Lancaster County, South Carolina Genealogy

Guide to Lancaster County, South Carolina ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

Description
Lancaster County was named for the Waxhaw Indian tribe that was prominent in the region. The county is located in the north-central area of the state.

County Courthouse
Lancaster County Courthouse 104 N. Main St. Lancaster, SC 29721 Phone: 803-285-1581 Lancaster County Website

County Pronunciation

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

Cemeteries

 * To view a list, see Lancaster County, South Carolina Cemeteries.
 * National Cemetery Administration

Census Records

 * 1829-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index & Images

1790 1790 Census Index, Lancaster County, courtesy USGenWeb Archives.

1800 1800 Census Index, Lancaster County, courtesy USGenWeb Archives.

1810
 * Small, Otha Burris. 1810 Lancaster County, South Carolina Census. Monroe, N.C.: O.B. Small, (199-?). 975.745 X2s 1810
 * 1810 Federal Census Index, Lancaster County, courtesy USGenWeb Archives.

1820
 * 1820 Lancaster County, South Carolina Census. 975.745 X2L 1820

1820 Manufactures The original manufactures schedules for South Carolina are kept at the NARA, Washington, D.C. FS Library copies: 1024517 - 1024518. Published abstract:
 * National Archives. Indexes to Manufactures Census of 1820. 1920; reprint, Knightstown, Ind.: Bookmark, 1977. 973 X2m 1820. Includes this county.

1830
 * 1830 Census Index, Lancaster County, courtesy USGenWeb Archives.

1840
 * 1840 Census Index, Lancaster County, courtesy USGenWeb Archives.

1840 Revolutionary War Pensioners
 * A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services: With their Names, Ages, and Places of Residence, as Returned by the Marshals of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census. Washington, D.C.: Blair and Rives, 1841. 973 X2pc 1840; . Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, Ancestry ($). See South Carolina, Lancaster District on page 144.

1850
 * Jeffcoat, Frances Reeves. Lancaster District, 1850 Census from the Seventh Census of the United States: Original Return of the Assistant Marshal, First Series, White and Colored Population, 30 June 1850, Ended 10 November 1850, K.G. Billings, Assistant Marshal. Columbia, S.C.: F.R. Jeffcoat, 1984. 975.745 X2j 1850
 * 1840 Census Index, Lancaster County, courtesy USGenWeb Archives.

1860
 * Small, Otha Burris. 1860 Census of Lancaster County, South Carolina. 975.745 X2s 1860

1870
 * Small, Otha Burris. 1870 Census of Lancaster County, South Carolina. Monroe, N.C.: O.B. Small, 1991. 975.745 X2s 1870

1880
 * Small, Otha Burris. 1880 Census, Lancaster County, South Carolina. 975.745 X2s 1880

1920
 * Lancaster County 1920 Census, courtesy of SCGenWeb.

Church Records
The Inventory of (SC) Church Archives 1937-1939 is available for free online, courtesy: South Caroliniana Library. Lancaster County's W.P.A. reports are included.

List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records
Online Court Indexes and Records Lancaster County has court records from 1800 that are held in the office of the Clerk of Court. Lancaster County was a part of the Camden District from 1785 - 1800. The records of Camden District courts are housed in Kershaw County with the Clerk of Court.

The South Carolina Archives and History Center has court records available on microfilm for Lancaster County.

The FamilySearch Library collection includes books and microfilm regarding court records for Lancaster County.

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
African Americans United States African Americans South Carolina African Americans Known plantations South Carolina Plantations:
 * Heinegg, Paul. "'Other Free' Heads of Household in the 1790 South Carolina Census, by County," Free African Americans.com. Includes free blacks in Lancaster County.
 * Adam Ivy
 * Clyburn - Kershaw - also called Uriah
 * Fort Jackson
 * McIllwayne
 * McPherson's
 * Rose Hill
 * Uriah - Kershaw - also called Clyburn

Genealogies
Genealogies about several Lancaster County families are kept at the Winthrop College Archives and Special Collections in Rock Hill, S.C.
 * [Barnett] Wear, Kyle. "Proposed Ancestry and Extended Family of William Barnett," The South Carolina Magazine of Ancestral Research, Vol. 36, No. 3 (Summer 2008):123-138.
 * [Baskin] Bell, Raymond Martin. AndrewBaskin, Esq., Kershawand Lancaster Counties, S.C. and Other Baskin Notes. Typescripts, 1965, Clayton Library, Houston, Texas. Microfilmed 1983. Items 12-13; digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * [Blair] Saunders, James Edmonds and Elizabeth Saunders Blair Stubbs. Early Settlers of Alabama. New Orleans: L. Graham &amp; Son, Printers, 1899. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.
 * [Cantzon] Saunders, James Edmonds and Elizabeth Saunders Blair Stubbs. Early Settlers of Alabama. New Orleans: L. Graham &amp; Son, Printers, 1899. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.
 * [Caston] Floyd, Viola Caston. Caston and Related Families Descendants of Glass Caston of Lancaster County, South Carolina. Lancaster, S.C.: V.C. Floyd, 1972.
 * [Craig] Craig, Eloise. Descendants of John Craig, Esquire and John Robinson, Senior, Scotch- Irish Immigrants to Lancaster County, South Carolina. Lancaster, S.C.: E. Craig, 1988.
 * [Crawford] Veach, Mary Frances Thomas. Sorting the Waxhaw Crawfords a Compendium of Research on the Crawfords & Related Families Starting Out in the Counties of York, Chester, & Lancaster, South Carolina Before the Revolution. Elverta, Calif.: M. Veach, 1993. FamilySearch Digital Library;.
 * [Cureton] Cureton, Thomas Kirk. The Curetons of Lancaster Co., S.C. n.p.: n.p., 1949?. FamilySearch Digital Library; ; digital versions at Ancestry ($).
 * [Emmons] Corcoran, E. Emmons. The John Corcoran Family of Charleston, S.C.; the Samuel Barnes Emmons Family of Lancaster, S.C. Asheville, N.C.: E.E. Corcoran, 1983. 1986 Addendum:
 * [Floyd] Floyd, Viola Caston. Floyd - Ervin Family of Lancaster County, South Carolina. Typescript, 1963. Item 2
 * [Foster] Saunders, James Edmonds and Elizabeth Saunders Blair Stubbs. Early Settlers of Alabama. New Orleans: L. Graham &amp; Son, Printers, 1899. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.
 * [Harper] Floyd, Viola Caston. Descendants of William Harper Irish Immigrant to Lancaster County, South Carolina. Lancaster, S.C.: The Lancaster Center Press, 1965.
 * [Isom] Bailey, Rex Franklin. Insights of Isoms: John Isom Family, Lancaster District, South Carolina. Fountain Inn, S.C.: R.F. Bailey, 1994.
 * [Kirk] Mosher, Merrill Hill. "Origin of the John, Mathew &amp; Robert Kirk Families of Lancaster County, South Carolina," The South Carolina Magazine of Ancestral Research, Vol. 23, No. 2 (Spring 1995):74-79.
 * [McCardell] McCardell, William Markham. Descendants of John and Nancy Douglass McCardell Married 2 May 1816, Lancaster, South Carolina. Stamford, Conn.: W.M. McCardell, 2000.
 * [McDow] Corcoran, E. Emmons. The Family of John Cunningham McDow, Sr. of Lancaster, South Carolina. Asheville, N.C.: E.E. Corcoran, 1980. 1990 edition:
 * [Miller] The Colonial Dames of America. Ancestral Records and Portraits, 2 vols. New York: The Grafton Press Publishers, 1910. Digitized by Internet Archive: Vol. I and Vol. II - both free.
 * [Montgomery] Lytle, John Henry. Montgomerys of Lancaster District South Carolina, Mississippi, and Other States. Typescript. Microfilmed 2000. Item 6
 * [Patton] White, William Boyce. Genealogy of Two Early Patton Families of York, Chester, and Lancaster Counties, South Carolina. Roanoke, Va.: W.B. White, 1996.
 * [Pendergrass] Pendergrast, Robert A. Family History, John Pendergrass of Bute County, North Carolina, and Lancaster County, South Carolina. Atlanta, Ga.: R.A. Pendergrast, 1980.
 * [Robertson] Robertson, Rhonda. William Robertson of England and His Descendants: (A Partial Genealogy). n.p.: Rhonda Robertson, 1978..
 * [Robertson] Roberson, Rhonda S. "Genealogical Sketches of Revolutionary War Soldiers: William Robertson," The Southwest Virginian, Vol. 1, No. 2 (Apr. 1978):55-78..
 * [Robinson] Craig, Eloise. Descendants of John Craig, Esquire and John Robinson, Senior, Scotch- Irish Immigrants to Lancaster County, South Carolina. Lancaster, S.C.: E. Craig, 1988.
 * [Terrell] Terrill, Don C. The Terrell Family of Lancaster County, South Carolina. Falls Church, Va.: D.C. Terrill, 198-?.
 * [White] The Colonial Dames of America. Ancestral Records and Portraits, 2 vols. New York: The Grafton Press Publishers, 1910. Digitized by Internet Archive: Vol. I and Vol. II - both free.

Land and Property Records
Online Land Indexes and Records

The following chart show where you may best expect to find land records. ** Some early records may be found in North Carolina
 * Some Camden District records are included with Kershaw County records

Plats For State Land Grants 1784-1868 This series consists of recorded copies of plats for state land grants for the Charleston and the Columbia Series with their certificates of admeasurement or certification.All personal names and geographic features on these plats are included in the repository's On-line Index to Plats for State Land Grants The South Carolina Constitution of 1790 required the surveyor general to maintain offices in both the new capital at Columbia and in Charleston. The surveyor general began to use separate volumes for recording plats in his Columbia office in 1796. Before that, all plats were recorded in the set of volumes begun in Charleston in 1784. After 1796, most plats for land grants in the Upper Division of the state were recorded and filed in Columbia. The surveyor general chose to make the Columbia volumes a continuation of the state plat volumes begun in Charleston and gave the initial Columbia volume the number thirty-six to correspond with the number of the volume that had then been reached in the Charleston series. As a result, there are volumes numbered thirty-six through forty-three from each office, but the records in them are not duplicative. Also included are the Plan Books containing Plats and Plans.


 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary

Local Histories
The county is named after Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.


 * Gardner, Miles. Further Tales of Murder and Mayhem in Lancaster, Kershaw, and Chesterfield Counties(Spartanburg, South Carolina Reprint Company Publishers, c2006), 296 pages. Book at and Other Libraries.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Migration
Early migration routes to and from Lancaster County for European settlers included:
 * Occaneechi Path pre-historic
 * Great Valley Road (south fork) 1740s (overlapped Occaneechi Path in Lancaster County)

Military Records
General
 * "Gay Street Pres. church cem. veteran burials," Catawba-Wateree Messenger, September 2002, Volume 15, Issue 8. Catawba Wateree Genealogical Society: St. Camden, SC.
 * "Veterans buried, Old Presbyterian cemetery," Lancaster County Society of Historical Preservation Newsletter, November 1987. Lancaster County Society of Historical Preservation: Lancaster, SC.

Revolutionary War
 * "Massacre at Waxhaws, 1780," St. Lucie River Whig, Winter 2004, Volume 13, Issue 1. St. Lucie River Chapter St. Lucie, Florida.
 * "Revolutionary War Pensioners, 1841," Carolinas Genealogical Society Bulletin, November 1965, Volume 2, Issue 3. Carolinas Genealogical Society: Monroe, NC. Book 975 B2c.

War of 1812
 * List of Pensioners on the Roll, January 1, 1883; Giving the Name of Each Pensioner, the Cause for Why Pensioned, the Post-Office Address, the Rate of Pension Per Month, and the Date of Original Allowance... Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1883. 973 M2Lp v. 5. Online at: Internet Archive, Ancestry ($). See Vol. 5, South Carolina, Lancaster County, p. 186. Identifies War of 1812 veterans living in this county in 1883.

Civil War
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index & Images
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)

Regiments. Civil War service men from Lancaster County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were formed in Lancaster County or from many of its men.
 * - 1st Regiment, South Carolina Artillery, Company K
 * - 1st Regiment, South Carolina Infantry (Butler's) (1st Regulars), Company A - (also called Company B and Beauregard Artillery)
 * - 1st Regiment, South Carolina Infantry (Hagood's), 2nd Company D - ( also known as the Waxhaw Guards)
 * - 2nd Regiment, South Carolina Cavalry, Company F (also known as the Easley's Cavalry)
 * - 2nd Regiment, South Carolina Infantry (2nd Palmetto Regiment), Company H (also known as Lancaster Invincibles)
 * - 4th Regiment, South Carolina State Troops, Company B
 * - 4th Regiment, South Carolina Cavalry (Rutledge's), Company A (may have been known as Charleston Light Dragoons) and Company H (also known as the Catawba Rangers)
 * - 5th Battalion, South Carolina Reserves (Brown's), Company E
 * - 5th Regiment, South Carolina Infantry, Company A and Company B
 * - 7th Battalion, South Carolina Infantry (Nelson's) (Enfield Rifles), Company A, Company E, and Company G
 * - 8th Regiment, South Carolina Reserves
 * - 9th Regiment, South Carolina Infantry, Company A
 * - 10th Battalion, South Carolina Cavalry, Company D
 * Before Reorganization the 10th Battalion, South Carolina Cavalry had the following companies: Company A
 * - 12th Regiment, South Carolina Infantry, Company E and Company I
 * - 17th Regiment, South Carolina Infantry, Company I

Other Resources
 * Jeffcoat, Frances Reeves. South Carolina. Dept. of Archives and History.. Confederate Records, Lancaster District, South Carolina: Gleaned from South Carolina Department of Archives and History and the Lancaster Ledger (Columbia, S.C.: F.R. Jeffcoat, ©1986.), 232 pages. "The base of the whole collection is taken from the "Lancaster Ledger," the newspaper serving the Lancaster District during the war. The rolls were taken from the "Confederate Rolls" in the archives in Columbia, S.C, old newspapers and a manuscript.... . The manuscript is believed to be those Confederate War Records of Lancaster District compiled by Mrs. Lottie B. Foster in 1902"--Pref., 3rd prelim. Book found at  and Other Libraries.
 * South Carolina. County Court (Lancaster County). Confederate Veteran Enrollment Book. (Salt Lake City, Utah: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1956). Arranged by surname in alphabetical order. Microfilm copy at

Newspapers

 * 1800s-1999 Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry ($)

Historic The Library of Congress has identified the following historic newspapers for Lancaster County, South Carolina on their Chronicling America website. For publication details, including dates of publication, frequency, preceding and succeeding titles, and to find out which libraries have holdings, click on the newspaper title.
 * Lancaster County Citizen (Lancaster, S.C.) 1916-1923.
 * Lancaster Enterprise (Lancaster, S.C.) 1891-1905.
 * The Carolina Review (Lancaster, S.C.) 1878-1880.
 * The Kershaw Era (Kershaw, S.C.) 1889-1938.
 * The Kershaw News-Era (Kershaw, S.C.) 1946-current.
 * The Kershaw Times (Kershaw, S.C.) 1938-1939.
 * The Lancaster Citizen (Lancaster, S.C.) 1923-1925.
 * The Lancaster News (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current.
 * The Lancaster Ledger (Lancaster, S.C.) 1852-1905.
 * The Lancaster Review (Lancaster, S.C.) 1880-1905.

University of South Carolina Library Catalog
 * Historical Newspapers of South Carolina at University of South Carolina Libraries - not complete

Current
 * The Lancaster News (Lancaster, S.C.) Online edition.

Periodicals

 * Carolinas Genealogical Society Bulletin
 * Catawba-Wateree Messenger(FS Library book 975.761 D25c .)

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records

The South Carolina Department of Archives and History has microfilms or typescripts of wills, inventories, bills of sale, power of attorneys, bonds, notes, administrations, judgments, and sales records. They have placed Will Transcriptions for 1782 to 1855 online. Index searchable by name and the image is available. Probate records of Lancaster County exist in the county probate court, the court of ordinary, and the court of equity. Court of equity records include testimonial evidence relative to last wills and testaments. Estate records of the probate court for Lancaster County, 1865-1950, have been microfilmed.
 * 1670-1980 South Carolina Wills and Probate Records 1670-1980 at Ancestry.com — index & images ($)
 * 1671-1977 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Images Only
 * 1732-1964 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Images Only
 * 1737-1964 South Carolina Probate Records, Files and Loose Papers, 1732-1964 at Ancestry - images ($)
 * 1782-1866 South Carolina, Will Transcripts 1782-1866 at Findmypast — index ($) — $, index
 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
 * 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Tax Records
Online Tax Indexes and Records
 * South Carolina Department of Archives and History tax lists for Lancaster County.
 * Tax duplicate books are kept at the county courthouse. Microfilmed reproductions (1868-1875, 1890):

Vital Records

 * 1766-1900 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index & Images

Birth

 * 1766-1900 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index & Images
 * 1915-1917 South Carolina, U.S., Births, 1915-1917 at Ancestry - index & images ($)

Marriage
Online Marriage Records and Indexes
 * 1852-1894 Items of Interest from the Lancaster Ledger, Lancaster, South Carolina by Catherine Fussell Wells WorldCat - index
 * 1898-1951 Lancaster County, South Carolina Marriage Registers, ca. 1898-1951 - records
 * 1898-1955 Lancaster County, South Carolina Marriage Licenses, 1911-1950; Proofs of Marriage, 1898-1955; Unused Marriage License Affidavits (with names), 1911-1921 - index and records
 * 1913-1920 Kershaw, South Carolina and Surrounding Area: Abstracts from the Kershaw Era and the Camden Chronicle, 1913-1920 by Carol P. McNaughton WorldCat - index
 * There are several online marriage indexes containing miscellaneous marriage records found insome counties of South Carolina listed on the South Carolina Vital Records page.

Death
Online Death Records and Indexes
 * 1816-1990 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1821-1969 South Carolina, U.S., Death Records, 1821-1969 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
 * 1852-1894 Items of Interest from the Lancaster Ledger, Lancaster, South Carolina by Catherine Fussell Wells WorldCat - index
 * 1913-1920 Kershaw, South Carolina and Surrounding Area: Abstracts from the Kershaw Era and the Camden Chronicle, 1913-1920 by Carol P. McNaughton WorldCat - index
 * 1915-1943 South Carolina, Deaths, 1915-1943 at MyHeritage - index & images ($)
 * 1915-1965 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index & Images
 * State-wide South Carolina Death Indexes. There are several online death indexes covering all of South Carolina listed on the South Carolina Vital Records page.

FamilySearch Centers

 * Charlotte North Carolina South FamilySearch Center
 * Gaffney South Carolina FamilySearch Center
 * Gastonia North Carolina FamilySearch Center
 * Spartanburg South Carolina FamilySearch Center
 * York South Carolina FamilySearch Center


 * Bull Street Library Georgia History Dept - an affiliate library
 * York County Libraries - Fort Mill - an affiliate library
 * York County Libraries Main Branch - an affiliate library

Societies

 * Lancaster County Society for Historical Preservation 1859 Craig Farm Road Lancaster, SC 29720 (347) 604-2179 E-mail: [mailto:jecraig66@gmail.com jecraig66@gmail.com] Website Facebook
 * The Old Camden District Genealogical Society 1314 Broad Street Camden SC 29020-3535 Website

Websites

 * Lancaster County, SCGenWeb
 * Lancaster County, South Carolina Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)


 * – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.

Research Guides

 * South Carolina Archives Summary Guide: Lancaster County, available online, courtesy: South Carolina Department of Archives and History.