South Carolina - Facts and Figures. GENERAL INFORMATION Capital Statehood Columbia May 23, 1788 the 8th state State nickname Name for residents State mottoes The Palmetto State South Carolinians Animis opibusque parati (Prepared in mind and resources) Dum spiro, spero (While I breathe, I hope) Abbreviation SC LAND Total area 82,931 sq km 32,020 sq mi Rank among states in total area Land area 40th 77,991 sq km 30,113 sq mi Highest point Sassafras Mountain 1,085 m/3,560 ft Forested land as a share of total area Federally owned land as a share of land area 64.8 percent (2002) 6.4 percent (2002) PEOPLE Population Rank among states in population Ten-year population growth Population density 4,407,709 (2007 estimate) 24th 15.1 percent (1990-2000) 55 persons per sq km (2006 estimate) 144 persons per sq mi (2006 estimate) Urban population 60.5 percent (2000) Largest cities (by population) Columbia 119,961 (2006) Charleston 107,845 (2006) North Charleston 87,482 (2006) Rock Hill 61,620 (2006) Greenville 57,428 (2006) Ethnic groups Whites 67.2 percent (2000) Blacks 29.5 percent (2000) Asians 0.9 percent (2000) Native Americans 0.3 percent (2000) Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders Mixed heritage or not reporting Hispanics (of any race) less than 0.1 percent (2000) 2 percent (2000) 2.4 percent (2000) HEALTH AND EDUCATION Life expectancy Infant mortality rate 73.5 years (1989-1991) 9 deaths per 1,000 live births (2004) Residents per physician 435 people (2005) Residents per hospital bed 369 people (2005) Share of population not covered by health insurance Number of students per teacher (K-12) Government spending per student (K-12) Share of students attending private school Share of people over age 25 with high school diploma 15.9 percent (2006) 15.3 (2003) $8,577 (2002-2003) 8.3 percent (1999) 81.3 percent (2006) GOVERNMENT State government Governor Mark Sanford (term ends January 2011) Legislature Senate, 46 members House of Representatives, 124 members National representation Members of the U.S. Senate 2 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives 6 Electoral votes 8 ECONOMY Gross state product (GSP) Income per capita $149 billion (2006) $27,153 (2004) GSP by economic sector Agriculture, forestry, and fishing 0.9 percent (2004) Industry Construction 5.6 percent (2004) Manufacturing 19.3 percent (2004) Mining 0.1 percent (2004) Transportation and utilities 5.2 percent (2004) Services Finance, insurance, and real estate 16.1 percent (2004) G overnment 15.5 percent (2004) Information technology 3 percent (2004) Retail trade 8 percent (2004) Wholesale trade Other services 5.6 percent (2004) 21 percent (2004) Employment Number of workers 2,126,000 (2006 estimate) Unemployment rate 6.5 percent (2006 estimate) Share of workers in unions 2.3 percent (2005) ENERGY, COMMUNICATIONS, AND TRANSPORTATION Electricity production Share from geothermal, solar, and wind 1.8 percent (2005 estimate) Share from hydroelectric 2.9 percent (2005 estimate) Share from nuclear 51.8 percent (2005 estimate) Share from thermal 44.6 percent (2005 estimate) Daily newspaper circulation per 1,000 people Share of households with Internet access Number of library books circulated per resident Length of highways 136 newspapers per 1,000 people (2006 estimate) 45.6 percent (2003 estimate) 4.6 books per person (2002) 106,600 km (2005) 66,238 mi (2005) Length of interstate highways 1,357 km (2005) 843 mi (2005) Length of railroad tracks 3,701 km (2004) 2,300 mi (2004) Airports 8 (2007) SOURCES The Association of American Railroads (www.aar.org), Bureau of Economic Analysis (www.bea.doc.gov), Bureau of Labor Statistics (www.bls.gov), Census Bureau (www.census.gov), Energy Information Administration (www.eia.doe.gov), Federal Aviation Administration (www.faa.gov), Federal Highway Administration (www.fhwa.dot.gov), Forest Service (www.fs.fed.us), General Services Administration (www.gsa.gov), National Agricultural Statistics Service (www.usda.gov/nass), National Center for Education Statistics (nces.ed.gov), National Center for Health Statistics (www.cdc.gov/nchs), National Telecommunications and Information Administration (www.ntia.doc.gov). Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
