Richland County, South Carolina

History

Richland County was probably named for its "rich land". The county was formed in 1785 as part of the large Camden District. A small part of Richland County was later ceded to adjacent Kershaw County in 1791. The county seat and largest city is Columbia, which is also the state capital. In 1786, the state legislature decided to move the capital from Charleston to a more central location. A site was chosen in Richland County, which is in the geographic center of the state, and a new town was laid out. Richland County's boundaries were formally incorporated on December 18, 1799. Cotton from the surrounding plantations was shipped through Columbia and later manufactured into textiles there. General William T. Sherman captured Columbia during the Civil War and his troops burned the town and parts of the county on February 17, 1865. The U. S. Army returned on friendlier terms in 1917, when Fort Jackson was established, which is now the largest and most active Initial Entry Training Center in the U.S. Army. The South Carolina State House is located in downtown Columbia.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 771.96 sqmi, of which 757.28 sqmi is land and 14.68 sqmi, or 1.90%, is water. Richland County is situated in the center of South Carolina.

National protected area

• Congaree National Park

State and local protected areas/sites

• Harbison State Forest
• Nipper Creek Heritage Preserve
• Riverbanks Zoo and Garden
• Sesquicentennial State Park
• South Carolina State Fair
• South Carolina State Museum
• Wateree Heritage Preserve/Wildlife Management Area

Major water bodies

• Broad River
• Congaree River
• Lake Murray
• Little River
• Saluda River
• Wateree River

Adjacent counties

• Kershaw County – northeast
• Fairfield County – north
• Sumter County – east
• Lexington County – west
• Calhoun County – south
• Newberry County – northwest

Demographics

|align-fn=center 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010 2020

Racial and ethnic composition

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 416,147 people and 165,679 households, while 90,802 families resided in the county. The median age was 35.7 years, 21.3% of residents were under the age of 18, and 14.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 90.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 87.7 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 42.6% White, 45.7% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.7% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.8% from some other race, and 5.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 6.3% of the population.

91.4% of residents lived in urban areas, while 8.6% lived in rural areas.

There were 182,408 housing units, of which 9.2% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 59.4% were owner-occupied and 40.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.9% and the rental vacancy rate was 10.7%.

2010 census

At the 2010 census, 384,504 people, 145,194 households, and 89,357 families were residing in the county.{{cite web |access-date=March 11, 2016 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213011623/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/DPDP1/0500000US45079 |archive-date=February 13, 2020 |url-status=dead |access-date=March 11, 2016 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213233944/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/GCTPH1.CY07/0500000US45079 |archive-date=February 13, 2020 |url-status=dead |access-date=March 11, 2016 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213013410/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP02/0500000US45079 |archive-date=February 13, 2020 |url-status=dead

Of the 145,194 households, 32.9% had children under 18 living with them, 39.6% were married couples living together, 17.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.5% were not families, and 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.43, and the average family size was 3.05. The median age was 32.6 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $47,922 and for a family was $61,622. Males had a median income of $42,453 versus $34,012 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,805. About 10.0% of families and 14.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.6% of those under age 18 and 9.7% of those age 65 or over.{{cite web |access-date=March 11, 2016 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213011238/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP03/0500000US45079 |archive-date=February 13, 2020 |url-status=dead

Law and government

Richland County is governed by a county council, who hold concurrent four-year terms. Richland County is governed under the Council-Administrator form of government, which is very similar to the council–manager form of government. The major difference between the council–manager and council–administrator forms of government is the title of the chief executive.

The South Carolina Department of Corrections, headquartered in Columbia and in Richland County, operates several correctional facilities in Columbia and in Richland County. They include the Broad River Correctional Institution, the Goodman Correctional Institution, the Camille Griffin Graham Correctional Institution, the Stevenson Correctional Institution, and the Campbell Pre-Release Center. Graham houses the state's female death row. The State of South Carolina execution chamber is located at Broad River. From 1990 to 1997 Broad River housed the state's male death row.

In March 2008, the Richland County Sheriff's Department acquired an armored personnel carrier equipped with a .50 caliber machine gun. Reason magazine criticized the acquisition as "overkill".

Politics

Richland County was one of the first areas of South Carolina to break away from a Solid South voting pattern. From 1948 to 1988, it only supported the official Democratic candidate for president once, in 1976. It voted for splinter Dixiecrat Strom Thurmond in 1948, and for unpledged electors in 1956.

Since 1992, Richland County has been one of the stronger Democratic bastions in South Carolina, following the trend of most urban counties across the country.

Economy

In 2022, the GDP was $32 billion (about $75,222 per capita), and the real GDP was $27.3 billion (about $64,302 per capita) in chained 2017 dollars.

Transportation

Interstates

• (Interstate 20) travels from west to east and connects Columbia to Atlanta and Augusta in the west and Florence in the east. It serves the nearby towns and suburbs of Pelion, Lexington, West Columbia, Sandhill, Pontiac, and Elgin. Interstate 20 is also used by travelers heading to Myrtle Beach, although the interstate's eastern terminus is in Florence.
• (Interstate 26) travels from northwest to southeast and connects the Columbia area to the other two major population centers of South Carolina: the Greenville–Spartanburg area in the northwestern part of the state and the North Charleston–Charleston area in the southeastern part of the state.
• (Interstate 77) begins in Lexington county and ends in Cleveland, Ohio, and is frequently used by travelers on the east coast heading to or from Florida.
• (Interstate 126) branches off from I-26 and leads into downtown Columbia and provides access to Riverbanks Zoo.

U.S. routes

State routes

Airports

The Jim Hamilton–L.B. Owens Airport operates over 56,000 aircraft annually, but is a smaller airport used mostly for small and private planes. The main airport for the region is the Columbia Metropolitan Airport, which is located in neighboring Lexington County. In 2018, the Columbia Metro Airport served 1,197,603 passengers with 12,324 flights.

Bus systems

Main article: The Comet (transit)

Public transportation in Richland County is provided by the COMET, or officially the Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority (CMRTA). The bus system is the main public transit system for the greater Columbia area and services approximately 2,800,000 passengers annually. In Richland County, the bus system runs in the areas of Columbia, Forest Acres, Fort Jackson, Irmo, St. Andrews, Northeast Richland, Lower Richland, and Eastover. Additionally, COMET offers Dial-a-ride transit (DART), which provides personalized service passengers with disabilities.

The University of South Carolina's transit system, which is maintained by COMET, services an additional 1,000,000 passengers annually.

Railway

Columbia has one Amtrak station (CLB) that serves over 30,000 passengers per year on the Silver Star rail line. Additionally, Richland County has an operating facility for CSX Transportation, a company that transports over one million carloads of freight on South Carolina's rail network.

Major infrastructure

• Columbia Station
• Fort Jackson
• McEntire Joint National Guard Base, U.S. Air Force base

Education

Public primary and secondary education

Colleges and universities

Public library

Healthcare

Attractions

• Congaree National Park
• Fort Jackson National Cemetery
• Harbison State Forest
• Lake Murray
• Palmetto Trail
• Richland Library
• Riverbanks Zoo
• Sesquicentennial State Park
• South Carolina State Fair
• South Carolina State Museum

Communities

Cities

• Cayce (mostly in Lexington County)
• Columbia (state capital, county seat, and largest community in the county; partly in Lexington County)
• Forest Acres

Towns

• Arcadia Lakes
• Blythewood (partly in Fairfield County)
• Eastover
• Elgin (mostly in Kershaw County)
• Irmo (mostly in Lexington County)

Census-designated places

• Arthurtown
• Capitol View
• Dentsville
• Gadsden
• Hopkins
• Lake Murray of Richland
• Olympia
• St. Andrews
• Woodfield

Unincorporated communities

• Bookman
• Horrell Hill
• Pontiac
• Wateree

Neighborhoods

• Boyden Arbor
• Cedar Creek
• Eau Claire
• Fairwold Acres
• Killian
• Kingville
• Leesburg
• Lykes
• Mountain Brook
• Riverside
• Spring Hill
• State Park
• Wateree
• Windsor Estates

Regions

• Dutch Fork
• Fort Jackson
• Intown/downtown
• Lower Richland
• Northeast Richland
• Upper Richland

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Richland County.

† = county seat

In popular culture

Richland County was one of several counties across the country used as a filming location for the A&E reality documentary series Live PD, which worked in collaboration with the Richland County Sheriff's Department. The show first premiered in 2016 and aired for four years until its cancellation in 2020. In 2022, an unofficial revival of the show, On Patrol: Live, aired on Reelz. It features Curtis Wilson from the Richland County Sheriff's Department as well as the Berkeley County Sheriff's Office.

Notes

References

References

1. "About Richland County". www.richlandcountysc.gov.
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13. (April 2, 2001). "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau.
14. "QuickFacts: Richland County, South Carolina". United States Census Bureau.
15. "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Richland County, South Carolina". United States Census Bureau.
16. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Richland County, South Carolina". United States Census Bureau.
17. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Richland County, South Carolina". United States Census Bureau.
18. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)".
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22. "Richland County > Government > County Council > County Council Members".
23. "[http://www.doc.sc.gov/institutions/institutions.jsp Institutions] {{Webarchive. link. (September 24, 2010 ." [[South Carolina Department of Corrections]]. Retrieved on August 17, 2010.)
24. "[http://www.doc.sc.gov/institutions/brci.jsp Broad River Correctional Institution] {{Webarchive. link. (September 24, 2010 ." [[South Carolina Department of Corrections]]. Retrieved on August 17, 2010.)
25. "[http://www.doc.sc.gov/institutions/goodman.jsp Goodman Correctional Institution] {{Webarchive. link. (October 13, 2010 ." [[South Carolina Department of Corrections]]. Retrieved on August 17, 2010.)
26. "[http://www.doc.sc.gov/institutions/camille.jsp Graham (Camille Griffin) Correctional Institution] {{Webarchive. link. (October 13, 2010 ." [[South Carolina Department of Corrections]]. Retrieved on August 17, 2010. "4450 Broad River Road Columbia, SC 29210-4096")
27. "[http://www.doc.sc.gov/institutions/stevenson.jsp Stevenson Correctional Institution] {{Webarchive. link. (September 26, 2010 ." [[South Carolina Department of Corrections]]. Retrieved on August 17, 2010.)
28. "[http://www.doc.sc.gov/institutions/campbell.jsp Campbell Pre-Release Center] {{Webarchive. link. (October 13, 2010 ." [[South Carolina Department of Corrections]]. Retrieved on August 17, 2010.)
29. "[http://www.doc.sc.gov/institutions/camille.jsp Graham (Camille Griffin) Correctional Institution] {{Webarchive. link. (October 13, 2010 ." [[South Carolina Department of Corrections]]. Retrieved on August 17, 2010. "The institution also functions as a major special management unit with the ability to house female death row inmates and county safekeepers.")
30. "[http://www.doc.sc.gov/news/deathrow.jsp Death Row/Capital Punishment] {{Webarchive. link. (October 7, 2010 ." [[South Carolina Department of Corrections]]. Retrieved on August 17, 2010.)
31. [http://www.policemag.com/News/2008/03/06/S-C-Sheriffs-Department-Armored-Vehicle-with-Belt-Fed-Machine-Gun.aspx S.C. Sheriff's Department Armored Vehicle with Belt-Fed Machine Gun] {{webarchive. link. (September 4, 2008)
32. [http://www.reason.com/blog/show/128482.html Sheriff Lott's New Toy] by Radley Balko September 1, 2008
33. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections".
34. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. (2001-01-01). "Gross Domestic Product: All Industries in Richland County, SC".
35. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. (2001-01-01). "Real Gross Domestic Product: All Industries in Richland County, SC".
36. (2019). "Comrehensive Financial Report (2019)". Richland County.
37. (April 19, 2024). "Richland County". S.C. Department of Employment & Workforce - Business Intelligence Department.
38. "The COMET - Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority".
39. (n.d.). "The Comet Routes". The Central Midlands Transit Authority.
40. (June 30, 2020). "The Comet, University of South Carolina announce new contract".
41. "Columbia, SC (CLB)". Great American Stations.
42. "CSX in South Carolina". CSX.
43. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Richland County, SC". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].
44. (2018). "SC School Report Card".
45. (2022). "SC School Report Card".
46. (2021). "SC School Report Card".
47. "Colleges in Richland County, South Carolina".
48. "MUSC Fact Sheet". Medical University of South Carolina.
49. "FY21 highlights and statistics".
50. "Columbia VA Health Care System". United States Department of Veterans Affairs.
51. "Fort Jackson, SC - Hospital". United States Army.
52. "City and Town Population Totals: 2020-2022". [[United States Census Bureau]], Population Division.
53. Schneider, Michael. (June 11, 2020). "'Live PD': Inside A&E's Swift Decision to Cancel the Show, and Whether it Will Ever Return". Variety.
54. Laird, Skylar. (June 30, 2022). "Richland County Sheriff's deputies to appear on new TV show 'On Patrol: Live'".
55. Bise, Matt. (October 6, 2023). "Sheriff: BCSO's TV role is working".