South Charleston was laid out in 1815. The first development was the plat of Charleston on November 1, 1815 becoming a matter of record in London on February 5, 1816 followed by the first election on September 19, 1818. The village was originally named after its first merchant, Charles Paist. However it was subsequently changed due to persistent mail difficulties.
As of the census of 2010, there were 1,693 people, 720 households, and 466 families living in the village. The population density was. There were 793 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the village was 97.6% White, 0.4% African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.4% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.9% of the population. There were 720 households of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.8% were married couplesliving together, 14.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.3% were non-families. 31.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.89. The median age in the village was 38 years. 25% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.1% were from 25 to 44; 25.5% were from 45 to 64; and 16.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 47.5% male and 52.5% female.
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,850 people, 732 households, and 519 families living in the village. The population density was 1,426.0 people per square mile. There were 792 housing units at an average density of 610.5 per square mile. The racial makeup of the village was 96.81% White, 1.51% African American, 0.32% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.05% from other races, and 0.76% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.16% of the population. There were 732 households out of which 37.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.0% were married couples living together, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.0% were non-families. 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.02. In the village, the population was spread out with 28.8% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 87.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.2 males. The median income for a household in the village was $38,352, and the median income for a family was $46,364. Males had a median income of $32,685 versus $23,813 for females. The per capita income for the village was $16,940. About 7.0% of families and 8.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.9% of those under age 18 and 6.1% of those age 65 or over.
