This is my second article dealing with the old spelling of Orangeburg. Since then, I have uncovered some interesting facts that I would like to share with the people of our great county.

Along with these findings, I have concluded that we should return the "h" to the spelling of Orangeburg. Our county was given that spelling at its birth and it shouldn't have been changed without proper legal proceedings. This is our heritage! So far, I have not been successful in finding legal records pertaining to this matter.

"Burgh" is the Scots language and Scottish English cognate of the English language borough. Therefore, Orangeburgh, being named for the Prince of Orange, added the suffix "burgh," which was taken from Scottish roots.

In 1890, President Benjamin Harrison signed an executive order establishing the United States Board on Geographic Names. On Dec. 23, 1891, the board announced: "In names ending in 'burgh,' the final 'H' should be dropped." The result of this mandate left cities such as Pittsburgh, Newburgh, Williamsburgh, and burghs all over America, with their final, silent "h" removed from all federal maps and agencies.

Pittsburgh, Penn. refused to give in to the new law and after 20 years of mounting pressure, the Board on Geographic Names reversed the decision on July 19, 1911 and the "h" was restored. It is one of the few U.S. cities or towns to be spelled with an "h" at the end of a "burg" suffix.

Spartanburg dropped its "h" before the 1850 census. It was created in 1785 as Spartan. The last syllable "burgh" was simply a suffix agreed upon and added to the old name Spartan. According to the history of Spartanburg by Dr. J.B.O. Landrum, by common consent and modern usage, the letter "h" has been dropped.

In Orangeburg, on the corner of Broughton and Henley, there is a historical marker indicating the location of our first courthouse in 1780. Orangeburg is spelled with an "h" on that marker.

Downtown on the Square, two old cannons from the Revolutionary War are anchored with a plaque using the spelling of Orangeburg with an "h."

The following is a historical trail of how Orangeburgh was spelled:

The first ship load for Orangeburgh Township arrived in Charleston in July 1735, and immediately set out for the township on the Edisto, which was thereafter named Orangeburgh.

By 1765, the townships of Amelia (named for Princess Amelia) and Orangeburgh were placed into St. Matthew's Parish by the General Assembly. (Statutes of S.C., Vol. IV, page 230 No. 944)

In March, 1778, the Township of Orangeburgh was placed into a parish called Orange by the state legislature (Statutes of S.C., Vol. IV, pp. 408-9).

In the Journal of the Senate of South Carolina Jan. 8, 1782-Feb. 26, 1782, William Robinson was mentioned as being elected to Orangeburgh District.

In the Journals of the House of Representatives of South Carolina 1792-1794, the district of Orangeburgh is mentioned.

Orangeburgh District was divided into four counties; Orange, Lewisburg, Winton and Lexington. They ceased to function in 1791 and reverted to Orangeburgh District. Winton County was revitalized as Barnwell District in 1800. Lexington County was revitalized as Lexington District.

According to Amanda Stone of the South Carolina State Library, "reference to Orangeburgh was seen in various forms from Orangeburgh District to Orange District."

Why and who dropped the "h"?

After conferring with Stone, her conclusion was that "no official act was recorded by the General Assembly on the deletion of the "h" in the spelling of Orangeburgh." Thereby, an unofficial act by the people resulted.

Daniel Marchant Culler states in his book that, "the original spelling of the township and the town laid off on the Edisto under the Act of 1730 was Orangeburgh and that the village also applied the same name. Yet long before 1867, the people of the town and the district had fallen into the careless habit of misspelling the name of their own town."

In accordance to the research that I have conducted, I have theorized the following:

That a faction of people wanted to completely sever the ties with England, the "motherland."

The spelling of Orangeburgh with the "h" is Scottish. Therefore, the Scots were powerful during the settling of Orangeburgh, spelling it with their ancestry in mind. By 1850, their stature was minimized as a driving force for leadership, development and growth in the district.

The spelling of Orangeburgh without the "h" is a spelling of German ancestry. With this, people of German ancestry became more affluent and powerful within the district, which may have led them to delete the "h" from the spelling.

In the 1850 census, there were three census takers for Orangeburgh District named Salley, Grimes and Fisher. In Sally's report, he spelled Orangeburgh without the "h," while Grimes and Fisher spelled it with the "h." Maybe Sally's area had more German descendents and Grimes and Fisher surveyed more Scots?

With this historical background in place, Austin Cunningham and I advocate a return to our roots in the spelling of Orangeburg to Orangeburgh. Just as the spelling would change, so will the pronunciation. This will require training which should begin within our educational system. Of course, such a change will not take immediate effect.

According to Christine Hollar, who hails from Scotland, in pronouncing "burgh," "you must roll the 'h.'" As Austin Cunningham would say, "Now that's real class."

Mr. Cunningham and I are aware that our mission will not be received in the affirmative by all who it will affect and surely there will be many who could care less. But we do feel that with our "Community of Character" in place, it is indeed a most appropriate time in the history of Orangeburgh to revert back to our former spelling.

If the "h" was restored, it would affect less than 150 businesses. A local printer said, "such an addition to envelopes, letterheads and stationery would be minimal in cost." The largest number of people who would be affected would be the ones carrying an Orangeburgh address. Postmaster Claude Dash of our Post Office states, "There are approximately 23,500 mailing addresses located in Orangeburg." The remainder of the county will not be affected.

Richard Reid is president of the Orangeburg Historical and Genealogical Society.

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