The U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

 is made up of 46 counties

County (United States)

In the United States, a county is a geographic subdivision of a state , usually assigned some governmental authority. The term "county" is used in 48 of the 50 states; Louisiana is divided into parishes and Alaska into boroughs. Parishes and boroughs are called "county-equivalents" by the U.S...

. They range in size from 392 square miles (1,016 square kilometers) in the case of Calhoun County

Calhoun County, South Carolina

Calhoun County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. In 2000, its population was 15,185; a 2005 Census Bureau estimate placed the population at 15,100. It is named for John C. Calhoun, the former U.S. Vice-President, Senator, Representative and cabinet member from South...

 to 1,358 square miles (3,517 square kilometers) in the case of Charleston County

Charleston County, South Carolina

Charleston County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. According to a 2005 U.S. Census Bureau estimate, its population was 330,368. Its county seat is Charleston. It is the third-most populous county in the state . Charleston County was created in 1901 by an act of the South...

. The least populous county is McCormick County, with only 9,958 residents, while the most populous county is Greenville County

Greenville County, South Carolina

- External Links :*...

, with a population of 395,357, despite the state's most populous city, Columbia

Columbia, South Carolina

Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...

, being located in Richland County

Richland County, South Carolina

Richland County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The 2000 U.S. census recorded its population to be 320,677. In 2010, the U.S. Census Bureau recorded that its population had reached 384,504. It is the second most populous county in South Carolina, behind only Greenville...

.

History

In the colonial period, the land around the coast was divided into parishes corresponding to the parishes of the Church of England

Church of England

The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...

. 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

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

. In 1800, all counties were renamed as districts. In 1868, the districts were converted back to counties. The South Carolina Department of Archives and History has maps that show the boundaries of counties, districts, and parishes starting in 1682.

Alphabetical List

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Parishes

• St. Luke's Parish, South Carolina created by the Colonial Assembly on 23 May 1767, located on Hilton Head Island
  Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
  Hilton Head Island or Hilton Head is a resort town in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. It is north of Savannah, Georgia, and south of Charleston. The island gets its name from Captain William Hilton...
  
   and the adjacent mainland.

Counties

• Craven County
  Craven County, South Carolina
  Craven County, South Carolina was one of the three original counties established by the Lords Proprietor of the English colony of Carolana in 1682 to include the colony's lands stretching from Awendaw Creek north to the western shore of Winyah Bay and inland...
  
   created in 1682 by the Lords Proprietors
• Granville County created in 1686 by the Lords Proprietors
• Orange County 1785-1791
• Lewisburg County 1785-1791
• Winton County present-day Barnwell County
  Barnwell County, South Carolina
  -History:The Barnwell District was created in 1798 from the southwestern portion of the Orangeburg District, along the Savannah River...
  
  
• Liberty County present-day Marion County
• Winyah County former name of Georgetown County
• Claremont County
  Claremont County, South Carolina
  Claremont County was a former county in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina. It lasted from its creation from 1785, when it was created from the Camden District, until it was absorbed into the newly created Sumter District in 1800....
  
  
• Salem County
  Salem County, South Carolina
  Salem County was a former county in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina. It was created in 1791 from Claremont and Clarendon counties and lasted until it was absorbed into the newly created Sumter District in 1800....
  
  

Districts

• Cheraw District created in 1769
• Camden District created in 1769
• Ninety-Six District
  Ninety-Six District, South Carolina
  Ninety-Six District is a former judicial district in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It existed as a district from 29 July 1769 to 31 December 1799. The court house and jail for Ninety-Six District were in Ninety Six, South Carolina....
  
   created in 1769
• Pinckney District 1791-1798
• Washington District
  Washington District, South Carolina
  Washington District is a former judicial district in South Carolina. It existed as a district from 19 February 1791 to 1 January 1800. The court house and jail for Washington District were in Pickensville, South Carolina....
  
   1785-1798
• Pendleton District
  Pendleton District, South Carolina
  Pendleton District is a former judicial district in South Carolina. It existed as a county or a district from 7 March 1789 to 20 December 1826....
  
  created in 1789 from Cherokee lands

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