Welcome to York, a city that can trace its beginnings to the origins of York County, South Carolina. Explore the thirty different styles of architecture in a compact historic district that is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Within three blocks, discover how an elephant brought Santa Claus into town. Walk the paths of Catawba and Cherokee warriors and chiefs, as well as where leaders and militia rode during the Revolutionary War. And imagine the sights and sounds as Jefferson Davis gave his last public address before the cabinet of the Confederacy dissolved. The Yorkville Historical Society offers this fascinating history and more in a guided tour through the White Rose City.

Welcome to York, a city that can trace its beginnings to the origins of York County, South Carolina. Explore the thirty different styles of architecture in a compact historic district that is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Within three blocks, discover how an elephant brought Santa Claus into town. Walk the paths of Catawba and Cherokee warriors and chiefs, as well as where leaders and militia rode during the Revolutionary War. And imagine the sights and sounds as Jefferson Davis gave his last public address before the cabinet of the Confederacy dissolved. The Yorkville Historical Society offers this fascinating history and more in a guided tour through the White Rose City.

Situated halfway between the Broad and Catawba Rivers in upstate South Carolina, the area of present-day York was inhabited by Native Americans for several thousand years before immigrants from the British Isles arrived in the late 1740s. When the American Revolution began, Yorks early settlers almost overwhelmingly supported independence, and two important Patriot victoriesthe Battles of Williamsons Plantation (Hucks Defeat) and Kings Mountainwere fought nearby in 1780. York County was established in 1785, and the town of Yorkville became the county seat. Agriculture made up much of the towns economy in the 19th century, and the Kings Mountain Railroad sparked economic growth after 1852. The Kings Mountain Military School opened in 1855 and made Yorkville an educational center for the upcountry. Yorkvilles cotton planters and slave owners supported the Confederacy during the Civil War, and the town was occupied by Federal troops during Reconstruction. Yorkville became York in the early 20th century, and textile manufacturing became its dominant industry. With the decline of the textile industry after 1980, the city has become a center for business, tourism, and high-tech manufacturing.