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THE LEGACY OF FLEETWOOD: There was a mountain so beautiful, with a view so majestic, that it was chosen as the site of a grand hotel in the 1920's. Some 70 years later this unspoiled splendor remains. The hotel was never finished. Instead, a community of prestigious condominiums now graces the ridge top and commands an unchallenged view of the Blue Ridge and Smoky Mountains from atop Laurel Park in Henderson County, North Carolina.
Enjoy the special feeling of being secure in a prestigious neighborhood while relaxing at the pool or sun deck of the central clubhouse. At above 3100 feet elevation, the cooler temperatures and mountain top breezes will be a delight. Located at the top of Laurel Park, Fleetwood Plaza is less than five miles out Fifth Avenue from Hendersonville, North Carolina, in the heart of a favorite resort and retirement area of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Homeowners on the Northeast side of the street awake to a beautiful sunrise while those on the South-west side enjoy the spectacular colors of a sunset adjacent to Mt. Pisgah. The unrestricted panoramic views include Asheville, on a clear day, Mt. Pisgah and the Blue Ridge Parkway, the French Broad River valley and Pinnacle Mountain. The location offers the convenience of shopping in Asheville and Greenville, a dozen nearby golf courses and other attractions such as The Biltmore and Chimney Rock.
HISTORY: Hendersonville, Laurel Park, and .Fleetwood Hotel Development, all came together in the 1920's in what was to be the golden age in resort mountain living. The setting was ideal. Henderson County was known as a fine summer mountain resort since antebellum days when people of means from the vicinity of Charleston, South Carolina came to the Flat Rock area. The healthful and moderate climate and beautiful scenery was a refreshing change and the perfect place to escape the oppressive summers in Charleston,
Growth in the area was inevitable when the Southern Railroad scaled the Saluda Range and reached the Hendersonville plateau in 1879. In 1888 Jump Off Mountain, rising over 1000 feet above Hendersonville and offering cooler temperatures, was purchased by W. A. Smith, a lawyer from Georgia and C. M. Pace, a local Superior Court Clerk. These gentlemen began the development of the Laurel Park area. In 1904 the Laurel Park Railway provided access to the lake, pavilion, baseball field, cottages and rooming houses in the lower mountain resort area. A cable car took people to an observation perch.
The town of Laurel Park was incorporated in 1924. The real stimulus toward development in Laurel Park was the construction of the concrete road to jump Off Rock in July, 1925 when plans were made to build Fleetwood Hotel on top of the mountain ridge. Plans were made for a year round playground which included a country club with an 18 hole golf course (which is now Hendersonville Country Club).
The beautiful Fleetwood Hotel was never completed. It was the victim of over-speculation and scarce investment capital, a condition soon applicable to the entire nation as the problems of the depression developed. Today, located on this enviable site are the prestigious Fleetwood Plaza Condominiums. The homeowners enjoy the fabulous views and the absolute ultimate in North Carolina mountain living.