Welcome to West Columbia ...
The city of West Columbia is located in Lexington County<1>.
While we don't have a date for the founding of West Columbia, you might consider that their post office opened in 1938.
A typical abbreviation for West Columbia: W. Columbia
From the Census Estimates for 2019, West Columbia has a population of 18,007 people<2> (see below for details).
West Columbia is 250 feet [76 m] above sea level.<3>.
Time Zone: West Columbia lies in the Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT) and observes daylight saving time
West Columbia lies within the (803) area code.
The ZIP code for West Columbia: 29169<4>
Websites for West Columbia ...
Official Website: www.cityofwestcolumbiasc.org/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, West Columbia had an population of 18,007 people. This is an increase of 20.14% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 37.84% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, West Columbia had a population of 14,988 people (or 5.71% of the total population of Lexington County). This makes West Columbia the county's 2nd most populous community.
The population of West Columbia represents 0.32% of the total population of South Carolina (which has 4,625,364 people), making it the state's 25th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 14,988 people, the population of West Columbia increased 14.73% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 13,064 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for West Columbia.
Communities Also Named West Columbia ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 4 communities that are also named West Columbia - they are located in Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Texas and West Virginia.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for West Columbia.
Communities near West Columbia ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near West Columbia.
- Lexington
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lexington
- Lexington is located in Lexington County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 22,716 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lexington <5>
- Irmo
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irmo
- Irmo is located in Lexington County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 12,734 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Irmo <5>
- Blythewood
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blythewood
- Blythewood is located in Richland County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,531 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Blythewood <5>
- South Congaree
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Congaree have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Congaree
- South Congaree is located in Lexington County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,485 people
- Gaston
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaston
- Gaston is located in Lexington County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,712 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gaston <5>
- Chapin
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapin
- Chapin is located in Lexington County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,664 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Chapin <5>
- Swansea
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swansea
- Swansea is located in Lexington County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 986 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Swansea <5>
- Arcadia Lakes
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arcadia Lakes have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcadia Lakes
- Arcadia Lakes is located in Richland County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 874 people
- Pelion
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelion
- Pelion is located in Lexington County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 711 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pelion <5>
- Gilbert
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilbert
- Gilbert is located in Lexington County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 657 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gilbert <5>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around West Columbia. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for West Columbia.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of West Columbia. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around West Columbia.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around West Columbia. Our list includes 6 papers. See our Newspapers Page for West Columbia.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for West Columbia ...
Looking for more information about West Columbia? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for West Columbia, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for West Columbia.
Adding West Columbia to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of West Columbia in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for West Columbia was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<7>
From that list, the West Columbia post office opened in 1938.
We also found West Columbia on a map titled Shell Oil Road Map for South Carolina (1956).
For more details, see References and Mentions for West Columbia.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for West Columbia: www.cityofwestcolumbiasc.org/
The official website for Lexington County: www.lex-co.com/
The official website for State of South Carolina: https://sc.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of South Carolina's counties, including Lexington, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for West Columbia. |
| <3> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around West Columbia - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <4> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as West Columbia). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether West Columbia or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). |
| <5> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <6> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <7> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |