“S” is for Saluda County (452 square miles; 2020 population 20,292). Created in 1895, Saluda County is bordered by Lexington, Aiken, Edgefield, McCormick, Newberry, and Greenwood Counties. In 1929, when Lake Murray was created, the county gained one hundred miles of shoreline and found 5,120 acres of its territory underwater. The county was once part of Ninety Six District, then of Edgefield District, and finally of Edgefield County and therefore shares its early history with these entities. The soil consists of deep, well-drained loams and clays with sand along the “Ridge” section. Hills are low and easily adapted to cultivation. There is abundant rainfall. In the early twenty-first century agriculture still dominated the Saluda County economy, but cotton had been replaced by the poultry industry, cattle farms, dairy production, tree farming, and peach orchards.
“S” is for Saluda County
