James Watson laid out the village of Fayetteville into thirty lots and sold them at auction, February 8, 1828. William Mays moved his house down from New Wilmington, and his was the first in the place. The next morning after erecting it in Fayetteville, he sold it to Robert Calvin, who opened a tailor shop in it. Mays was also a tailor by trade, but kept no shop.

The first schoolhouse was a frame building, erected in 1845 by James G. Thompson. It stood on the site of the brick schoolhouse, which replaced it in 1859. The brick for the building were manufactured by David Stewart.

John Collins built the first blacksmith shop in the fall of 1830.
A man named Lord, who had previously owned a store in New Castle, came to Fayetteville in 1837 and opened a general store, which he carried on for about three or four months-from June till October- when he left. Robert Lindsay opened an other store the same month in which Lord left, and conducted it a number of years, then was succeeded by Thomas Elliott.

After Fayetteville was laid out the first tavern was opened by James Morrow. It was afterwards occupied by Simon V. Hodge, Daniel Davis and Daniel McLean.

James Armstrong also kept a tavern for a while, as did William Meadow.