Genealogical and Historical
Research Center at the Sumter County Museum

 

Click to enlarge in a new windowDiscover your roots, find your old homeplace, look for a photograph of your ancestors. Visit an historic Sumter landmark, locate the church your great-grandparents attended, discover how Sumter grew.

You can do all of this and more when you research the past at the Genealogical and Historical Research Center Annex of the Sumter County Museum.

Located in the historic Sumter Carnegie Public Library built in 1917, the Research Center is home to the Sumter County Museum Archives and the Sumter County Genealogical Society. A friendly staff greets you and will assist you with your research if you wish.

Click to enlarge in a new windowThe Research Center houses the wonderful manuscript collection of the Sumter County Museum and the extensive genealogical holdings of the Genealogical Society. Our collections concentrate on Old Sumter District (Lee, Clarendon, and Sumter Counties) but extends to most other parts of the United States. Here you will find:
  • Abstracts of early South Carolina courthouse records
  • The LDS International Genealogical Index
  • Census microfilm
  • Journals
  • Diaries
  • Hundreds of private letters
  • Family records
  • Funeral home records
  • Photographic collection of over 30,000 images of Sumter people and places
  • Over 6,000 volumes and 2,000 roles of microfilm covering all of South Carolina and most other states with extensive collections from Ohio, Texas, New York, Kentucky and Massachusetts
  • The Official Record of the War of the Rebellion
  • General Index to Pension Files, 1864-1934
  • The compiled service records of soldiers who served in the American Army during the American Revolutionary War
  • Combined Alphabetical Index from the Dept. of Archives and History
  • The Thomas Sumter Papers from the Draper Manuscripts
  • Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps, 1884-1931
  • Pennsylvania Archives (partial)


Finding Aids - More Coming Soon
Martha Priscilla Shaw
Sherman Smith
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Let the past speak to you through the written record of those who came before us - visit the Genealogical and Historical Research Center, Annex of the Sumter County Museum.

Hours are Tuesday - Saturday 10:00-1:00 and 2:00-5:00.
Closed Holidays

Research Fee: $5 per day for nonmembers

Physical Address:
219 West Liberty St., Sumter

Mailing Address:
PO Box 1456
Sumter, SC
29151-1456

Phone # 803-774-3901

Email the archivist.