Zip Trip: History of Laurens

by: Steven Ruffing, Sydney Broadus, Christine Scarpelli

Posted: Aug 11, 2023 / 04:00 AM EDT

Updated: Aug 11, 2023 / 01:21 PM EDT

About Laurens

LAURENS, S.C. (WSPA) – Like most towns in the Upstate, Laurens’ history starts with the land being acquired from the Cherokee after the Cherokee sided with the British in the Revolutionary War.

The property was sold multiple times after the Revolution before being bought by the judges of Laurens County.

“Their job was to determine a city center,” President of the Laurens County Museum Teresa Noble said. “They gathered together at a distillery.”

The group had two locations in mind, each about a mile in a half from downtown in opposite directions, but as the story goes, the decision was made after one too many drinks at the distillery.

“Let’s just say they weren’t in the mood to go visit that site and then go visit that site and they staggered up this hill because it is a hill and planted stakes and that became the center of the city.”

Surrounding the center of the city were businesses and one of the workers in town went on to do bigger and better things.

“One of our famous residents was Andrew Johnson who was a tailor in the city of Laurens,” according to Noble. “He would later become the 17^th president of the United States.”

Years later when the industry started to boom, Laurens Glass Factory opened its doors and employed hundreds of people.

In fact, Laurens Glass had their own piece of Presidential history, specifically with Lyndon B. Johnson.

“He was inviting the President, he was on his trip out to Texas and he was going to have a big picnic at his ranch so he wanted something special so he had these bottles made for soda,” Connie Post, with the Laurens County Museum, explained. “They made these special for John F. Kennedy’s trip out to Texas and of course we know the tragic story was the President was assassinated and so Vice President Johnson ordered that all the bottles be destroyed. So, they are a very rare find.”

A couple of years following that incident, Pink Floyd was founded and the city of Laurens played a role in that too.

Pink Floyd was named after Piedmont blues musician Pink Anderson he was right here from Laurens” Post said. “Floyd Council who was also from South Carolina. So, that’s how we get Pink Floyd.”