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“S” is for Saluda

South Carolina A to Z larger logo

“S” is for Saluda (Saluda County; 2020 population 3,603). In 1895 the ordinance that created Saluda County mandated that voters choose a site for the county seat “within three miles of the geographical center of the County.” Voters selected a site where Mine Creek and Red Bank Creek converge to form the Little Saluda River. The town was incorporated in 1897 and by 1912 the economy was booming. In the early twenty-first century, businesses still lined Main and Church Streets. An influx of Hispanics working in the county’s poultry industry was the reason for an increase in the town’s population. Spanish was heard on the streets of Saluda and taught in its schools. In the past few tourists visited Saluda, but the restored Saluda Theater and a museum on the courthouse square began to attract visitors.

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Dr. Walter Edgar has two programs on South Carolina Public Radio: Walter Edgar's Journal, and South Carolina from A to Z. Dr. Edgar received his B.A. degree from Davidson College in 1965 and his Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina in 1969. After two years in the army (including a tour of duty in Vietnam), he returned to USC as a post-doctoral fellow of the National Archives, assigned to the Papers of Henry Laurens.