Greenville County, South Carolina Genealogy

United States  South Carolina  Greenville County

Quick Dates
Greenville County's civil records start the following years:

County Courthouse
Greenville County Courthouse 305 E. North Street Greenville, South Carolina 29601

Greenville County Clerk of Court 305 E. North St. Greenville, SC 29601 Phone: 864-467-8551 Court records

Greenville County Register of Deeds 301 University Ridge, Suite 1300 Greenville, SC 29601 Phone: 864-467-7240 Land records

Greenville County Probate Court 301 University Ridge, Suite 5600 Greenville, SC 29601 Phone: 864-467-7571 Probate and marriage records

History
The county is named after Revolutionary War hero Nathanael Greene (1742-1786).

Parent County
1798--Greenville County was created in 1798 from Washington District. County seat: Greenville 

Boundary Changes
"Rotating Formation South Carolina County Boundary Maps" (1682-1987) may be viewed for free at the My South Carolina Genealogy website. They rely on AniMap 3.0 software.

Record Loss

 * Lost census: 1890

Neighboring Counties
Abbeville | Anderson | Henderson County, North Carolina | Laurens | Pickens | Polk County, North Carolina | Spartanburg | Transylvania County, North Carolina

Research Guides

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

African American

 * Heinegg, Paul. "'Other Free' Heads of Household in the 1790 South Carolina Census, by County," Free African Americans.com. [Includes free blacks in Abbeville County.]
 * McCuen, Anne K. Abstracts of Some Greenville County, South Carolina Records Concerning Black People, Free and Slave. 2 vols. Spartanburg, S.C.: The Reprint Co., 1991-2000.

Cemeteries
Greenville County in S.C. Cemetery Project, courtesy: South Carolina Genealogical Society. Personal name index and list of cemeteries in the county.

Census
1800, 1810, 1820, 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1930 federal population schedules of Greenville County are available online. For tips on accessing census records online, see South Carolina Census. If you're having trouble finding your ancestors in online indexes, try checking printed indexes. Created by local experts familiar with the area's families, these indexes are often transcribed more accurately than online nationwide indexes.

See South Carolina Population Schedule Indexes: Fiche, Film, or Book for more information about statewide printed indexes.

See Greenville County, SC census assignments, including links to transcribed files [The USGenWeb Census Project®]

1800

 * Phillipa, Oma Dee. Greenville District, South Carolina, 1800 Census. 975.727 X2p 1800

1820 Manufactures
The original manufactures schedules for South Carolina are kept at the NARA, Washington, D.C. FHL copies: 1024517 - 1024518.

Published abstract:


 * National Archives. Indexes to Manufactures Census of 1820. 1920; reprint, Knightstown, Ind.: Bookmark, 1977. 973 X2m 1820; digital version at Lineages. [Includes this county.]

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 Marshalls of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census. Washington, D.C.: Blair and Rives, 1841. 973 X2pc 1840;  2321; digital version at Google Books. [See South Carolina, Greenville District on page 143.]

Church
Greenville County Churches identifies dozens of churches in the area, courtesy: South Carolina Genealogical Society.

LDS Ward and Branch Records


 * Augusta
 * Greenville

DNA
DNA has been collected from men claiming descent from the following Charleston County residents. FamilySearch has not independently verified the lineages of those tested.

Genealogy
More than 25 genealogies have been published about York County families. To view a list, visit Greenville County, South Carolina Genealogy.

Land
The original Greenville County deed books are kept at the county courthouse. The years 1786 to 1865 have been microfilmed:. Books A through R have been published:


 * [1787-1835] Pruitt, A.B. Abstracts of Deeds, Greenville County, S.C. [1787-1835]. Multi-volume. n.p.: A.B. Pruitt, 1997-2007.

Greenville County has placed the following records from their land and probates records online.

Greenville County Register of Deeds

Conveyance Books 1865 to 1872 Book AA 1865 - 1868 - 562 Viewable Page(s) Book BB 1868 - 1870 - 531 Viewable Page(s) Book CC 1870 - 1871 - 417 Viewable Page(s) Book DD 1872 - 1872 - 443 Viewable Page(s) Grantee Indexes 1787 to 1913 Book A 1897, 1900 - 1912 - 272 Viewable Page(s) Book G 1801 - 1819 - 188 Viewable Page(s) Book H 1819 - 1837 - 245 Viewable Page(s) Book I 1838 - 1846 - 85 Viewable Page(s) Real Estate Mortgage Books 1879, 1887 to 1889, 1893 to 1894, 1900 to 1901 Book II 1893 - 1894, 1901 - 585 Viewable Page(s) Book J 1879 - 422 Viewable Page(s) Book UU 1900 - 1901 - 459 Viewable Page(s) Book W 1887 - 519 Viewable Page(s) Book X 1887 - 1889 - 519 Viewable Page(s)

Warrants for Surveys 1868 to 1880

Greenville County Probate Court Records

Account Book 1896 to 1905, 154 pages

Estate Records over 80,000 pages

Guardian and Trustee Accounts 1865 to 1878, 410 pages

Index to Estate Papers 1787 to 1976

Miscellaneous Administration and Guardianship Bonds

1816 to 1857, 1874 to 1905 1837 - 1848 - 191 Viewable Page(s) 1845 - 1857 - 217 Viewable Page(s) 1874 - 1888, 1894 - 214 Viewable Page(s) 1888 - 1905 - 481 Viewable Page(s) Book A, 1816 - 1838 - 250 Viewable Page(s)

Returns 1817 to 1824, 27 pages

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.

The organization Strictly By Name provides free online indexes to early Greenville District land plats. They offer a record retrieval service to photocopy and transcribe microfilm copies of the original documents for a small fee. Available indexes:


 * Greenville District Land Plats, Vol. D: 1786, 1788-1799
 * Greenville District Land Plats, Vol. E: 1794-1799, 1803
 * Greenville District Land Plats, Vol. F: 1799, 1801-1803

Local Histories

 * Crittenden, S.S. The Greenville Century Book: Comprising an Account of the First Settlement of the County, and the Founding of the City of Greenville, S.C. Greenville, S.C.: Greenville News, 1903. Digital version at Google Books.
 * Richardson, James McDowell. History of Greenville County, South Carolina: Narrative and Biographical. Atlanta, Ga.: A.H. Cawston, 1930. ; digital version at Ancestry ($).

General

 * "Musters and Muster grounds 1794-1836," Greenville County Historical Society Proceedings and Papers, 1964, Volume 2. Greenville County Historical Society : Greenville, SC.

Revolutionary War

 * "William and Behethland Foote Moore butler bio., 1764-1853," Greenville Chapter Journal, Winter 2007, Volume 18, Issues 1-2. Greenville Chapter, South Carolina Genealogical Society : Greenville, SC.
 * "Battle of the Cane Brake, 1775," Upper South Carolina Genealogy and History, August 2006, Volume 20, Issue 3. Piedmont Historical Society : Spartansburg, SC.
 * "Colonel John Thomas reminiscences and family, 1800s-1900s," Upper South Carolina Genealogy and History, August 2006, Volume 20, Issue 3. Piedmont Historical Society : Spartansburg, SC. Also War of 1812.
 * "Selected final pension vouchers index, 1818-1864," Old Pendleton District Newsletter, March 2006, Volume 20, Issue 3. Old Pendleton District Chapter, South Carolina Genealogical Society : Easley, SC.
 * "Lebanon Church monument to Revolutionary soldiers, 1770s - 1850s," Upper South Carolina Genealogy and History, November 2005, Volume 19, Issue 4. Piedmont Historical Society : Spartansburg, SC.
 * "Battle of the Great Cane Brake on the Reedy River, 1775," Greenville County Historical Society Proceedings and Papers, 2005, Volume 12. Greenville County Historical Society : Greenville, SC.

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; digital versions at Google Books and Internet Archive. [See Vol. 5, South Carolina, Greenville County, p. 185. Identifies War of 1812 veterans living in this county in 1883.]

Civil War 1861-1865

 * Units From Greenville County. Internet site, accessed 12/30/2010. Lists rosters for the 16th South Carolina Headquarters and Command, references to other units associated with Greenville County soldiers, and resource materials.

Newspapers
Greenville News Obituary Index

Probate
Greenville County has placed some of their probate records online.

The record sets below are viewable.

Will Books 1820 to 1907 Book B, 1820 - 1840 - 298 Viewable Page(s) Book C, 1840 - 1853 - 519 Viewable Page(s) Book D - E, 1853 - 1881 - 294 Viewable Page(s) Book F - G, 1881 - 1897 - 654 Viewable Page(s) Book H, 1896 - 1907 - 81 Viewable Page(s)

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.

Vital Records
Marriage


 * Holcomb, Brent H. Marriage and Death Notices from the Up-Country of South Carolina as Taken from Greenville Newspapers, 1826-1863. Columbia, SC, USA: SCMAR, 1983. ; digital version at Ancestry ($).

Death


 * Holcomb, Brent H. Marriage and Death Notices from the Up-Country of South Carolina as Taken from Greenville Newspapers, 1826-1863. Columbia, SC, USA: SCMAR, 1983. ; digital version at Ancestry ($).

Web Sites

 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * Family History Library Catalog
 * Greenville County, South Carolina Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)