“C” is for Clarendon County

“C” is for Clarendon County (607 square miles; 2020 population 33,415). The first Clarendon County was created in 1785 but was combined with Claremont and Salem Counties to form Sumter District in 1800. In 1855 the legislature established Clarendon District from the southern half of Sumter, which became Clarendon County in 1868. The county was named in honor of Edward Hyde, Earl of Clarendon, one of the original eight Lords Proprietors. Located in east-central South Carolina, modern Clarendon County is bordered on three sides by Sumter, Florence, and Williamsburg Counties, while the Santee River in the form of Lake Marion, forms the county’s southern boundary. The county seat is Manning. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, Clarendon County, rich in natural resources and recreational facilities, still relied on agriculture as the backbone of its economy.