city, York county, northern South Carolina, U.S., near the Catawba River (Santee-Wateree-Catawba river system), 26 miles (42 km) south of Charlotte, North Carolina. Established in 1851 as a depot on the Charlotte and South Carolina Railroad, it was named for a flint hill in the vicinity. During the American Civil War, Rock Hill was a transfer point for Confederate troops and supplies. Development of cotton mills in the area, beginning in 1867, spurred the community's growth.

Industrial activity now centres on the production of textiles, power-driven hand tools, plastic products, and wood pulp. The Catawba River is dammed north of the city, forming Lake Wylie and furnishing hydroelectric power. Rock Hill is the seat of Winthrop University (1886) and York Technical College (1964). Catawba Indian Reservation and the Andrew Jackson State Park are nearby. Inc. town, 1870; city, 1892. Pop. (1990) city, 41,643; Charlotte–Gastonia–Rock Hill MSA, 1,162,093; (2000) city, 49,765; Charlotte–Gastonia–Rock Hill MSA, 1,499,293.