The Lake City area was originally part of Williamsburg Township, which was first settled by a group of Scots-Irish in 1736.

On March 4, 1874, after requests from residents, a city charter was granted to the new town of Graham.

This small town had a population of 300 in 1893, and by 1898 the area had become the leading strawberry cropland in South Carolina.

[9][10] Lake City was at one time called the "Bean Capital of the World", and the Bean Market downtown has now been converted into an event rental and civic center facility.

The building was built in 1936 by the Public Works Administration (PWA), and was a central hub for farmers across the South to get their beans to market.

[13] U.S. Route 52 is the main highway through the city, leading north 24 miles (39 km) to Florence, the county seat, and south 17 miles (27 km) to Kingstree.

As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 5,903 people, 2,415 households, and 1,568 families residing in the city.

26.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.