How Abbeville, South Carolina Records Affect Genealogical Research
SouthCarolinaPioneers.net
Abbeville has gone unnoticed in genealogy history, yet it played a prominent role in the settlement of North Georgia counties. Also, many of its first families were Virginians.
The Ninety-Six District in South Carolina was created in 1769 and included the counties of Abbeville, Edgefield, Greenville, Laurens, McCormick, Saluda, Spartanburg, and Newberry Counties. It also included small parts of Aiken and Greenville Counties. This is something to keep in mind when searching for ancestors.
During the colonial period, the land around the coast was divided into parishes corresponding to the parishes of the Church of England, and several counties had judicial and electoral functions. To explain some of the confusion of districting (rather than counties), the backcountry became known as “elective districts” until 1868, when they returned to the county system. Of course, that makes extra work for genealogy researchers attempting to learn where their ancestors settled.
The simplest thing to do is search all the counties listed in the Ninety-Six District!
The names of the first settlers to Abbeville County: Andrew Hamilton, James Jordan, Patrick Forbis, James Moore, William McCaleb, William Young, James Maxwell, Thomas Coker, Tucker Woodson, William Brown, John Lawrence, Ralph Wilson, William Love, Thomas Shockley, William Love, Barnard Putnam, James Shirley, William Anderson, Richard Sadler, Benjamin Alderidge, John Nash, Adam Crain Jones, William Love, Joseph Brown, and others.
Survival of the oldest records began in 1785. To view a list of online records available to members of southcarolinapioneers.net, click on the link below:
Abbeville County Wills, Estates, Vouchers, Marriages
Note: Abbeville County was part of the Ninety-Six District, where the old deeds are found.