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Abbeville, South Carolina
Abbeville Opera House
Official logo of Abbeville, South Carolina
Logo
Motto(s): 
"Pretty. Near. Perfect."
Abbeville, South Carolina is located in South Carolina
Abbeville, South Carolina
Abbeville, South Carolina
Location in South Carolina
Abbeville, South Carolina is located in the United States
Abbeville, South Carolina
Abbeville, South Carolina
Location in the United States
Abbeville, South Carolina is located in North America
Abbeville, South Carolina
Abbeville, South Carolina
Location in North America
Country United States
State South Carolina
County Abbeville
Area
 • Total 6.23 sq mi (16.13 km2)
 • Land 6.21 sq mi (16.10 km2)
 • Water 0.01 sq mi (0.03 km2)
Elevation
594 ft (181 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total 4,874
 • Density 784.23/sq mi (302.77/km2)
Time zone UTC−5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP code
29620
Area code(s) 864
FIPS code 45-00100
GNIS feature ID 1244839

Abbeville is a city and county seat of Abbeville County, in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is located 86 miles (138 km) west of Columbia and 45 miles (72 km) south of Greenville. Its population was 5,237 at the 2010 census. Settled by French Huguenot settlers, it was named, along with the county, for the French town of the same name.

History

Abbeville was established by French Huguenots in 1764, at a site named by John de la Howe. It was incorporated in 1840.

Famed states' rights advocate and Vice President John C. Calhoun first practiced law in Abbeville, and he was born on a farm on the outskirts in what is now Mt. Carmel.

Abbeville and the American Civil War

Rock at Secession Hill
The rock at Secession Hill
Burt-Stark house
Historic Burt-Stark House

Abbeville has the unique distinction of being both the birthplace and the deathbed of the Confederacy. On November 22, 1860, a meeting was held at Abbeville, at a site since dubbed "Secession Hill", to launch South Carolina's secession from the Union; one month later, the state of South Carolina became the first state to secede.

At the end of the Civil War, with the Confederacy in shambles, Confederate President Jefferson Davis fled Richmond, Virginia, and headed south, stopping for a night in Abbeville at the home of his friend Armistead Burt. It was on May 2, 1865, in the front parlor of what is now known as the Burt-Stark Mansion that Jefferson Davis officially acknowledged the dissolution of the Confederate government, in the last official cabinet meeting.

Architectural mention

The Abbeville County Courthouse, Abbeville Historic District, Abbeville Opera House, Armistead Burt House, Patrick Calhoun Family Cemetery, Cedar Springs Historic District, Harbison College President's Home, Trinity Episcopal Church and Cemetery and Upper Long Cane Cemetery are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Abbeville is also the location of the tallest building in South Carolina, the Prysmian Copper Wire Tower. Built in 2009, the tower is 373 feet (114 m) tall and has 30 floors.

Notable people

  • Christie Benet, (1879-1951), U.S. Senator for South Carolina
  • John C. Calhoun, (1782-1850), 7th American Vice President, 16th U.S. Secretary of State; born near Abbeville and also practiced law in Abbeville.
  • James S. Cothran (1830–1897), born near Abbeville, practiced law in Abbeville, confederate officer, judge, and United States Congressman from South Carolina, buried at Upper Long Cane Cemetery.
  • Thomas D. Howie (April 12, 1908 – July 17, 1944), American army officer killed during the Normandy Campaign of World War II while trying to capture the French town of Saint-Lô. He is known as "The Major of St. Lo".
  • Samuel McGowan (general) (1819-1897), born in Laurens County, SC; Confederate General wounded four times. Post-war leader against "carpetbagger" rule; South Carolina Supreme Court associate justice.
  • Mary Elizabeth Moragne Davis (1815–1903) diarist, writer
  • Benjamin Glover Shields (1808–1850), born in Abbeville, United States Congressman from Alabama, chargé d'affaires in Venezuela

Geography

Abbeville is located at 34°10′42.7584″N 82°22′39.6732″W / 34.178544000°N 82.377687000°W / 34.178544000; -82.377687000, and is within the Piedmont Upland geographical region.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.1 square miles (15.9 km2), of which 0.012 square miles (0.03 km2), or 0.19%, is water.

Nearby is the Sumter National Forest.

Climate

Abbeville has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa). Winters are cool, sometimes cold, and short in duration. Summers are hot and humid. The transitional seasons of spring and fall can vary in temperature but tend to be warm. In the summer highs usually peak in the mid 90s, but temperatures over 100 °F (37.8 °C) occur on occasion, most recently in the summer of 2012 during a heat wave. That year, the all-time record high of 109 °F (42.8 °C) was recorded on July 1. In the winter highs are in the low- to mid-50s and lows are right around freezing, seldom dropping below 25 °F (−3.9 °C). Precipitation is well distributed throughout the year. Afternoon thunderstorms are a common occurrence in the summer months and can bring heavy winds and lightning. Snow is rare, falling every few years. On March 31, 1973, an F4 tornado struck Abbeville and killed 7 people, making it the deadliest single tornado in 1973. The area was struck by two tornadoes on April 10, 2009. No fatalities were recorded, but the majority of the city lost power and many buildings sustained significant damage.

Climate data for Abbeville, SC
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 82
(28)
80
(27)
89
(32)
92
(33)
97
(36)
105
(41)
109
(43)
107
(42)
104
(40)
100
(38)
89
(32)
78
(26)
109
(43)
Average high °F (°C) 53
(12)
58
(14)
66
(19)
74
(23)
82
(28)
88
(31)
91
(33)
90
(32)
84
(29)
74
(23)
65
(18)
55
(13)
73
(23)
Average low °F (°C) 31
(−1)
34
(1)
40
(4)
48
(9)
57
(14)
66
(19)
70
(21)
69
(21)
62
(17)
50
(10)
41
(5)
33
(1)
50
(10)
Record low °F (°C) −2
(−19)
2
(−17)
3
(−16)
24
(−4)
32
(0)
41
(5)
53
(12)
50
(10)
35
(2)
25
(−4)
13
(−11)
1
(−17)
−2
(−19)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 4.16
(106)
4.60
(117)
4.68
(119)
2.85
(72)
3.40
(86)
3.45
(88)
4.01
(102)
3.68
(93)
3.11
(79)
3.45
(88)
3.62
(92)
3.76
(96)
44.77
(1,137)

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1850 1,252
1860 592 −52.7%
1880 1,543
1890 1,696 9.9%
1900 3,766 122.1%
1910 4,459 18.4%
1920 4,570 2.5%
1930 4,414 −3.4%
1940 4,930 11.7%
1950 5,395 9.4%
1960 5,436 0.8%
1970 5,515 1.5%
1980 5,833 5.8%
1990 5,778 −0.9%
2000 5,840 1.1%
2010 5,237 −10.3%
2020 4,874 −6.9%

Abbeville first appeared in the 1850 U.S. Census, when the town recorded a population of 1,252.

2020

Abbeville racial composition
Race Num. Perc.
White (non-Hispanic) 2,377 48.77%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 2,274 46.66%
Native American 5 0.1%
Asian 7 0.14%
Other/Mixed 159 3.26%
Hispanic or Latino 52 1.07%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 4,874 people, 2,256 households, and 1,294 families residing in the city.

Economy

Agriculture and forestry are important industries in the area. Crops that are grown in quantities are cotton, corn, wheat, and hay. Livestock, dairy cows, and poultry are also raised in the area. Finally, textiles are the chief manufactured product, in particular, clothing. After the North American Free Trade Agreement clothing is no longer made in Abbeville. Also represented are plastic and metal products.

Education

Abbeville has a public library, a branch of the Abbeville County Library System.

Abbeville also has Long Cane primary, Westwood Elementary, J.S. Wright Middle, Dixie High, and Abbeville High for schools. And some colleges, such as Piedmont Tech, Lander, Erskine, and many more.

Arts and culture

Abbeville Gypsy

Abbeville is the homeplace of a holiday pudding dessert called Gypsy. Gypsy consists of pound or sponge cake, boiled custard, sherry, whipping cream, and almonds. Variations of recipe substituting bourbon for sherry exist. It resembles English trifle and has been referred to as "tipsy pudding" and southern tiramisu. It is usually cooked for Thanksgiving and/or Christmas in many "old Abbeville" families. The dish is not known to exist outside of Abbeville other than in families who moved from Abbeville elsewhere. It is usually served in a special stemmed, medium-sized, decorative crystal compote.

The origins of Gypsy go back to late 19th century. There is a mention of Gispy cake in 1831 edition William Kitchiner's The Cook's Oracle, which may have been a prototype for the Abbeville Gypsy. A local legend tells a story of an unknown woman serving Gypsy to Confederate President Jefferson Davis at the end of the Civil War in 1865. Theresa C. Brown included a recipe for Gipsy cake in the Creams chapter of her Modern Domestic Cookery (1871).

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Abbeville (Carolina del Sur) para niños

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