Bamberg County
County
St. Philips Episcopal Church
St. Philips Episcopal Church
Official seal of Bamberg County
Seal
Official logo of Bamberg County
Logo
Motto: 
"Bamberg County Naturally"
Map of South Carolina highlighting Bamberg County
Location within the U.S. state of South Carolina
Map of the United States highlighting South Carolina
South Carolina's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 33°12′11″N 81°03′11″W / 33.203021°N 81.053161°W / 33.203021; -81.053161
Country United States
State South Carolina
Founded1897
Named forFrancis Marion Bamberg[1]
SeatBamberg
Largest communityBamberg
Area
 • Total395.57 sq mi (1,024.5 km2)
 • Land393.37 sq mi (1,018.8 km2)
 • Water2.20 sq mi (5.7 km2)  0.56%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total13,311
 • Estimate 
(2022)
12,908
 • Density33.84/sq mi (13.07/km2)
Time zoneUTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district6th
Websitewww.bambergcountysc.gov

Bamberg County is a county located in the southwestern portion of U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,311,[2] making the rural county the fourth-least populous of any in South Carolina. Its county seat is Bamberg.[3]

Voorhees University (formerly Voorhees College), a historically black university, was established here in the late nineteenth century. It is affiliated with the Episcopal Church.

History

Part of an agricultural area since the antebellum years, this upland area was developed for the cultivation of short-staple cotton. As a result, African Americans have comprised a large portion of the workers and population for much of the county's history.

The rural county was created from the eastern portion of Barnwell County, under the new South Carolina Constitution adopted in 1895; it included an article prescribing the process to establish new counties.[4] The referendum on creating Bamberg County was held on January 19, 1897. The name Bamberg was selected to honor General Francis Marion Bamberg.[5] In 1919 and again in 1920, tiny portions of northwestern Colleton County were annexed to Bamberg County.

On January 9, 2024, A series of severe thunderstorms attacked the South Carolina Lowcountry region, leaving behind heavy rain, winds, and damage. Multiple areas reported trees down. An apparent tornado touched down near the downtown area of the County Seat and damaged least two buildings in downtown, with bricks strewn across the main road in the town, Thankfully, no one was injured. At the headquarters of Edisto Electric Cooperative on the edge of town, they reported that they experienced a tornado and posted multiple photos of damage to what appears to be a warehouse. The County Seat is focused on being rebuilt.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 395.57 square miles (1,024.5 km2), of which 393.37 square miles (1,018.8 km2) is land and 2.20 square miles (5.7 km2) (0.56%) is water.[6] It is the fourth-smallest county in South Carolina by land area and third-smallest by total area.

State and local protected areas

Major water bodies

Adjacent counties

Major highways

Major infrastructure

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
190017,296—
191018,5447.2%
192020,96213.0%
193019,410−7.4%
194018,643−4.0%
195017,533−6.0%
196016,274−7.2%
197015,950−2.0%
198018,11813.6%
199016,902−6.7%
200016,658−1.4%
201015,987−4.0%
202013,311−16.7%
2022 (est.)12,908[2]−3.0%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]
1790–1960[9] 1900–1990[10]
1990–2000[11] 2010[12] 2020[2]

2020 census

Bamberg County racial composition[13]
Race Num. Perc.
White (non-Hispanic) 5,010 37.64%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 7,749 58.22%
Native American 25 0.19%
Asian 66 0.5%
Other/Mixed 320 2.4%
Hispanic or Latino 141 1.06%

As of the 2020 census, there were 13,311 people, 5,334 households, and 3,355 families residing in the county.

2010 census

At the 2010 census, there were 15,987 people, 6,048 households, and 3,920 families living in the county.[14][12] The population density was 40.6 inhabitants per square mile (15.7/km2). There were 7,716 housing units at an average density of 19.6 per square mile (7.6/km2).[15] The racial makeup of the county was 61.5% black or African American, 36.1% white, 0.4% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.7% from other races, and 1.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.6% of the population.[14] In terms of ancestry, 5.1% were American, and 5.0% were German.[16]

Of the 6,048 households, 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.3% were married couples living together, 21.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 35.2% were non-families, and 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.07. The median age was 39.3 years.[14]

The median income for a household in the county was $32,538 and the median income for a family was $41,625. Males had a median income of $33,893 versus $27,324 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,236. About 23.6% of families and 29.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 40.7% of those under age 18 and 27.0% of those age 65 or over.[17]

2000 census

At the 2000 census,[18] there were 16,658 people, 6,123 households, and 4,255 families living in the county. The population density was 42 people per square mile (16 people/km2). There were 7,130 housing units at an average density of 18 per square mile (6.9/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 62.50% Black or African American, 36.47% White, 0.16% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.14% from other races, and 0.53% from two or more races. 0.71% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 6,123 households, out of which 31.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.60% were married couples living together, 21.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.50% were non-families. 27.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.40% under the age of 18, 12.90% from 18 to 24, 24.60% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 13.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 88.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.00 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $24,007, and the median income for a family was $29,360. Males had a median income of $25,524 versus $3 for females. The per capita income for the county was $12,584. About 23.90% of families and 27.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 87.00% of those under age 18 and 80% of those age 65 or over.[19]

Law and Government

The Bamberg county council is the governing body in the county. The council consists of seven members, elected from single-member districts:Sharon Hammond-District 2, Larry Haynes-District 3, Joe Guess, Jr- District 4, Isaiah Odom-District 5, Evert Comer, Jr- District 6, Clint Carter-District 7.

Politics

Prior to 1948, Bamberg County and South Carolina were Democratic Party strongholds similar to the rest of the Solid South, dominated by white Democrats. Most of the majority population of African Americans, who had supported the Republican Party during Reconstruction and the nineteenth century, had been disenfranchised by Democrats under the 1895 state constitution and related laws. These raised barriers to black voter registration and voting in South Carolina, as did similar laws across the South. After excluding blacks from the political system, the white-dominated legislature passed Jim Crow laws imposing legal segregation. Most blacks did not recover the ability to vote until years after passage of federal civil rights legislation in the mid-1960s.

As a result of the exclusion of black Republicans, white Democratic voters controlled elections in this state and others of the former Confederacy for decades, creating the Solid South. They elected Democratic presidential candidates by nearly unanimous margins of victory, while preserving all the power associated with apportionment based on total population.

The twenty years from 1948 to 1968 were transitional years for the politics of South Carolina and Bamberg County. President Harry Truman ordered integration of the military and took other initiatives on civil rights issues. Discontented with that direction, Southern Dixiecrat candidates twice carried the county, and Republican candidates carried the county three times in this timespan, twice before many African Americans began to vote.

Following Congressional passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as a consequence of the civil rights movement, most African Americans in Bamberg County supported the Democratic Party, but they did not get to full voting strength in the county until after the 1972 presidential election, in which conservative whites carried the county for incumbent Republican President Richard Nixon. He had gained considerable support among whites in the South, a sign of what has become a nearly total shifting of their alliance to the Republican Party. In elections since 1972, the majority of county voters, with the enfranchisement of African Americans, have backed a Republican presidential candidate only once, voting for the popular incumbent Ronald Reagan by 16 votes.

United States presidential election results for Bamberg County, South Carolina[20]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No. %No. %No. %
2020 2,417 37.29% 4,010 61.86% 55 0.85%
2016 2,204 35.47% 3,898 62.73% 112 1.80%
2012 2,194 31.88% 4,624 67.19% 64 0.93%
2008 2,309 33.89% 4,426 64.95% 79 1.16%
2004 2,138 35.42% 3,841 63.63% 57 0.94%
2000 2,047 36.88% 3,451 62.17% 53 0.95%
1996 1,715 32.29% 3,380 63.63% 217 4.09%
1992 1,906 33.28% 3,426 59.82% 395 6.90%
1988 2,403 45.73% 2,830 53.85% 22 0.42%
1984 2,908 49.87% 2,892 49.60% 31 0.53%
1980 2,098 38.69% 3,294 60.75% 30 0.55%
1976 1,849 35.45% 3,330 63.84% 37 0.71%
1972 2,537 59.65% 1,680 39.50% 36 0.85%
1968 1,327 27.70% 1,845 38.52% 1,618 33.78%
1964 2,366 62.51% 1,419 37.49% 0 0.00%
1960 1,652 64.53% 908 35.47% 0 0.00%
1956 326 17.40% 430 22.95% 1,118 59.66%
1952 1,407 65.23% 750 34.77% 0 0.00%
1948 34 1.82% 124 6.62% 1,715 91.56%
1944 106 10.18% 737 70.80% 198 19.02%
1940 13 1.42% 904 98.58% 0 0.00%
1936 5 0.32% 1,542 99.68% 0 0.00%
1932 15 0.93% 1,598 99.07% 0 0.00%
1928 4 0.51% 779 99.49% 0 0.00%
1924 7 0.96% 708 97.12% 14 1.92%
1920 0 0.00% 688 100.00% 0 0.00%
1916 0 0.00% 820 99.88% 1 0.12%
1912 3 0.48% 616 99.35% 1 0.16%
1904 23 2.58% 868 97.42% 0 0.00%
1900 36 4.34% 793 95.66% 0 0.00%

Communities

Cities

Towns

See also

References

  1. ↑ "History of Bamberg County". www.bambergcountysc.gov. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 "QuickFacts: Bamberg County, South Carolina". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
  3. ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  4. ↑ Article VII Archived 2009-03-31 at the Wayback Machine – Counties and County Government of the South Carolina Constitution
  5. ↑ Lawrence 2003: Chapter 6 – 1897–1899 Bamberg County Created.
  6. ↑ "2020 County Gazetteer Files – South Carolina". United States Census Bureau. August 23, 2022. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
  7. ↑ "SCDNR Public Lands". www2.dnr.sc.gov. Retrieved April 1, 2023.
  8. ↑ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  10. ↑ Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  11. ↑ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  12. 1 2 "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved November 22, 2013.
  13. ↑ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  14. 1 2 3 "DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved March 9, 2016.
  15. ↑ "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 – County". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved March 9, 2016.
  16. ↑ "DP02 Selected Social Characteristics in the United States – 2006–2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved March 9, 2016.
  17. ↑ "DP03 Selected Economic Characteristics – 2006–2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved March 9, 2016.
  18. ↑ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 14, 2011.
  19. ↑ US Census Bureau Demographics Data
  20. ↑ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 13, 2018.

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