South Carolina Church Records

Church records and histories are critical to research in South Carolina because of the lack of civil vital records prior to 1900. Before 1900 the largest religious groups in South Carolina were the Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian churches. The Anglican Church (later, Protestant Episcopal) was established in 1706 and was serving 25 parishes by 1778. During the colonial period the Lutheran, Huguenot, and Quaker denominations were also represented.

The Family History Library has a large collection of Baptist, Methodist, and Protestant Episcopal church records on microfilm. From the Charleston area, for example, the library has copies of records from the South Carolina Historical Society, Southern Baptist Convention, and local churches. These materials include records of the Methodists (1845 to 1980 on 145 microfiche), Baptists (1868 to 1955), Evangelical Lutherans (from 1778), Congregationalists (from 1732), Protestant Episcopals (from 1713), Lutherans (from 1749), and Society of Friends (from 1719).

Many denominations have collected their records into central repositories. Church repositories are listed in Local and Family History in South Carolina (see the “For Further Reading” section of this outline). You can also write to the following addresses to learn where their records are located.

Baptist       South Carolina Baptist Historical Collection James B. Duke Library Furman University 3300 Poinsett Highway Greenville, SouthCarolina 29613-0600 Telephone: 864-294-2194 Fax: 864-294-2194 http://www.sbhla.org/links.htm

See also:

Bolt, Ernest C. South Carolina Baptist Churches by Association. Nashville, Tennessee: Historical Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, 196-. (FHL film 1001802.)

Townsend, Leah. South Carolina Baptists, 1670-1805. Florence, South Carolina: Florence Printing Co., 1935. (FHL book 975.7 K2t; fiche 6101031.)

Methodist      South Carolina Methodist Conference Archives Sandor Teszler Library Wofford College 429 N. Church Street Spartanburg, SC 29301-3663 Telephone: 864-597-4300 Fax: 864-597-4329

rylibweb.man.ac.uk/data1/dg/methodist/methlink2.html

For a history of the Methodist church, see Albert Micajah Shipp, History of Methodism in South Carolina (Nashville, Tennessee: Southern Methodist Publishing House, 1884; FHL film 908353 item 2). The appendix includes biographical sketches.

Presbyterian and Reformed    Department of History-Montreat Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) 318 Georgia Terrace P.O. Box 849 Montreat, NC 28757 Telephone: 704-669-7061 Fax: 704-669-5369

To locate Presbyterian records see:   Inventory of the Church Archives of South Carolina Presbyterian Churches; 1969 Arrangement with Indexes. N.p.: South Carolina Historical Records Survey, WPA, 1969. (FHL film 906117-18.)

Howe, George. History of the Presbyterian Church in South Carolina. Columbia, South Carolina: Duffie and Chapman, 1870-1883. (FHL book 975.7 K2h; fiche 6110643.) This volume covers the history of the church to 1800.

Roman Catholic    Charleston Diocesan Archives 119 Broad Street P.O. Box 818 Charleston, SC 29402 Telephone: 803-723-3488 Fax: 803-724-6387

www.catholic-doc.org