The first Bobbitt family to move to South Carolina was the family of Isham and Elizabeth (James) Bobbitt. The family moved from Warren County, North Carolina to Spartenburg South Carolina in 1789. The family only lived in South Carolina till 1803 and then moved to Christian County, Kentucky.
William Bobbitt a brother of Isham Bobbitt was the second Bobbitt to move with his family to South Carolina. William married Susannah James, a sister of Elizabeth James. Both Isham and William Bobbitt served in the Revolutionary War. William moved from Anson County, North Carolina to Chesterfield County, South Carolina about 1803 and lived the rest of his life in South Carolina.
Most of the Bobbitt families who can trace their ancestry back to South Carolina will be descendants of William and Susannah James Bobbitt. Both William and his wife died in South Carolina after rearing a large family.
South Carolina is a difficult state for genealogical research. No marriage records or death records were kept by the local governments. Few early wills were recorded and not all real estate deeds were preserved.
Bobbitt families moved in and out of South Carolina over the past two hundred years, but only the descendants of William and Susannah Bobbitt remained long enough in South Carolina to be termed South Carolina Bobbitt families.
Isham Bobbitt was counted in the 1790 census of South Carolina. Isham and his son Allen Bobbitt were counted in the 1800 census of Spartanburg County. William Bobbitt (son of William and Susannah) were counted in Edgefield County.
In the census of 1810, William and Susannah Bobbitt were counted in Chester County, and no Bobbitt families were listed in Edgefield, Spartanburg, or York Counties.
In 1820 the census listed William and Susannah, their son John, and their son James in York County. Lemuel and William listed in Lancaster.
In 1830 the only Bobbitt family listed in South Carolina was the family of John Bobbitt son of William and Susannah.
The 1840 census listed Susan Bobbitt in Chester County, a Lucinda Bobbitt as a free black female, and John Bobbitt and his brother Stephen Bobbitt in York County.
