Elgin, South Carolina
13 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1941 and the latest in 1986. It stands in the Lancaster census division. It lies in ZIP code area 29720. It stands on Dry Branch. The Survey maps it on the Antioch quadrangle. 2,357 people lived here at the 2020 count.
Population over time
3 figuresElgin fell from 2,426 to 2,357 between 2000 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 2,426 | |
| 2010 | 2,607 | +181 (+7%) |
| 2020 | 2,357 | -250 (-10%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
7 surveys from 13 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1941 USGS Spartanburg quadrangle1:250000
- 1953 USGS Spartanburg quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1960 USGS Spartanburg quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1963 USGS Spartanburg quadrangle1:250000
- 1964 USGS Spartanburg quadrangle1:250000
- 1969 USGS Antioch quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1986 USGS Lancaster quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
277 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 277 fires within 5 miles of Elgin between 1992 and 2020, burning about 800 acres in total. 4 started naturally. 15 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Debris and open burning | 106 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 19 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 17 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 15 |
| Smoking | 8 |
| Natural | 4 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 3 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 3 |
| Other causes | 1 |
| Fireworks | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 September 2019 | Debris and open burning | 6.0 acres | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 8 September 1999 | Debris and open burning | 2.0 acres | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 6 September 2015 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 4 September 2007 | Natural | 8.0 acres | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 4 September 1993 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 24 September 2019 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 23 September 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 19 September 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 2.0 acres | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
1 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 1 working within 5 miles of Elgin: 1 unknown. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Gold. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stevens Mine | Gold | Unknown | Vein |
Storms near this place
16 since 2000Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Elgin in 16 storm reports between 2000 and 2023: 10 thunderstorm wind, 5 hail, 1 flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Elgin | $18,000 | EM reported many trees and powerlines down from Elgin to East Doc Garris Road...3500 residents without power. |
| September 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Elgin | $14,000 | Dispatch reported straight line wind damage, including an awning on Adam Lane, a downed tree on King Mill Road, and powerlines down on Flat Creek Road. |
| May 2020 | Flood | Elgin | $100 | Lancaster Co dispatch reported water covering the roadway on Banner Rd where it crosses Turkey Quarter Creek. Times estimated. |
| December 2020 | Hail | Elgin | $10 | Public report, received via social media, of pea to dime size hail off Bailey Rd near Lancaster. Time estimated. |
| May 2020 | Hail | Elgin | $10 | Elgin FD reported quarter inch to half inch size hail at the fire station. |
| August 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Elgin | - | County Emergency Manager reported trees down blocking the road at 672 W. Doc Garris Road. |
| September 2021 | Hail | Elgin | - | Public reported quarter sized hail near McIlwain Rd and Sentry Rd. Time estimated. |
| May 2020 | Hail | Elgin | - | Public provided a report, via social media, of quarter size hail and included a video of the hail, at Cane Mill Rd and Providence Rd. Time estimated. |
| May 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Elgin | - | Lancaster Co dispatch reported trees down at Banner Rd and Old Camden Hwy near Elgin. Time estimated. |
| May 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Elgin | - | A power pole and power lines were downed on US Hwy 521 just south of Lancaster. Reported via social media with photo provided. Time estimated. |
| June 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Elgin | - | Tree down blocking roadway on Old Camden Hwy at W Doc Garris Rd. |
| March 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Elgin | - | Lancaster Co dispatch reported trees and power lines down in the Elgin community. |
| August 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Elgin | - | Sheriff reported trees down on hwy 521. |
| May 2006 | Hail | Elgin | - | SKYWARN spotter reported golf ball size hail. |
| November 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Elgin | - | Sheriff reported trees down on hwy 97 east of Great Falls. |
| August 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Elgin | - | Sheriff reported trees and powerlines down. |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke Rise | 1.0 miles | 13 | |
| Elgin Woods | 1.1 miles | 13 | |
| Kennon Heights | 1.3 miles | 13 | |
| Sherwood Acres | 2.0 miles | 14 | |
| Fleming Crossroad | 2.3 miles | 14 | |
| Baker Place | 2.7 miles | 13 | |
| Jones Crossroads | 2.9 miles | 14 | |
| Country Club Heights | 3.0 miles | 14 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikipedia article on Elgin | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q3472666 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1247651. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.






