The City of Columbia boasts over 180 buildings and cultural sites that have been designated as Individual Landmarks. This designation is based on architecture or associations with people or events significant in the history of Columbia and the state of South Carolina. Individual Landmarks can be designated as Type 1, Type 2, or Type 3 as laid out in Section 17-3.7(j)(4) of the Unified Development Ordinance. The City has been designating Individual Landmarks since the 1960s under the guidance of the Landmarks Commission, which operated from the 1960s-1990s, and then evolving into the current day Design/Development Review Commission.
To learn more about our currently listed buildings and sites please check out the web tour, which covers City Landmarks, African-American Landmarks, and Modern Architecture Landmarks.
Have a historic property and want to know if it can be designated? Contact preservation staff to find out more about the landmarking process. A brief outline of the process is found here.
- Individual Landmark Guidelines
- List of Individual Landmarks (updated 4.30.21)
Effective February 25th, 2022, all preservation guidelines have a new standardized format as well as administrative information for clarity and ease of use. Please note, however, that guideline language has NOT changed; all guidelines retain the language that was adopted at the time of designation.
