Editing Pickens County, South Carolina (section)

==History==
Pickens County was part of [[Cherokee]] homeland territory until well after the [[American Revolution]]. The Cherokee had allied with the British, hoping to gain expulsion of European-American settlers from their lands. But they were defeated in local battles of the Revolution and forced to cede their lands under various treaties.

This former Cherokee territory was included in the new state's [[Ninety-Six District, South Carolina|Ninety-Six Judicial District]]. In 1791 the state legislature established Washington District, a judicial area composed of present-day [[Greenville County, South Carolina|Greenville]], [[Anderson County, South Carolina|Anderson]], Pickens, and [[Oconee County, South Carolina|Oconee]] counties (the latter was not organized until 1868); at that time it also included Pendleton County.

Streets for the county seat and courthouse town of Pickensville (near present-day [[Easley, South Carolina|Easley]]) were laid off. New buildings perhaps included a large wooden hotel, which served as a [[stagecoach]] stop. In 1798 Washington District was divided into Greenville and Pendleton districts. The latter included what eventually became Anderson, Oconee, and Pickens counties. After a new courthouse was erected at [[Pendleton, South Carolina|Pendleton]] to accommodate the Court of General Sessions and Common Pleas, Pickensville began to decline.

In view of the growing population and poor transportation facilities in Pendleton District, the legislature divided it into counties in 1826. But a year later, it decided to establish judicial districts instead. The legislation went into effect in 1828. The lower part became Anderson and the upper Pickens, named in honor of Brigadier General [[Andrew Pickens (congressman)|Andrew Pickens]] of the American Revolution. His home, Hopewell, was on the southern border of the district. A courthouse was established on the west bank of the [[Keowee River]], and a small town called Pickens Court House soon developed here. Since 1825, [[John C. Calhoun]] made his home in what became Pickens County, at [[Fort Hill (Clemson, South Carolina)|Fort Hill]], which became the basis around which [[Clemson University]] would later grow up.

By 1860 Pickens District had a population of more than 19,000 persons, of whom 22 percent were [[Slavery in the United States|enslaved African Americans]]. The district was largely rural and agricultural, with [[cotton]] the most important commodity crop. Its small industry consisted mainly of sawmills, gristmills, and a few other shops producing goods for home consumption. The district's [[Protestant]] churches were numerous, but schools were few. The [[Blue Ridge Railway (1901)|Blue Ridge Railroad]] reached the district in September 1860. There was little organized troop combat here during the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], but the district was frequently plundered by marauders and deserters who swept down from the mountains.

===Post-Civil War to present===
After the war, the region was largely destitute. The South Carolina Constitutional Convention of 1868, meeting during the first year of Congressional [[Reconstruction era|Reconstruction]], changed the name "district" to "county" throughout the state. The convention also organized Oconee County, from a portion of Pickens District that was west of the Keowee and [[Seneca River (South Carolina)|Seneca]] rivers, plus a small area around the Fort Hill estate formerly belonging to statesman [[John C. Calhoun]]. In the 1960s, this small area around the Calhoun property was transferred to Pickens County.

A new courthouse for Pickens County was erected at its present location. Many of the residents of Old Pickens, on the Keowee River, moved to the newly created town, some relocating their dismantled homes. The loss of the Oconee area greatly reduced the population of Pickens County. It did not again reach 19,000 until 1900.

The county's growth was accelerated by the building of the [[Atlanta and Charlotte Air Line Railway]] (later called the [[Southern Railway (U.S.)|Southern Railway]]) in the 1870s. The town of Easley, named for General W. K. Easley, was chartered in 1874. The towns of [[Liberty, South Carolina|Liberty]] and [[Central, South Carolina|Central]] sprang up along the railroad about the same time and were soon incorporated. Calhoun (now part of [[Clemson, South Carolina|Clemson]]) was founded in the 1890s, to be followed in the early 1900s by [[Six Mile, South Carolina|Six Mile]] and [[Norris, South Carolina|Norris]] as incorporated areas.

A major factor in Pickens County's growth was the development of the regional [[textile industry]], which had earlier been based in [[New England]] and [[New York (state)|New York]]. The county's first modern [[cotton mill]], organized by D. K. Norris and others, was established at [[Cateechee, South Carolina|Cateechee]] in 1895. By 1900 the county boasted three cotton mills, two railroads, three banks, three roller mills, 37 sawmills, ten shingle mills, and four brickyards.

Yet until 1940, with a population of 37,000 (13.2 percent black), the county remained primarily rural and agricultural. Like many other [[Piedmont (United States)|Piedmont]] counties, Pickens had a one-crop economy. Its citizens were engaged mainly in growing cotton or manufacturing it into cloth. A notable change in the Pickens landscape was the coming of paved highways; one completed across the county, about 1930, ran from [[Greenville, South Carolina|Greenville]] to [[Walhalla, South Carolina|Walhalla]] by way of Easley, Liberty, and Central.<ref name="SChistory"/>

The most significant developments in the county's history have occurred since World War II. By 1972 there were 99 manufacturing plants in the county, employing almost 15,000 personnel and producing not only textiles but a wide variety of other products. The population today{{when?|date=July 2024}} is estimated to be 93,894 residents.{{fact|date=July 2024}} According to an article written for ''Pickens County Heritage'', new residents continue to be attracted to Pickens County "because of its climate, industrial opportunity, proximity to Greenville's labor market, and scenic beauty".<ref name="SChistory">{{cite web|url=http://www.co.pickens.sc.us/history/default.aspx|title=History|website=Co.pickens.sc.us|access-date=January 2, 2018 | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20180110205523/http://www.co.pickens.sc.us/history/default.aspx | archivedate = January 10, 2018 }}</ref>