Greenville, SC
Local History Institutions
Greenville County Historical Society. Greenville, SC. https://greenvillehistory.org.
Henry Bacon McCoy Papers. Greenville County Historical Society, Greenville, SC.
- This collection includes correspondence and other papers belonging to a contractor and local historian, Henry Bacon McCoy, who worked out of Greenville for decades. McCoy’s personals papers primarily discuss life in Greenville and South Carolina in the mid-20th
Laura Smith Ebaugh Papers. Greenville County Historical Society, Greenville, SC.
- Laura Smith Ebaugh was Greenville native and one of the founding members of the Greenville County Historical Society. Her personal papers shed light on a wide range of topics including local history and preservation.
Map Collection. Greenville County Historical Society, Greenville, SC.
- This collection include over 20 maps of Greenville and the region from the 1880s, in addition to local Sanborn Insurance maps.
Photo Collections. Greenville County Historical Society, Greenville, SC. https://greenvillehistory.org/photogallery/.
- The Greenville County Historical Society has thousands of photographs, organized as seven collections, that document Greenville history since the late 19th Many of the images are available digitally, but the full collection is held at the society’s headquarters.
Upcountry History Museum. Greenville, SC. https://www.upcountryhistory.org.
Upcountry Oral History. Upcountry History Museum. https://soundcloud.com/upcountryoralhistory.
- This growing digital collection currently includes 99 oral history clips including over 20 on the region’s textile history and over 40 on local veterans. The project began in 2002 and is ongoing.
Libraries and Archival Collections
Greenville County Library, South Carolina Room. Hughes Main Library.
Businesses of Greenville County. Digital collections. Greenville County Library System, South Carolina Room Archives. Greenville, SC. https://greenvillelibrary.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p17168coll5/search
- This digital collection contains almost 300 photograph of businesses in the county throughout the entire 20th
Communities – Five Forks. Digital collections. Greenville County Library System, South Carolina Room Archives. Greenville, SC. https://cdm17168.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/fiveforks/search.
- This digital collection contains dozens of images and several oral histories about the historic Five Forks community in the Greenville area.
Greenville City Codes & Ordinances. Digital Collections. Greenville County Library System, South Carolina Room Archives. Greenville, SC. https://cdm17168.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p17168coll78/search
- This digital collection includes four volumes of city codes from the 1880s and 1890s. These volumes also include information about city officials, committees, and districts.
Greenville Civic and Commercial Journal. Digital collections. Greenville County Library System, South Carolina Room Archives. Greenville, SC. https://greenvillelibrary.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/gcj/search.
- This digital collection includes 31 issues of the Greenville Civic and Commercial Journal, which was published by the Greenville Chamber of Commerce in the early 1920s. These issues include articles and photographs about local history and businesses.
Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives. Clemson, SC.
Arthur Magill Papers, Mss-0155. Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives. https://public.special.clemson.edu/repositories/2/resources/197.
- This collection includes transcripts, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, and correspondence related to former director of the Greenville County Museum of Art, Jack Morris. The documents are from the time period 1976-1982.
Dan River-Woodside Mill Records, Mss-0101. Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives. https://public.special.clemson.edu/repositories/2/archival_objects/78808.
- This collection documents the history and activities of Woodside Mills and its subsidiaries that operated in Greenville and the surrounding area. The collection also includes an autobiography of John T. Woodson, co-founder of Woodside Mills.
Dill Family Collection, Mss-0288. Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives. https://public.special.clemson.edu/repositories/2/resources/330.
- This collection includes photographs, magazines, and other documents related to the social and cultural history of the Brandon Mills community, which operated in Greenville from 1901-1977.
Lawrence Peter Hollis papers, Mss 161. Special Collections, Clemson University Libraries, Clemson, SC 29634-3001. https://public.special.clemson.edu/repositories/2/resources/203
- This collection of personal papers documents the life and career of Lawrence Peter Hollis, who was served as superintendent of schools from 1923-1957. In addition to biographical information, this collection includes photographs, documents, and newspaper articles that provide information on education in industrial mill communities of Greenville.
Oliver Perry Earle Records, Mss-0052. Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives. https://public.special.clemson.edu/repositories/2/resources/52.
- This collection of documents includes account books, daybooks, ledgers, and journals pertaining to various businesses and banks in Greenville, SC from 1834-1893.
Neal Campbell Collection, Mss 337. Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives. https://public.special.clemson.edu/repositories/2/resources/377.
- Neal Campbell was born and raised in Greenville, and was a notable engineer in the area throughout his adulthood. This collection includes photographs, local publications, personal documents, news articles, and other sources that provide information on textile mill village culture in and around Greenville, SC.
Robert S. Small Papers, Mss 99. Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives. https://public.special.clemson.edu/repositories/2/resources/100.
- The collection includes printed ephemera and other documents pertaining to several local textile mills in the Greenville area during the mid-20th century.
Furman University
Furman's Legacy of Slavery: A Digital Exhibition. Special Collections and Archives, Furman University. Greenville, SC. 2018. https://libguides.furman.edu/legacyofslavery/home.
- This digital exhibit highlights various primary sources held in the university’s special collections and archives that are related to the university’s ties to the legacy of slavery – from the school’s namesake to late 20th century efforts to acknowledge these ties.
Richard Furman and James C. Furman Collection. Special Collections and Archives, Furman University. https://cdm16821.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16821coll2.
- This collection includes hundreds of letters and several sermons belonging to Richard Furman and James C. Furman, the namesake and first president of the university.
Greenville Woman's College Records. Special Collections and Archives, Furman University. Greenville, S.C.
- This collection consists of the surviving records of the Greenville Woman's College, which operated from 1855 through 1938, and its successor, the Woman’s College of Furman University. The records include correspondence, photographs, meeting minutes, financial records, and speeches, and university publications.
Greenville Woman's Club Records, 1948-2004. Special Collections and Archives, Furman University. Greenville, S.C.
- This collection includes a wide variety of documents pertaining to the Greenville Woman’s Club, which represented over 40 individual women’s clubs in the region.
Richard D. Sawyer Historic Greenville Collection. Special Collections and Archives, Furman University. Greenville, S.C.
- This collection includes manuscripts, published material, newspapers, ephemera, photographs, and artifacts from the personal collection of local historian, Richard D. Sawyer.
Pathways to Diversity Digital Collection. Special Collections and Archives, Furman University. Greenville, SC. https://omeka.centre.edu/s/pathways/browse?facet%5Bvra:placeOfRepository%5D%5B0%5D=Furman%20University.
- This digital collection documents the desegregation of four southern universities, including Furman University in Greenville, SC. The growing collection includes newspaper clippings, photographs, and oral histories on desegregation at Furman.
Historic Newspapers
Greenville Piedmont.
- This daily newspaper was previously called The Piedmont from 1916-1927. It was published as the Greenville Piedmont from 1927-1995 and the latter issues are available online through the Greenville County Public Library System.
Greenville News.
- This daily newspaper has been published since 1920. Issues from 1920-2014 are available on microfilm at Furman University.
The Southern Enterprise (Greenville, S.C.).
- This historic newspaper was a partisan, Democrat periodical published weekly beginning in 1854. From 1870-1872 it was called the Greenville Enterprise, and changed names several times over the next several decades. Most issues of the Southern Enterprise and Greenville Enterprise are available online through the Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers database.
Books
Bainbridge, Judith T. Historic Greenville: The Story of Greenville & Greenville County. 1st ed. San Antonio, Tex: Historical Pub. Network, 2008.
- This monograph is a comprehensive history of Greenville County, with dozens of vivid historical photographs throughout.
Helsley, Alexia Jones. Hidden History of Greenville County. Charleston, SC: History Press, 2009.
- This monograph highlights people, places, and events in Greenville history including the infamous folklore of the “Dark Corner” associated with the Upstate region
Huff, Archie Vernon. Greenville: The History of the City and County in the South Carolina Piedmont. Columbia, S.C: University of South Carolina Press, 1995.
- This monograph primarily traces Greenville’s economic growth since its early settlement. The author, a professor of history at Furman University, also explores various aspects of Greenville’s social and political history since its settlement. .
Robinson-Simpson, Leola Clement. Greenville County, South Carolina. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2007.
- This comprehensive photograph collection depicts the history and contributions of African Americans in Greenville County from the 19th through 20th The author has also written detailed identification and contextual to frame the photograph collection.
Documentaries
Walters, Campbell, dir. The Dark Corner: A Documentary. Greenville, SC: Dark Corner Films. 2008.
- This locally produced documentary explores the history and lore of murder, bootlegging, and mystery that gave Greenville County and the Upstate region of South Carolina the nickname “The Dark Corner."
