South Carolina from A to Z

“S” is for South Carolina Railroad. In the early nineteenth century, Charleston sought to bolster its economy by attempting to attract trade from the west.

“S” is for South Carolina Public Service Authority. The South Carolina Public Service Authority (better known as Santee Cooper) was established by the General Assembly in 1934 with the power to provide for navigation and flood control on the Santee, Congaree, and Cooper Rivers; to generate electricity; to reclaim swampland; and to reforest the state’s watersheds.

“S” is for South Carolina-North Carolina border. In 1735 the two colonies appointed a joint boundary commission that agreed the boundary should begin at a point thirty miles south of the Cape Fear River. Because of surveying errors, South Carolina's northern boundary was eleven miles south of where it should have been.

“S” is for South Carolina National Heritage Corridor. The South Carolina National Heritage Corridor is a grassroots-led heritage tourism initiative that brings together communities throughout a fourteen county region from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Oconee County to the Atlantic Ocean along Charleston and Colleton Counties.

“S “is for South Carolina Medical Association. The South Carolina Medical Association (SCMA) was founded in 1848 in an effort to organize physicians from across the state.

“P” is for Preservation Society of Charleston. Founded in 1920, the Preservation Society of Charleston is the oldest community-based historic preservation organization in the United States.

“P” is for Presbyterian College. A liberal arts college affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and located in Clinton, South Carolina, Presbyterian College was founded in 1880 by William Plumer Jacobs.

“P” is for Pratt, Nathaniel Alpheus (1834-1906). Chemist, engineer, inventor.

“P” is for Praise houses. Praise houses (sometimes called “prayer houses”) functioned on antebellum South Carolina plantations as both the epitome of slave culture and symbols of resistance to slaveholders’ version of Christianity.

"M “is for Mullis, Kary Banks (1944-2011). Scientist.

“M” is for Mullins (Marion County; 2020 population 4,026).

“C” is for Coogler, John Gordon (1865-1901). Poet.

“C” is for Conway (Horry County; 2020 population 24,849). Conway, originally named Kingston Village, was established on a bluff of the Waccamaw River about 1735.

“C” is for Converse College. Converse College was founded in 1889 by a group of Spartanburg leaders to provide for the education of young middle-class women.

“B” is for Brewton, Miles (1731-1775). Merchant, legislator.

“B” is for Brawley, Edward McKnight (1851-1923). Missionary, educator.

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (or SLED) is a highly visible investigative agency with origins that date back to 1947 when Governor Strom Thurmond issued an executive order creating the crime fighting organization with statewide authority.

In 1869 the General Assembly established the South Carolina Land Commission to purchase land for sale in plots of between twenty-five and one hundred acres, which would then be sold to landless African Americans.

“S” is for South Carolina Jockey Club. The earliest record of horse racing in South Carolina is February 1734.

“S” is for South Carolina Manufacturers Alliance. The South Carolina Manufacturers Alliance (SCMA), a powerful networking, information, and lobbying group for the state's varied manufacturing industries, began as an organization for cotton mill owners in 1902.

“S” is for South Carolina Lunatic Asylum / State Hospital. The South Carolina Lunatic Asylum, located on Bull Street in Columbia, was established by the General Assembly in 1821 but did not open until 1828.

“W” is for Wofford College. A four year liberal arts college in Spartanburg, Wofford College was founded with a $100,000 bequest from Methodist minister and Spartanburg native Benjamin Wofford.

“W” is for WIS Radio and Television. WIS Radio and Television stations in Colombia played an influential role in the development of South Carolina's media as a result of being among the state’s pioneer commercial broadcasters and located in the state’s capital city.

“W” is for Winthrop University. Located in Rock Hill, Winthrop University traces its roots to1886 when Winthrop Training School, a teacher-training school for Columbia teachers opened.

“S” is for Sirrine, Joseph Emory (1872-1947). Architect, engineer.