South Carolina Genealogy

The South Carolina Colony was originally part of the Province of Carolina, which was chartered in 1663.
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Relive the American Revolution at Walnut Grove Plantation’s Annual FestiFall Reenactment Held the First Weekend in October

Roebuck, SC, September 13, 2010 — Hear the muskets fire! Feel the cannon roar! See the American Revolution come to life during FestiFall at Walnut Grove Plantation! Late in the War for Independence, William “Bloody Bill” Cunningham, a Loyalist militia captain and deserter of the American cause, attacked Walnut Grove Plantation, killed three Patriot soldiers, and sparked a skirmish with local militia. At FestiFall, experience a re-enactment of this raid on Walnut Grove by Captain Cunningham and his desperate band of Tories. Witness the brave heroine, Kate Barry, warning her husband Andrew and his Patriot troops of the attack. Although her valiant actions can’t save Captain Steadman and his friends, they do save the Moore family home from being burned by its attackers. Relive the saga of our struggle for independence and be transported back to colonial days!

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Season’s Final Friday Campfire at Walnut Grove Plantation Focuses on Archeology and Native Americans

Roebuck, SC, September 7, 2010 — For one final time this summer, bring the family, gather ‘round the fire, toast marshmallows, and hear exciting stories of the Upstate’s past! The Spartanburg County Historical Association’s summer Friday Campfires Series wraps up this Friday, September 10 at Walnut Grove Plantation. Join Lamar Nelson and others from the Foothills Chapter of the Archeological Society of South Carolina as they share stories and artifacts of our region’s Native Americans from prehistoric days to European contact. Walnut Grove Plantation is located at 1200 Otts Shoals Road in Roebuck. Gates open at 7:30 p.m. for self-guided tours of the site and the campfire program begins at 8:30 p.m. Admission is adults $5.00; ages 6-17 $3.00; ages 5 & under free. Bring lawn chairs and/or blankets. Bug spray encouraged. The event is rain or shine! Although this will be the final Friday Campfire of the season, the series has been a big success and will continue next year!

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A couple of competing events on the 19th of June – but they both look like they would be worth visiting (maybe make it to both?)

First up is a Walnut Grove Plantation event that looks at law and order on the frontier:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Zac Cunningham, Director

Walnut Grove Plantation & Historic Price House

864-576-6546 (o), 864-576-4058 (f)

walnutgrove@spartanburghistory.org

Special Event at Walnut Grove Plantation to Explore Frontier Law & Order

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Charleston is a city in Charleston County in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city was founded as Charlestown or Charles Towne, Carolina in 1670, and moved to its present location in 1690. Up until 1800, Charleston was the fifth largest city in North America, behind Philadelphia, New York City, Boston, and Quebec City. It adopted its present name in 1783. Also known as The Holy City, Charleston brims with the culturally unique, such as the joggling board. Read the rest of this entry »

St. Helena, South Carolina is one of the South Carolina Sea Islands in Beaufort County, South Carolina that are historic sites of early European colonization of North America. St. Helena is also the center of African-American Gullah culture and language. Read the rest of this entry »

Prior to the American Revolution, the British began taxing American colonies to raise revenue, particularly outraging South Carolinians with the Townsend Acts that taxed tea, paper, wine, glass, and oil. To protest the Stamp Act, South Carolina sent wealthy rice planter Thomas Lynch, 26-year old lawyer John Rutledge, and Christopher Gadsden to the Stamp Act Congress, held in 1765 New York. Other taxes were removed, but tea taxes remained. Soon South Carolinians, in emulation of the Boston Tea Party, began to dump tea into the Charleston Harbor, shortly followed by many boycotts and protests. Read the rest of this entry »

By the end of the 16th century, the Spanish and French had gone from the area of South Carolina after several colonization attempts and reconnaissance missions. In 1629 Charles I granted his attorney general a charter to everything between latitudes 36 and 31. Later, Charles II gave the land to eight nobles, the Lords Proprietors, who ruled over the Carolinas until 1719 when South Carolina was split off from North Carolina and became a British province. Read the rest of this entry »

Pre-Colonial and Colonial History

Hernando de Soto passed through the area in the 1540s in his search for gold, and several decades later Juan Pardo entered what is now York County and recorded his observation of a predominant Native American tribe, later confirmed to be the Catawba, in the vicinity of present-day Fort Mill, on the eastern bank of the Catawba River. Read the rest of this entry »

Georgetown County was formed in 1769 from the original district of the colony. The county and it’s county seat were named for King George II of England. Spanish settlers may have visited the area as early as 1526, but left no permanent settlements. Rice and indigo plantations were established here in the early 1700s by English settlers. During the Revolutionary War, General Frances Marion made use of the swamps of this area as a hideout from the British during his guerrilla campaign. With the decline of the rice plantations after the Civil War, hunting preserves took over the land that was once dedicated to growing rice. Among the famous names from Georgetown county are a signer of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Lynch, Jr, The first African-American elected to the US House, Joseph Hayne Rainey and the man that introduced the Poinsettia to the United States, Joel Roberts Poinsett.

Georgetown County SCGenweb site

Georgetown County Courthouse
P.O. Drawer 421270
County Courthouse
Georgetown, SC 29442

Georgetown Digital Library

Georgetown County Public Library

Census

1790 Federal Census images Directory opens to listing of image files by page number

1800 Federal Census images Directory opens to listing of image files by page number

1830 Federal Census transcription web based, indexed by last name

1840 Federal Census transcription web based, indexed by last name

1860 Federal Census transcription – slaveholder schedule Largest slaveholders with crossreference to 1870 African-American surnames

Cemeteries

USGS listing of cemeteries in Georgetown County

Query Forums

Georgetown County, SC Forum for Queries

Latest South Carolina Genealogy Query posts for Georgetown County from the Forum:

Georgetown County, SC at genforum

Cities and towns of Georgetown County:

Andrews
Garden City
Garden City Beach
Georgetown (County Seat)
Maryville
Murrells Inlet
Pawleys Island

News related to Georgetown County, SC