HISTORY OF OLD TRYON AND RUTHERFORD COUNTIES, NORTH CAROLINA, 1730-1936

Orig. pub. Asheville, NC 1937. Reprinted 1977, 1982, 2000, 2004. Print on Demand Edition 2008. xv, 640, 41 pp., index

This history of Old Tryon and Rutherford Counties by Clarence W. Griffin contains a wealth of information not available elsewhere. Tryon County was formed in 1768 from the part of Mecklenburg County west of the Catawba River. Due to inaccurate and delayed surveying, Tryon County encompassed a large area of northwestern South Carolina. The original area of the county encompassed the following modern day areas: all of Cleveland, Gaston, Lincoln, and Rutherford counties in North Carolina and Cherokee, Chester, Laurens, Spartanburg, Union, and York counties in South Carolina; and parts of Buke and McDowell counties in North Carolina and Greenville and Newberry counties in South Carolina. In 1779 Tryon County was divided into Lincoln and Rutherford counties in North Carolina and ceased to exist. Court records from the first days of the county preserve the names of early settlers. Biographical information is contained in extensive footnotes and county records for every period of history yield valuable genealogical data. Service records include rosters of troops in the Revolutionary War, the North Carolina Militia, War of 1812, Civil War, Spanish American War, and World War I. General historical information is given on major events and developments. This volume also includes as a supplement the pamphlet by Mr. Griffin published in 1934, Public Officials of Rutherford County, N.C., 1779-1934.