Inman was incorporated by South Carolina on December 22, 1882 at the crossroads of Howard Gap and Blackstock. Portions of this route were later adopted and expanded by early settlers into the wagon road known as Howard Gap Road, which became a principal corridor through the region by the late eighteenth century. William Gowan, a local landowner, founded the town by volunteering to build a railroad depot which convinced the railroad to create a stop at the city. Since there was already a town named Gowansville, some local historians have said town was named after the president of the railroad or a surveyor However, according to geographer
Henry Gannett, the town was named after a local resident. The town emerged as a small settlement, with businesses such as a blacksmith, a bank, and even a barber shop springing up around the depot. During the 1930s Inman was considered the fresh peach capital of the world. In 1901, James A. Chapman founded
Inman Mills, a company that still spins and weaves fabric. The mill was designed by W.B. Smith Whaley and was one of the city's major employers for many years. The original mill was closed in 2001 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2016. The building has been converted into apartments. In 1935, a local man named Bryson Hammet found a large stone off South Carolina highway 292 with various markings and the year 1567 carved into it. Historians have debated the authenticity and meaning of the stone for decades with many attributing the stone to Spanish Explorer and gold seeker
Captain Juan Pardo. ==Geography==