Formed January 1, 1785 (10th county)
Fairfield County (23,956), Winnsboro (3,550)
The white brick Greek Revival courthouse was built in 1823 on a city square at Congress Street and Washington Street. United States Highway 321 Business is Congress Street. The building designer is Robert Mills. The building was remodeled in 1844 and enlarged in 1939. The courthouse features columns and a rot iron fence and stairs. A Judicial Center has been added. The county was formed on January 1, 1785 as the 10th county with Winnsboro as the only county seat. Fairfield County’s name was attributed to General Cornwallis description of the area. The county seat is named for American Revolutionary War Colonel Richard Winn. Fairfield County is the birthplace for 2 South Carolina Governors, John Taylor and John H. Means.
Fairfield County government consists of a sheriff and 7 Council Members. Two Circuit Court Judges and Two Family Court Judges serve Fairfield, Chester, and Lancaster counties. The county is in the northern part of the state. Columbia, South Carolina is directly south and Greenville, South Carolina is northwest of the county. The county center is in Winnsboro .5 miles North-Northwest of the city center. The county is surrounded clockwise by Chester, Lancaster, Kershaw, Richland, Newberry, and Union counties.
The area of the county is 710 square miles. It is 19 out of 46 in the state. It ranks 38 out of 46 in population in the state. It has a density of 33.74 persons per square mile making it 44 out of 46 in the state. Fairfield County has 16.7% of its population in its incorporated areas. Interstate Highway 77 passes north to south in the county from Chester County to Richland County. United States Highway 21 parallels Interstate Highway 77 from Chester to Richland counties. United States Highway 321 enters from Chester County, north, and exits into Richland County, south. The county resembles a fat capital letter L. Winnsboro is located near the center of the county. Winnsboro is the county seat and the largest city. It is 14.8% of the county population. This county is in the Columbia Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Jenkinsville
Ridgeway
Winnsboro
Blythewood
