Sumter South Carolina
Looking for a new home in
the town of Sumter South Carolina
area?
 Nestled
in the heart of the state, the city of Sumter is
the seat of Sumter County, South Carolina, located in
the midland region of the state approximately 45
miles east of
Columbia,
the state capital. The community is a short drive from
Interstates 20, 26, 77 and 95, and encompasses US
Highways 15, 521, 76 and 378. Shaw Air Force Base, a
growing Industrial base, the world famous Swan Lake
Iris Gardens and a city population of 42,700. The
city of Sumter is in the heart of the community with a
total City and County population of 108,000. Home town
feel with the conveniences of a large city.
Sumter is centrally located in the middle of South
Carolina with the beautiful beaches in one direction and
the Blue Ridge Mountains in the other.
Premiere Sumter SC Real
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Incorporated in 1845, the city is
named for General Thomas Sumter, the "Fighting Gamecock"
of the American Revolutionary War. Once a sleepy,
primarily agricultural community, Sumter took a leap
into the future with the opening of Shaw Air Force Base
(home of the 20th Fighter Wing) in 1941. The economic
boost provided by the base enabled the area to grow and
diversify, with the result that today's citizens are
hard at work in our expanding manufacturing and biotech
industries, a thriving retail environment and one of the
largest health care systems in the state. A city of
culture and leisure, Sumter boasts more than 100 clubs
and community organizations devoted to a wide range of
interests, from the arts to historic and environmental
preservation, sports and more.
Interesting Facts About Sumter SC
- Sumter was the first city in the
United States to adopt the council-manager form of
government, now accepted as the nation's standard
and used by more than 2,500 municipalities
throughout the country.
- The Iris Festival, held every May
at Swan Lake Iris Gardens, is a multiple winner of
the "Top 20 Events in the Southeast" Award and is
South Carolina's oldest continuing festival.
- Swan Lake Iris Gardens is the
only public park in the United States with all eight
known species of swans and 250 varieties of Japanese
Iris.
- Sumter is named for General
Thomas Sumter, the "Fighting Gamecock" of the
American Revolution and one of the models for Mel
Gibson's character in the 2000 film, The Patriot.
- The Episcopal Church of the Holly
Cross (Statesburg) is the burial site of Joel
Roberts Poinsett, U.S. ambassador to Mexico,
botanist and namesake of the poinsettia.
- Dalzell, in Sumter County, is the
home of Garnay Industries, the world's largest
gingko biloba farm.
- Citadel Cadet George Edward
"Tuck" Haynsworth, who fired the first shot of the
Civil War, was born and raised in Sumter and is
buried here.
- Potter's Raid, passing through
Sumter and Clarendon Counties, was the last major
campaign of the Civil War.
- Shaw Air Force Base, 10 miles
from Sumter, is home to the 9th Air Force and
headquarters for the 20th Fighter Wing of the USAF.
- William "April" Ellison, a freed
slave from Statesburg, perfected the cotton gin
invented by Eli Whitney.
- Angelica Singleton Van Buren,
White House hostess during the Van Buren
administration, was a Sumter native.
- Dalzell native Bill Pinkney of
the original Drifters was inducted into the Rock and
Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 alongside the Beatles, the
Beach Boys, Bob Dylan, and the Supremes.
- Philip Rembert, Sumter's first
African-American City Councilman, served in World
War II as one of the "Tuskegee Airmen," the fighter
pilots whose story was dramatized in the 1995 HBO
original movie starring Laurence Fishburne. Three of
the Airmen were born or grew up in Sumter County.
- Sumter is the hometown of
numerous famous athletes including Baseball Hall of
Famer Bobby Richardson and Superbowl veteran Freddie
Solomon.
- Sumter High School graduate Shawn
Weatherly was Miss Universe 1980.
- The Palmetto Pigeon Farm is the
source for squab served at Buckingham Palace.
- Renowned artists Jasper Johns and
Granger McKoy both have roots in Sumter.
- The electric refrigerator was
invented by a Sumter native, Charles T. Mason, Jr.
- The educator Mary McLeod Bethune,
19th-century prima donna Clara Louise Kellogg and
Confederate General Richard Heron Anderson were some
other notable Sumter natives.
Sumter SC History
Sumter has a colorful history stretching back
more than 300 years. In the 1740's, the first
English-speaking settlers arrived to establish roots
along the banks of the Wateree River. The "Carolina
Backcountry," as it was then known, became a
predominantly agricultural area called Craven County,
later Claremont County. Sumter District was established
on January 1, 1800. When the state capital was moved
from Charleston in 1786, Statesburg, located on US
76/378, missed being elected the new capital by one
vote. According to tradition, Statesburg was also
considered as the location for the United States
Military Academy, now at West Point.
The city of Sumter is the seat of Sumter County and the
largest city, the eighth largest metropolitan area in
the state of South Carolina. Incorporated as Sumterville
in 1845, the city's name was shortened to Sumter in
1855. It has grown and prospered from its early
beginnings as a plantation settlement.
The city and county of Sumter bear the name of General
Thomas Sumter, the "Fighting Gamecock" of the American
Revolutionary War. His place in U.S. history is secure
as a patriot and military genius. General Sumter was one
of the models for Mel Gibson's character in the 2000
movie, "The Patriot" (along with Francis Marion and
Andrew Pickens, also from South Carolina), and his
service to his country continued for the duration of his
long life.
Born in Virginia in 1734, Thomas Sumter settled in St.
Mark's Parish in 1767. He founded the town of Statesburg,
where his financial interests included a sawmill, grist
mill, general store and a large plantation. He and his
wife, Mary Cantey, had one son, Thomas Jr., born in
1768.
During the Revolution, Sumter fought in numerous
skirmishes and battles, including the Battle of
Sullivan's Island, the Georgia Campaign, Turnbull's
camp, Hanging Rock and Fish Darn Ford. His fierce
revolutionary zeal had its origins in an incident
involving a Captain Campbell, whose men plundered his
home, placed his invalid wife in her wheelchair on the
lawn and then set fire to the house. This event so
enraged Sumter that he formed and led a band of
guerillas in victorious combat against the British,
helping to turn the tide in the war for independence.
Following the war, General Sumter continued in the
service of the young nation, ultimately as a member of
the United States Congress. He retired at age 76 to his
beloved "Home House" in the High Hills of the Santee,
where he continued to actively manage his business
affairs and remained a respected figure in the
Statesburg community until his death in 1832 at age 98,
the last surviving general of the Revolutionary War.
General Sumter is buried in Statesburg, the adoptive
hometown to which he gave so much.
In 1912, the city of Sumter became the first city in the
United States to successfully adopt the council-manager
form of government. It is still in effect today.
Sumter's council-manager government combines the
political leadership of elected officials in the form of
a seven-member City Council headed by the Mayor, with
the strong managerial experience of an appointed City
Manager, who serves as the chief administrative and
executive officer of the city.
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