In South Carolina, genealogy records are available to help you to piece together your family's history. The state has a wide assortment of resources you can use to help you to learn more about your family and its history. However, there is no just one source for this information. Rather, you will need to learn as much as you can about the people in your family and then piece together this information thoroughly. It will take time, but the process can be a rewarding one once complete. South Carolina genealogy records are worth digging up because of the rich history they offer to you.

In order to get started, you will likely want to start at the state level. In the state of South Carolina, settlers and towns developed throughout the 1600's and 1700's. During these early years, limited records are available at all. If they are available, they are through churches or town clerk's offices rather than with the state itself. The state enacted a law in September of 1914 that required that all births and deaths happening in the state were to be filed with the state. However, individuals did not report this information until the following year. It would take a few years before 90 percent compliance was achieved, too. Marriages were not recorded with the state until 1911.

There are records on file earlier than this, but it can take some research to find them. If you are looking for birth and death records from 1915 onward, through 50 years prior to this year, you will want to visit the following address:

South Carolina Department of Archives and History

1430 Senate Street

PO Box 11669

Capital Station

Columbia, South Carolina 29211

For records that are less than 50 years old, you will need to turn to the Bureau of Vital Statistics through the South Carolina Department of Health and Environment Control.

To complete the South Carolina genealogy records searches, you will need to turn to other sources. South Carolina Parishes often have the largest resource of information available. A good choice, for example, is the Register of St. Philip's Parish in Charles Town. You can also use cemetery records to help you with this type of search. This type of information is on file with each individual cemetery in the state and no one database is available.

The churches in the state have kept some of the best documentation about the births and deaths, as well as marriages of those who were members. Some church documents date back to the 1700's. To find this information, though, you will need to contact the individual churches in the area and request a formal search of it.

For those still looking for South Carolina genealogy records, it pays to look as close as you can to the actual local resources. Town clerks, for example, filed documents and reports containing the vital records of the town's people for many years prior to the 1900's laws requiring the reporting of this information. Check with local facilities to find out if this information remains available.

• South Carolina Genealogy