# List of African American newspapers in South Carolina

This is a list of African American newspapers that have been published in South Carolina. It includes both current and historical newspapers. More than 130 such newspapers were published in the state between 1865 and 1970. The first was the South Carolina Leader, established at Charleston in 1865. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, the growth of the African American press in South Carolina was hampered by the fact that a large proportion of South Carolina African Americans lived in poverty in the countryside.

## Newspapers

| City | Title | Beginning | End | Frequency | Call numbers | Remarks |
| | 1800s | | | | Founded by S.H. Jefferson. Only African American newspaper published in upper South Carolina during the 1880s. |
| Anderson | The Herald | 1957 | 1970s | Weekly | LCCN sn93067907 OCLC 28616245 | |
| Beaufort | The New South | 1879 or 1880s | 1890s | Weekly | LCCN sn93067638 OCLC 27776092 | Attested through at least 1898. |
| Beaufort | The Sea Island News | 1879 | 1888 | Weekly | LCCN sn84026859 OCLC 10715901 | |
| Beaufort | Standard Beaufort Southern Standard | 1870s | 1870s | | | Edited by Robert Smalls. Designated as the official newspaper of the Beaufort County government. |
| Beaufort / Blackville | Beaufort County Times Barnwell County Times | 1871 | 1870s | Weekly | LCCN sn84026858 OCLC 10715814 | Edited by D. Thomas. Published by William S. Whipple, who moved the paper to Barnwell County after becoming the county treasurer there. Attested through at least 1874. |
| Bennettsville | The Carolina Messenger | 1974 | 1978 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067691 OCLC 27902606 | |
| Bennettsville | Community Observer | 1978 | 1981 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065658 OCLC 26739179 | |
| Bennettsville | Pee Dee Educator | 1879 or 1890 | 1900 or 1906 | Twice monthly | LCCN sn92065549 OCLC 25837696 | |
| Charleston | The Charleston Advocate | 1867 | 1868 | Weekly | LCCN 2011254277, sn83025784 OCLC 2610929, 733407181, 9803264 ISSN 2166-1707 | Published by H.J. Moore. Free online archive |
| Charleston | The Afro-American Citizen | 1899 | 1900 or 1902 | Weekly | LCCN 2011254023, sn83025782 OCLC 2611061, 707536677, 9797992 ISSN 2166-1669 | Free online archive |
| Charleston | The Charleston Chronicle The Chronicle (1993–) | 1971 | 2021 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067867 OCLC 18769155 The Chronicle: LCCN sn93067968, sn83008435 OCLC 9797007, 28446174 ISSN 0746-1429 | Official site Published and edited by J. John French. |
| Charleston | The Coastal Times | 1983 | ? | Weekly | LCCN sn93067801 OCLC 28283855 | |
| Charleston | Charleston Free Press | 1871 | 1871 | Daily | LCCN sn92065444 OCLC 25291084 | |
| Charleston | The Free Press | 1868 | 1868 | Weekly | LCCN 2011254378, sn83025795 OCLC 2611110, 753794094, 9803310 ISSN 2166-1715 | Free online archive Published by T. Hurley. |
| Charleston | The Charleston Herald | 1952 | 1955 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067920 OCLC 28731186 | |
| Charleston | The Charleston Inquirer | 1963 | 1964 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067608 OCLC 27302316 | |
| Charleston | The Charleston Journal | 1866 | 1860s | Weekly | LCCN sn93059242 OCLC 27776023 | |
| Charleston / Columbia | Lighthouse and Informer The Lighthouse and Informer | 1941 | 1954 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065442, 2013254302 OCLC 664617378, 25291022 | Published in Columbia from 1944 to 1954. A key voice of protest during the early years of the civil rights movement. |
| Charleston | The Charleston Lighthouse | 1939 | 1941 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065445 OCLC 25291097 | |
| Charleston | The Charleston Messenger | 1894 | 1946 | Bimonthly newspaper | LCCN sn95077201 OCLC 33273095 | Published by Daniel Jenkins and affiliated with an orphanage he operated. |
| Charleston | Missionary Record | 1868 | 1879 | Weekly | LCCN 2013254323, sn83025781, sn84026949 OCLC 778032530, 9797551 ISSN 2165-9419 | Free online archive Successor to the South Carolina Leader. Edited by Richard Harvey Cain. |
| Charleston | The New Citizen | 1948 | 1952 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067932 OCLC 28731168 | |
| Charleston | The Palmetto Press | 1882 | 1885 | Weekly | LCCN sn84026992 OCLC 10797193 | Edited by R.L. Smith. |
| Charleston | South Carolina Leader | 1865 | 1868 or 1867 | Weekly | LCCN 2012203298, sn83025783 OCLC 2789571, 794292043, 9798897 ISSN 2166-1693, 2169-4621 | Free online archive Published by T. Hurley and Co. |
| Charleston | Southern Reporter | 1900 | 1920 | | | |
| Columbia | Black News Black Star Black Sun Black Times Black Views Black Voice | 1970 or 1977 | current | Weekly | LCCN sn89080108 OCLC 25161210 | Official site Published by Isaac Washington. Numerous local editions published with different titles. |
| Columbia | Black On News | 1972 | 1977 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067922 OCLC 28731216 | |
| Columbia | Black On To The Bone | 1973 | 1973 | Monthly newspaper | LCCN sn93067909 OCLC 28731176 | |
| Columbia | Carolina Afro-weekly | 1969 | 1974 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067915 OCLC 28640953 | |
| Columbia | Carolina Panorama Piedmont Post (1993) | 1978 | current | Weekly | LCCN sn93067955 OCLC 28948871 | Official site |
| Columbia | The Carolina Tribune | 1900s | ? | Weekly | LCCN 2012271290 OCLC 85851097 | Also published in numerous local editions. Attested through at least 1995. |
| Columbia | The Christian Soldier | 1898 | 1900 | Monthly newspaper | LCCN sn92065652 OCLC 26739419 | |
| Columbia | Columbia's Black News | 1984 | ? | Weekly | LCCN sn99063227 OCLC 41939794 | Attested through at least 2012. |
| Columbia | The Columbia Dispatch | 1950s | ? | Weekly | LCCN 2018226266 OCLC 1076585839 | Attested from 1957. |
| Columbia | South Carolina Independent | 1955 | 1955 | Weekly | LCCN 2013228778 OCLC 43698408 | |
| Columbia | The Light | 1916 | 1928 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065618 OCLC 26538720 | |
| Columbia | The Lighthouse | 1963 | 1964 | Weekly | LCCN 2013228774 OCLC 43721543 | |
| Columbia | The South Carolina Observer | 1960 | 1960 | | LCCN sn93067859 OCLC 28616337 | |
| Columbia | Palmetto Gleaner | 1890 | 1892 | | | First African American newspaper in Columbia. |
| Columbia | The Palmetto Leader | 1925 | 1960s | Weekly | LCCN sn93067919 OCLC 28640893 | Free online archive Published by George H. Hampton. A key voice of protest during the early years of the civil rights movement. |
| Columbia | The Palmetto Post | 1970 | 1971 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067917 OCLC 28640945 | |
| Columbia | The Palmetto Post | 1984 | ? | Weekly | LCCN sn93067929 OCLC 28640898 | |
| Columbia | Palmetto Times | 1962 | 1964 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067858 OCLC 28483730 | |
| Columbia / Orangeburg (1903–1921) | The People's Recorder | 1893 | 1925 or 1905 | Weekly | LCCN 2014254019, sn83025797 OCLC 2754377, 9804805, 778033158 ISSN 2166-1731 | Free online archive Published by Nix and Holmes. |
| Columbia | The Recorder-Indicator | 1925 | 1931 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065692 OCLC 27040906 | |
| Columbia | SouthCarolinian | 1987 | ? | Monthly newspaper | LCCN sn93067864 OCLC 28483703 | |
| Columbia | The Southern Indicator | 1913 or 1903 | 1924 or 1925 | Weekly | LCCN sn83025803, 2014254328 OCLC 778033315, 2789588, 9810255 ISSN 2166-1758 | Free online archive Edited by J.A. Roach. |
| Columbia | The Southern Sun | 1902 | 1909 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065630 OCLC 26572496 | |
| Columbia | The Standard | 1919 | 1927 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065548 OCLC 25837686 | |
| Columbia | Venture | 1978 | 1979 | Monthly newspaper | LCCN sn92065620 OCLC 26538714 | |
| Florence | The Community Times The Times | 1997 or 1992 | ? | Weekly | LCCN 2012271271, sn93067883 OCLC 27439267, 37920426 | Official feed |
| Florence | Pee Dee Times | 1987 | 1992 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067848 OCLC 27105869 | |
| Georgetown | Georgetown Advocate | 1902 | 1905 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065712 OCLC 27055771 | |
| Georgetown | The Georgetown Planet | 1873 | 1875 | Weekly | LCCN 2011254385, sn83025798 OCLC 764798151, 9804903 ISSN 2166-174X | Free online archive Edited by local politicians James A. Bawley and R.O. Rush. |
| Greenville | The Carolina News And Guide | 1963 | 1964 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067729 OCLC 28036968 | |
| Greenville | Focus | 1973 | 1980? | Weekly | LCCN sn93067887 OCLC 28589694 | |
| Greenville | Focus News | 1976 | 1981 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067911 OCLC 28570967 | |
| Greenville | Lancet | 1890 | 1890 | | | First African American newspaper in Greenville. |
| Greenville | The Palmetto Leader | 1945 | ? | Weekly | LCCN sn93067895 OCLC 28616203 | Published by Norman P. Pearson, Jr. |
| Greenville | Southern Crusader | 1942 | 1940s | Weekly | LCCN sn93067759 OCLC 28103733 | |
| Greenville | The Southern Enterprise | 1914 | 1900s | Weekly | LCCN 2009257327, sn93067720 OCLC 28036951, 469142241 | Attested through at least 1926. |
| Greenville | The Times Upstate | 1995 | ? | Weekly | LCCN 2013228823 OCLC 35615475 | Attested through at least 2009. |
| Kingstree | The Williamsburg Republican Williamsburg Republican | 1873 | 1870s | Weekly | LCCN sn86053220 OCLC 13356699 | |
| Myrtle Beach | The Weekly Journal | 1975 | 1976 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065681 OCLC 26995054 | |
| Myrtle Beach | The Weekly Observer | 1974 | 1977 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065685 OCLC 26987761 | |
| Orangeburg | The Free Citizen | 1874 | 1876 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065529 OCLC 25757236 ISSN 2165-7742 | Free online archive Edited by E.A. Webster in 1874. |
| Orangeburg | Herald | 1960s | 1970s | | | Edited by Davis Lee. Known for opposing the civil rights movement. |
| Orangeburg | View South News | 1979 | ? | Weekly | LCCN sn93067786 OCLC 28235103 | Attested through at least 1983. |
| Rock Hill | The Rock Hill Messenger | 1896 | 1919 or 1921 | Weekly | LCCN sn83025796, sn830ROCKERS49625796 OCLC 2809525, 9804719 ISSN 2166-1723 | Free online archive Edited by C.P.T. White. |
| Society Hill | The Society Hill News | 1910 | 1911 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067813 OCLC 28283824 | |
| Spartanburg | Advance | 1894 | 1897 | | | |
| Spartanburg | Negro Index | 1916 | 1922 | | | |
| Sumter | The Defender | 1903 | 1913 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065551 OCLC 25979606 | |
| Sumter | The Peoples Informer | 1936 | 1941 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065449 OCLC 25313033 | |
| Sumter | The Samaritan Herald The Samaritan Herald And The Voice Of Job (1942–1950) | 1909 | 1950 | Weekly | LCCN sn92065557, sn92065566 OCLC 25968670, 25968623 | |
| Sumter | Vindicator | 1882 | 1880s | | | Published by Samuel J. Lee. |
| Timmonsville | The Watchman And Defender | 1920 | 1931 | Weekly | LCCN sn93067826 OCLC 28385719 | |
| Union | The Union Standard | 1906 | 1900s | Twice monthly | LCCN sn93067625 OCLC 27358858 | |
| Williamsburg County | Republican | 1873 | 1870s | | | Edited by Stephen Atkins Swails. No copies survive. |