Kershaw County Gender and Ethnicity 2000

• Male ............................................................................. 25, 424
• Female .......................................................................... 27, 223
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• White ............................................................................ 37, 701
• Black ............................................................................ 13, 840
• Indian or Alaska Native ....................................................... 154
• Asian ................................................................................. 164
• Hispanic ............................................................................. 886
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• Median Age ....................................................................... 37.4
• Source: U.S. Census 2000

Source: U.S. Census 2000

Source: Central Midlands Council of Governmetns, 2002

KERSHAW COUNTY

• Median Family Income 2002: $47,600
• Median Household Income 2000: $38,804
• Per Capita Income, 2003: $26,159

Source: US Census 2000 & Central SC Alliance

• 25 miles from Columbia, the state capital
• Halfway between New York and Miami
• 24-hour ground access to 70 percent of the U.S. Market
• County encompasses 739.3 square miles

• Average rainfall ................. 49.1 inches
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• Average temperatures :
• Yearly average ................... 61.6 degrees
• Summer average ................. 79.7 degrees
• Winter average ................... 42 degrees

The mean annual precipitation in the Camden area is 47.1 inches and the average growing season is 219 days. The elevation of Camden is 170 feet above sea level.

The community's local newspaper is the Chronicle-Independent, published tri-weekly with five other dailies circulating in the community, including The State newspaper. Three local radio stations, WAME-AM, WCAM-AM and WPUB-FM transmit from the Kershaw County area. Kershaw County receives 7 local television stations, and cable television is available throughout the county.

The City of Camden has a council-manager form of municipal government. The four city councilpersons and mayor are elected at large for four-year terms. The municipalities of Bethune and Elgin have similar forms of government. Kershaw County is governed locally by a county council comprised of seven members who are elected from single member districts with the chairperson elected at large. All members serve four-year terms.

The Kershaw County Sheriff's Department has 35 certified officers manning 40 patrol cars, covering 770 square miles of territory. The Camden Police Department has 23 officers, 24 patrol cars, covering 5.5 square miles. The Camden Fire Department has 25 full-time firemen and 20 volunteers. Several rural fire stations are located throughout the county comprising more than 50 additional full-time and volunteer firemen. The City of Camden's insurance rating is Class 4 and outside the city is Class 5.

The county has 8 banks and 2 credit unions to serve the financial needs of the community. The banks have total assets of more than 3.2 billion.

Accomodations in Camden and Kershaw County constist of 11 motels, 1 county inn, and 5 bed and breakfasts, all with a total of 454 rooms. Meeting and banquet facilities for large and small groups are also available.

Kershaw County has many churches including 95 Protestant churches, 1 Roman Catholic church and 1 Jewish synagogue.

The Kershaw County School System consists of 11 elementary, 4 middle schools, 3 high schools, 600 teachers and 9,000 students. In addition, 3 private schools serve the area including Camden Military Academy, The Montessori School of Camden and Thomas Sumter Academy. Institutions of higher learning include the Kershaw County Applied Technology Education Campus located in Kershaw County.

Located in Columbia, 32 miles away, are Midlands Technical College, Columbia Bible College, Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary, Allen University, Benedict College, Columbia College, and the University of South Carolina. Central Carolina Technical College, USC-Sumter and USC-Lancaster are also in close driving distance to Kershaw County.

Kershaw County Medical Center (KCMC) encompasses a 121-bed acute care facility, an 88 bed long-term care, a Home Health/Hospice Agency, and The Health Resource Center located in Camden; two primary healthcare offices, The Healthcare Place at Elgin and The Healthcare Place at Bethune; and West Wateree Medical Complex located in Lugoff. KCMC also operates the countywide emergency medical services system. Nearby Columbia has four general hospitals, an army hospital, the State Mental Hospital and the Veterans Administration Hospital. The county has 66 medical doctors and 22 dentists.

Camden has a year-round recreation program and 178 acres of city parks. N.R. Goodale State Park, two miles away, is a 2,300 acre park with two lakes, picnic and game facilities. Wateree Lake is a 22-mile navigable lake for water sports and fishing. Golf, hunting, sporting clays, steeplechase horse racing and horseback riding are available. Field trials for dogs and fox hunting are conducted in the area. Kershaw County has 24 parks, 24 tennis courts, 10 ball parks, 2 public golf courses, 1 private country club, 3 pools, 2 theaters, and 1 bowling alley. The University of South Carolina and the Columbia Bombers Baseball Team provide spectator sports for the area.

Electric power is supplied locally by the City of Camden Municipal system, Carolina Power & Light Company, Black River Electric Cooperative, Fairfield Electric Cooperative, and Lynches River Electric Cooperative. Natural gas is supplied by South Carolina Electric and Gas/SCANA and propane gas through Carotane Propane Gas Company. Southern Bell and Sandhills Telephone Cooperative provide local telephone service and there are many long distance carriers in the area.

Water and sewer services are currently provided by the City of Camden Municipal system and the Lugoff-Elgin Water and Sewer District. Other water suppliers include the Cassatt, Charlotte Thompson and Bethune Water Districts. Currently the City of Camden is placing a new, 6-million-gallon-per-day water treatment plant on Lake Wateree into service. The City's sewer plant is capable of treating 2.4 million gallons of wastewater per day and planning is under way to increase the treatment capacity to 4 million gallons per day. The Lugoff-Elgin daily water capacity is 4.1 million gallons per day and the sewer capacity is 510,000 gallons per day.

The total civilian labor force within a 30-mile radius of Camden in 1991 was 217,524. Within a 15-mile radius, the labor force count is 36,675. The county unemployment rate in June 1994 was 9.4%. The South Carolina unemployment in June 1994 was 6.0%. In 1995, the median household income for Camden was $33,009 and $33,889 for Lugoff. The median household income for Kershaw County in 1995 was $36,500.

Interstate 20 serves Kershaw County with 4 interchanges. Within a short distance, I-20 connects with Interstate 95 at Florence and Interstates 77 and 26 in Columbia. In addition, there are 3 US highways and 9 South Carolina highways. The community is served by the Seaboard System Railroad which also provides access to Amtrak. Kershaw County has 39 freight carriers and two trucking terminal facilities.

Private aircraft utilize the Camden-Kershaw County Airport which has a maximum runway length of 5,000 feet. Charter service, tiedown, ADF instrument approach, Unicom, 100LL fuel, jet fuel and aircraft repairs are among the services offered. The Columbia Metropolitan Airport, 38 miles away, offers regularly scheduled commercial airline service on Delta, U.S. Air, and American Airlines. In addition, Charlotte International Airport is conveniently located 72 miles north of Kershaw County with service from all the major airlines.

Kershaw County has a state sales tax rate of 6%. The total millage for Kershaw County residents in 1994 was 217.45 mills: 56.08 for county, 6.90 for debt service, 3.47 for library, 123.0 for schools and 28.0 for a school bond. In addition, there are two special purpose districts for fire department needs, each amounting to a 15-mill assessment for residents of Lugoff or the Mt. Pisgah-Buffalo areas only. The total millage rate in 1994 for the Town of Bethune was 62.0

Corporate or industrial location in Kershaw County is rewarded through a five-year moratorium of general county taxes (which excepts school taxes). The state of South Carolina offers jobs creation tax credit, a corporate headquarters tax credit, a childcare program tax credit, and various sales tax exemptions to include machinery, equipment, fuels and electricity. In addition, there are various property tax incentives and fee-in-lieu of property taxes offered for various investments and programs.