12 Oldest Towns in South Carolina That Still Exist Today

#SouthCarolina #SouthCarolinaHistory #HistoricTowns Some South Carolina towns are older than the United States itself. But determining which communities are truly the oldest is more complicated than simply checking an incorporation date, because some began as trading posts, others as colonial townships, courthouse villages, planned capitals, or settlements that later moved entirely. In 12 Oldest Towns in South Carolina — The #1 Began Before America Existed, we travel from the Upstate to the Lowcountry through communities whose histories stretch across centuries. You’ll see a town created as a county seat in 1790, another deliberately designed as South Carolina’s new capital in 1786, and a colonial settlement whose identity can be traced through several competing dates. The deeper stories become even stranger as the countdown continues. One community was burned during the American Revolution and later shifted roughly two miles when the railroad arrived. Georgetown grew into an important colonial port, while Beaufort’s story connects plantation wealth, emancipation, Reconstruction, and some of the Lowcountry’s most recognizable historic architecture. And then there is number one—a South Carolina city whose origins reach all the way back to 1670, more than a century before American independence. 🕐 CHAPTERS 0:00 South Carolina’s Oldest Surviving Towns 1:09 No. 12 — Pendleton: From Frontier to County Seat 1:58 No. 11 — Newberry: The Courthouse Village 2:50 No. 10 — Spartanburg: Before the Industrial City 3:42 No. 9 — Columbia: A Capital Built on Purpose 4:27 No. 8 — Winnsboro: A Revolutionary-Era Survivor 5:26 No. 7 — Camden: Which Founding Date Is Correct? 6:41 No. 6 — Cheraw: Trade, River, and Two Wars 7:37 No. 5 — Orangeburg: The Complicated Beginning 8:49 No. 4 — Ninety Six: Burned, Rebuilt, and Moved 10:04 No. 3 — Georgetown: South Carolina’s Colonial Port 11:12 No. 2 — Beaufort: Three Centuries of Lowcountry History 12:40 No. 1 — Charleston: Before America Existed 14:16 What These 12 Towns Reveal 📌 TOPICS COVERED Pendleton — Established as Pendleton County’s seat in 1790 and shaped by the old Cherokee Path. Newberry — Grew from an early courthouse settlement created in the first years of the republic. Spartanburg — Began around a courthouse and jail before railroads and cotton mills transformed it. Columbia — Deliberately created in 1786 as South Carolina shifted political influence inland. Winnsboro — A Revolutionary-era village that survived war, Reconstruction, and modernization. Camden — A colonial community with important milestones in 1733, 1758, and 1768. Cheraw — A Great Pee Dee River trading town repeatedly touched by American warfare. Orangeburg — A community whose history illustrates the difference between first settlement and formal development. Ninety Six — A colonial trading settlement that was burned, rebuilt, and later shifted toward the railroad. Georgetown — Laid out in 1729 and developed into an important colonial port. Beaufort — Founded in 1711 and deeply connected to Lowcountry plantation history, emancipation, and Reconstruction. Charleston — Founded in 1670 and the oldest city featured in the countdown. 🔔 Subscribe to American Lens for more honest stories about America’s towns, forgotten history, everyday life, and the places behind the postcard. 💬 Which of these 12 South Carolina towns surprised you most, and is there another historic town you think should have made the list? 👍 If you enjoy discovering the hidden history behind familiar American places, give the video a like. DISCLAIMER: Historical founding dates can vary depending on whether a community is measured by first settlement, township creation, formal layout, charter, or incorporation. This video follows the historical milestones presented in the supplied script and explains important date differences where they affect the ranking. #HistoricSouthCarolina #SouthCarolinaTowns #Charleston #Beaufort #GeorgetownSC #CamdenSC #ColonialAmerica #AmericanHistory #SmallTownAmerica #HistoricAmerica #AmericanLens