Population Below Poverty, 1969-2003
| County | 1969 | 1979 | 1989 | 1999 | 2003 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | |
| Abbeville | 2,898 | 13.8% | 3,270 | 14.9% | 3,110 | 13.5% | 3,485 | 13.7% | 3,483 | 13.6% |
| Aiken | 16,482 | 18.2% | 18,940 | 18.1% | 16,671 | 14.0% | 19,455 | 13.8% | 20,024 | 13.5% |
| Allendale | 3,698 | 38.3% | 4,398 | 41.4% | 3,837 | 35.8% | 3,466 | 34.5% | 2,809 | 28.4% |
| Anderson | 16,775 | 16.1% | 23,467 | 17.8% | 17,179 | 12.0% | 19,639 | 12.0% | 20,459 | 11.9% |
| Bamberg | 5,398 | 35.1% | 6,398 | 37.1% | 4,547 | 28.2% | 4,403 | 27.8% | 3,233 | 21.2% |
| Barnwell | 4,944 | 29.1% | 5,602 | 28.5% | 4,367 | 21.8% | 4,834 | 20.9% | 4,008 | 17.2% |
| Beaufort | 11,993 | 28.8% | 13,822 | 24.2% | 10,801 | 13.6% | 12,194 | 10.7% | 14,214 | 11.1% |
| Berkeley | 16,942 | 30.4% | 19,415 | 20.7% | 15,672 | 12.3% | 16,066 | 11.8% | 16,961 | 11.7% |
| Calhoun | 4,598 | 42.9% | 3,612 | 29.6% | 2,546 | 20.1% | 2,439 | 16.2% | 2,178 | 14.3% |
| Charleston | 55,078 | 24.1% | 46,382 | 17.9% | 48,508 | 17.3% | 49,330 | 16.4% | 44,862 | 14.1% |
| Cherokee | 6,659 | 18.3% | 5,750 | 14.2% | 6,523 | 14.9% | 7,176 | 13.9% | 7,925 | 14.8% |
| Chester | 7,883 | 26.5% | 4,840 | 16.1% | 5,381 | 16.8% | 5,157 | 15.3% | 5,200 | 15.6% |
| Chesterfield | 9,419 | 28.1% | 7,418 | 19.5% | 7,354 | 19.3% | 8,561 | 20.3% | 7,386 | 17.2% |
| Clarendon | 12,672 | 49.8% | 7,985 | 29.3% | 8,160 | 29.0% | 7,164 | 23.1% | 6,753 | 21.3% |
| Colleton | 10,296 | 37.6% | 8,125 | 25.7% | 7,950 | 23.4% | 8,014 | 21.1% | 7,375 | 18.6% |
| Darlington | 15,784 | 29.8% | 14,271 | 23.1% | 12,043 | 19.9% | 13,426 | 20.3% | 12,205 | 18.2% |
| Dillon | 11,783 | 41.1% | 9,239 | 30.0% | 8,114 | 28.1% | 7,311 | 24.2% | 6,357 | 20.4% |
| Dorchester | 7,841 | 24.7% | 7,739 | 13.3% | 9,360 | 11.5% | 9,108 | 9.7% | 11,809 | 11.2% |
| Edgefield | 5,559 | 35.5% | 4,517 | 25.9% | 3,026 | 16.6% | 3,407 | 15.5% | 3,527 | 15.8% |
| Fairfield | 7,480 | 37.6% | 4,517 | 22.2% | 4,501 | 20.6% | 4,518 | 19.6% | 3,814 | 15.9% |
| Florence | 24,180 | 27.2% | 23,263 | 21.4% | 22,500 | 20.1% | 20,063 | 16.4% | 20,774 | 16.3% |
| Georgetown | 12,131 | 36.4% | 9,173 | 21.7% | 9,307 | 20.2% | 9,439 | 17.1% | 8,806 | 14.7% |
| Greenville | 34,819 | 14.8% | 33,024 | 11.8% | 32,652 | 10.5% | 38,825 | 10.5% | 47,205 | 12.0% |
| Greenwood | 7,038 | 14.3% | 7,800 | 13.7% | 8,873 | 15.4% | 9,080 | 14.2% | 9,191 | 13.9% |
| Hampton | 5,839 | 36.9% | 5,119 | 28.3% | 4,989 | 27.7% | 4,277 | 21.8% | 3,819 | 19.4% |
| Horry | 21,373 | 31.0% | 17,949 | 18.0% | 21,358 | 15.2% | 23,356 | 12.0% | 28,296 | 13.1% |
| Jasper | 4,526 | 38.2% | 4,150 | 29.0% | 3,866 | 25.3% | 3,996 | 20.7% | 3,950 | 19.8% |
| Kershaw | 8,110 | 23.5% | 6,347 | 16.4% | 5,559 | 12.9% | 6,668 | 12.8% | 6,669 | 12.0% |
| Lancaster | 7,465 | 17.3% | 5,930 | 11.2% | 7,978 | 14.8% | 7,599 | 12.8% | 8,434 | 13.7% |
| Laurens | 7,515 | 16.3% | 5,726 | 11.7% | 7,259 | 12.9% | 9,648 | 14.3% | 10,137 | 14.8% |
| Lee | 8,488 | 46.4% | 5,719 | 30.3% | 5,410 | 29.6% | 4,009 | 21.8% | 3,895 | 20.5% |
| Lexington | 13,220 | 15.0% | 13,227 | 9.5% | 13,981 | 8.4% | 19,331 | 9.0% | 24,309 | 10.5% |
| McCormick | 3,079 | 39.2% | 2,058 | 26.7% | 1,705 | 22.8% | 1,526 | 17.9% | 1,423 | 16.1% |
| Marion | 11,432 | 38.0% | 8,913 | 26.3% | 9,613 | 28.6% | 8,117 | 23.2% | 7,163 | 20.5% |
| Marlboro | 9,165 | 34.0% | 7,722 | 24.6% | 7,640 | 26.6% | 5,882 | 21.7% | 5,344 | 20.2% |
| Newberry | 5,948 | 20.8% | 3,843 | 12.6% | 4,948 | 15.3% | 5,984 | 17.0% | 5,337 | 14.6% |
| Oconee | 7,019 | 17.4% | 6,767 | 14.0% | 6,492 | 11.4% | 7,075 | 10.8% | 8,055 | 11.7% |
| Orangeburg | 26,499 | 39.1% | 21,110 | 26.7% | 20,171 | 24.9% | 18,848 | 21.4% | 17,414 | 19.8% |
| Pickens | 8,099 | 14.9% | 7,786 | 10.7% | 10,735 | 12.5% | 14,205 | 13.7% | 12,277 | 11.5% |
| Richland | 39,607 | 20.0% | 36,209 | 15.3% | 35,783 | 13.8% | 40,386 | 13.7% | 43,073 | 13.9% |
| Saluda | 3,577 | 24.8% | 3,536 | 22.2% | 2,925 | 18.3% | 2,951 | 15.6% | 2,830 | 15.1% |
| Spartanburg | 30,639 | 17.9% | 27,177 | 13.8% | 26,053 | 11.8% | 30,394 | 12.3% | 33,431 | 12.9% |
| Sumter | 24,539 | 32.1% | 20,029 | 23.5% | 19,550 | 20.6% | 16,451 | 16.2% | 16,881 | 16.3% |
| Union | 5,183 | 17.8% | 3,648 | 11.9% | 5,102 | 17.0% | 4,230 | 14.3% | 4,111 | 14.3% |
| Williamsburg | 16,485 | 48.3% | 10,663 | 28.0% | 10,487 | 28.7% | 10,294 | 27.9% | 8,086 | 22.9% |
| York | 13,435 | 16.3% | 11,407 | 11.0% | 13,207 | 10.3% | 16,082 | 10.0% | 20,457 | 11.3% |
| South Carolina | 594,938 | 23.9% | 500,363 | 16.6% | 517,793 | 15.4% | 547,869 | 14.1% | 565,953 | 13.8% |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census of Population and Housing, 1970 - 2000. Housing and Household Economic Division, Small Area Estimate Branch, 2003.