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Nichols, South Carolina

8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1948 and the latest in 1983. It stands in the Mullins census division. It lies in ZIP code area 29581. It stands on Crutchlow Branch. The Survey maps it on the Nichols quadrangle. 234 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 56 feet above sea level.

Nichols within Marion County

Population over time

3 figures

Nichols fell from 408 to 234 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.

YearPeople Change
2000408
2010368-40 (-10%)
2020234-134 (-36%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

5 surveys from 8 printed sheets

Matched 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.

Fires near this place

189 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 189 fires within 5 miles of Nichols between 1992 and 2020, burning about 1,297 acres in total. 1 started naturally. 50 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 burning55
Missing data/not specified/undetermined55
Arson/incendiarism50
Equipment and vehicle use14
Railroad operations and maintenance8
Misuse of fire by a minor2
Other causes1
Fireworks1
Natural1
Recreation and ceremony1
Smoking1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
9 September 2004Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreSouth Carolina Forestry Commissionnot named
9 September 1997Arson/incendiarism2.0 acresSouth Carolina Forestry Commissionnot named
7 September 2007Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreSouth Carolina Forestry Commissionnot named
3 September 2007Debris and open burning3.0 acresSouth Carolina Forestry Commissionnot named
18 September 2001Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreSouth Carolina Forestry Commissionnot named
16 September 2013Debris and open burning1.0 acresSouth Carolina Forestry Commissionnot named
16 September 2001Missing data/not specified/undetermined6.0 acresSouth Carolina Forestry Commissionnot named
15 September 2011Debris and open burning3.0 acresSouth Carolina Forestry Commissionnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Marion County

Mines and quarries near this place

2 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 2 workings within 5 miles of Nichols: 1 unknown, 1 plant. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Silica, Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
E.P. Pitts Sand PitSilicaUnknown1946, 1975
Pitts MineSand and Gravel, ConstructionPlant

Every working recorded in Marion County

Storms near this place

23 since 1999

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Nichols in 23 storm reports between 1999 and 2024: 11 thunderstorm wind, 7 hail, 4 flash flood, 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
October 2016Flash FloodNichols$150,000A portion of Kemper Road was washed out. Adjacent roadways were also impacted by the flood waters.
September 2018Flash FloodNichols$50,000Kemper Rd between sc-9 and s-321 closed due to road washout. Steele Rd from s-321 to s-60 was also washed out.
July 2014Thunderstorm WindNichols$20,000A team from the National Weather Service conducted a survey and found a damage path from the intersection of Winnie Road and Old Nichols Highway to near the intersection of Taylor Road and Pace Road. Numerous large tree limbs were blown out to include the tops of two large pine trees. Two large hardwood trees were also uprooted. A few pieces of metal roofing were blown off a horse barn and deposited 100 yards away. Minor shingle and siding damage was also observed at two residences. The path length was about three-quarters of a mile and the maximum path width was 350 yards. The damage pattern was consistent with straight line winds up to 75 mph. Time of event was estimated based on radar data.
May 2010HailNichols$5,000Hail up to the size of quarters was reported at the Lighthouse Restaurant.
June 2016Thunderstorm WindNichols$3,000Trees were reported down near the intersection of Old Mullins Highway and Highway 9.
January 2013Thunderstorm WindNichols$3,000Trees were reported down on Gilchrist Road.
July 2006Thunderstorm WindNichols$2,000Downburst uprooted numerous trees, one falling on a car. A side garage door was ripped from its hinges. Dime size hail was also reported.
April 2018Thunderstorm WindNichols$1,000A tree was reported down along Highway 9 near Sunny Mart.
May 2017Thunderstorm WindNichols$1,000A large tree was reported down off of U.S. 76 near Harbor Rd. The time was estimated based on radar data.
October 2017Thunderstorm WindNichols$1,000A large tree was reportedly blocking the intersection of Hwy. 76 and Grices Ferry Ct. The time was estimated based on radar data.
June 2016Thunderstorm WindNichols$1,000A tree was reported down on Old Mullins Highway.
June 2015Thunderstorm WindNichols$1,000A tree was reportedly in the roadway at the intersection of Center Church Road and Gilchrist Road. The time was estimated based on radar data.
April 2012HailNichols$1,000Hail up to the size of quarters was reported. The hail reportedly lasted for 10 minutes.
July 2012Thunderstorm WindNichols$1,000A tree was reported down near the intersection of Old Mullins Highway and Old Nichols Highway.
April 2024Thunderstorm WindNichols-Power outages affecting most of Nichols, SC due to fallen trees.
November 2015FloodNichols-Highway patrol reported flooding on Pee Dee Island Road.
July 2014HailNichols-Nickel size hail was reported on Taylor Road. The time estimated based on radar data.
May 2003HailNichols-Skywarn reported nickel size hail.
April 2001HailNichols-Public reported golfball size hail.
June 2000HailNichols-Farmer reported nickel size hail.
June 2000Flash FloodNichols-Flooding was reported on Hwy 9 and US 76, near the Marion/Horry county line. Roadways were reported to be temporarily impassable for 30 minutes.
April 2000HailNichols-Trained spotter reported marble to dime size hail.
September 1999Flash FloodNichols-Heavy rains associated with hurricane Floyd accumulated near 9 inches in the eastern part of the county and 3 inches on the west side. Flooding occurred in the Brittons Neck area and along Highway U.S. 76 from Nichols to Marion.

Every storm recorded in Marion County

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 PlaceDistance Sheets
Stave Landing4.5 miles8
North Mullins5.9 miles11
Mullins5.9 miles11
Gapway7.4 miles8
Smithboro8.6 miles6
Zion9.1 miles6
Koonce10.1 miles11
Pendeboro11.1 miles11

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 NicholsAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q2071041The 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 1225046. 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.