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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:

  • That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
  • We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
  • On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.

By learning about Orangeburg (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.

As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Orangeburg. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.

Neighboring Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived:  their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the east contained birth and death records; the county to the south contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Orangeburg is located in Orangeburg County and is the County Seat.

To see how the shape of South Carolina's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Orangeburg County: Aiken, Bamberg, Barnwell, Berkeley, Calhoun, Clarendon, Colleton, Dorchester & Lexington.

Below are the counties that are near Orangeburg. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Orangeburg:

  • Orangeburg County     (The home county of Orangeburg)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.
    • Wilkinson Heights
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wilkinson Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilkinson Heights
      • Wilkinson Heights is located in Orangeburg County
    • Brookdale
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brookdale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookdale
      • Brookdale is located in Orangeburg County
    • Edisto
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Edisto have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edisto
      • Edisto is located in Orangeburg County
    • Stilton
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stilton
      • Stilton is located in Orangeburg County
    • Wren Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wren Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wren Village
      • Wren Village is located in Orangeburg County
    • Cordova
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jamison
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamison
      • Jamison is located in Orangeburg County
    • Rowesville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Bolen Town
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bolen Town have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolen Town
      • Bolen Town is located in Orangeburg County
    • Cope
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cope
      • Cope is located in Orangeburg County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 70 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cope <2>
    • Sixty Six
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sixty Six
      • Sixty Six is located in Orangeburg County
    • Bowman
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Livingston
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Livingston have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livingston
      • Livingston is located in Orangeburg County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 124 people
  • Aiken County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.
    • Salley
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Perry
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
  • Bamberg County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.
    • Bamberg
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Denmark
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Govan
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Govan
      • Govan is located in Bamberg County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 57 people
    • Ehrhardt
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Olar
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olar
      • Olar is located in Bamberg County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 228 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Olar <2>
  • Barnwell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.
    • Blackville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Whaley
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whaley
      • Whaley is located in Barnwell County
    • Hilda
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Calhoun County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.
    • Cameron
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cameron have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cameron
      • Cameron is located in Calhoun County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 396 people
    • Saint Matthews
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Creston
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creston
      • Creston is located in Calhoun County
  • Clarendon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.
    • Panola
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Panola have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panola
      • Panola is located in Clarendon County
    • Summerton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Colleton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.
    • Johnsville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnsville
      • Johnsville is located in Colleton County
    • Smoaks
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Lodge
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
  • Dorchester County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.
    • Reevesville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Saint George
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Grover
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Harleyville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Lexington County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.
    • Swansea
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Gaston
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaston
      • Gaston is located in Lexington County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,712 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gaston <2>
    • Pelion
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Glenn Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glenn Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenn Village
      • Glenn Village is located in Lexington County
  • Richland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.
    • Gadsden
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Weston
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Weston have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weston
      • Weston is located in Richland County
    • Pinewood
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinewood
      • Pinewood is located in Richland County
    • Eastover
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Hopkins
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Bruner
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruner
      • Bruner is located in Richland County
  • Sumter County
    • Pinewood
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Orangeburg, see our County-by-County Page for Orangeburg.

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Orangeburg ...

An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).

To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.

Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 37 newspapers that have been published in the area around Orangeburg.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Orangeburg. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Orangeburg and those printed in the larger area surrounding Orangeburg.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<3> of Orangeburg.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.

To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Orangeburg:

Cemeteries Near Orangeburg ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Orangeburg.

This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Orangeburg covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.

  • First Baptist Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the First Baptist Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the First Baptist Cemetery
  • Sunnyside Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunnyside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunnyside Cemetery
  • Orangeburg Memorial Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Orangeburg Memorial Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Orangeburg Memorial Cemetery
  • Memorial Park Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Belleville Memorial Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Belleville Memorial Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Belleville Memorial Cemetery
  • Mt. Calvary Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Calvary Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Calvary Cemetery
  • Mt. Calvary Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Calvary Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Calvary Cemetery
  • Bull Swamp Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bull Swamp Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bull Swamp Cemetery
  • Zion Church Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Ebenezer Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ebenezer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ebenezer Cemetery
  • Hubbard Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hubbard Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hubbard Cemetery
  • St. Stephen Church Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Stephen Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Stephen Church Cemetery
  • Continue List   (231 more) ...
    • Crestview Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Crestview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Crestview Cemetery
    • Wesley Grove UMC Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wesley Grove UMC Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wesley Grove UMC Cemetery
    • Prospect Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Prospect Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Prospect Cemetery

Nearby Communities in 1895 ...

We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<5>

While we didn't find Orangeburg in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Orangeburg.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Orangeburg, with the one closest to Orangeburg listed first.

  • Stilton
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stilton
    • Stilton is located in Orangeburg County
  • Felder
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Felder have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Felder
    • Felder is located in Orangeburg County
  • Jamison
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamison
    • Jamison is located in Orangeburg County
  • Rowesville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Saint Matthews
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • Sixty Six
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sixty Six
    • Sixty Six is located in Orangeburg County
  • Bowman
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Boiling Spring ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boiling Spring have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boiling Spring
    • Boiling Spring is located in Orangeburg County
  • Branchville
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
  • Elloree
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
  • North
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North
    • North is located in Orangeburg County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 699 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for North <2>
  • Bamberg
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Fifty Eight ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fifty Eight have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fifty Eight
      • Fifty Eight is located in Orangeburg County
    • Felderville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Felderville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Felderville
      • Felderville is located in Orangeburg County
    • Parler
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parler
      • Parler is located in Orangeburg County

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Orangeburg. See our List of 1890's Communities around Orangeburg.

The official website for Orangeburg: www.orangeburg.sc.us/

The official website for Orangeburg County: www.orangeburgcounty.org/

The official website for State of South Carolina: https://sc.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Orangeburg) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Orangeburg. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.4933, Longitude: -80.8555    
<4>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<5>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Orangeburg, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024