2/2/2010

Date Formed:

1769

Land Area (square miles):

815

County Seat:

Georgetown

Other Cities and Towns:

Andrews, Pawleys Island

Form of Government:

Council-Administrator

Council Members:

Method of Election

Single Member

Term Length

4 years

Council of Government:

Waccamaw

County History

Georgetown County and its county seat were named for King George II of England. Spanish explorers are believed to have visited this coastal area in 1526, but no permanent settlement was established. English planters and their African slaves moved into the region in the early eighteenth century, building large rice and indigo plantations. The town of Georgetown, which was established around 1730, was a busy port serving the surrounding plantations. Georgetown District was first named in 1769 and in 1785 the district was divided into four counties: Liberty (which became Marion District in 1800), Kingston (which became Horry District in 1801), Williamsburg (which became a separate district in 1804), and Winyah (which was renamed Georgetown in 1800). Many famous South Carolinians were residents of Georgetown County, including Thomas Lynch, Jr. (1749-1779), a signer of the Declaration of Independence; Joel Roberts Poinsett (1779-1851), U.S. Congressman, Secretary of War, and Ambassador to Mexico, who introduced the poinsettia to the U.S.; and Joseph Hayne Rainey (1832-1887), the first African-American elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.

Population Trends

Value

Rank

Value

Rank

Population 1980:

42,461

Numeric Change 1980-2000:

13,336

Population 1990:

46,302

Numeric Change 2000-2008:

4,934

Population 2000:

55,797

Avg. Ann. Growth Rate 1980-2000:

1.57%

Population Estimate 2007:

60,388

Avg. Ann. Growth Rate 2000-2008:

1.11%

Population Estimate 2008:

60,731

Percent Change 2006-2008:

0.56%

Persons Per Square Mile 2008:

74.5

Economic Data

Value

Rank

Value

Rank

Jobs 1980:

14,890

Personal Income (PI) 2007:

$2,095,081

Jobs 1990:

19,081

Avg. Ann. Growth Rate (PI) 1969-2007:

9.1%

Jobs 2000:

23,547

Per Capita Personal Income 2007:

$34,694

Jobs 2006:

26,127

% of U.S. PCPI 2007:

90%

Jobs 2007:

26,387

Average Wage Per Job 2007:

$31,304

Numeric Change Jobs 2006-2007:

260

% of U.S. Avg. Wage Per Job 2007:

71%

Avg Ann Growth Rate Jobs 1980-2000

2.91%

Unemployment Rate 2007:

7.6%

Avg Ann Growth Rate Jobs 2000-2007

1.72%

Avg. Unemployment 1998-2007:

8.2%

Tax Data

Value

Rank

Value

Rank

Assessed Property 2007:

$550,025,008

Per Capita Assessed Property 2007:

$9,858

County Base Millage Rate 2009:

0.0492

Additional Sales Tax (if applicable)

Value of One Mil 2009:

$573,313

Local Option Sales Tax:

Millage Cap FY10:

4.4%

Capital Projects Sales Tax:

Net Taxable Sales FY07:

$684,450,418

School District Sales Tax:

Admissions Tax Collected FY07:

$1,042,240

Transportation Sales Tax:

Accommodations Tax Collected FY07

$1,390,490

Financial & Employment Data

Value

Rank

Value

Rank

Total Revenues FY08:

$64,047,593

Per Capita Revenues FY08:

$1,148

Total Expenditures FY08:

$65,317,406

Per Capita Expenditures FY08:

$1,171

General Fund Budget FY10:

$20,818,000

Per Capita General Fund Budget FY10:

$373

Total Debt Outstanding FY08:

$16,355,000

Per Capita Debt Outstanding FY08:

$259

Payroll FY 2008:

$20,921,791

Credit Rating(s) FY08

Full-Time Employees FY10:

575

Moody's:

Part-Time Employees FY10:

Standard & Poor:

AA-

Full Time Emp/1,000 Cnty Residents:

10.31

Fitch:

updated

2/2/2010