Cherokee

Formed January 1, 1897 (37^th county)

Cherokee County (56,216), Gaffney (12,754)                

The 1930 masonry Neo-Classical courthouse replaced an 1898 version.  The courthouse is on Floyd Baker Boulevard at Courthouse Street.  United States Highway 29 is two blocks north of the location.  M. R. Marsh provided the facility designs.  In 1972 the county bought a 1914 structure as the Administration Building.  The county was founded on January 1, 1897 from parts of Spartanburg, Union, and York counties as the 37^th county with Gaffney as the only county seat.  Cherokee County is named for the Native American tribe.  The county seat is named for city founder Michael Gaffney.  Cherokee County is the birthplace for 1 South Carolina Governor, Richard M. Jefferies. 

Cherokee County government consists of a director, a sheriff, a treasurer, a coroner, an assessor, and a clerk (executive).  It has 7 Council Members (legislative.)  Two Circuit Court Judges and Five Family Court Judges serve Cherokee and Spartanburg counties (judicial.) The county is on the northern border with North Carolina.  Greenville, South Carolina is southwest and Columbia, South Carolina is southeast of the county.  The county center is 1.8 miles Southeast of Gaffney in East Gaffney.  The county is surrounded clockwise by North Carolina and York, Union, and Spartanburg counties. 

The area of the county is 397 square miles.  It is 43 out of 46 in the state.  It ranks 24 out of 46 in population in the state.  It has a density of 141.6 persons per square mile making it 18 out of 46 in the state.  Cherokee County has 26.1% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 85 passes through the county from north to west from North Carolina to Spartanburg County.  United States Highway 29 parallels Interstate Highway 85 from North Carolina to Spartanburg County.  United States Highway 221 Alternate enters from North Carolina, north, and exits into Spartanburg County, west.  The county shape looks like a fat tornado cloud.  Gaffney is located in the northern third of the county.  Gaffney is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 22.7% of the county population.  The county seat is pronounced GAF-NEE.  This county is in the Gaffney Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Smyrna