Welcome to Our World

A quarter of a century ago, the United States was on the cusp of emerging from the 1981-82 recession, the worst downturn the nation had seen since World War II. Unemployment in New Hanover County, where Wilmington is located, was nearly 11 percent, about one percent higher than the rest of the nation. But that soon was about to change dramatically.

For one thing, Hollywood discovered Wilmington. Firestarter, a major motion picture, was produced here in 1983 and international filmmaker Dino De Laurentiis built a $1.5 million studio complex in Wilmington, serving as the linchpin for more than 300 films produced here since then.

Discovered By Retirees

At the same time, retirees were beginning to discover what a wonderful place Wilmington was for spending the rest of their lives. The climate was mild and attractive, taxes were low, land was relatively cheap and housing was certainly reasonable. The construction and population booms were really getting underway. The variety and number of neighborhoods then were only a fraction of what’s available now and what’s being built.

According to the 1980 census, New Hanover County population was 103,471, a number close to the population of Wilmington alone in 2007, but the ethnic makeup back then did not reflect the melting pot effect of significant migration to this area from all over the U.S. Nearly two-thirds of the population was of English, Irish or German descent, with English being by far the largest ethnic origin.

In the early eighties, median household income in New Hanover County was only around $18,000 or so, but for the first time in its history, retail sales topped one billion dollars in 1983. Interstate route I-40 had not yet made its way to Wilmington, and driving around town was easy.

New Airport Needed

The airport, know then as New Hanover County Airport, was serviced by only one major airline, Piedmont. Passenger traffic in 1983 was a mere 110,436, but that was 42 percent greater than 1982's, and the trend dictated the need for a new $17.7 million facility complete with covered walkways, now known as Wilmington International Airport. Things were expanding all around Wilmington.