Editing Columbia, South Carolina (section)

==History==
{{see also|Timeline of Columbia, South Carolina}}

===Early history===
[[File:Slave quarters at the Hale–Elmore–Seibels House.jpg|thumb|left|Former slave quarters at the [[Hale–Elmore–Seibels House]] in downtown Columbia.]]
In May 1540, a Spanish expedition led by [[Hernando de Soto]] traversed what is now Columbia while moving northward on exploration of the interior of the Southeast. The expedition produced the earliest written historical records of this area, which was part of the regional [[Cofitachequi]] [[chiefdom]] of the [[Mississippian culture]].<ref name="Hudson1998">{{cite book|author=Charles Hudson|title=Knights of Spain, Warriors of the Sun: Hernando de Soto and the South's Ancient Chiefdoms|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vWJnGjxjJk8C|access-date=February 16, 2012|date=September 1998|publisher=University of Georgia Press|isbn=978-0-8203-2062-5|pages=234–238|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131009061906/http://books.google.com/books?id=vWJnGjxjJk8C|archive-date=October 9, 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>

During the [[Colonial history of the United States|colonial era]], European settlers encountered the Congaree in this area, who inhabited several villages along the Congaree River. The settlers established a frontier fort and fur trading post named after the Congaree, on the west bank of the Congaree River. It was at the fall line and the head of navigation in the [[Santee River]] system.

In 1754 the [[Colonial government in the Thirteen Colonies|colonial government]] in [[Province of South Carolina|South Carolina]] established a ferry to connect the fort with the growing European settlements on the higher ground on the east bank.<ref name="columbiahistory">[http://www.columbiasc.net/about-columbia "A Brief History of Columbia."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150219184430/http://www.columbiasc.net/about-columbia |date=February 19, 2015 }} City of Columbia Official Web Site. columbiasc.net. Retrieved February 20, 2015.</ref>

Like many other significant early settlements in colonial America, Columbia is on the [[Atlantic Seaboard fall line|fall line]] of the [[Piedmont (United States)|Piedmont]] region. The [[fall line]] is often marked by rapids at the places where the river cuts sharply down to lower levels in the Tidewater or Low Country of the coastal plain. Beyond the fall line, the river is unnavigable for boats sailing upstream. Entrepreneurs and later industrialists established mills in such areas, as the water flowing downriver, often over falls, provided power to run equipment.

===Designation as state capital===
After the [[American Revolutionary War]] and United States independence, State Senator [[John Lewis Gervais]] of the town of [[Ninety Six, South Carolina|Ninety Six]] introduced a bill that was approved by the legislature on March 22, 1786, to create a new state capital. Considerable argument occurred over the name for the new city. According to published accounts, Senator Gervais said he hoped that "in this town we should find refuge under the wings of [[Columbia (name)|COLUMBIA]]", for that was the name which he wished it to be called. One legislator insisted on the name "Washington", but "Columbia" won by a vote of 11–7 in the state senate.

[[File:Monument marking original SC State House, Columbia IMG 4777.JPG|thumb|left|Monument marking site of original South Carolina State House, designed and built from 1786 to 1790 by [[James Hoban]]. It burned at the end of the Civil War in 1865.]]
The site was chosen as the new state capital in 1786 due to its central location in the state. The State Legislature first met there in 1790. After remaining under the direct government of the legislature for the first two decades of its existence, Columbia was incorporated as a village in 1805 and then as a city in 1854.

Columbia received a large stimulus to development when it was connected in a direct water route to [[Charleston, South Carolina|Charleston]] by the [[Santee Canal]]. This connected the Santee and Cooper rivers in a {{convert|22|mi|km|adj=mid|-long}} section. It was first chartered in 1786 and completed in 1800, making it one of the earliest canals in the United States. With competition later from faster railroad traffic, it ceased operation around 1850.

The commissioners designed a town of 400 blocks in a {{convert|2|mi|km|adj=on|0}} square along the river. The blocks were divided into lots of {{convert|0.5|acre|m2}} and sold to speculators and prospective residents. Buyers had to build a house at least {{convert|30|ft|m}} long and {{convert|18|ft|m}} wide within three years, or face an annual 5% penalty. The perimeter streets and two through streets were {{convert|150|ft|m}} wide. The remaining squares were divided by thoroughfares {{convert|100|ft|m}} wide. As the capital and one of the first [[planned community|planned cities]] in the United States, Columbia began to grow rapidly. Its population was nearing 1,000 shortly after the start of the 19th century.

[[File:South_Carolina_Governor%27s_Mansion,_800_Richland_St.,_columbia_(Richland_County,_South_Carolina).JPG|thumb|right|[[South Carolina Governor's Mansion]], built 1855]]

The commissioners constituted the local government until 1797, when a Commission of Streets and Markets was created by the General Assembly. Three main issues occupied most of their time: public drunkenness, gambling, and poor sanitation.

===19th century===
[[File:Robert Mills House.jpg|thumb|right|[[Robert Mills House]], built 1823]]
In 1801, South Carolina College (now the [[University of South Carolina]]) was founded in Columbia. The original building survives. The city was chosen as the site of the state college in an effort to unite residents of the [[Upstate South Carolina|Upcountry]] and the [[South Carolina Lowcountry|Lowcountry]] after the American Revolutionary War.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Timeline |url=https://www.sc.edu/about/our_history/university_history/timeline/index.php |access-date=August 23, 2023 |website=www.sc.edu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Lesesne |first=Henry H. |date=August 15, 2022 |orig-date=June 28, 2016 |title=University of South Carolina |url=https://www.scencyclopedia.org/sce/entries/university-of-south-carolina/ |access-date=August 23, 2023 |website=South Carolina Encyclopedia |language=en-US}}</ref> The leaders of South Carolina kept a close eye on the new college: for many years after its founding, commencement exercises were held in December while the state legislature was in session.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lucas |first=Marion Brunson |title=Sherman and the burning of Columbia |date=1976 |publisher=Texas A & M University Press |isbn=0-89096-018-6 |edition=1st |location=College Station |oclc=2331311}}</ref>

Columbia received its first charter as a town in 1805. An intendant and six wardens governed the town. [[John Taylor (South Carolina governor)|John Taylor]], the first elected intendant, later served in both houses of the General Assembly, both houses of Congress, and eventually was elected as governor. By 1816, some 250 homes had been built in the town and a population was more than 1000.

In 1828, the [[Elias Marks#South Carolina Female Collegiate Institute at Barhamville|South Carolina Female ''Collegiate'' Institute]] was founded by [[Elias Marks]] for the higher education of young women.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.scencyclopedia.org/sce/entries/barhamville-academy/ |title=Barhamville Academy|last=Gergel |first=Belinda F. |date=14 September 2016 |website=South Carolina Encyclopedia |publisher=Univ. of S.C. |access-date=20 October 2022}}</ref> (The word ''Collegiate'' was added to its charter in 1835.) Since the school was located on 500 acres in the Barhamville area of Columbia, it was often informally called Barhamville Institute or Barhamville Academy. "...it was the first and only school of its character at the South. It was of a very high class..."<ref>{{cite book |last=Sims |first=James Marion |author-link=J. Marion Sims |date=1884 |title=The Story of my life |location=New York |publisher=D. Appleton |page=102}}</ref> The Barhamville Institute closed in 1867 due to the economic dislocation of the Civil War.

Columbia became chartered as a city in 1854, with an elected mayor and six aldermen. Two years later, Columbia had a police force consisting of a full-time chief and nine patrolmen. The city continued to grow at a rapid pace, and throughout the 1850s and 1860s, Columbia was the largest inland city in the Carolinas. Railroad transportation served as a significant cause of population expansion in Columbia during this time. Rail lines that reached the city in the 1840s primarily transported cotton bales, not passengers, from there to major markets and the port of Charlestown. Cotton was the chief commodity of the state and lifeblood of the Columbia community; in 1850, virtually all of the city's commercial and economic activity was related to cotton. Cotton was sent to New York and New England's textile mills, as well as to England and Europe, where demand was high.

"In 1830, around 1,500 [[slavery in the United States|slaves]] lived and worked in Columbia; this population grew to 3,300 by 1860. Some members of this large enslaved population worked in their masters' households. Masters also frequently hired out slaves to Columbia residents and institutions, including South Carolina College. Hired-out slaves sometimes returned to their owners' homes daily; others boarded with their temporary masters."<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite web|url=http://slaveryatusc.weebly.com/urban-slavery-in-columbia.html|title=Urban Slavery in Columbia|work=Slavery at South Carolina College, 1801–1865:<br />The Foundations of the University of South Carolina|access-date=September 14, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140722215524/http://slaveryatusc.weebly.com/urban-slavery-in-columbia.html|archive-date=July 22, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

====Civil War====
{{Main|Capture of Columbia|Columbia, South Carolina, in the American Civil War}}
Columbia was of considerable importance to the [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]] during the [[American Civil War]]. Columbia was the site of the first Southern secession convention, which assembled in the [[First Baptist Church (Columbia, South Carolina)|First Baptist Church]] on December 17, 1860. Secession may have been declared in Columbia, were it not for a smallpox outbreak that moved the convention to Charleston, where South Carolina became the first state to secede from the Union on December 20.{{Sfn|Lucas|1976|p=23}} A considerable military infrastructure sprung up in Columbia. The state arsenal was located in Columbia, along with the state military academy. The University of South Carolina grounds were converted into a military hospital since its role as an educational institution had been made moot after its entire student body volunteered for the Confederate Army.{{Sfn|Lucas|1976|p=24}} Numerous industrial facilities produced war materiel. By 1865, it was also the Confederacy's last breadbasket. All of these factors combined to make it the obvious next target for General [[William Tecumseh Sherman|William T. Sherman]] after his successful [[Sherman's March to the Sea|March to the Sea]] captured [[Savannah, Georgia]].{{Sfn|Lucas|1976|p=30}}

The Union Army, under Gen. Sherman, captured the city on February 17, 1865.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sherman |first1=William Tecumseh |title=Burning of Columbia, South Carolina |date=2009 |publisher=Great Neck Publishing |page=384}}</ref> Much of the city was destroyed by fire between the 17th and 18th. The idea that General Sherman ordered the burning of Columbia has persisted as part of the [[Lost Cause of the Confederacy]] narrative. However modern historians have concluded that no one cause led to the burning of Columbia and that Sherman did not order the burning. Rather, the chaotic atmosphere in the city on the occasion of its fall led to the ideal conditions for a fire to start and spread. As a newspaper columnist noted in 1874, "the war burned Columbia."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lucas |first=Marion Brunson |title=Sherman and the burning of Columbia |date=2021 |isbn=978-1-64336-246-5 |edition=2nd |publisher=University of South Carolina Press |location=Columbia, South Carolina |pages=11–13 |oclc=1261302122}}</ref>

[[File:Wade Hampton equestrian statue, Columbia, SC IMG 4747.JPG|thumb|right|Equestrian statue of General and later [[governor of South Carolina|Governor]] [[Wade Hampton III|Wade Hampton, III]], known for his opposition to [[Reconstruction Era|Reconstruction]]]]

====Reconstruction era and beyond====
During the Reconstruction era, when African-American Republicans were among the legislators elected to state government, Columbia became the focus of considerable attention. Reporters, journalists, travelers, and tourists flocked here to see a Southern state legislature whose members included freedmen (former slaves), as well as [[people of color|men of color]] who had been free before the war. The city began to rebuild and recover from the devastating fire of 1865; a mild construction boom took place within the first few years of Reconstruction. In addition, repair of railroad tracks in outlying areas created more jobs for residents.

By the late 19th century, culture was expanding in the city. In 1897 the Columbia Music Festival Association (CMFA) was founded<ref>{{cite web|title=Mission|url=http://www.cmfaonline.com/OurAssociation/Mission.aspx|publisher=Columbia Music Festival Association|access-date=August 23, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120924020540/http://www.cmfaonline.com/OurAssociation/Mission.aspx|archive-date=September 24, 2012}}</ref> by Mayor William McB. Sloan and the city aldermen. It was headquartered in the Opera House on Main Street, which also served as City Hall. Its role was to book and manage concerts and events in the opera house for the city.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Columbia Music Festival Association |url=https://cmfaonline.com/ |access-date=2022-11-06 |website=cmfaonline.com}}</ref>

===20th century===
{{Gallery
|title=Three images taken from the same location showing Columbia's Main Street from [[South Carolina Statehouse|Statehouse]] steps
|mode=packed
|height=200
|align=center
|File:Columbia sc ruins.jpg|Columbia in ruins after burning at the end of the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], {{circa|1865}}
|File:Columbia, SC Mainstreet (1900).jpg|Main Street with streetcars, January 1900
|File:LookingdownMainSt.jpg|Modern day Main Street, June 2010
}}

During the early 20th century, Columbia developed as a regional textile manufacturing center. In 1907, Columbia had six mills in operation: [[Richland Cotton Mill|Richland]], [[Granby Mill Village Historic District|Granby]], [[Olympia Mill|Olympia]], Capital City, Columbia, and Palmetto. Combined, they employed over 3,400 workers with an annual payroll of $819,000, giving the Midlands an economic boost of over $4.8 million. Columbia had no paved streets until 1908, when 17 blocks of Main Street were surfaced. But, it had 115 publicly maintained street crossings, boardwalks placed at intersections to keep pedestrians from having to wade through a sea of mud between wooden sidewalks. As an experiment, Washington Street was once paved with wooden blocks. This proved to be the source of much local amusement when they buckled and floated away during heavy rains. The blocks were replaced with asphalt paving in 1925.

[[File:Palmetto_Building,_1400_Main_Street_at_Washington_Street,_Columbia_(Richland_County,_South_Carolina).jpg|thumb|right|upright|[[Palmetto Building]] completed in 1913]]
[[File:Returning WWI soldiers in Columbia, South Carolina (April 1919).jpg|thumb|right|Troops returning from [[World War I]] march through Columbia, April 1919]]
[[File:Woodrow Wilson Columbia, SC home.jpg|thumb|President [[Woodrow Wilson]]'s [[Woodrow Wilson Boyhood Home (Columbia, South Carolina)|family home]]]]
[[File:President Wilson 1919.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Woodrow Wilson]], the 28th [[president of the United States]], lived in Columbia during his youth.]]
[[File:Main Street looking towards State Capitol, Columbia, SC 1910s.png|thumb|Main Street looking towards State Capitol, 1910s]]
During the years 1911 and 1912, some $2.5 million worth of construction occurred in the city, as investors used revenues generated by the mills. New projects included construction of the Union Bank Building at Main and Gervais, the [[Palmetto Building|Palmetto National Bank]], a shopping arcade, and large hotels at Main and Laurel (the Jefferson) and at Main and Wheat (the Gresham). In 1917, the city was selected by the US Army to be developed as the site of [[Fort Jackson (South Carolina)|Camp Jackson]], a U.S. military installation that was officially classified as a "Field Artillery Replacement Depot". The first recruits arrived at the camp on September 1, 1917. In the first several decades of the 20th century, white Democrats of the [[Solid South]] controlled an outsize amount of power in the House and Senate. The former Confederate states had effectively [[Disfranchisement after Reconstruction era|disenfranchised]] most blacks and many poor whites through passage of discriminatory laws and constitutions that made voter registration and voting more difficult. But they controlled all the seats in Congress related to the total state populations.

In 1930, Columbia was the hub of a trading area with about 500,000 potential customers. It had 803 retail establishments, 280 of them being food stores. The city also had 58 clothing and apparel outlets, 57 restaurants and lunch rooms, 55 filling stations, 38 pharmacies, 20 furniture stores, 19 auto dealers, 11 shoe stores, nine cigar stands, five department stores, and one book store. Wholesale distributors located within the city numbered 119, with one-third of them dealing in food.

In 1934, the federal courthouse at the corner of Main and Laurel streets was purchased by the city for use as City Hall. Built of granite from nearby [[Winnsboro, South Carolina|Winnsboro]], [[Columbia City Hall (South Carolina)|Columbia City Hall]] is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]]. Designed by [[Alfred B. Mullett|Alfred Built Mullett]], President [[Ulysses S. Grant]]'s federal architect, the building was completed in 1876. Mullet, best known for his design of the [[Eisenhower Executive Office Building|Executive Office Building]] in Washington, DC, had originally designed the courthouse with a clock tower. It was not constructed, perhaps because of large cost overruns on the project. Copies of Millet's original drawings can be seen on the walls of City Hall alongside historic photos of other Columbia beginnings. Federal offices were moved to the new [[J. Bratton Davis United States Bankruptcy Courthouse]].

In 1940 Camp Jackson was reactivated after war started in Europe, and was designated as Fort Jackson. City leaders and the congressional delegation had lobbied to gain such a permanent military installation. In the early 1940s, shortly after the [[Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor|attack on Pearl Harbor]], which catalyzed the entry of the US into [[World War II]], Lt. Colonel [[Jimmy Doolittle]] and his group of now-famous pilots began training for the 1942 [[Doolittle Raid]] over Tokyo at what is now [[Columbia Metropolitan Airport]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Columbia Metropolitan Airport – Columbia, SC – Columbia's airport |url=http://www.columbiasouthcarolina.com/airport.html |access-date=September 14, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070322175251/http://www.columbiasouthcarolina.com/airport.html|archive-date=March 22, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> They trained in [[B-25 Mitchell]] bombers, the same model as the plane that is installed at Columbia's [[Owens Field]] in the [[Curtiss-Wright]] hangar.
<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20070313043541/http://www.columbiadevelopment.org/attractions_scdc.asp South Columbia Development Corporation<!-- Bot generated title -->]}}</ref>

During the 1940s African Americans increased activism for their civil rights: seeking to reverse [[Jim Crow laws]] and [[racism|racial discrimination]] that pushed them into second-class status in Columbia and the state. In 1945, a federal judge ruled that the city's black teachers were entitled to equal pay to that of their white counterparts. But, in following years, the state attempted to strip many blacks of their teaching credentials. Other issues in which the blacks of the city sought equality concerned [[suffrage|voting rights]] and [[racial segregation|segregation]] (particularly regarding public schools). In 1954, in ''[[Brown v. Board of Education]]'', the US Supreme Court ruled that segregated public schools were unconstitutional.

On August 21, 1962, eight downtown chain stores served blacks at their lunch counters for the first time. The University of South Carolina, a public institution, admitted its first black students in 1963. Around that same time, many vestiges of segregation began to disappear from the city: blacks attained membership on various municipal boards and commissions, and the city adopted a non-discriminatory hiring policy. These and other such signs of racial progress helped earn the city the 1964 [[All-America City Award]] for the second time (the first being in 1951). A 1965 article in ''[[Newsweek]]'' lauded Columbia as a city that had "liberated itself from the plague of doctrinal [[apartheid]]".<ref>''Newsweek'', May 3, 1965; cited in {{cite book |last1=Moore |first1=John Hammond |title=Columbia and Richland County: A South Carolina Community, 1740-1990 |date=1993 |publisher=Univ of South Carolina Press |isbn=978-0-87249-827-3 |page=426 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2GnH6cXpukwC&pg=PA426 |language=en}}</ref>

Since the late 20th century, historic preservation has played a significant part in the city. The historic [[Robert Mills House]] was restored in 1967, which inspired the renovation and restoration of other historic structures, such as the [[Hampton-Preston House]] and others associated with President [[Woodrow Wilson]], [[Maxcy Gregg]], [[Mary Boykin Chesnut]], and noted free black Celia Mann. In the early 1970s, the University of South Carolina initiated the refurbishment of its "Horseshoe". Several area museums also benefited from the increased historical interest of that time, among them the Fort Jackson Museum, the McKissick Museum on the campus of the University of South Carolina, and most notably the [[South Carolina State Museum]], which opened in 1988.

Mayor [[Kirkman Finlay Jr.]], was the driving force behind the refurbishment of Seaboard Park, now known as [[Finlay Park]], in the historic Congaree Vista district. His administration developed the $60 million Palmetto Center package, which resulted in construction of an office tower, parking garage, and the Columbia Marriott hotel, which opened in 1983. In 1980, the Columbia metropolitan population reached 410,088, and in 1990, this figure had hit roughly 470,000. During the 1970s and 1980s skyscrapers were constructed and other real-estate development took place throughout Columbia. To meet demand of businesses, the city constructed The [[Tower at 1301 Gervais]] in 1973. In 1983, Hub at Columbia was constructed. In 1987, the [[Capitol Center (Columbia, South Carolina)|Capitol Center]] was built, which became the tallest building in South Carolina. The [[Bank of America]] Plaza was built in 1989.

===21st century and recent history===
[[File:Ronald Reagan campaigning with Nancy Reagan in Columbia, South Carolina.jpg|thumb|Governor [[Ronald Reagan]] campaigning with [[Nancy Reagan]] and [[Strom Thurmond]] in Columbia, 1980]]
During the 1990s and early 2000s the city worked to revitalize the downtown, as businesses had been pulled out to the suburbs. The [[Congaree Vista]] district along Gervais Street, once known as a warehouse district, became an area of art galleries, shops, and restaurants. The [[Colonial Life Arena]] (formerly known as the Colonial Center) opened in 2002, and brought several major entertainers and shows to Columbia. [[EdVenture]], the largest children's museum in the Southeast, opened in 2003. The [[Village at Sandhill]] shopping center opened in 2004 in northeast Richland County.

The Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center opened in 2004, and a new convention center hotel opened in September 2007. A public-private City Center Partnership has been formed to implement the downtown revitalization and boost downtown growth. In 2009, Columbia's most recent skyscraper, the Tower at Main and Gervais, was completed. Mayor [[Stephen K. Benjamin]] started his first term in July 2010, elected as the first African-American mayor in the city's history.
[[File:Gamecock Women's Basketball Parade 2022.jpg|thumb|[[South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball|Gamecock Women's Basketball]] parade after winning the national championship, April 2022]]
[[Founders Park]], home of USC baseball, opened in 2009. The South Carolina Gamecocks baseball team won two NCAA national championships in 2010 and in 2011. The [[2010 South Carolina Gamecocks football team]], under coach [[Steve Spurrier]], earned their first appearance in the SEC championship. Historic flooding in the city in October 2015 forced the Gamecocks football team to move their October 10 home game. [[Segra Park]] (formerly Spirit Communications Park), home of the [[Columbia Fireflies]], opened in April 2016. In April 2017, the Gamecocks women's basketball team (under coach [[Dawn Staley]]) won their first NCAA championship, and the men's basketball team went to the Final Four for the first time. They won their second national championship in 2022 and third in 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ignudo |first=Tom |date=April 7, 2024 |title=Philadelphia native Dawn Staley wins 3rd national championship at South Carolina in victory over Iowa |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/philadelphia/news/south-carolina-vs-iowa-dawn-staley-national-championship-womens-basketball/ |access-date=April 8, 2024 |website=CBS News Philadelphia |language=en-US}}</ref>

A [[Mast General Store]] was opened in 2011. The [[Music Farm (music venue)|Music Farm]] (now called The Senate) opened a location in Columbia on Senate Street in 2014. In 2000, the Confederate battle flag was moved from the South Carolina State House to the Confederate monument. On July 10, 2015, the flag was removed from the monument to a museum in the wake of the [[Charleston church shooting]] a month before by Columbia-born resident [[Dylann Roof]]. In August 2017, the central path of a [[Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017|total solar eclipse]] passed directly over the city and state capitol.

In March 2019, the [[murder of Samantha Josephson]] gained national attention. In [[Five Points (Columbia, South Carolina)|Five Points]], a neighborhood in Columbia known for its late-night bars, Samantha Josephson mistakenly entered into a car she believed was her [[Uber]]. The driver, Nathaniel Rowland, killed Josephson, sparking laws around the United States to further regulate rideshare companies. In South Carolina, the Samantha L. Josephson Ridesharing Act requires rideshare drivers to display identifying lights and prohibits the misrepresentation of non-rideshare drivers as such.<ref>{{Cite web |title=2019-2020 Bill 4380: Samantha L. Josephson Ridesharing Safety Act |url=https://www.scstatehouse.gov/sess123_2019-2020/bills/4380.htm |website=www.scstatehouse.gov}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Samantha L. Josephson Ridesharing Safety Act |url=https://www.scstatehouse.gov/sess123_2019-2020/bills/4380.htm |website=sc.gov |publisher=State of South Carolina}}</ref> Similar laws passed in [[New Jersey]], [[North Carolina]], and [[New York (state)|New York State]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Shapiro |first=Emily |date=June 21, 2019 |title="New Jersey governor signs 'Sami's Law' for ride-sharing after death of college student" |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/jersey-governor-signs-samis-law-rideshare-safety-honor/story?id=63859131 |website=abcnews.go.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Levins |first=Savannah |date=August 15, 2019 |title=After rideshare scares, NC lawmakers sign Passenger Protection Act into law |url=https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/investigations/investigators/after-rideshare-scares-nc-lawmakers-sign-passenger-protection-act-into-law/275-b616d715-60b1-460f-9555-96750abee015 |website=wcnc.com}}</ref><ref name="NY SENATE">{{Cite web |last=Kaplan |first=Anna |date=April 3, 2019 |title=Senator Anna M. Kaplan Introduces Samantha L. Josephson Ridesharing Safety Act Following Tragedy in South Carolina |url=https://www.nysenate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/anna-m-kaplan/senator-anna-m-kaplan-introduces-samantha-l-josephson |website=nysenate.gov |access-date=July 25, 2022 |archive-date=November 8, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221108205713/https://www.nysenate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/anna-m-kaplan/senator-anna-m-kaplan-introduces-samantha-l-josephson |url-status=dead }}</ref> Rowland was caught, convicted, and sentenced to two life sentences without the possibility of parole.<ref>{{cite web |title=Rowland, Nathaniel David (00386010) Inmate |url=https://public.doc.state.sc.us/scdc-public/inmateDetails.do?id=%2000386010}}</ref> On December 28, 2022, federal legislation authorizing a study of ride-sharing safety practices, with passage by the US House and Senate, was sent to President Biden's desk.<ref>{{Cite web |date=December 28, 2022 |title=H.R.1082 - Sami's Law |url=https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/1082/actions |access-date=January 2, 2023 |website=Congress.gov}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Salant |first=Jonathan D. |date=December 23, 2022 |title=Last-minute congressional blitz clears bill named for N.J. woman killed by fake Uber driver |work=NJ.com |url=https://www.nj.com/politics/2022/12/last-minute-congressional-blitz-clears-bill-named-for-nj-woman-killed-by-fake-uber-driver.html |access-date=January 2, 2023}}</ref>

In May 2019, 10,000 people marched at the [[South Carolina Statehouse|Statehouse]] in the "All Out Rally" to protest issues surrounding education, including low teacher pay, high student-to-teacher ratios, and the general underfunding of education. The protest was led by [[SC for Ed]], a [[Left-wing politics|left-learning]] state advocacy group for teachers.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lee |first1=Anna |title=All Out SC teacher protest: 10,000 in 'largest gathering of teachers in history of SC' |url=https://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/news/education/2019/05/01/all-out-sc-teacher-protest-rally-crowds-walkout/3632975002/ |website=Greenville News |access-date=1 June 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Liberal South Carolina 'Red For Ed' Group Pushes Teacher Walkouts |url=https://www.fitsnews.com/2020/12/07/liberal-south-carolina-red-for-ed-group-pushes-teacher-walkouts/ |website=Fitsnews |date=December 7, 2020 |access-date=31 May 2022}}</ref>

Following the [[murder of George Floyd]] in May 2020, protests and riots spread to [[George Floyd protests in South Carolina|South Carolina and Columbia]], which included the burning of several police cars and the breaking of business windows.

In 2021, [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] [[Daniel Rickenmann]] was elected [[Mayor of Columbia, South Carolina|mayor of Columbia]], defeating Democrat [[Tameika Isaac Devine]]. He succeeded [[Stephen K. Benjamin]], who did not seek reelection, in January 2022.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Miller |first1=Andrew |title=GOP defeats Obama-endorsed candidate in deep blue city that Biden won handily in 2020 |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/gop-defeats-obama-endorsed-candidate-deep-blue-city-biden |website=Fox News |date=November 17, 2021 |publisher=Fox |access-date=14 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Fastenau |first1=Stephen |title=As Republicans laud Rickenmann's Columbia mayor win, many downplay impact on city politics |url=https://www.postandcourier.com/columbia/politics/as-republicans-laud-rickenmanns-columbia-mayor-win-many-downplay-impact-on-city-politics/article_d662b540-47e1-11ec-a4b1-a33fb3c19917.html |website=The Post and Courier Columbia |publisher=The Post and Courier |access-date=14 May 2022}}</ref>

On April 16, 2022, a [[Columbiana Centre shooting|mass shooting]] at the [[Columbiana Centre]] mall resulted in the injuries of 14 people. 10 were struck by gunfire while four sustained stampede-related injuries. Three men were arrested; Columbia police declared that the shooting was the result of an argument, not a random attack or [[terrorism]].<ref>{{cite web|title=$10,000 reward being offered for wanted suspect in Columbiana Mall shooting|date=April 18, 2022|url=https://www.wltx.com/article/news/local/columbiana-centre-mall-shooting-update-latest-details/101-8b40ffdb-7771-4904-9b09-af9335820dae|access-date=2022-04-19}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Police make 2nd arrest in SC mall shooting, 3rd suspect wanted|date=April 18, 2022|url=https://thenationaldesk.com/news/americas-news-now/police-make-2nd-arrest-in-south-carolina-mall-shooting-3rd-suspect-wanted-columbiana-centre-marquise-love-robinson-jewayne-m-price}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Third suspect arrested in South Carolina mall shooting|date=April 21, 2022 |url=https://apnews.com/article/shootings-arrests-south-carolina-columbia-ceff642c3b0a6f19dabd44a423bd9800|publisher=AP NEWS|access-date=2022-04-21}}</ref>