Sumter County, South Carolina

Sumter County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 105,556. Its county seat is Sumter.

Sumter County comprises the Sumter, SC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Columbia-Sumter-Orangeburg, SC Combined Statistical Area. The county is also part of "The Midlands" area.

It is the home of Shaw AFB, headquarters to the 9th Air Force, AFCENT, United States Army Central, with a number of other tenant units. It is one of largest bases in the USAF's Air Combat Command.

History
Sumter County was created from Clarendon, Claremont and Salem Counties as Sumter District in 1798, named after General Thomas Sumter, and became effective in 1800. When the home of Sumter District's clerk of records burnt in 1801, the formative records of the three predecessor counties were also destroyed in the conflagration. So documentary evidence that the three counties were within St. Mark's Parish (formed in 1757 from Prince Frederick's Parish, Craven County) in Camden District (formed 1769) derives from family genealogies and legislative records.

On December 19, 1855, a legislative act was passed partitioning Sumter District by forming Clarendon District, with the same boundaries as defined for Clarendon County in 1785. When effectuated in 1857, a northeastern part of Sumter District (formerly in Salem County) was also separated in the partition (the area east of a line drawn from the northernmost point of old Clarendon County continued north-northeasterly to a point on the boundary line with Darlington District (Sumter County's northeastern cornerpoint abutting Florence County since 1888).

The Sumter District gained a form of self-rule and was renamed Sumter County under the 1868 Constitution.

In 1898, a northwestern part of Sumter County was detached to form part of the first Lee County, but its formation was declared unconstitutional in 1899. In 1902, an even larger northern part of Sumter County (more or less the remaining part of former Salem County) was properly legally detached to form the major sections of the current Lee County, of which some acreage reverted in 1914.

In 1921, southern Sumter County received a section from Clarendon County, of which some acreage reverted in 1922, creating the current boundaries of Sumter County.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 682.09 sqmi, of which 665.08 sqmi is land and 17.01 sqmi (2.49%) is water. It is drained by the Black River and its tributaries. Its western border is formed by the Wateree River. One of South Carolina's most famous areas are the High Hills of Santee comprising the western part of the county. The county is one of five that borders Lake Marion, also known as South Carolina's "Inland Sea".

State and local protected areas/sites

 * Bland Tract Dove Field, Manchester State Forest (MSF) Wildlife Management Area
 * Manchester State Forest (part)
 * Millford Plantation Historic Site
 * Poinsett State Park
 * Swan Lake Iris Gardens
 * Tuomey Tract Dove Field, Manchester State Forest (MSF) Wildlife Management Area
 * Woods Bay State Park (part)

Major water bodies

 * Congaree River
 * Lake Marion
 * Lynches River
 * Pocoaligo River
 * Rocky Bluff Swamp
 * Scape Ore Swamp
 * Wateree River

Adjacent counties

 * Lee County – north
 * Florence County – northeast
 * Clarendon County – south
 * Calhoun County – southwest
 * Richland County – west
 * Kershaw County – northwest

Major infrastructure

 * Shaw Air Force Base
 * Sumter Airport

2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 105,556 people, 44,105 households, and 29,777 families residing in the county.

2010 census
At the 2010 census, there were 107,456 people, 40,398 households, and 28,311 families residing in the county. The population density was 161.6 PD/sqmi. There were 46,011 housing units at an average density of 69.2 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the county was 48.2% white, 46.9% black or African American, 1.1% Asian, 0.4% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 1.4% from other races, and 1.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.3% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 7.2% were Subsaharan African, 6.9% were American, 6.1% were English, 5.9% were German, and 5.7% were Irish.

Of the 40,398 households, 36.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% were married couples living together, 20.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.9% were non-families, and 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.11. The median age was 35.4 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $39,137 and the median income for a family was $45,460. Males had a median income of $36,101 versus $28,421 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,944. About 15.5% of families and 19.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.1% of those under age 18 and 14.7% of those age 65 or over.

Economy
In 2022, the GDP was $5 billion (about $48,450 per capita), and the real GDP was $4.2 billion (about $40,489 per capita) in chained 2017 dollars.

As of April 2024, some of the largest employers in the county include Becton Dickinson, Central Carolina Technical College, the city of Sumter, Continental AG, the United States Department of Defense, Eaton Corporation, SKF, JCPenney, Pilgrim's Pride, Prisma Health, Speedway, and Walmart.

Education
All areas in the county are in the Sumter County Consolidated School District. Additionally, the University of South Carolina Sumter is located in the county.

Cities

 * Sumter (county seat and largest community)

Towns

 * Mayesville
 * Pinewood
 * Rembert

Census-designated places

 * Cane Savannah
 * Cherryvale
 * Dalzell
 * East Sumter
 * Lakewood
 * Millwood
 * Mulberry
 * Oakland
 * Oswego
 * Privateer
 * Shiloh
 * South Sumter
 * Stateburg
 * Wedgewood

Unincorporated communities

 * Horatio
 * Wedgewood

Notable people

 * Ray Allen, NBA basketball player
 * Richard H. Anderson, Confederate lieutenant general
 * Mary McLeod Bethune, civil rights activist, feminist, stateswoman, educator, and founder of the National Council of Negro Women; born to parents who had been enslaved
 * William Ellison, slave who was freed and settled in Stateburg where he became a large-scale slave owner and lived his life
 * David DuBose Gaillard, in charge of the building of the central portion of the Panama Canal
 * Sarah Ann Haynsworth Gayle (1804–1835), diarist
 * Richard Irvine Manning I, 50th governor of South Carolina
 * Richard Irvine Manning III, 92nd governor of South Carolina
 * George L. Mabry, Jr., major general, Congressional Medal of Honor recipient, and highly decorated soldier of WWII
 * Slomon Moody, physician, farmer, and city treasurer of Ocala, Florida
 * Franklin J. Moses Jr., Governor of South Carolina from 1872 to 1874; enemies labelled him the "Robber Governor"
 * Ja Morant, NBA basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies
 * Bill Pinkney, performer, singer, and member of The Drifters
 * Freddie Solomon, NFL wide receiver
 * Angelica Singleton Van Buren, Martin Van Buren's daughter-in-law and acting first lady of the United States during his presidency