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State Census Schedules

1829, 1839, 1868, 1869, and 1875


Population Schedules
Four state population schedules survive for South Carolina: the 1829 schedules for Fairfield and Laurens Districts; the 1839 schedules for Kershaw and Chesterfield Districts; the 1869 schedules for all counties except Kershaw, Oconee, and Spartanburg; complete 1875 schedules for Clarendon, Newberry, and Marlboro counties and partial 1875 schedules for Abbeville, Beaufort, Fairfield, Lancaster, and Sumter counties.
These schedules list only heads of households by name. All other individuals in the households are listed in age categories or groups. Only the Fairfield schedule for 1829 has an index. The Laurens schedule for 1829 and both schedules for 1839 are arranged alphabetically by surname.

The 1869 census is especially important; it is the first state schedule to enumerate former slaves by name, and it can also be used to locate blacks and whites with the same surname who lived near each other; the latter information may help you identify former slaveowners whose records you can search to get more information about slaves.

Agricultural Schedules
State agricultural schedules for 1868 and 1875 survive for South Carolina. There are no indexes available to these records.

The 1868 census consists of twenty-six counties: Abbeville, Anderson, Barnwell, Beaufort, Charleston, Colleton, Darlington, Edgefield, Fairfield, Georgetown, Greenville, Kershaw, Lancaster, Laurens, Lexington, Marlboro, Newberry, Oconee, Orangeburg, Pickens, Richland, Spartanburg, Sumter, Union, Williamsburg, and York.

The 1875 State Agricultural Census consists of eight counties: Aiken (Silverton Township), Beaufort (Lawton, Pocotaligo, and Bluffton Townships), Charleston (Sullivan s Island and Moultrieville Townships), Clarendon (New Zion and Midway Townships), Darlington (Colfax, Fludd, and Grant Townships), Marlboro (Bennettsville, Brownsville, Red Bluff, and Hebron Townships), Newberry (Stoney Battery, Cannon, Caldwell, Maybinton, Hellen, and Newberry Townships), and Sumter (Middleton and Statesburg Townships).

Once you have located an individual on these schedules you will find information about the amount and types of crops and livestock, and data about the number of acres of land under cultivation.