Archdale was settled as Bush Hill in 1786 by Quakers who migrated from Bush River, South Carolina. The town was renamed Archdale in 1887 in honor of John Archdale , the first Quaker governor of North Carolina. The town prospered because of the presence of a major tannery, which provided leather for the manufacture of shoes, saddles and other goods which were made in Archdale. The plank road from Fayetteville to Salem ran through Archdale in the 1850's, providing its earliest residents with a firsthand knowledge of the importance of being along a major trade route.