a major event held every fall from 1915 through 1925. Designed by Lyman Sise, a Boston architect and Tufts' relative, it is in the Mission Style popular. Many famous celebrities from that era visited Pinehurst and some, such as Annie Oakley, performed at various events held at and around The Fair Barn. In 1932 it was partially destroyed by a tornado. After some repairs, it served as a stable for sixty years and was designated a National Historic Landmark by the United States Secretary of the interior in 1996.

The towns of Pinehurst, Southern Pines, Carthage, Aberdeen and Whispering Pines make up the “Sandhills” resort area of today. The central location and mild climate draw people to the area. The sandy soil absorbs moisture but retains neither heat nor cold. It’s an ecosystem that supports a rich variety of fauna and flora; the sun’s rays hit the thick pines, creating a mystical aura of light and shadow over the sandy soil that is ideal for year round golf because of its drainage properties and mild climate. Today the golf Mecca area of the Sandhills is known as the “Home of American Golf”, has over 43 excellent courses many of which are considered to be among the nation’s elite as well as a variety of other outdoor activities. In 1996, the Village of Pinehurst, North Carolina became a National Historic Landmark; the first golf resort and community to achieve the honor recognizing its prominence in the development of golf in the United States.

You can take a walk back to another time here when you visit many of the numerous historical sites preserved in the area. The Malcolm Blue Farm in Aberdeen, one of the few remaining examples of the early 19th century Scottish homesteads, and see nearby Old Bethesda Church, built in 1792. The First Brigade of General Sherman’s army camped at the Blue Farm on the night of March 9, 1865 commanded by General Thomas J. Jordan. He commandeered the farmhouse and Bethesda Church to bivouac for the night on his way to Fayetteville to join General Sherman. The 10-acre farm is the site of the largest and most popular traditional festival in the region. The House in the Horseshoe was built around 1772. It still bears many scars of the American Revolution from irregular warfare that was waged in the back country. Each summer there are reenactments of the skirmish at the House in the Horseshoe. The Bryant House and the McLendon Cabin are two historic museum houses that depict the daily life of early country settlers during the 1700 and 1800’s. You can visit other historic sites or learn more about the history of the Sandhills through the Moore County Historical Association. We also recommend visiting the Tufts Archives located in the historical Olde Towne Village of Pinehurst.

Even the Moore County Airport has a little of its own unique history as the Tufts family, famous for their establishment of the Pinehurst Resort, opened a dirt runway and named it “Knollwood Airport” in 1929. In 1935 Moore County acquired the airport from the Knollwood Development Company and in 1942 – 1945 the airport was leased to the U.S. Army Air Corps and was in use as the Knollwood Army Auxiliary Airfield.

Moore County is steeped in a history unique to the nation. There is much to see and do here and the community that has chosen to make the Sandhills their home has a keen sense of history and proud of the rich heritage of our forefathers. Many old buildings have been restored and old customs reinstated. There are a number of properties in Moore County which are listed in the National Register of Historic Places, so step back in time and experience times past in Moore County.