Boiling Spring Lakes: That's one spring and many lakes

Cheryl M. Whitaker, Wilmington StarNews
·1 min read

Do you get confused about how to write Boiling Spring Lakes and Boiling Springs or even know where they both are located?

More than a 4-hour drive separates these two North Carolina towns.

Boiling Spring Lakes is in Brunswick County, while Boiling Springs is in Cleveland County and home to Gardner-Webb University. There's also a Boiling Springs in South Carolina.

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According to the history of Boiling Spring Lakes, the city derives its name from the boiling spring that flows with an incredibly pure stream of water.

In 1961, the developers of Boiling Spring Lakes happened upon a gushing spring concealed in a wooded ravine. A 4-foot-high brick wall was built to encompass this natural phenomenon.

Aerial photos of Boiling Spring Lakes a year after Hurricane Florence on August 29, 2019.
Aerial photos of Boiling Spring Lakes a year after Hurricane Florence on August 29, 2019.

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Water bubbling from two underground springs, measuring five feet across and bubbling six to eight inches above the surface drew attention to the springs, resulting in the town's name Boiling Springs.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Boiling Spring Lakes: How the Brunswick city was named