Mount Pleasant's population is 4,370. For a true small-town atmosphere, you can't beat Mount Pleasant, just 10 miles south of Hampshire, Mount Pleasant is a quiet community about 15 miles west of Columbia. Despite its size there is a lot going on in Mount Pleasant. The community sticks together and you can usually see people talking together in the town square.

Mount Pleasant boasts a scenic town square, complete with Confederate soldier statue, and plenty of small, family-operated shops. You can sip a strawberry shake or sink your teeth into a juicy burger at Lumpy's, a '50s-style soda shop right on the square.

Next door, the Mount Pleasant/Maury Phosphate Museum offers visitors monthly exhibits, along with a permanent history of the city's phosphate ''boom,'' when more than a dozen companies mined high-grade phosphate for more than 100 years.

Folks gather at the Hampshire Men's Club to catch up on the latest doings — and challenge each other to a game of checkers. A stroll through the new Hampshire Museum will give you a good overview of this town's history.