Edgefield was founded in 1785 as the county seat and site of the new courthouse and jail for Edgefield County, created from the old Ninety-Six District. Also called Edgefield Village or Edgefield Court House, it was described by Robert Mills as “a neat little village” in 1826 and was incorporated in 1830. With a reputation as a center of politics and law, Edgefield gave South Carolina many of its most prominent figures for more than 150 years. Ten governors and five lieutenant governors of S.C. from 1812 to 1951 were natives or residents of Edgefield or the county. Cotton was the major crop in the area for many years, and commercial growth and new prosperity followed the arrival of the railroad in 1888 and the opening of the Edgefield Cotton Mill in 1898, lasting until the mid-20th century. The Edgefield Historic District was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.