Fairfield County, South Carolina: History and Information

Fairfield County, South Carolina

Fairfield County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Edgefield
Year Organized: 1785
Square Miles: 502

Court House:

215 Jeter Street
County Courthouse
Edgefield, SC 29824-1133

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Fairfields was possible named for its fair fields. It is alleged that the county name originated from a statement made by General Cornwallis when he declared "How Fair These Fields" during the British occupation of the area in 1780-81.

Demographics:

History

The origin of the name Fairfield is not known, but local legend attributes it to a remark by Lord Cornwallis about the "fair fields" of the area. The county was formed in 1785 as a part of Camden District. The town of Winnsboro, which was settled around 1755, is the county seat. Fairfield County lies between the upcountry and the lowcountry areas of the state, and it was settled both by Scotch-Irish immigrants from colonies to the north and by English and French Huguenot planters from the lowcountry. In the colonial period this area was a center for the Regulator movement, which sought to bring law and order to the backcountry. During the Revolutionary War, Lord Cornwallis made his headquarters in Winnsboro from October 1780 to January 1781; the county was also invaded by General Sherman's troops during the Civil War. Cotton production was the major economic activity of the area, but the county also produced Winnsboro Blue Granite. Some prominent residents of the county were Regulator leader Thomas Woodward (d. 1779), Revolutionary War soldier Richard Winn (1750-1818), and artist Laura Glenn Douglas (1886-1962).

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 710 square miles (1,839 km²), of which, 687 square miles (1,778 km²) of it is land and 23 square miles (60 km²) of it (3.29%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

Chester County, South Carolina - north

Lancaster County, South Carolina - northeast

Kershaw County, South Carolina - east

Richland County, South Carolina - south

Newberry County, South Carolina - west

Union County, South Carolina - northwest

Cities and Towns:

- Edgefield (County Seat)

town

Incorporated Area

- Johnston

town

Incorporated Area

- Trenton

town

Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of our country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."

South Carolina State...

South Carolina

South Carolina Counties

Fairfield County, South Carolina

Fairfield County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Demographics:

History

Geography

Neighboring Counties:

Cities and Towns:

County Resources:

County Resource Guide

Penn Foster High School