State Legislative Manuals in the Research Room and Online

"The Hidden Senator" local history program reminded me about the Legislative Manuals and the State Government records and materials here in the Research Room and digitally through the South Carolina State Library and the South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Take my word for it: together there's a lot! In fact, you can get a rough overview of the range of government records that we have in the Research Room by revisiting a series of Connections posts about municipal, county, state and federal government records that I wrote back in July 2018.

Niels Christensen, Jr. was Beaufort County's state senator for 20 years, 1904 - 1924. While the BDC has plenty of South Carolina Legislative Manuals in the Research Room, we do not have copies for the years that he served in the Senate. Our earliest South Carolina Legislative Manual is dated 1929, then we have four for the 1930s, a solid run 1941 - 1951, and then we start again with 1953 - 2005; 2008 - 2011; 2018 and 2020. Therefore it is quite fortunate that the South Carolina State Library (SCSL) has more years of SC Legislative Manuals in its collection - and in addition to physical copies, SCSL has digitized South Carolina Legislative Manuals from 1917 to the present day and made them available online. 

The annually published manual provides detailed information, including photographs and biographies of officials in the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the South Carolina State Government, the South Carolina Congressional Delegation, and State Officers. Additionally, the manual serves as a useful resource for information on State Senate and House of Representatives districts; Rules of the Senate and House of Representatives; State Agencies; State Symbols and Emblems; South Carolina County Officers; United States Government Departments in South Carolina; and historical information on South Carolina Governors, Lieutenant Governors, and Speakers of the House.

From the online files of the Legislative Manuals made by the SCSL, one can follow his tenure in the Senate from 1917 through his retirement in 1924 - as well as the political careers of other elected and appointed officials from 1917 until 2021.

Don't delay, watch the "Historically Speaking" Lecture 3, Season 2 program on the Library's YouTube Channel before it gets taken down on Thursday, April 22nd at 6 pm. You'll learn a lot from Mrs. Pollitzer about early 20th century Beaufort and see some nifty family photographs and items from our own Research Room related to State Senator Niels Christensen, Jr..

A reminder: The Library system will be closed on Wednesday, April 21, 2021 for Staff Development Day. 

Please remember to make arrangements with me in advance to visit the Research Room. Staff shortage and COVID-19 mitigation efforts have limited access to our facility since March 18, 2020. We remain unable to accept walk-in customers at the present time. Contact me: gracec@bcgov.net ; 843-255-6446 during normal and customary Beaufort County government hours. If I am not here to answer your phone call, please leave a message. I will respond to your inquiries during regular business hours as quickly as possible and in the order in which the inquiries were received.