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Aerial view of the Darlington International Raceway around 1985. Courtesy of the Darlington County Historical Commission.
Darlington
The county is principally known for Darlington Raceway, which is an important venue for stock car racing.
Part of the Pee Dee region of South Carolina, Darlington County got its start when Welsh Baptists settled in the area and began to farm indigo, flax and other crops along the Welsh Neck of the Pee Dee River. These early settlers resulted in a strong Baptist presence, and the first non-Baptist place of worship did not exist in Darlington County until the late 18th century.
Initially part of the Cheraws District, Darlington became its own district in 1789. In 1868, Darlington District became Darlington County, but in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the county lost about third of its size to the creation of Florence and Lee counties. Darlington serves as the county seat. Though no one is certain on the reason for the name Darlington, it is thought to be a reference to Darlington, England.
Historically, cotton farming and railroads contributed most to the county’s economy. Agriculture has remained important in Darlington County, although cotton farming has given way to the farming of other crops, such as tobacco. The county is principally known for Darlington Raceway, which is an important venue for stock car racing.
County History. Accessed June 02, 2016. http://www.darcosc.com/residents/county_history.php
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Aerial view of Darlington, July 1965, shows the new courthouse standing alone and the empty space formerly occupied by City Hall. Courtesy of the Darlington County Historical Commission.
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This aerial of the Darlington town square shows the brief juxtaposition of a new courthouse, built in 1969, with the old one (see Darlington Town Square), not yet destroyed. The old city hall was also...
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View of the north side of the Darlington town square around 1920, showing the City Hall in the background. Courtesy of the Darlington County Historical Commission.
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This view of the Darlington town square gives a good view of the fourth courthouse, built in 1903. Darlington was an important cotton market, and farmers are gathered on the courthouse square around...
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Darlington County Courthouse, photographed around 1890. Darlington was originally part of the Cheraw District, created as an independent county by the state legislature in 1785 when it redrew the...
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The Owen-Woodward company was the second drive-in gas station in Darlington. Its signs advertise its many automotive services: "Gas, Oil, Tires and Accessories." The caption on the photograph...
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Chandler and Drake Auto Repair Shop in 1924; the third man from the left is F.W. Drake. Courtesy of the Darlington County Historical Commission.
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A farmer driving an ox-cart was a common sight in South Carolina until well into the 20th century. Courtesy of the Darlington County Historical Commission.
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These two boys wait patiently in the wagon that will take the family's purchases home. Their wagon is parked on the street in front of Welling and Bennoit Hardware in Darlington around 1900. Courtesy...
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The Southerner on Pearl Street in Darlington is an example of the beginning of modern drive-in fast food businesses in South Carolina, photographed around 1958. Courtesy of the Darlington County...
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The production line at Darlington Brick Company in Society Hill, around 1912. Courtesy of the Darlington County Historical Commission.
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Interior of the Darlington County Bank and Trust in 1947. Courtesy of the Darlington County Historical Commission.
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One of the final steps of textile manufacture is printing the design on the cloth. Here a worker in Hartsville prints cotton cloth during the 1930s. Works Progress Administration file photo. Courtesy...
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Interior of a tobacco grading room in a Darlington tobacco factory around 1890. Photo by August Kohn. Courtesy of the South Caroliniana Library.
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This cotton market in Hartsville, in Darlington County, dealt primarily in long-staple cotton, used in the 1930s in fine yarns, and in the fabric or cords on which tires were built. Works Progress...
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The Darlington Police Department in 1984 had both women and African-Americans as uniformed officers. Courtesy of the Darlington County Historical Commission.
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Both white and African-American Baptists practice adult baptism by immersion as an important sacrament. This baptismal celebration of an African-American Baptist church in Darlington County took place...
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John J. Dargan was the principal and a teacher, and Gena Dargan a teacher, in Dargan's School in Darlington, photographed May 18, 1899.
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James Alford, Ernest Staton, and Bright Stevenson work in the interior of the Staton Dairy barn in Darlington County around 1923. Courtesy of the Darlington County Historical Commission.
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State and County Fair competitions were an important way for farmers to exchange information about their crops and livestock. Until the 1960s, separate segregated fairs were held, both in individual...
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The advent of steam farm equipment did not make horsepower immediately out of date. Here, in October 1918 at the J.L. Coker farm in Hartsville, a steam tractor and horse-drawn wagons work together to...
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Col. Alonzo T. Dargan ( -1864), a son of the Darlington County family by that name, was painted by William H. Scarborough (1812-1871) in his Confederate uniform at the beginning of the Civil War. He...
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Born near Society Hill, James Lide Coker (1837-1918) attended local schools, the South Carolina Military Institute of Charleston, and Harvard University, where he received specialized agricultural...
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