Lake City, South Carolina
8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1946 and the latest in 1990. It stands in the Lake City-Scranton census division. It lies in ZIP code area 29560. It stands on Camp Branch. The Survey maps it on the Lake City West quadrangle. 5,903 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 75 feet above sea level.
On record in Lake City
Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.
On the National Register 5 records
W. T. Askins Houselisted 1995
Lake City Downtown Historic Districtlisted 2003- P.D. Cockfield Houselisted 2022
- Green's Funeral Home and Ambulance Servicelisted 2025
- Philip C. Heiden Houselisted 2021
Surveyed buildings and structures 1 record
- Tobacco Redrying Plant, Railroad Avenue, Lake Cityfederal building survey, 14 photographs
Population over time
2 figuresLake City fell from 6,675 to 5,903 between 2010 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 6,675 | |
| 2020 | 5,903 | -772 (-12%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
6 surveys from 8 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.
- 1946 USGS Lake City quadrangle1:62500
- 1949 USGS Georgetown quadrangle1:250000
- 1967 USGS Georgetown quadrangle1:250000
- 1974 USGS Georgetown quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1986 USGS Kingstree quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
- 1990 USGS Lake City West quadrangle1:24000
Photographs
2 photographs,Taken for the Office of War Information and the Farm Security Administration, who photographed the country between 1935 and 1944. Works of United States government photographers, with no known restriction on use. Each opens its catalogue record.
Photographer not recorded. Library of Congress
Photographer not recorded. Library of Congress
Fires near this place
563 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 563 fires within 5 miles of Lake City between 1992 and 2020, burning about 3,142 acres in total. 4 started naturally. 176 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 | 185 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 176 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 138 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 35 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 17 |
| Natural | 4 |
| Smoking | 3 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 2 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 1 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 1 |
| Other causes | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 September 2018 | Debris and open burning | 5.0 acres | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 8 September 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 7 September 2007 | Arson/incendiarism | 4.0 acres | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 7 September 1997 | Arson/incendiarism | 1.5 acres | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 6 September 2018 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 5 September 2018 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | under an acre | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 4 September 1993 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 30 September 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 2.0 acres | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Storms near this place
43 since 1994Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Lake City in 43 storm reports between 1994 and 2024: 20 thunderstorm wind, 16 hail, 4 tornado, 2 flash flood. The reports record 11 injuries. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 1994 | Tornado (F1) | Lake City | 11 hurt, $500,000 | A tornado, described as a big white twisting cloud, picked up two mobile homes, twisted them in the air and tore them apart; six other mobile homes were damaged. Three girls who saw the approaching tornado vacated one of the mobile homes before it was picked up and destroyed; a woman was thrown out of another mobile home and seriously injured. Three homes, six cars, and two businesses were damaged, also power lines and trees were downed, and eleven people (eight treated at local hospital and released) received minor injuries. The roof was blown off a lumber company's Show Room. |
| August 2004 | Flash Flood | Lake City | $200,000 | Heavy rains from the remnants of Tropical Storm Gaston totaled around 6 inches in a few hours, causing flooding...especially in the Lake City and city of Darlington areas. |
| June 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | $100,000 | A roof was blown off a store. A large billboard was torn apart. Wooden bleachers were destroyed, with trees down of various sizes. Both a Hardees and a Dominos sign were blown apart. Damage occurred along US Hwy 378. |
| April 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | $75,000 | A large tree was blown down on a house on Dansing St. |
| June 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | $70,000 | no account filed |
| September 2004 | Tornado (F1) | Lake City | $20,000 | A tornado destoyed a barn and snapped trees. A house sustained minor damage. |
| August 2024 | Flash Flood | Lake City | $10,000 | Several roads have been barricaded in downtown Lake City, including Williamsburg Avenue, Charles Street at Blanding Street, Wilson Street, Winkys Drive at Liberty Drive, Singletary Avenue at East Main Street, and Wilbur Street. |
| June 1998 | Tornado (F0) | Lake City | $10,000 | no account filed |
| July 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | $2,000 | A tree was reported down on a power line. |
| July 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | $1,000 | A tree was down near the intersection of S Indiantown Rd. and Broadway Rd. The time was estimated based on radar data. |
| June 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | $1,000 | A tree was reportedly down along Highway 52. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | $1,000 | Tree down across McCutcheon Road. |
| August 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | $1,000 | A tree was reported down on Johnsonville Highway near McClam Road. The time was estimated based on radar data. |
| May 2017 | Hail | Lake City | $500 | Hail to the size of quarters was reported. The time was estimated based on radar data. |
| May 2024 | Hail | Lake City | - | Quarter to ping pong size hail in Lake City and Barrineau relayed by media. Time estimated by radar. . |
| July 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | Trees were blown down across power lines near the intersection of highway 341 and South Wallace St. |
| March 2008 | Hail | Lake City | - | A cooperative observer reported hail up to the size of quarters. Dead trees were also blown down. |
| June 2007 | Hail | Lake City | - | Nickel size hail was reported. |
| April 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | Trees and power lines down. |
| May 2006 | Hail | Lake City | - | Penny size hail fell on Hwy 378. |
| May 2006 | Hail | Lake City | - | Penny size hail was reported. |
| May 2006 | Hail | Lake City | - | Hail reported on Hwy 378. |
| May 2006 | Hail | Lake City | - | Penny size hail fell. |
| May 2005 | Hail | Lake City | - | Penny size hail was reported by the South Lynches Fire department. |
| July 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | Florence 911 reported a large tree down across Lake City Hwy. |
| June 2001 | Lightning | Lake City | - | Lightning struck an antenna tower, causing minor damage to the emergency dispatch system. The damage estimate is unknown. |
| June 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | Law enforcement reported a large tree down across Wiley Rd. |
| June 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | Fire department reported power lines down due to winds. |
| July 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | Trees down. |
| April 1998 | Hail | Lake City | - | Hail covered the ground between Lake city and Scranton...reported by Florence County SO |
| May 1998 | Hail | Lake City | - | Along with hail, wind damaged wheat field near Lake City. |
| April 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | NUMEROUS TREES DOWN IN LAKE CITY |
| January 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | no account filed |
| April 1997 | Hail | Lake City | - | no account filed |
| June 1996 | Hail | Lake City | - | no account filed |
| June 1996 | Hail | Lake City | - | no account filed |
| June 1996 | Hail | Lake City | - | no account filed |
| April 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | no account filed |
| September 1996 | Tornado (F0) | Lake City | - | no account filed |
| July 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | no account filed |
| March 1996 | Hail | Lake City | - | no account filed |
| June 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | no account filed |
| June 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lake City | - | no account filed |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kelley Heights | 0.7 miles | 8 | |
| Wedgefield | 0.9 miles | 8 | |
| Palmetto Estates | 1.0 miles | 8 | |
| Kennedy Park | 1.1 miles | 8 | |
| Wren Village | 1.3 miles | 8 | |
| Martha Law Estates | 1.6 miles | 8 | |
| Greenbriar Estates | 1.9 miles | 8 | |
| Scranton | 3.3 miles | 8 |
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 Lake City | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q2837374 | 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 1246275. 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.
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.





