List of counties in South Carolina

The U.S. state of South Carolina is made up of 46 counties, the maximum allowable by state law.^[1][2] They range in size from 392 square miles (1,015 square kilometers) in the case of Calhoun County to 1,358 square miles (3,517 square kilometers) in the case of Charleston County. The least populous county is Allendale County, with only 7,369 residents, while the most populous county is Greenville County, with a population of 558,036, despite the state's most populous city, Charleston, being located in Charleston County.

Counties of South Carolina
OC PN GR SP CK YK AN AB LU UN CS LA MC GN NE FA ED SA AK LX RD KE CT BR OR CL SU LE DA ML AL BM CR FL DN HA CN DR BK WG MA JA BU CH GE HR
Location	State of South Carolina
Number	46
Populations	7,369 (Allendale) – 558,036 (Greenville)
Areas	392 square miles (1,020 km2) (Calhoun) – 1,358 square miles (3,520 km2) (Charleston)
Government	County government
Subdivisions	cities, towns, unincorporated communities, census designated place

History

In the colonial period, the land around the coast was divided into parishes corresponding to the parishes of the Church of England. There were also several counties that had judicial and electoral functions. As people settled the backcountry, judicial districts and additional counties were formed. This structure continued and grew after the Revolutionary War. In 1800, all counties were renamed as districts. In 1868, the districts were converted back to counties.^[3] The South Carolina Department of Archives and History has maps that show the boundaries of counties, districts, and parishes starting in 1682.^[4]

Historically, county government in South Carolina has been fairly weak.^[5] The 1895 Constitution made no provision for local government, effectively reducing counties to creatures of the state. Each county's delegation to the General Assembly, comprising one senator and at least one representative, also doubled as its county council. Under this system, the state senator from each county wielded the most power.^[6] From the eighteenth century to 1973, counties in South Carolina performed limited functions such as the provision of law enforcement and the construction of transportation infrastructure.^[5]

In 1964, the United States Supreme Court case Reynolds v. Sims required reapportionment according to the principle of "one man, one vote", which resulted in legislative districts crossing county lines. However, it was not until 1973 that the constitution was amended to provide for limited home rule at the county level.^[7] This was finally enacted in 1975 with the Home Rule Act,^[6] which provided for elected councils in each county. Further, in 1989, all counties were given the authority to exercise broad police powers.^[8] Thus, they may enact regulations and ordinances related to the provision or preservation of security, health, peace, and order, so long as the regulation is not inconsistent with state law.^[9] Nonetheless, all counties and municipalities in South Carolina lack “fiscal home rule,” meaning they may only enact taxes authorized by the General Assembly.^[6]

County ordinances become applicable within municipal boundaries when the municipality and the county make a formal agreement, and the municipality formally adopts the ordinance.^[10] Unincorporated areas are governed by the county's land use plans.^[11]

County abbreviations

County Name	Abbreviation[12]	County Name	Abbreviation[12]
Abbeville	AB	Greenwood	GN
Aiken	AK	Hampton	HA
Allendale	AL	Horry	HR
Anderson	AN	Jasper	JA
Bamberg	BA	Kershaw	KE
Barnwell	BR	Lancaster	LA
Beaufort	BU	Laurens	LU
Berkeley	BK	Lee	LE
Calhoun	CL	Lexington	LX
Charleston	CH	Marion	MA
Cherokee	CK	Marlboro	ML
Chester	CS	McCormick	MC
Chesterfield	CT	Newberry	NB
Clarendon	CR	Oconee	OC
Colleton	CN	Orangeburg	OR
Darlington	DA	Pickens	PN
Dillon	DN	Richland	RD
Dorchester	DR	Saluda	SA
Edgefield	ED	Spartanburg	SP
Fairfield	FA	Sumter	SU
Florence	FL	Union	UN
Georgetown	GE	Williamsburg	WG
Greenville	GVL	York	YK

Alphabetical list

County	FIPS code[13]	County seat[14]	Est.[14]	Origin[15]	Etymology	Population (2023)[16]	Area[17]	Map
Abbeville County	001	Abbeville	1785	Ninety-Six District	Abbeville, France	24,434	512 sq mi (1,326 km2)
Aiken County	003	Aiken	1871	Barnwell County, Edgefield County, Lexington County, and Orangeburg County	William Aiken, founder of the South Carolina Canal and Railroad Company	177,130	1,080 sq mi (2,797 km2)
Allendale County	005	Allendale	1919	Barnwell County and Hampton County	P.H. Allen, first postmaster of the new county	7,369	412 sq mi (1,067 km2)
Anderson County	007	Anderson	1826	Pendleton District	Robert Anderson, American Revolutionary War general and Southern surveyor	213,076	756 sq mi (1,958 km2)
Bamberg County	009	Bamberg	1897	Barnwell County	Francis Marion Bamberg (1838–1905), Confederate general in the American Civil War	12,974	396 sq mi (1,026 km2)
Barnwell County	011	Barnwell	1798	Orangeburg County	John Barnwell, South Carolina State Senator and prisoner of war during the American Revolution	20,447	557 sq mi (1,443 km2)
Beaufort County	013	Beaufort	1769	1769 Judicial District	Henry Somerset, 1st Duke of Beaufort, colonial proprietary landowner	198,979	923 sq mi (2,391 km2)
Berkeley County	015	Moncks Corner	1882	Charleston County	William Berkeley, colonial proprietary governor and landowner	255,217	1,234 sq mi (3,196 km2)
Calhoun County	017	St. Matthews	1908	Lexington County and Orangeburg County	John C. Calhoun, U.S. senator from South Carolina	14,186	392 sq mi (1,015 km2)
Charleston County	019	Charleston	1769	1769 Judicial District	King Charles II of England	424,367	1,358 sq mi (3,517 km2)
Cherokee County	021	Gaffney	1897	Spartanburg County, Union County, and York County	Cherokee Native Americans	56,714	397 sq mi (1,028 km2)
Chester County	023	Chester	1785	Camden District	Chester, Pennsylvania	32,226	586 sq mi (1,518 km2)
Chesterfield County	025	Chesterfield	1798	Cheraws District	Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield, an Enlightenment-era scholar, government official, and member of the British House of Lords	44,031	806 sq mi (2,088 km2)
Clarendon County	027	Manning	1855	Sumter County	Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon, colonial proprietary landowner	31,004	696 sq mi (1,803 km2)
Colleton County	029	Walterboro	1800	Charleston County	John Colleton, colonial proprietary landowner	38,874	1,133 sq mi (2,934 km2)
Darlington County	031	Darlington	1785	Cheraws District	Unknown; possibly Darlington, England	62,416	566 sq mi (1,466 km2)
Dillon County	033	Dillon	1910	Marion County	James William "J.W." Dillon (1826-1913), founder of the Wilson Short Cut Railroad	27,698	407 sq mi (1,054 km2)
Dorchester County	035	St. George	1897	Berkeley County and Colleton County	Dorchester, Massachusetts	169,833	571 sq mi (1,479 km2)
Edgefield County	037	Edgefield	1785	Ninety-Six District	Disputed; either its location on the edge of the state or Edgefield, Norfolk, England	27,607	507 sq mi (1,313 km2)
Fairfield County	039	Winnsboro	1785	Camden District	The county's fair fields, as described by colonial Governor Charles Cornwallis	20,422	710 sq mi (1,839 km2)
Florence County	041	Florence	1888	Clarendon County, Darlington County, Marion County, and Williamsburg County	Florence Harllee (1848-1927), daughter of Wilmington and Manchester Railroad founder W.W. Harllee	137,214	804 sq mi (2,082 km2)
Georgetown County	043	Georgetown	1769	1769 Judicial District	George III of the United Kingdom[18]	65,731	1,035 sq mi (2,681 km2)
Greenville County	045	Greenville	1786	Washington District	Nathanael Greene, Revolutionary War general	558,036	796 sq mi (2,062 km2)
Greenwood County	047	Greenwood	1897	Abbeville County and Edgefield County	Greenwood Plantation, the home of John McGee, the county's largest landowner	69,460	464 sq mi (1,202 km2)
Hampton County	049	Hampton	1878	Beaufort County	Wade Hampton III, lieutenant general and cavalry leader in the Confederate States Army and later governor of South Carolina and U.S. senator	18,122	563 sq mi (1,458 km2)
Horry County	051	Conway	1801	Georgetown County	Peter Horry, Revolutionary War general	397,478	1,255 sq mi (3,250 km2)
Jasper County	053	Ridgeland	1912	Beaufort County and Hampton County	William Jasper, Revolutionary War sergeant	33,544	702 sq mi (1,818 km2)
Kershaw County	055	Camden	1798	Claremont County, Fairfield County, Lancaster County, and Richland	Joseph Kershaw, one of the county's pioneering settlers	69,905	740 sq mi (1,917 km2)
Lancaster County	057	Lancaster	1798	Camden District	Lancaster, England, and the House of Lancaster[19]	108,215	555 sq mi (1,437 km2)
Laurens County	059	Laurens	1785	Ninety-Six District	Henry Laurens, president of the Second Continental Congress and prisoner of war during the American Revolution	68,873	724 sq mi (1,875 km2)
Lee County	061	Bishopville	1902	Darlington County, Kershaw County, and Sumter County	Robert E. Lee, Confederate general during the Civil War	15,967	411 sq mi (1,064 km2)
Lexington County	063	Lexington	1804	Orangeburg County	Battle of Lexington, opening skirmish of the Revolutionary War	309,528	758 sq mi (1,963 km2)
Marion County	067	Marion	1800	Georgetown County	Francis Marion, Revolutionary War general	28,508	494 sq mi (1,279 km2)
Marlboro County	069	Bennettsville	1785	Cheraws District	John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, English general, diplomat, and confidant of monarchs	25,704	486 sq mi (1,259 km2)
McCormick County	065	McCormick	1914	Abbeville County, Edgefield County, and Greenwood County	Cyrus McCormick, inventor of the mechanical reaper and founder of International Harvester	9,941	394 sq mi (1,020 km2)
Newberry County	071	Newberry	1785	Ninety-Six District	Disputed; possibly Newbury, Berkshire, England, or from early settlers' notion that the landscape was as "pretty as a new berry"	38,825	647 sq mi (1,676 km2)
Oconee County	073	Walhalla	1868	Pickens County	Oconee Native Americans	81,221	674 sq mi (1,746 km2)
Orangeburg County	075	Orangeburg	1769	1769 Judicial District	Prince William V of Orange	82,820	1,128 sq mi (2,922 km2)
Pickens County	077	Pickens	1826	Pendleton District	Andrew Pickens, governor of South Carolina	135,495	513 sq mi (1,329 km2)
Richland County	079	Columbia	1799	Camden District	The county's rich soil	425,138	772 sq mi (1,999 km2)
Saluda County	081	Saluda	1896	Edgefield County	Saluda River	19,123	462 sq mi (1,197 km2)
Spartanburg County	083	Spartanburg	1785	Ninety-Six District	"Spartan Regiment" of the state militia, which was the key force for victory in the Revolutionary War Battle of Cowpens	356,698	820 sq mi (2,124 km2)
Sumter County	085	Sumter	1798	Claremont County, Clarendon County, and Salem County	Thomas Sumter, Revolutionary War general and U.S. senator from South Carolina	104,165	682 sq mi (1,766 km2)
Union County	087	Union	1798	Ninety-Six District	Union Church, the first Christian place of worship in the area	26,629	515 sq mi (1,334 km2)
Williamsburg County	089	Kingstree	1802	Georgetown District	King William III of England	29,891	937 sq mi (2,427 km2)
York County	091	York	1798	Camden District	York County, Pennsylvania	298,320	696 sq mi (1,803 km2)

Defunct parishes, counties and districts

See also: List of former United States counties

Parishes

Until the late 19th century, the South Carolina Lowcountry was divided into parishes which in turn were subdivided several "districts"; these civil parishes were based on and generally coincident (even well after disestablishment) with Anglican ecclesiastical parishes.^[20]

• St. Helena's Parish (Beaufort District)
• St. Luke's Parish (Beaufort District), created on May 23, 1767; located on Hilton Head Island and the adjacent mainland
• St. Peter's Parish (Beaufort District)
• Prince William Parish (Beaufort District)
• St. Andrew's Parish (Charleston District)
• St. Bartholomew's Parish (Charleston District)
• St. John's Colleton Parish (Charleston District)
• St. George's Dorchester Parish (Charleston District)
• St. Philip's & St. Michael's Parish (Charleston District)
• Christchurch Parish (Charleston District)
• St. James' Goose Creek Parish (Charleston District)
• St. Thomas' & St. Denis' Parish (Charleston District)
• St. John's Berkeley Parish (Charleston District)
• St. Stephen's Parish (Charleston District)
• St. James' Santee Parish (Charleston District)
• St. Paul's Parish (Charleston District)
• All Saints' Parish (Georgetown District)
• Prince George, Winyah, Parish (Georgetown District)
• Prince Frederick Parish (Georgetown District)
• St. David's Parish (Cheraw District)
• St. Mark's Parish (Cheraw District)
• St. Matthew's Parish (Orangeburgh District)

Counties

• Carteret County
• Craven County
• Granville County
• Orange County
• Lewisburg County (1785–1791)
• Winton County, present-day Barnwell County
• Liberty County, present-day Marion County
• Winyah County, former name of Georgetown County
• Claremont County
• Salem County

Districts

• Cheraw District, created in 1769
• Camden District, created in 1769
• Ninety-Six District, created in 1769
• Pinckney District (1791–1798)
• Washington District (1785–1798)
• Pendleton District, created in 1789 from Cherokee lands

Proposed counties

• Birch County, proposed in 2013 (portions of Lexington and Richland counties)

See also

• United States portal
• South Carolina portal

• List of municipalities in South Carolina
• List of census-designated places in South Carolina
• List of ghost towns in South Carolina
• List of former United States counties

References

1. Section 3, Article VIII of the South Carolina Constitution Archived January 4, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
2. "South Carolina Constitution - Article VIII: Local Government" (PDF). South Carolina Legislature Online. Columbia, SC: South Carolina State Legislature. October 2, 2023. Section 3. Retrieved April 27, 2024.
3. Edgar, Walter, ed. The South Carolina Encyclopedia, University of South Carolina Press, 2006, pp. 230-234, ISBN 1-57003-598-9
4. "SC County Maps". South Carolina Department of Archives and History.
5. Underwood, James Lowell. The South Carolina Constitution 2–5 (1985) (describing how South Carolina’s strong legislature led to weak county government in South Carolina until 1973 because county needs were handled by county delegations to the General Assembly)
6. Tyer, Charlie B. (1999). "County Government in the Palmetto State". The South Carolina Governance Project. University of South Carolina. Archived from the original on January 4, 2021.
7. Ulbrich, Holley H.; London, Donna S.; Lucken, Melinda A. (2011). "Local Governments and Home Rule in South Carolina 4".
8. Pierce, Jon B. (June 8, 2016). "Local government". South Carolina Encyclopedia.
9. S.C. Code Ann. § 4-9-25 (2020).
10. Guyton, Madison (2020). "Bans on Bans: Plastic Bags, Power, And Home Rule In South Carolina". 71 S.C. L. Rev. 801, 807.
11. S.C. Code Ann. § 6-29-330 (2020).
12. "Curation, Loan, and Access Policy" (PDF). South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology. pp. 21–22. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 5, 2021. Retrieved December 5, 2021.
13. "EPA County FIPS Code Listing". EPA. Retrieved April 9, 2007.
14. "NACo – Find a county". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on October 25, 2007. Retrieved April 26, 2007.
15. "2020 County Gazetteer Files – South Carolina". United States Census Bureau. August 23, 2022. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
16. "QuickFacts: South Carolina". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
17. "2020 County Gazetteer Files - South Carolina". United States Census Bureau. August 23, 2022. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
18. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp. 136.
19. "History of Lancaster", Lancaster County, South Carolina Archived May 15, 2019, at the Wayback Machine
20. The Newberry Library (2009). "South Carolina: Individual County Chronologies, South Carolina Atlas of Historical County Boundaries". publications.newberry.org. Chicago, Illinois, US. Retrieved June 5, 2018.

Works cited

• Landrum, John Belton O'Neall (1897) Colonial and revolutionary history of upper South Carolina: embracing for the most part the primitive and colonial history of the territory comprising the original county of Spartanburg with a general review of the entire military operations in the upper portion of South Carolina and portions of North Carolina Shannon and Company, Greenville, South Carolina, OCLC 3492548

External links

• Information on County Formation timeline
• Complete South Carolina County Guide
• Map of former parishes of South Carolina, South Carolina Department of Archives and History