Colonial Period In 1735, the colonial government of
King George II established 11 townships in
backcountry South Carolina to encourage settlement and to provide a buffer between
Native American tribes to the west and colonial plantations in the
Lowcountry. The townships included one named Saxe Gotha, which flourished with major crops of corn, wheat, tobacco, hemp, and flax as well as beeswax and livestock, and its residents were primarily of
German and
Swiss heritage.
Post-revolution Until 1820,
Granby was the county seat of Lexington County, but chronic flooding forced the local government to move the courthouse to its present location in Lexington. The area was known by locals as the "Lexington Courthouse" and was not incorporated as the Town of Lexington until 1861. During the
Carolinas campaign in the
American Civil War, much of the town of Lexington was destroyed by Union forces as they protected
William Sherman's western flank as Union troops attacked Columbia. Most of the town of Lexington, including the courthouse, were torched and burned. Like much of the South after the Civil War, Lexington struggled economically, but local farms and the lumber industry helped stabilize the economy after
Reconstruction. Many current brick buildings were built in the aftermath of severe fires in 1894 and 1916. By the 1890s, the Columbia to Augusta Railroad and the Lexington Textile Mill prompted the town to grow. With the advent of the automobile in the 1920s and its mass production in the 1940s and 1950s, Lexington continued to grow as a suburb of
Columbia. Additionally, the creation of
Lake Murray in 1930 encouraged many to move to Lexington. Between the 1990 Census and the 2000 Census, Lexington's population increased by 198%, and by 83% between the
2000 census and the
2010 census.
Recent history The "move over law", a law that requires drivers to change lanes when there is a stopped emergency vehicle on the side of the road, originated in Lexington. James D. Garcia, a
paramedic, was struck and injured at an accident scene on January 28, 1994, after attempting to assist a driver that had slid off of the road. The
South Carolina Highway Patrol listed Garcia at fault, leading to his work to create this law. The
South Carolina General Assembly passed the "move over law" (SC 56–5–1538) 1996 and was revised in 2002 to increase the ease of enforcement and fines. A version of the "move over law" is now in effect in all 50 US states and the
District of Columbia;
Hawaii was the last to pass legislation in 2012. On August 16, 1994, Lexington was struck by an F-3 tornado, generated from the remnants of
Tropical Storm Beryl, resulting in over 40 injuries and $50 million in damages. From the same tropical storm, 21 other tornados were reported throughout the state, including six in Lexington County. A Murphy Express gas station on
Augusta Highway in Lexington sold a $400 million winning
Powerball ticket on September 18, 2013. At the time, it was the fifth largest winning ticket of any United States lottery. In 2015, remnants from
Hurricane Joaquin brought historic flooding to South Carolina. In Lexington, extreme flooding resulted in the destruction of Gibson Park Dam, which led to the subsequent failure of the Old Mill Dam. Gibson Park Dam (pictured right) was reconstructed and opened to the public in 2021; Old Mill Dam was reconstructed in 2022. The flooding additionally resulted in the destruction of several roads and businesses in the town.
National Register of Historic Places c. 1870. Buildings listed on the
National Register of Historic Places include: • The
Ballentine-Shealy House •
Bank of Western Carolina •
W. Q. M. Berly House •
William Berly House •
Lemuel Boozer House •
C.E. Corley House •
Fox House •
Gunter-Summers House •
James Harman Building •
Ernest L. Hazelius House •
John Solomon Hendrix House •
John Jacob Hite Farm •
Home National Bank •
Lexington County Courthouse •
Henry Lybrand Farm •
Maj. Henry A. Meetze House •
Old Batesburg-Leesville High School •
Charlton Rauch House •
David Rawl House •
Simmons-Harth House •
James Stewart House •
Vastine Wessinger House ==Government==