Whitmire, South Carolina

12 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1941 and the latest in 1986. It stands in the Whitmire census division. It lies in ZIP code area 29178. It stands on Sandy Branch. The Survey maps it on the Whitmire North quadrangle. 1,390 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 433 feet above sea level.

Whitmire within Newberry County

Population over time

2 figures

Whitmire fell from 1,441 to 1,390 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	1,441
2020	1,390	-51 (-4%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

7 surveys from 12 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.

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
1970 USGS Whitmire North quadrangle1:24000
1986 USGS Spartanburg quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings

Fires near this place

84 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 84 fires within 5 miles of Whitmire between 1992 and 2020, burning about 472 acres in total. 9 started naturally. 17 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
Missing data/not specified/undetermined	30
Arson/incendiarism	17
Natural	9
Debris and open burning	8
Power generation/transmission/distribution	6
Other causes	3
Smoking	3
Equipment and vehicle use	3
Railroad operations and maintenance	3
Misuse of fire by a minor	2

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
24 September 2007	Debris and open burning	18 acres	Francis Marion & Sumter National Forests	COLONIAL
23 September 1994	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	South Carolina Forestry Commission	not named
22 September 2007	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	17 acres	South Carolina Forestry Commission	not named
17 September 2011	Equipment and vehicle use	under an acre	Francis Marion & Sumter National Forests	SWAFFORD
16 September 2000	Debris and open burning	10 acres	South Carolina Forestry Commission	not named
7 August 2004	Arson/incendiarism	under an acre	Francis Marion & Sumter National Forests	TYGER RIVER
29 August 2016	Power generation/transmission/distribution	under an acre	Francis Marion & Sumter National Forests	DELTA
1 August 2016	Natural	17 acres	South Carolina Forestry Commission	not named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Newberry County

Storms near this place

43 since 1997

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Whitmire in 43 storm reports between 1997 and 2025: 26 thunderstorm wind, 14 hail, 2 tornado, 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 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	$12,000	Fire dept. reported trees and powerlines from Whitmire to I-26.
December 2009	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	$5,000	Sheriff reported trees and powerlines down.
May 2013	Flood	Whitmire	$3,000	Heavy rains caused the Enoree River to go about 2 feet above flood stage and cause minor flooding of low lying areas along the river.
July 2015	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	$2,000	Sheriff reported trees down on Hwy 121 and Subertown Road.
April 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	$2,000	Sheriff reported trees down on Clinton Hwy.
January 2014	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	$1,000	Sheriff reported a couple of trees down near Whitmire.
September 2023	Hail	Whitmire	$100	Public reported pea size hail in the town of Whitmire. Time estimated.
September 2023	Hail	Whitmire	$100	Trained spotter reported pea size hail SW of Whitmire. Time estimated.
March 2017	Hail	Whitmire	$10	Dime size hail reported at a gas station in Whitmire.
March 2017	Hail	Whitmire	$10	Nickel and pea size hail reported in Whitmire.
June 2025	Hail	Whitmire	-	Public report from mPing of estimated penny sized hail.
May 2024	Tornado (EF0)	Whitmire	-	A National Weather Service storm survey team confirmed a brief EF-0 tornado with peak winds of 80 mph in Newberry County south of the town of Whitmire during the early morning hours of May 9th. The tornado began near the intersection of Old Airport Road and Kings Lane causing scattered tree damage as it moved east. The tornado then turned southeast resulting in additional tree damage in and around \|Little Egypt Road and Colonial Drive. The tornado likely lifted before \|reaching Highway 121.
May 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Newberry County dispatch reported trees down at Kings Lane and Old Airport Road in Whitmire. Time estimated by radar.
June 2021	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Photos of trees down near Central Ave in Whitmire. Time estimated.
March 2021	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	In northern Newberry Co, just north of Whitmire, three trees were damaged off of Lakestone Dr. A small cedar tree was snapped about half way up the trunk, a small pine tree was uprooted and the trunk of a large pine tree was split near the ground.
June 2021	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Newberry Co Sheriff's Office reported, via social media, numerous trees and power lines down, blocking SC Hwy 66, SC Hwy 72, and several other streets in Whitmire. Some property damage occurred. No injuries. Time estimated.
June 2019	Hail	Whitmire	-	Golf ball size hail reported in Whitmire. Time estimated.
August 2019	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	A National Weather Service Storm Survey Team determined that a long-lived downburst produced widespread straight-line wind damage. Numerous trees and power lines were downed from Whitmire south through Newberry. Much of the damage was concentrated in the city of Newberry. The most extensive damage occurred from near the intersection of Airport Rd and US Hwy 76 and continued south to McSwain and Mollohan Parks. There were numerous large hardwood trees that were uprooted along with a few hardwood and softwood trees that were snapped. Some of the largest oak trees were estimated to be from 75 to 150 years old. There were also numerous large limbs down across the city. Many of the trees fell on power lines, damaging street lighting and traffic signals. Several trees and large branches fell on homes and cars. A family was trapped in their home near the intersection of Langford Mill Rd and Boundary St when a tree fell on their home. An elderly woman was trapped in her home along Bush River Rd when a tree fell on her home. Damage occurred in McSwain Park and Mollohon Park due to trees that fell on playfield equipment.
May 2018	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Report received via social media of trees down on US Hwy 176 near Whitmire.
June 2018	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Report received via social media of multiple trees down in the Whitmire area. Time estimated.
June 2018	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Report of tree down on a house, causing structural damage, on Clark St in Whitmire. Time estimated.
July 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Sheriff dispatch reported trees and limbs down near the intersection of Highway 66 and Little Egypt Road.
July 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Sheriff Dispatch reported trees down on Duckett Street.
July 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Sheriff Dispatch reported power lines down at the intersection of Gary Street and Sinclair Avenue.
March 2012	Hail	Whitmire	-	Public reported nickel to quarter size hail in Whitmire.
March 2012	Hail	Whitmire	-	Public reported quarter size hail covering the ground just northwest of Whitmire off of Lovers Lane.
May 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Public reported trees down in Whitmire.
August 2011	Hail	Whitmire	-	EM reported dime size hail in Whitmire.
April 2009	Hail	Whitmire	-	Convenience store and Forestry Service reported nickel size hail.
April 2008	Hail	Whitmire	-	Sheriff reported penny size hail on Little Egypt road.
July 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Sheriff reported cable lines down in Whitmire.
April 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Sheriff reported numerous trees down in and around Whitmire.
April 2007	Hail	Whitmire	-	Sheriff reported nickel size hail in and around the Whitmire area.
April 2006	Hail	Whitmire	-	Sheriff reported quarter size hail near Maybinton and Brazelmans Bridge roads.
July 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Emergency Manager reported trees and powerlines down.
April 2005	Tornado (F0)	Whitmire	-	FOX TV reported a tornado briefly touched down near hwys 176 and 121. The twister only damaged some trees.
August 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Sheriff reported several trees down in Whitmire along with pea size hail.
July 2002	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Sheriff reported trees down from Whitmire to Jalapa.
June 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Sheriff reported trees downed in Whitmire.
September 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Highway department reported trees down.
August 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Sheriff reported trees down.
June 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Whitmire	-	Sheriff reported trees down throughout county.
June 1997	Hail	Whitmire	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Newberry 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.

Place	Distance	Sheets
Eison Crossroads	2.7 miles	13
Brickhouse Crossroads	5.9 miles	13
Cromer Crossroads	6.0 miles	13
Maybinton	8.0 miles	15
Gilliam Spring (historical)	9.8 miles	15
Browns Crossroads	10.3 miles	13
Beth Eden	10.3 miles	13
Jalapa	11.6 miles	13

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 Whitmire	An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q2162290	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 1251440. 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.