The origin of the name is uncertain, and likely to stay that way. References to "Bush Creek" appeared from 1749, "Bush River" a bit later and less frequently. Creeks were often named for early landowners along them, but the waterway called "Bush" had its name 20 years before a Bush family lived anywhere near it. Backcountry creeks were named for natural features too, e.g., the multiple Beaverdam Creeks near Bush River, Mudlick Creek, Brushy Fork, Sandy Run, etc. Bush Creek/River was not considered a "navigable" waterway (the SC rules for surveying plats were different for navigable and non-navigable streams). Maybe too many bushes or brushy undergrowth for easy boat travel? The colonial surveyors and mapmakers decided whether to call a stream a creek or a river depending entirely upon how long it was, without regard to how wide or how deep. A surveyor in a wet season/year would find water flowing freely from headwaters well to the north of the mouth on the Saluda River, so it was "Bush River". In a dry season, the upper headwaters dried up, the stream was shorter, so it was "Bush Creek". ----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, December 02, 2008 2:01 PM Subject: [SC-BUSHRIVERQUAKERS] what is the origin of the name Bush River in SC?