In 1794, the South Carolina General Assembly appropriated $2,000 to construct a wagon road from Greenville, SC, north into the Blue Ridge Mountains, through Asheville, North Carolina, ending in East Tennessee.

For those going north into the mountains from the coast through Greenville, Traveler's Rest was the first well-equipped stop to prepare for the several thousand-foot climb ahead of them.

[10] American Revolutionary heroine Dicey Langston's home, now site of a historical marker, is located just north of the city proper.

U.S. Route 276-N enters connects Downtown Greenville with the city and becomes Travelers Rest's Main Street before heading northwest past Caesar's Head State Park, and into North Carolina to Brevard, NC.

U.S. Route 25-N, enters the city from West Greenville, then turns north into the Blue Ridge Mountains, connecting to Asheville, NC, 54 miles away.

[8] As of the 2020 United States census, there were 7,788 people, 1,751 households, and 1,171 families residing in the city.

Furman University is south of Travelers Rest with Greenville as the designated address.