Find Kershaw County Death Records
Kershaw County death records are among the most historically rich in South Carolina. The county seat, Camden, is one of the oldest English settlements in the state and played a central role in the Revolutionary War. That deep history means death records and related genealogy sources go back further here than in many other South Carolina counties. For records from 1915 forward, the state vital records office holds all certified death certificates. For earlier periods, the Kershaw County Historical Society and the South Carolina Archives hold collections that researchers use to trace families from the colonial era through the early twentieth century. This guide explains where to look and who to contact at every step.
Kershaw County Quick Facts
Kershaw County Death Certificates
The South Carolina Department of Public Health Vital Records office issues certified death certificates for all deaths recorded in Kershaw County since January 1, 1915. Requests can be made by mail, in person at the state office, or online. The state office is at 2600 Bull Street, Columbia, SC 29201, phone (803) 898-3630. Full ordering instructions are at dph.sc.gov/public/vital-records/death-certificates. The Kershaw County Health Department at 1116 Fairlawn Drive, Camden, SC 29020, phone (803) 425-1500, can also assist residents with questions about the vital records process.
Mail requests cost $12 and take about four weeks. Online orders through VitalChek or GoCertificates cost $17 and arrive within five to seven business days. Each additional certified copy is $3. Certified copies of records less than 50 years old are restricted to immediate family members and legal representatives under Section 44-63-84 of South Carolina law.
Camden's long history and Kershaw County's central location in the Midlands means researchers often find related records in neighboring Richland, Lancaster, and Chesterfield counties. A search that starts with Kershaw County death records may need to extend to those jurisdictions as well, particularly for families with deep roots in the region.
Note: Requests for records related to Camden residents from before statewide registration began in 1915 should be directed to the Kershaw County Historical Society and the SC Archives rather than the state vital records office.
Kershaw County Coroner Death Records
The Kershaw County Coroner's Office is at 1304 Industrial Drive, Camden, SC 29020, phone (803) 425-1505. The coroner investigates deaths in Kershaw County that are sudden, violent, suspicious, or occur without a treating physician. After completing an investigation, the coroner files cause and manner of death findings with the state vital records system, and those findings become part of the official death certificate. Kershaw County's location along major transportation corridors means the coroner handles a variety of cases, including traffic fatalities and industrial incidents.
Coroner investigation files contain more detail than the standard death certificate. They can include autopsy findings, toxicology results, and scene reports. Immediate family members and legal representatives may request copies of these files from the Kershaw County Coroner's Office. Submitting a written request with the decedent's full name, date of death, and your relationship to the deceased is the recommended approach. These records can be important for insurance claims, estate proceedings, and personal family history.
Searching Kershaw County Death Records Online
The SC Courts Public Index for Kershaw County is at publicindex.sccourts.org/kershaw/publicindex/. This free tool allows name-based searches of court and probate filings. Probate cases that open after a death in Kershaw County often include the date of death, a copy of the will, and a list of heirs. The Public Index is an efficient way to check whether an estate was opened following a death before making a more detailed request to the probate court in Camden.
The Kershaw County Public Index provides a searchable database of court and probate filings that may reference a Kershaw County death and related estate documents.
Use the Public Index to search by the decedent's surname and identify probate cases, guardianship filings, and other court records connected to a Kershaw County death.
The statewide probate index at scprobate.net includes Kershaw County cases alongside all other South Carolina counties and can be searched quickly by name. FamilySearch offers free access to indexed South Carolina death records, including Kershaw County entries going back to 1915. Together these tools give researchers a strong starting point before contacting local offices directly.
The CDC's South Carolina vital records guide at cdc.gov/nchs/w2w/south_carolina.htm explains the state system and is helpful for researchers who are new to South Carolina death records research or who are working from outside the state.
Kershaw County Probate Court and Estate Records
The Kershaw County Probate Court is at 1121 Broad Street, Camden, SC 29020, phone (803) 425-1503. The Clerk of Court is at the same address with the same phone number. Probate filings are part of the public record once a case is opened. They typically include the official death certificate, any filed will, an inventory of the estate, and orders issued by the probate judge regarding asset distribution. For researchers, probate records from Kershaw County often contain some of the most detailed personal information available about a deceased individual.
Camden has been a county seat for centuries, and the Kershaw County Probate Court has records going back well before statewide vital registration. Researchers tracing Camden-area families from the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries will find probate records to be one of the best available sources. Older records may require an in-person visit to the courthouse, as many historical filings have not been digitized.
Wills and estate inventories filed with the Kershaw County Probate Court are open to the public. They describe assets, name family members, and often include details about a person's life that appear nowhere else in the official record. For genealogists working on Kershaw County families, probate records are an essential complement to the death certificate itself.
Historical Kershaw County Death Records
Camden was established in the eighteenth century and is one of the oldest inland towns in South Carolina. This history means that researchers working on Kershaw County families can find death-related documentation stretching back to the colonial period. Church registers from Camden's oldest congregations, cemetery records from historic burial grounds, and probate filings from the early county court all survive and are accessible through libraries and archives.
The Kershaw County Historical Society at 808 Bull Street, Camden, SC 29020, phone (803) 432-9841, holds local history collections that include family records, obituaries, and documents related to deaths in the Camden area going back well before 1915. Staff at the Historical Society can guide researchers to relevant materials and point out collections that are not available elsewhere. This is a particularly valuable resource for genealogists researching Camden families from the nineteenth century.
The South Carolina Department of Archives and History at scdah.sc.gov, 8301 Parklane Road, Columbia, SC 29223, phone (803) 896-6100, holds microfilm of South Carolina death certificates from 1915 through 1963 and older county records that predate statewide registration. Researchers can visit in person or submit a written inquiry for Kershaw County records.
The SC DPH death indexes page provides searchable mortality index data covering Kershaw County deaths from the start of statewide registration through the mid-twentieth century.
Search the SC DPH indexes for Kershaw County deaths by name and year to identify specific records before placing a formal request for a certified copy.
FamilySearch has a large and growing collection of South Carolina death records. Many Kershaw County entries from 1915 through the 1960s have been indexed and are searchable for free on FamilySearch. For deaths before 1915, the census mortality schedules available on FamilySearch list deaths in what is now Kershaw County going back to the 1850 census cycle. These schedules are one of the few systematic mortality records from the pre-registration era.
Note: The Kershaw County Historical Society is a private organization and may have limited hours; calling ahead before visiting is strongly recommended.
Kershaw County Library Genealogy Resources
The Kershaw County Library at 1304 Broad Street, Camden, SC 29020, phone (803) 425-1508, provides access to genealogy databases and local history materials useful for death records research. The library can provide access to online resources including Ancestry and other major genealogy platforms that hold South Carolina death certificate images and indexes. Staff can assist patrons in identifying the right collections for a specific research question.
The State Library of South Carolina at guides.statelibrary.sc.gov/genealogy maintains comprehensive research guides that cover vital records, cemetery surveys, newspaper obituaries, and historical collections for every South Carolina county. These guides are free and are updated as new resources become available.
The South Carolina State Library genealogy research guide is a structured resource for navigating Kershaw County death records, vital documents, and historical mortality sources.
Use the state library's guide to find digital collections, microfilm holdings, and county-specific resources that support Kershaw County death records research at every time period.
South Carolina Vital Records Law and Kershaw County Death Records
South Carolina's vital records law in Title 44, Chapter 63 controls how Kershaw County death records are created, filed, and accessed. Section 44-63-74 requires the attending physician or coroner to file the death certificate within five days of death. South Carolina mandated electronic filing statewide under S.C. H3325 in 2022. Section 44-63-84 restricts certified copies of records less than 50 years old to immediate family members and legal representatives.
After a Kershaw County death record reaches 50 years in age, it becomes open to any member of the public. For records still in the restricted period, non-family requesters may receive a verification of death but not the full certified copy. Section 44-63-150 provides the process for correcting errors on a filed death certificate, which requires documentary support for any proposed change. The full statute is at scstatehouse.gov/code/t44c063.php. South Carolina's FOIA law at scstatehouse.gov/code/t30c004.php covers requests for coroner reports and other county records not subject to the vital records statute.
Nearby Counties
Kershaw County is centrally located in the South Carolina Midlands and shares borders with several counties. Researchers working on families from the Camden area often find that relevant death records and genealogy materials appear in Lancaster, Richland, Chesterfield, Sumter, Lee, and Fairfield counties as well.