South Carolina
South Carolina names 2 different subjects across the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf. Each is set out below. 1 of them is described by more than one encyclopedia.
South Carolina one of the original states of the American Union
Described by 2 of the 6 encyclopedias.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
one of the original states of the American Union. It is popularly known as "The Palmetto State." It lies on the Atlantic between Georgia and North Carolina . The state is irregularly triangular in shape with the short side resting on the ocean and the apex in the mountains. Area, 33,393 square miles. The state is well watered. The rivers run southeastward into the Atlantic. The best known are the "Broad Santee" and the Savannah on the southern border. Like those of North Carolina, they are navigable inward to the "fall line" or granite beach, over which the streams descend into the coast plain. CHARACTERISTICS. Three physical divisions of coastal plain, piedmont, and mountain are clearly marked. Along the coast the tides rise and fall from three to nine feet and rush inland from ten to thirty miles. The lowlands along the streams are inclosed with dikes through which the fresh water at low tide is allowed to flood the rice fields in season, and by which the water may be kept out when it is necessary to have the fields dry for seeding and harvest. This is the region, not only of rice fields, but of long staple cotton and of truck gardening and of the orange, fig, live oak, and palmetto. Early peas, cabbage, and beans are shipped to the large cities. Farther inland lie two parallel belts, a lower and an upper. In the uplands, turpentine and pine lumber are the chief products. The lowlands produce corn and cotton. Asparagus, early potatoes, watermelons, and cantaloupes are raised for the Northern market. Sweet potatoes grow to perfection, 400 bushels to the acre. Frost interferes with the garden so little that fresh vegetables may be had from the garden every day in the year. A fifty-mile belt of red sand hills forms the borderline between the coast plain and the foothills. It is well adapted to raising peaches, grapes, corn, cotton, and melons. The piedmont or foothill region is full of rapids and valuable waterpowers awaiting development. The sands of nearly every stream contain more or less gold. There are quarries of millstone, granite, limestone, marble, talc, mica, slate, and asbestos. There are thirty-one small gold mines and veins of tin, silver, iron, lead, and copper. Rubies, beryl, and corundum are found. The extreme western corner of the state lies in the mountains. King's Mountain rises to a height of 1,692 feet. Its southeastern face is a bold precipice 500 feet high. Table Rock, another noted mountain, has a vertical face on the southwest of 900 feet. This part of the state is much frequented during the warm season. The valleys are fertile and rich in corn and orchards. An abundance of the best quality of cotton and extensive water power has led to a recent development of cotton spinning. In this line of manufacture South Carolina ranks second to Massachusetts. The transmission of power by electricity promises much for the state. The total value of manufactured products for 1900 was $59,682,110. In point of value, the chief crops of the state rank, cotton, grain, live stock and dairy products, vegetables, hay, tobacco. Cotton brings in a full half of the farmer's income. HISTORICAL. The first attempt of Europeans to settle in the New World was made by French Huguenots at Port Royal, May 27, 1562. They lost their supplies by fire and returned to France. A century later, in 1670 to be exact, the English founded a permanent colony at the present site of Charleston. Carolina was granted to eight proprietors in 1665. Slavery was introduced in 1671. Settlers from England were reinforced by many Huguenot settlers from France, Highlanders from Scotland after the defeat of Culloden, and refugees from Pennsylvania and Virginia after Braddock's defeat. The early colonists trafficked with the Indians for furs and game. The colony never suffered severely from Indian hostilities. Cattle were introduced at an early date. Until 1882 cattle had the freedom of the country, when a law was passed requiring each owner to restrain his own stock. Up to that time each farmer was required to protect his own crops. At the time of the Revolution the exports of Carolina, chiefly rice and indigo, were already $5,000,000 a year. The colony was prosperous and had little cause for complaint, yet cast in its lot with the other colonies most loyally. Beginning with the gallant defense of Palmetto Fort in Charleston Harbor by Colonel Moultrie, there were 137 engagements with the British within her borders. The colonies rang with the exploits of Sumter, Marion, Pickens, and other partisan leaders. South Carolina contributed both men and money far above her quota, ranking next to Massachusetts. The state ceded its western lands to the general government. In 1790 the capital was removed from Charleston to Columbia. During the early decades of the Republic, South Carolina sent men of ability to Congress and took a prominent part in national politics. Owing to the adaptability of slave labor to the cultivation of rice and cotton, slavery took root firmly. At the approach of the Civil War, South Carolina was the first to secede. The state furnished 71,088 soldiers to the Confederacy. EDUCATION. A double system of public education has been provided, one for whites and one for colored children. There is a state university for whites at Columbia and a collegiate institution for colored students at Orangeburg. POPULATION. In 1900 the population was reported at 1,340,316. Of this total 782,224, or fifty-eight per cent, were negroes. In 1880 the negroes formed sixty per cent of the population. The negroes are prevented from voting by public sentiment and an educational clause. One-fifth of the people live in towns. Charleston is the largest city. At the time of the Revolution, it ranked next to Philadelphia, New York and Boston. It is now the sixty-eighth city in the Union. STATISTICS. The following statistics are the latest to be had from trustworthy sources: Land area, square miles 30,170 Water area 400 Population (1906) 1,453,818 Charleston (1909) 56,573 Columbia 26,288 Greenville (1906) 13,810 Spartanburg 14,905 Number counties 44 Members of state senate 41 Representatives 124 Salary of governor $3,000 U. S. representatives 7 Presidential electors 9 Assessed valuation of property $250,000,000 Bonded indebtedness $6,500,000 State revenue $2,500,000 Acres of improved land 5,775,000 Agricultural Products- Corn, bushels 29,000,000 Wheat, bushels 2,835,000 Oats, bushels 4,000,000 Potatoes, bushels 729,000 Rye, bushels 58,000 Tobacco, pounds 25,000,000 Rice, bushels 480,000 Cotton, pounds 534,000,000 Butter, pounds 8,000,000 Wool, pounds 200,000 Eggs, dozens 9,000,000 Domestic Animals- Horses 85,000 Mules 141,000 Milk cows 139,000 Other cattle 225,000 Sheep 58,000 Goats 27,000 Swine 685,000 Fowls 3,000,000 Exports $1,082,000 Imports $3,500,000 Manufacturing establishments, 1905 1,399 Capital invested $113,000,000 Operatives 59,441 Raw material $50,000,000 Output of manufactures $80,000,000 Output of cotton goods $49,000,000 Lumber products $7,000,000 Output of gold $79,000 Phosphate, tons 257,000 Clay products $843,000 Quarry products $258,000 Miles of railway 3,253 Teachers in public schools 6,228 Pupils enrolled 314,000 Percentage of male teachers 39.8 Average monthly salary of teachers $37.70 Average annual expenditure per pupil $6.37 See Charleston; Calhoun ; Rice ; Cotton ; Nullification
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a State in the South Atlantic Division of the North by North Caro- American Union; bounded b lina, Tennessee, Georgia, and the Atlantic Ocean; n; one of the original 13 States; number of counties, 40; capital, Columbia; area, 30,170 square miles; population (1910) 1,515,400; (1920) 1,683,724. Topography. The State has a seaboard of 210 miles, and running W. from this is a low, sandy, and in places, marshy plain, from 80 to 100 miles wide. Beyond the plain is what is known as the middle country, consisting of low sand hills. A series of terraces rises W. of this and terminates in the Blue Ridge Mountains, passing through the N. W. of The highest elevation in the State. South Carolina is Table Mountain, 4,000 feet, on the Tennessee border. The principal river, the Santee, is 150 miles long, and is formed by the junction of the Wateree and Congaree. This latter river is formed by the union of the Broad and Saluda rivers. Other important rivers are Cooper and Ashley, emptying into Charleston harbor; the Edisto and Cambabee into St. Helena Sound; the Great Pedee, Little Pedee, Waccamaw, and Black, emptying into Wingah Bay; and the Oosawhatchie into Port Royal Harbor. Geology and Mineralogy. A geological break passing through the center of the State divides it into two distinct formations. The "up country" in the W. is of Primary origin, and the "low country" in the E. is of Tertiary, with occasional outcroppings of the Cretaceous. mountain region in the N. W. has The gneiss as its characteristic rock, with granite, hornblende, slates, limestones and clay. The chief mineral products are phosphate rock, granite, and clay products. A small amount of gold is produced, as well as some silver, iron ore and lime. The total value of the mineral output is about $1,500,000_annually. either loam or clay, rich in phosphate, Agriculture. The soil is, as a rule, lime, and potash. Cotton, maize, wheat, rice, and sweet potatoes are the chief The magnolia and palmetto staples. grow abundantly along the coast, pine and cypress characterize the low country, and hardwoods the highlands. The acreage, production, and value of the principal crops in 1919 was as follows: corn, 2,340,000 acres, production 37,440,- 000 bushels, value $73,757,000; oats, 510,000 acres, production 11,730,000 bushels, value $12,903,000; wheat, 204,- 000 acres, production 1,836,000 bushels, value $4,737,000; tobacco, 135,000 acres, production 81,000,000 pounds, value $18,- 468,000; hay, 275,000 acres, production 358,000 tons, value $11,098,000; peanuts, 13,000 acres, production 585,000 bushels, value $1,708,000; potatoes, 27,bushels, 000 acres, production 2,295,000 000 value $4,590,000; sweet potatoes, 84,000 acres, production 7,560,000 bushels, value $11,189,000; cotton, 2,881,000 acres, production 1,475,000 bales, value $263,288,- 000. Manufactures. - In 1914 there were 1,885 manufacturing establishments in the State. These gave employment to 71,914 wage-earners. The capital invested was $203,211,000, the amount paid in wages was $24,173,000, the value of the materials used $91,009,000, and the value of the finished product $138,891,000. The principal industries were cotton manufactures, lumber and timber products, fertilizers, cottonseed oil and cake, flour and grist mill products, planing mill products, rice cleaning and polishing, turpentine and rosin, railroad cars, cotton ginning, and brick and tile. Banking. On Oct. 31, 1919, there were reported 79 National banks in operation, having $9,605,000 in capital: $7,008,000 in outstanding circulation; and $27,599,- 000 in United States bonds. There were also 342 State banks, with $13,286,000 capital, and $6,062,000 surplus. Commerce. The imports of merchandise at the port of Charleston in the fiscal year 1920 aggregated in value $13,- 941,871; and the exports $32,474,625. Education.- School attendance in the State is not compulsory, but the employment of illiterate children in factories or mines is restricted. Separate schools are maintained for white and colored children. In 1918 there were 194,687 white and 199,780 colored children enrolled in the schools. There were 2,464 public schools for white children and 2,408 schools for negro children. There were 5,620 white teachers and 3,013 negro teachers. The State appropriated in that year for schools $497,500. In 1909 there was enacted an elaborate general school law. The colleges include Claflin College, at Orangeburg; Woffard College, at Spartanburg; Furman University, at Greenville; South Carolina College, at Columbia; and Newberry College, at Newberry. Churches. The strongest denominations in the State are the African Methodist; Regular Baptist, Colored; Regular Baptist, South; Methodist Episcopal, South; Methodist Episcopal; Presbyterian, South; Lutheran, United Synod; Protestant Episcopal; Presbyterian, North; Roman Catholic; Disciples of Christ; Associate Presbyterian; and Methodist Protestant. Railroads. The total length of railroads within the State on Jan. 1, 1919, was 3,824 miles. Finances. The total receipts for the year ending Dec. 31, 1919, were $7,195,- 109, and the expenditures amounted to $6,913,500. The public debt of the State on Dec. 31, 1919, was $5,577,804. Charities and Corrections. - The State maintains a number of charitable institutions, including a hospital for the insane, an asylum for the deaf, dumb and blind, 9 orphanages, 10 hospitals, and 10 homes for adults and children, which are maintained chiefly by private charity. State Government. The governor is elected for a term of two years. Legislative sessions are held annually beginning on the second Tuesday in January, and are limited in time to 40 days each. The Legislature has 44 members in the Senate and 124 in the House. There are 7 Representatives in Congress. History. The first settlement in South Carolina was attempted in 1562 by a colony of French Protestant exiles, who named it Carolina in honor of their monarch, Charles IX., King of France. In 1663, Charles II., King of England, granted a charter to a company of English nobles, and under their auspices the first successful settlement was made at Port Royal, previously founded by the French. In 1680 the foundation of Charleston was laid. During the Revolution important battles occurred at Charleston, Fort Moultrie, Cowpens, Camden, King's Mountain, and Eutaw Springs. The State constitution was adopted in 1776, and the Constitution of the United States was ratified in 1788. South Carolina was the first State to secede from the Union, on Dec. 20, 1860. The first hostile act in the Civil War was the bombardment of Fort Sumter, in April, 1861. During the war the State suffered greatly, her harbors were blockaded, and much property was destroyed by the Fed. eral soldiers on the great march under General Sherman. In 1865 the ordinance of secession was repealed and slavery abolished. A new constitution, establishing perfect equality between the white and the colored races, was voted in 1868; and in the same year the ratification of the 15th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States being carried by a vote of 18 to 1 in the Senate and 88 to 3 in the House, the State was readmitted to representation in Congress.
South Carolina UNIVERSITY OF, a coeducational non-sectarian institution in Columbia
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
UNIVERSITY OF, a coeducational non-sectarian institution in Columbia, S. C.; founded in 1801; reported at the close of 1919; Professors and instructors, 37; students, 508; president, W. S. CARRELL, LL.D.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
Aiton's noted in 1910 that South Carolina's population was 58 per cent Black and that "the negroes are prevented from voting by public sentiment and an educational" test; the Great Migration reversed that balance, and the state today is roughly 26 per cent Black out of about 5.4 million people, with disfranchisement ended by the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the segregated "double system" of schools struck down by Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, one of whose five consolidated cases came from Clarendon County. The rice fields behind their dikes, described as the signature of the low country, had all but vanished by the 1920s, and the cotton-spinning boom that then ranked the state "second to Massachusetts" collapsed in the late twentieth century as mills closed. In their place came BMW's plant at Spartanburg, opened in 1994, Boeing's 787 line at North Charleston from 2011, and a tourism economy centred on Charleston, Hilton Head and Myrtle Beach. Archaeology has also revised the settlement story: the Spanish town of Santa Elena, occupied from 1566 on Parris Island, was excavated from the 1970s and shows the French Huguenot venture of 1562 was neither the first nor the last European try at the coast.
Written for this edition, 2026.