Records that survive
These are the record series of Anderson County held at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History in Columbia, in the original or on microfilm, with the office that kept each and the years covered. A span can include gaps. From 1826 until 1868 it was called Anderson District, and its records from those years carry the district's name.
Wills and estates
- Papers · Probate Courtabout 1822-1918
- Estate papers · Probate Court1828-1915
- Journals of the Probate Court · Probate Court1828-1906
- Real estate books · Probate Court1828-1942
- Transcripts of wills from estate papers · Probate Court1828-1876
- Will books · Probate Court1828-1907
- Guardian ad litem bonds · Court of Common Pleas1834-1913
- Bond books · Probate Court1840-1917
- Guardian, trustee, and committee bond books · Court of Equity1840-1868
- Inventories, appraisements, and sales books · Probate Court1840-1903
- Letters books · Probate Court1840-1910
- Returns books · Probate Court1840-1902
- Cashbooks of the Probate Judge · Probate Court1841-1902
- Guardian, trustee, and committee account books · Court of Equity1843-1868
- and 17 more series in the full listing
Deeds and land
- Citizens' copies of recorded instruments · Register of Mesne Conveyances1828-1927
- Conveyance books · Register of Mesne Conveyances1828-1901
- Official bonds of constables · Register of Mesne Conveyances1828-1879
- Plat books · Commissioner of Locations1828-1904
- Warrants of survey · Commissioner of Locations1854
- Official bonds books · Register of Mesne Conveyances1868-1915
- Attachment liens · Register of Mesne Conveyances1870-1930
- Lands devised books · Probate Court1871-1888
- Charters · Register of Mesne Conveyances1874-1912
- Agricultural lien books · Register of Mesne Conveyances1876-1879
- Abstracts of agricultural lien books · Register of Mesne Conveyances1878-1912
- Mechanics' liens books · Register of Mesne Conveyances1883-1915
- Homestead exemption files · Court of Common Pleas1885-1930
- Chattel mortgage books · Register of Mesne Conveyances1887-1907
- and 2 more series in the full listing
Marriages, births and deaths
- Marriage registers · Probate Court1911-1955
Equity court (estate and land suits)
- Annual reports of the Commissioner in Equity · Master1825-1867
- Equity reports · Master1825-1894
- Equity bills · Court of Equity1829-1868
- Writs of partition · Court of Common Pleas1829-1887
- Equity petitions · Court of Equity1831-1868
- Financial records of John P. Benson · Master1836-1867
- Bonds for money decrees · Court of Equity1841-1868
- Equity minutes · Court of Equity1841-1869
- Account books of the Master · Master1842-1907
- Equity file books · Court of Equity1846-1852
- Equity report books · Court of Equity1846-1868
- Minutes of the Master · Master1846-1867
- Powers of attorney · Court of Equity1846-1858
- Tavern accounts of M. Murphy · Master1848
- and 18 more series in the full listing
Confederate veterans and pensions
- Revolutionary War and War of 1812 pension applications and papers · Clerk of Court1829-1879
- Reports of the Soldiers' Board of Relief · Clerk of Court1862
- Confederate pension rolls · Board of Honor1896-1905
- Confederate pension application books · Board of Honor1897
- Minutes of the Board of Honor · Board of Honor1900-1903
- Confederate veterans' enrollment books · Clerk of Court1902-1930
- Distribution of state pension fund books · Probate Court1916-1962
- Confederate pension applications · Board of Honor1919-1933
- Confederate widows pension applications · Board of Honorabout 1919-1927
Tax records
- Tax returns lists · Clerk of Court1835-1861
- Annual reports of the County Treasurer · Court of General Sessions1844-1887
- Assessor's returns of taxable personal property for Bushy Creek District · Auditor1868
- Auditor's tax duplicate books · Auditor1871-1900
- Treasurer's tax duplicate books · Treasurer1872-1889
- Circulars from the Comptroller General · Auditor1877-1879
- Fifteen percent delinquent tax lists · Treasurer1877-1902
- Letters received from the Comptroller General · Treasurer1878-1879
- Savannah Valley Railroad bond tax cashbooks · Treasurer1880-1881
- Taxation of costs files · Court of Common Pleas1880-1900
- General cashbooks of the Treasurer · Treasurer1882-1915
- Savannah Valley Railroad bond tax (City of Anderson) cashbook · Treasurer1885-1886
- Annual county tax settlements of the Treasurer · Treasurer1888-1919
- Tax execution books of the Treasurer · Treasurer1889-1901
- and 10 more series in the full listing
Elections and voters
- Voter registration books · Clerk of Court1882-1896
- Statements and returns of votes · Clerk of Court1890-1934
- Election files · Clerk of Court1902-1934
- Oaths of election officials · Clerk of Courtabout 1910-1923
Court records
- Apprenticeship files · Clerk of Court1825-1858
- Witnesses pay certificates · Court of Common Pleasabout 1825-1885
- Petitions and decrees in summary process · Court of Common Pleas1827-1870
- Abstracts of judgments · Court of Common Pleas1828-1951
- Attachment bonds · Court of Common Pleas1828-1905
- Bonds for legal costs · Court of Common Pleas1828-1873
- Capias ad satisfaciendum executions · Court of Common Pleas1828-1859
- Civil journals · Court of Common Pleas1828-1928
- Confessions of judgment before the clerk · Court of Common Pleas1828-1841
- Fieri facias executions · Court of Common Pleas1828-1876
- Indictments · Court of General Sessions1828-1959
- Judgment rolls · Court of Common Pleas1828-1955
- Minutes of the Commissioners of the Roads · Anderson District (S.C.). Commissioners of the Roads1828-1848
- Papers · Court of Common Pleasabout 1828-1907
- and 87 more series in the full listing
Schools
- Annual reports of the Commissioners of the Free Schools · Court of General Sessions1866
- Teachers' certification record books · Board of Education1872-1911
- Teachers' payrolls · Board of Education1877-1896
- Annual reports of the Superintendent of Education · Court of General Sessions1884-1909
- Annual reports of the Superintendent of Education · Board of Education1896-1930
- General cashbooks of the Superintendent · Board of Education1899-1911
- Cancelled school bonds · Auditor1931
County government
- Annual reports of the Commissioners of the Poor · Court of General Sessions1829-1866
- Annual reports of the Commissioners of the Roads · Court of General Sessions1832-1867
- Ledgers of Elijah Webb and Company · Elijah Webb and Company (Anderson County, S.C.)1834-1836
- Store accounts of Stephen McCulley · McCulley, Stephen, Merchant of Anderson County, S.C1835-1882
- Bastardy bonds · Anderson District (S.C.). Commissioners of the Poor1837
- Road petitions · Anderson District (S.C.). Commissioners of the Roads1839-1859
- Store accounts of A. O. Norris · Norris, A. O., Merchant of Anderson County, S.C1842-1884
- Annual reports of the Commissioners of the Public Buildings · Court of General Sessions1846-1867
- Accounts of Scott and Gentry (Iron Sellers) · Scott and Gentry, Iron Sellers of Anderson County, S.C1850-1851
- Petitions to the Commissioners of the Poor · Anderson District (S.C.). Commissioners of the Poor1850-1853
- Tavern license bonds · Anderson District (S.C.). Commissioners of the Roads1850-1851
- Accounts of S. H. Owens · Owens, S. H., Merchant of Anderson County, S.C1860-1863
- Correspondence of W. W. Humphries · Humphries, W. W., of Anderson County, S.C1868-1894
- Account books of the County Council · County Council1870
- and 10 more series in the full listing
Other records
- Execution books of the Sheriff · Sheriff1828-1900
- Writ books of the Sheriff · Sheriff1893-1900
- Jail books of the Sheriff · Sheriff1897-1907
- Sales books of the Sheriff · Sheriff1897-1913
- Coroner's inquisition books · Coroner1901-1920
See the full list at the South Carolina Archives
Source: South Carolina Department of Archives and History, Summary Guide to County Records. Many county offices keep their own older books too, so ask the county as well. South Carolina required marriage licenses from July 1, 1911, and statewide birth and death registration began in 1915.
Where to find the records
- Find Anderson County's official website
We haven't checked this county's website yet, so this opens a web search. Look for an address ending in .gov, then find the probate judge, the register of deeds and the clerk of court.
- The probate judge
Wills and estates (from 1868; before that, the Court of Ordinary), and marriage licenses from July 1911.
- The register of deeds
Deeds and mortgages. The office was called the Register of Mesne Conveyances (RMC) until 1998, and in most counties the clerk of court records deeds instead.
- The clerk of court
Civil and criminal court records, and in some counties the old equity court's files on estate divisions and land disputes.
- The South Carolina Department of Archives and History
Older county records in the original or on microfilm, plus colonial and state land grants and plats, and Confederate pension applications.
- South Carolina Archives: Anderson County recordsfree
Every record series the state archives holds for this county, with its years, office and microfilm.
- South Carolina Archives Online Records Indexfree
Search by name for land grants and plats, Confederate pension applications, will transcripts and other records, many with images.
- FamilySearch Catalogfree
Search by place for "South Carolina, Anderson" to find filmed and digitized records, many viewable free online with a FamilySearch account.
Offices change their hours and access rules; call before you visit.
Boundaries and parent counties
Formed from: Pendleton District
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1826, search the parent county. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows each boundary change.
Research tip
Until the early 1780s, South Carolina's wills were recorded in Charleston for the whole colony, so look there for an ancestor who died before then. Before 1868, the equity court's suits over estate divisions and land often name every heir.