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Ninety Six is a town in Greenwood County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 1,998 at the 2010 census.


Geography

Ninety Six is located in eastern Greenwood County at (34.173211, -82.021710).
South Carolina Highway 34 South Carolina Highway 34 (SC 34) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As one of the longer state highways, it traverses the state east-west from Greenwood to Dillon, connecting the cities of Newberry, Winn ...
passes through the town as its Main Street; it leads west to Greenwood, the county seat, and east to
Newberry Newberry is a surname, a variant of Newbury. Notable people with the surname include: * Booker Newberry III (born 1956), American singer and keyboardist * Brennan Newberry (born, 1990), American professional stock car racing driver * Brian Newbe ...
.
Lake Greenwood State Park Lake Greenwood State Park is a state park located near the town of Ninety Six in Greenwood County, South Carolina. The park partially occupies a series of peninsulas bordering Lake Greenwood. The state park consists of land donated in 1938, ...
is northeast of town, and
Ninety Six National Historic Site Ninety Six National Historic Site, also known as Old Ninety Six and Star Fort, is a United States National Historic Site located about 60 miles (96 kilometers) south of Greenville, South Carolina. The historic site was listed on the National Re ...
is south of the center of town. According to the United States Census Bureau, Ninety Six has a total area of , all land.


Etymology

There is much confusion about the name, "Ninety Six", and the true origin may never be known. Speculation has led to the mistaken belief that traders estimated it was from here to the nearest Cherokee settlement of
Keowee Keowee ( chr, ᎫᏩᎯᏱ, translit=Guwahiyi) was a Cherokee town in the far northwest corner of present-day South Carolina. It was the principal town of what were called the seven Lower Towns, located along the Keowee River (Colonists referred ...
(it was about ); to a counting of creeks crossing the main road leading from
Lexington, South Carolina Lexington is the largest town in and the county seat of Lexington County, South Carolina, United States. It is a suburb of the state capital, Columbia. The population was 23,568 at the 2020 Census, and it is the second-largest municipality in t ...
, to Ninety-Six (a legend proved false); to an interpretation of a Welsh expression, ''nant-sych'', meaning "dry gulch". No one is able to confirm that European founder Robert Goudey (sic) was Welsh, English, Scottish, or German. Traders passed on information to each other about landmarks and distances along the Cherokee Path, and sometimes created maps. They estimated mileage between streams based on their day's travel. They noted unusual aspects, such as the six creeks that ran unexpectedly south away from the Saluda River and, further west, nine creeks that ran south away from the Savannah River, noting them on maps as "6" and "9". A town in this area and a district both became known as "Ninety-Six", likely related to the evolution of traders' references to 9 and 6, the landmark groups of streams. Using historical accounts and USGS maps, historians have traced the Cherokee Path across present-day Greenwood County, territory that at the time was part of other districts.via JSTOR Another source suggests the numerical reference was to measuring by "chains", traditional in English parishes. Even so, the origin of the name "Ninety-Six" remains a mystery. Ninety Six has been noted for its unusual place name.


History

Ninety Six was established on the frontier of the early 18th century, roughly around 1730. For a time it was known as "Jews Land" because some prominent Sephardic Jewish families of London bought extensive property there. The Salvador and DaCosta families bought , intending to help poor Sephardic families relocate from London to the New World. They began to settle it. The settlement became the capital city of the Ninety-Six District when the latter was established in July 1769. Since the late 20th century, the National Park Service has operated the
Ninety Six National Historic Site Ninety Six National Historic Site, also known as Old Ninety Six and Star Fort, is a United States National Historic Site located about 60 miles (96 kilometers) south of Greenville, South Carolina. The historic site was listed on the National Re ...
at the site of the original settlement and British fort. Ninety Six figured prominently in the
Anglo-Cherokee War The Anglo-Cherokee War (1758–1761; in the Cherokee language: the ''"war with those in the red coats"'' or ''"War with the English"''), was also known from the Anglo-European perspective as the Cherokee War, the Cherokee Uprising, or the Cherok ...
(1758–1761). During the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
, it was a site for southern campaigns. The first land battle of the revolution south of New England was fought here 19–21 November 1775. On August 1, 1776, American militia forces led by Major Andrew Williamson were ambushed by Cherokee and Loyalists near here in the Battle of Twelve Mile Creek. More than 4,000 Cherokee warriors had waged war on a long front beginning in June, from modern Tennessee to central South Carolina.
Francis Salvador Francis Salvador (1747 – 1 August 1776) was an English-born American plantation owner in the colony of South Carolina from the Sephardic Jewish community of London; in 1774 he was the first Jew to be elected to public office in the colonies whe ...
, a Sephardic Jewish immigrant from London and a planter, was one of the casualties. He was the first Jew to be killed fighting with the Patriots in the Revolutionary War. The Cherokee were allied with the British in an effort to expel European-American settlers from their territory. In fall 1776, Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Georgia raised rebel militias to retaliate. Rutherford's Light Horse expedition had several units that attacked the Cherokee Lower Towns; the Middle, Valley, and Out Towns; and the Overhill Towns, dealing widespread destruction of Cherokee towns and their stores of food. In 1780 the British fortified the strategically important frontier town with a
star fort A bastion fort or ''trace italienne'' (a phrase derived from non-standard French, literally meaning ''Italian outline'') is a fortification in a style that evolved during the early modern period of gunpowder when the cannon came to domin ...
. From May 22 to June 18, 1781, Major General
Nathanael Greene Nathanael Greene (June 19, 1786, sometimes misspelled Nathaniel) was a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. He emerged from the war with a reputation as General George Washington's most talented and dependabl ...
, with 1,000
Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...
troops, besieged 550 American Loyalists who were defending Ninety Six. General Greene's chief engineer at the siege was Colonel Tadeusz Kościuszko, a Polish officer who became world-renowned for his role in the Revolution; he was wounded at the siege. The Loyalists survived the siege and relocated after the war to
Rawdon, Nova Scotia Rawdon is a former township in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. The township was the eventual destination of Loyalists fleeing the Siege of Ninety Six during the American Revolutionary War. In 1861, along with the township of Douglas, Nova Sc ...
, Canada, with support from the Crown for resettlement. In the nineteenth century, the Southern Railway was constructed through here and had a stop at Ninety Six. The Kinard House, Moore-Kinard House,
Ninety Six National Historic Site Ninety Six National Historic Site, also known as Old Ninety Six and Star Fort, is a United States National Historic Site located about 60 miles (96 kilometers) south of Greenville, South Carolina. The historic site was listed on the National Re ...
, and Southern Railway Depot (Ninety Six, South Carolina) are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.


Demographics


2020 census

As of the
2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to off ...
, there were 2,076 people, 706 households, and 520 families residing in the town.


2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,936 people, 820 households, and 560 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,325.1 people per square mile (512.0/km2). There were 904 housing units at an average density of 618.7 per square mile (239.1/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 76.50% White, 22.73%
Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have of ...
, 0.15% Native American, 0.05% Asian, 0.21% from other races, and 0.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.52% of the population. There were 820 households, out of which 30.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.1% were married couples living together, 17.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.6% were non-families. 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.90. In the town, the age distribution of the population shows 24.9% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 27.7% from 25 to 44, 22.9% from 45 to 64, and 17.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $33,423, and the median income for a family was $39,550. Males had a median income of $30,978 versus $25,034 for females. The per capita income for the town was $15,648. About 7.0% of families and 8.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.6% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.


Education

Ninety Six has a
public library A public library is a library that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also civil servants. There are five fundament ...
, a branch of the Greenwood County Library System.


Notable people

* Orville Vernon Burton, professor of history at
Clemson University Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university in Clemson, South Carolina. Founded in 1889, Clemson is the second-largest university in the student population in South Carolina. For the fall 2019 semester, the university enro ...
, was raised in Ninety Six. His book, ''In My Father's House Are Many Mansions: Family and Community in Edgefield, South Carolina'' traces the social history of that region. *
Cal Drummond Calvin Troy Drummond (June 29, 1917 – May 3, 1970) was a professional baseball umpire who worked in the American League (AL) from 1960 to 1969. Biography Drummond was born in 1917 in Ninety Six, South Carolina.John W. Drummond, South Carolina businessman and legislator *
Benjamin Mays Benjamin Elijah Mays (August 1, 1894 – March 28, 1984) was an American Baptist minister and American rights leader who is credited with laying the intellectual foundations of the American civil rights movement. Mays taught and mentored many in ...
, sixth president of Morehouse College and mentor to Morehouse student
Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
; born in the vicinity of Ninety Six *
Odean Pope Odean Pope (born October 24, 1938) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Biography Pope was raised in Philadelphia, where he learned from Ray Bryant while young. Early in his career, at Philadelphia's Uptown Theater, Pope played behind a numbe ...
(1938–present), jazz tenor saxophonist, born in Ninety Six but grew up in PhiladelphiaOdean Pope website
/ref> *
Francis Salvador Francis Salvador (1747 – 1 August 1776) was an English-born American plantation owner in the colony of South Carolina from the Sephardic Jewish community of London; in 1774 he was the first Jew to be elected to public office in the colonies whe ...
(1747–1776), bought land in Ninety-Six District, and was the first Jew to be elected to public office in the colonies (1774, to SC's Provincial Congress); after joining the militia, in 1776 he was the first Jew killed in the
American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...
in a battle with Loyalists and Cherokee *
Bill Voiselle William Symmes Voiselle (January 29, 1919 – January 31, 2005) was a starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. From 1942 through 1950, Voiselle played for the New York Giants (1942–47), Boston Braves (1947–49) and Chicago Cubs (1950). He b ...
, pitcher for the New York Giants,
Boston Braves The Atlanta Braves, a current Major League Baseball franchise, originated in Boston, Massachusetts. This article details the history of the Boston Braves, from 1871 to 1952, after which they moved to Milwaukee, and then to Atlanta. During it ...
, and
Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...
, wore his hometown as uniform number "96" when playing with Boston and Chicago.


Representation in popular culture

The 1781 siege was described in William Gilmore Simms' novel, ''The Forayers'', (1855). It is also featured in Kenneth Roberts' novel, ''Oliver Wiswell'' (1940), which includes a chapter entitled "Ninety-Six." The town is mentioned in the song " This Old Skin" by
The Beautiful South The Beautiful South were an English pop rock group formed in 1988 by Paul Heaton and Dave Hemingway, two former members of the Hull group The Housemartins, both of whom performed lead and backing vocals. Other members throughout the band's ex ...
.


See also

*
List of places with numeric names This is a list of places with numeric names. 0 * :nl:Nulde, (zero), Netherlands, old name for a hamlet in Putten * Nullarbor, locality in South Australia (Latin: no trees) * Nullarbor Plain, desert region in Western and South Australia (Latin ...


References


Further reading

*Carol W. Troxler, "Scotch-Irish among Southern Backcountry Loyalists", ''Journal of Scotch-Irish Studies'', I no. 3 (October 2002).


External links


Town of Ninety Six official website
* The Facebook page fo
Ninety Six

National Park Service historical narrative
{{authority control Towns in Greenwood County, South Carolina Towns in South Carolina