Red Springs, North Carolina

Episode 102 / 17 January 2019 / 146 min / full

A Troubled & Troubling Past

"This week we're going down to Red Springs, North Carolina... it's in south central North Carolina, near the South Carolina border... This is in Robeson County." about 0:07:17

The case: Murder of Joanne Brockman (October 23, 1983); Murder of Bernice Moss (August 1980); Murder of Sabrina Buie (1983). Read the case file.

The figures, as told in 2019

Population

3,433

Median age

33.8

Median household income

$19,868

Median home value

$54,600

Two-bedroom rent

$620 a month

Cost of living

73

Religious

45.6%

Property crime

▲ double the national rate

Violent crime

▲ three times the national average

History, in brief

• Red Springs was founded in 1775 by Sailor Hector McNeil. about 0:11:04
• McNeil was already listed as Sailor Hector McNeil in the county tax lists of 1771. about 0:11:37
• His home stood at the top of a hill at the edge of the McNeil cemetery, and he and his wife Mary are buried there in unmarked graves. about 0:12:15
• The town's name comes from the red pigment found in the local mineral springs. about 0:13:46
• The medicinal reputation of the springs made the place a resort. about 0:14:01
• In 1852 Malcolm McNeil, grandson of Sailor Hector, built a hotel in the centre of town. about 0:14:51
• The hotel was replaced by the Townsen Hotel in 1891. about 0:14:57
• The Lumber Bridge Military Company took part in the 4 July opening of McNeil's hotel. about 0:15:07
• Red Springs was incorporated in 1887. about 0:17:53
• The town was called Dora for a time. about 0:18:01
• In 1852 a school building was put up near the hotel. about 0:18:12
• The building served as a school and for religious meetings for the next 40 years. about 0:18:18
• The North Carolina Military Academy opened in the building in 1899 for male students. about 0:18:25
• The Red Springs Seminary opened as a female seminary and was renamed Flora McDonald College in 1914. about 0:18:38
• Flora McDonald Academy is now a K-12 college preparatory private school. about 0:19:04
• Cotton, soybeans and tobacco were grown here, with lumber and textiles also important. about 0:19:20
• From 1947 to 1950 the town had a minor league baseball team, the Red Springs Red Robins. about 0:19:36
• The Red Robins were a Philadelphia Athletics farm team. about 0:20:18
• The team won the Tobacco State League championship in 1948. about 0:20:55
• In 1950 the team was led by Ducky Detweiler, who had played for the Boston Braves. about 0:20:59
• The annual Flora McDonald Highland Games and Gathering of Clans is the town's main event. about 0:27:46
• The two-day event includes dancing, a pipe band competition and traditional games. about 0:29:29
• North Carolina was home to the largest settlement of Highland Scots outside Scotland until well into the 19th century. about 0:29:34

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