LAURENS COUNTY 5/14/12
Date Formed:  1785 Laurens,Laurens,Laurens,Laurens
Land Area (square miles): 715
County Seat: Laurens
Other Cities and Towns: Clinton, Cross Hill, Fountain Inn, Gray Court, Ware Shoals, Waterloo
Form of Government: Council
Council Members: 7
Method of Election Single Member
Term Length 4 years
Council of Government:  Upper Savannah
County History
Laurens County and its county seat were named for Revolutionary War leader Henry Laurens (1724-1792). The county was established in 1785 as a part of Ninety Six District. This part of the state was settled primarily by Scotch-Irish and English immigrants in the mid 1700s, and during the American Revolution quite a few of its residents remained loyal to Great Britain. Several Revolutionary War battles were fought in the county, including the Battle of Musgrove's Mill (August 18, 1780). President Andrew Johnson (1808-1875), a native of North Carolina, worked as a tailor in the town of Laurens for a brief time in the 1820s. Laurens County was also home to Ann Pamela Cunningham (1816-1875), the leader of the movement to preserve Mount Vernon, and educator Wil Lou Gray (1883-1984). 
Population Trends Value Rank Value Rank
Census Population 1990 58,092 19 Numeric Change Census 1990-2010 8,445 23
Census Population 2000 69,567 17 Numeric Change Pop. Est. 2010-2011 5 22
Census Population 2010 66,537 21 Percent Change Pop. Est. 2010-2011 0.0% 23
Population Estimate 2010 66,523 21 Persons Per Square Mile 93.1 21
Population Estimate 2011 66,528 21
Economic Data Value Rank Value Rank
Jobs 2010 18,857 22 Personal Income 2010, in thousands $1,897,525 23
Jobs 2009 19,819 21 Per Capita Personal Income  2010 $28,524 24
Jobs 2008 18,857 22 % of U.S. Per Capita PI 2010 71% 24
Avg. Ann. Growth Rate Jobs 1990-2010 -0.7% 34 Average Wage Per Job 2010 $34,167 27
Percent Change Jobs 2009-2010 -4.9% 42 % of U.S. Avg. Wage Per Job 2010 73% 27
Numeric Change Jobs 2009-2010 -962 42 Unemployment Rate 2011 10.4% 29
Tax Data Value Value
Assessed Property 2010 $170,019,153 Per Capita Assessed Property 2010 $2,555
County Base Millage Rate 2011 0.0823 Additional Sales Tax, if applicable
Value of One Mil 2011 $167,000 Local Option Sales Tax 1.0%
Net Taxable Sales FY10 $298,832,764 Capital Projects Sales Tax  
Admissions Tax Collected FY10 $60,129 School District Sales Tax  
Accommodations Tax Collected FY10 $82,516 Transportation Sales Tax  
County Finance & Employment Data Value
Total Revenues FY10 $35,953,152 Value
Total Expenditures FY10 $29,824,484 Per Capita Revenues FY10 $540
General Fund Budget FY12 $16,559,131 Per Capita Expenditures FY10 $448
Total Debt Outstanding FY11 $8,128,042 Per Capita Gen. Fund Budget FY12 $249
Payroll FY12 $10,128,290 Per Capita Debt Outstanding FY11 $112
Full-Time Employees FY12 354 Credit Rating(s) FY11
Part-Time Employees FY12 88 Moody's: A1
Full-Time Emp/1,000 Cnty Residents 5.32 Standard & Poor: A
Fitch: