COLLETON COUNTY 5/14/12
Date Formed:  1800 Colleton,Colleton,Colleton,Colleton
Land Area (square miles): 1,056
County Seat: Walterboro
Other Cities and Towns: Cottageville, Edisto Beach, Lodge, Smoaks, Williams
Form of Government: Council-Administrator
Council Members: 5
Method of Election Single Member
Term Length 4 years
Council of Government:  Lowcountry
County History
Colleton County was named for one of the Lords Proprietors, Sir John Colleton (1608-1666). The county was first created in 1682 under the proprietary government, but the designation was seldom used in the colonial period. Instead, the area was known by its parish names: St. Bartholomew, St. Paul, and St. George Dorchester. In 1769 these parishes became part of Charleston District, where they remained until Colleton District was formed in 1800.  A portion of the county was removed in 1897 to form Dorchester County. Several Revolutionary War skirmishes took place in Colleton County, and the state legislature met in the town of Jacksonboro in 1782 while Charleston was occupied by the British. This part of the lowcountry was known for its extensive rice and cotton plantations, many of which were bought by Northerners after the Civil War for use as hunting preserves; some of those lands are now being incorporated into the ACE Basin, a nature preserve bounded by the Ashepoo, Combahee, and Edisto rivers. The Revolutionary War hero Isaac Hayne (1745-1781) was a Colleton resident, as were politicians Rawlins Lowndes (1721-1800) and William Lowndes (1782-1822).
Population Trends Value Rank Value Rank
Census Population 1990 34,377 27 Numeric Change Census 1990-2010 4,515 29
Census Population 2000 38,264 26 Numeric Change Pop. Est. 2010-2011 -301 41
Census Population 2010 38,892 26 Percent Change Pop. Est. 2010-2011 -0.8% 36
Population Estimate 2010 38,912 26 Persons Per Square Mile 36.8 43
Population Estimate 2011 38,611 26
Economic Data Value Rank Value Rank
Jobs 2010 10,827 27 Personal Income 2010, in thousands $1,104,145 26
Jobs 2009 10,907 27 Per Capita Personal Income  2010 $28,375 25
Jobs 2008 10,827 27 % of U.S. Per Capita PI 2010 71% 25
Avg. Ann. Growth Rate Jobs 1990-2010 -0.4% 28 Average Wage Per Job 2010 $31,151 37
Percent Change Jobs 2009-2010 -0.7% 18 % of U.S. Avg. Wage Per Job 2010 66% 37
Numeric Change Jobs 2009-2010 -80 16 Unemployment Rate 2011 13.0% 19
Tax Data Value Value
Assessed Property 2010 $177,463,595 Per Capita Assessed Property 2010 $4,563
County Base Millage Rate 2011 0.11327 Additional Sales Tax, if applicable
Value of One Mil 2011 $172,393 Local Option Sales Tax 1.0%
Net Taxable Sales FY10 $260,811,629 Capital Projects Sales Tax  
Admissions Tax Collected FY10 $53,491 School District Sales Tax  
Accommodations Tax Collected FY10 $528,734 Transportation Sales Tax  
County Finance & Employment Data Value
Total Revenues FY10 $32,893,073 Value
Total Expenditures FY10 $43,360,975 Per Capita Revenues FY10 $846
General Fund Budget FY12 $26,854,149 Per Capita Expenditures FY10 $1,115
Total Debt Outstanding FY11 $10,048,950 Per Capita Gen. Fund Budget FY12 $690
Payroll FY12 $17,009,746 Per Capita Debt Outstanding FY11 $250
Full-Time Employees FY12 373 Credit Rating(s) FY11
Part-Time Employees FY12 66 Moody's: Aa3
Full-Time Emp/1,000 Cnty Residents 9.59 Standard & Poor: A+
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