Newberry County

In 1783 an ordinance was passed to divide the districts of Charleston, Georgetown, Cheraw, Camden, Ninety-Six, Orangeburg and Beaufort into counties not more than forty miles square. When the County Court Act was written in 1785, a court was held (in every county) once every three months and the first court was held at the house of Colonel Robert Rutherford on September 5th.. The Justices present were Robert Rutherford, Robert Gillam, George Ruff, Levi Casey, John Lindsey, Philemon Waters and Levi Manning. William Malone was appointed clerk serving until 1794 with his deputies, viz: Thomas Brooks Rutherford, Major Frederick Nance and William Satterwhite. It was not until 1787 that another location for holding court was designated, being on the north side of the Bush River. William Caldwell and Joseph Wright were appointed to run a line agreed upon by the Justices to fix the public buildings by, which survey was produced at the house of John Coate.

The county seat is the town of Newberry. This part of the upcountry was settled by Germans, Scotch-Irish, English, and emigrants from the sister States of North Carolina, Virginia and Pennsylvania.

The German settlement was in the fork, between the Broad and Saluda Rivers to within three miles of the Newberry Court House. Soon thereafter the line was extended eight miles below Hugheys on the Broad River to the mouth of Bear Creek, on the Saluda River. Germans were so prevalent in part of Newberry County that it become known as Dutch Fork. Adam Summer, the father of Colonel John Adam Sumner, headed the settlement beginning in 1745. Colonel Sumner and Major Frederick Gray were known to be whigs. Among those settling were the religiously oppressed Palatines who were driven from the Rhine, Baden and Wurtemburg into England during 1710 where they were quartered in tents and booths near London. From there, they were sent to North Carolina and South Carolina. The first German settlers were: Summers, Mayer, Ruff, Eigleberger, Count, Sligh, Piester, Gray, DeWalt, Boozer, Busby, Buzzard, Shealy, Bedenbaugh, Cromer, Berley, Heller, Koon, Wingard, Suber, Folk, Dickert, Cappleman, Halfacres, Chapman, Black, Kinard, Bounight, Barr, Harmon, Bower, Kibler, Gallman, Lever, Hartman, Frick, Stoudemoyer, Dominick, Singley, Bulow, Paysinger, Wallern, Stayley, Ridlehoover, Librand, Leaphart, Hopes, Houseal, Bernhard, Shuler, Haltiwanger, Swigart, Meetze, Schumpert, Fulmore, Livingston, Schmitz, Eleazer, Drehr, Lorick, Wise, Crotwell, Youngener, Nunamaker, Souter, Epting and Huffman. The Quakers settled on the Bush River and the Beaverdam about three or four miles on each side of the river. Among them was William Coate who resided between Spring Field and the Bush River and Samuel elly, a native of King County, Ireland, who came to Newberry from Camden to settle at Spring Field. Others were: John Furnas, David Jenkins, Benjamin Pearson, William Pearson, Peter Hare, Robert Evans, John Wright, Joseph Wright, William Wright, James Brooks, Joseph Thomson, James Patty, Gabriel McCoole, John Coate, (Big) Isaac Hollingsworth, William O�Neall, Walter Herbert, Sr., Daniel Parkins, Daniel Smith, Samuel Miles, David Miles, William Miles, Samuel Brown, Israel Gaunt, Azariah Pugh, William Mills, Jonathan and Caleb Gilbert, John Galbreath, James Coppock, John Coppock, Joseph Reagin, John Reagin, Abel and James Insco, Jesse Spray, Samuel Teague, George Pemberton, Jehu Inman, Mercer Babb, James Steddam, John Crumpton, Isaac Cook, John Jay , Reason Reagen, Thomas and Isaac Hasket, Thomas Pearson, Enoch Pearson, Samuel Pearson, Nehemiah Thomas, Abel Thomas, Timothy Thomas, Euclydus Longshore, Sarah Duncan, Samuel Duncan and John Duncan.

Newberry County Wills and Estates Available to Members of South Carolina Pioneers Will Bk L, some abstracts
Index to Newberry County Will Book A (1776 to 1814)
Index to Newberry County Will Book E (1805 to 1826)
Index to Newberry County Will Book F (1823 to 1860)
Index to Newberry County Will Book 4 (1840 to 1858)

Transcripts of Newberry County Wills (1774 to 1790)

Testators: Ballentine infants, guardian appointed; Richard Bonds, James Chandler, Cornelius Cox, Jacob Crommer, Rebecca Crommer, George Dawkins, Daniel Dewalt, Peter Dewalt, Michael Dickert Sr., Enos Elliman, Laurens Feagle, James Ford, Peter Galloway, John Gary, William Gilliam, John Glen, Thomas Grasty, Thomas Green, Nathaniel Harris, James Hodges, Henry Kesler, Charles King, Stephen Lewis, John Lindsey, Robert Man, James Murphey, John Newman, William O;Neall, Jacob Oxner Sr., Isaac Parmer, Benjamin Pearson, Samuel Pearson, Jacob Setsler, John Suber, William Taylor, Elizabeth Turner, William Turner, John Vaun, John Adam Wicker, Mathias Wickert.

Transcripts of Newberry County Wills (1840 to 1848)

Testators: Anderson, Richard, Anderson, William, Brown, I. R. S. , Buchanan, Lucy , Bundrick, Sarah, Burton, Aaron, Burton, John, Caldwell, John, Caldwell, John (2) , Cary, Elizabeth, Chalmers, Thomas, Calmes, George, Cannon, Richard S., Chapman, Mary, Conwills, Sophia, Counts, John,Cromer, Christiana, Cromer, Hannah, Cromer, Michael, Crooks, John, Darlyrmple, Thomas , Davenport, Jonathan, Davidson, John, Davis, Thomas, Dennis, Prudence, Dominick, George, Dominick, Margaret, Downing, J. W., Duckett, Jacob, Enlow, Margaret , Eppes, George , Eppes, William, Erskin, Margaret, Feagle, Laurens, Floyd, Charles Jr., Frisock, Barbary, Gallman, Henry, Galloway, John, Garner, James, Gibal, A., Glenn, Naomi , Gordon, Eli , Gray, Peter , Griffin, Isaac, Harmon, David , Harmon, William, Hatton, David, Henry, James, Holloway, John, Hume, David , Keller, Jacob, Kelly, John, Kelly, Robert ,Kenner, James, Kenner, Samuel, Kinard, George,Kinard, John Michael , Kinard, Martin, Koon, John, Lake, Enoch, Lane, Nancy, Langford, Polly, Lindsey, Benjamin, Lindsey, James, Livingston, John, Long, John Thomas, Lyles, Robert , Lynch, Elijah , Maybin, John, McConnel, Andrew, McCrackin, Nancy, McKee, Joseph, McLemore, M. E., Miller, Nancy, Nance, Clement, Nance, Frederick Sr., Paysinger, John, Polk, John, Rauskett, Thomas, Rees, Jane, Renwick, Jane , Rikard, Michael, Riser, Martin, Robinson, James, Rudd, Mary An,Rutherford, William, Shumpert, Jacob, Sligh, Jacob, Smith, Martha, Spearman, John, Stabler, Moses, Stone, Phebe, Suber, Andrew, Summers, Rosannah, Thomas, John G., Thomas, Mary, Vaughn, Drury, Waldrop, Milly, Wearts, George Henry, Wertz, John ,Wheeler, Barbara , White, William, Whitmire, William ,Wicker, Simon, Willhelm, Peter, Worthington, Jacob ,Young, Harriet , Young, John T.

Miscellaneous Abstracts of Newberry County Will Bk L