Columbia, South Carolina

South Carolina Richland County Columbia Columbia is located in the center of South Carolina at the junctions of Interstates 20, 26 and 77. It is South Carolina's most populated city, the state capital, the county seat of Richland County, the home of the University of South Carolina's main campus, and the site of the South Carolina State Fair each October. A small part of Columbia also extends into Lexington County. Here is a map of the Columbia area.

Columbia was settled by Europeans in the early 1700s and chosen to be the site of the new South Carolina state capital in 1786. It was chartered as a town in 1805 and as a city in 1854. Columbia was named for Christopher Columbus, and it was South Carolina's first planned city (wide streets arranged in a grid pattern) and the second planned city in the United States (Savannah was the first). Despite this, Columbia did not have a single paved street until Main Street was surfaced in 1908.

Things to Do in Columbia

• Accommodations
  – Hotels in Columbia
  
  
• Festivals, events
  – Columbia events
  
  
• Arts, entertainment, dining
  – Columbia restaurants
  – Columbia bands
  – Columbia music - symphonies, orchestras, concert bands, choral groups
  – Columbia theaters, theater groups
  – The Nickelodeon
  
  
• Attractions
  – Columbia amusement, adventure, water parks
  – Columbia historic houses
  – Columbia historic sites, buildings, monuments
  – Columbia museums
  – Columbia shopping
  – Columbia zoos, observatory
  – Tunnelvision and Busted Plug
  
  
• Sports, outdoor recreation
  – Capital City Gymnastics
  – Columbia recreation, sports organizations
  – Gamecocks - USC
  – Summer camps in Columbia
  
  
• Parks
  – Finlay Park
  – Three Rivers Greenway
  
  
• Lakes, rivers
  – Lake Murray
  – Broad River
  – Lower Saluda River
  – Middle Saluda River
  
  
• Related travel, tourism resources
  – Capital City/Lake Murray Country Regional Tourism Board
  – Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center
  – Historic Columbia Foundation
  – Midlands Authority for Conventions, Sports, and Tourism
  

Columbia Maps, Transportation

• Columbia maps
• Columbia Metropolitan Airport - CAE - commercial
  – More about Columbia Metropolitan Airport
  
• Columbia Owens Downtown Airport - CUB
  – More about Columbia Owens Downtown Airport
  
• The Comet – Central Midlands Transit - buses

Columbia Jobs, Careers

• Columbia jobs

Businesses in Columbia

Real Estate in Columbia

Columbia is the largest city in South Carolina. The following guides will put you in touch with the resources you need to help you buy, sell, build, or move.

• Real Estate in Columbia
• Private communities in Columbia
• Assisted living in Columbia
• Real estate schools in Columbia

Check out our featured Columbia real estate resources:

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Columbia Businesses

Visit our featured Columbia businesses:

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Other Columbia Businesses

For a full guide to businesses located in and around Columbia, please see our South Carolina Business Directory.

• Advertising agencies in Columbia
• Apartments in Columbia
• Architects in Columbia
  
• Artists, art galleries in Columbia
• Attorneys in Columbia
• Bands in Columbia
• Banks in Columbia
• Caterers, catering services in Columbia
• Detective agencies in Columbia
• Doctors, physicians in Columbia
• Electric utilities, cooperatives in Columbia
• Employment agencies in Columbia
• Gyms in Columbia
  – Capital City Gymnastics
  
• Hotels, motels in Columbia
• Photographers in Columbia
• Restaurants in Columbia
• Shopping in Columbia
• Summer camps in Columbia

Columbia Economic Development

• Better Business Bureau
• Central Carolina Economic Development Alliance
• City Center Partnership
  
• Columbia Economic Development
• Greater Columbia Chamber of Commerce
• Innovista - USC initiative that brings public and private sector researchers together in an urban innovation district
  

Columbia News, Media

• Columbia newspapers, magazines, journals
• Columbia radio stations
• Columbia television stations
• COLAtoday - get local Columbia news delivered to your inbox each morning

Columbia Government, Military

• City of Columbia Government
• Richland County Government
  – County officials, offices - phone numbers, addresses
• Central Midlands Council of Governments
• Columbia Housing Authority
• State of South Carolina
• US Department of Agriculture - Natural Resources Conservation Service
• US Department of Housing and Urban Development
• US Small Business Administration
• Fort Jackson - US Army

Columbia Schools, Colleges, Libraries

• K12 schools
  – Richland County | Lexington County
  
• Colleges, universities
  – University of South Carolina - USC
  
• Libraries, archives
  – Richland County | Lexington County
  

Columbia Churches, Nonprofits

• Columbia hospitals
  – Columbia assisted living, retirement homes
  – Columbia clinics, health centers
  
• Columbia churches
• Columbia community, service organizations
  – Richland County | Lexington County
  – Columbia animal rescue organizations
  – Columbia environmental, conservation organizations
  – Columbia homeless assistance
  – Columbia senior citizen resources
  

Columbia History

• History of Columbia