Its main campus is on over 359 acres (145 ha) in downtown Columbia, close to the South Carolina State House.

Located one block southeast of the State Capitol, it served as an administrative office, academic building, residence hall, and chapel.

However, the master plan for the original campus called for a total of eleven buildings, all facing a large lush gathering area.

Slavery and slave labor played a fundamental role in the foundation and construction of the University of South Carolina.

Many of the primary buildings in the central heart of campus, known today as the horseshoe, were built not only by slave labor but also of slave-made brick.

[9] Seventy-two students were present for classes in January 1862 and the college functioned until a call by the Confederate government for South Carolina to fill its quota of 18,000 soldiers.

An amendment was added to the act by W. J. Whipper, a black representative from Beaufort, that would prevent racial discrimination from the admissions policy of the university.

The legislature further proved its seriousness towards racial equality by electing two black trustees, Benjamin A. Boseman (misspelled as "Bozeman" in the bill) and Francis Lewis Cardozo,[11] to the governing board of the university on March 9, 1869.

On October 7, 1873, Henry E. Hayne, the Secretary of State of South Carolina, became the first black student when he registered for the fall session in the medical college of the university.

[24] The "Carolina Cab" offers students free rides from Five Points to their homes within 5 miles (8 km) of campus on weekends.

[26] Founded in 1978, the South Carolina Honors College offers support to academically gifted undergraduate students.

[27][28] After gaining acceptance to the University of South Carolina, students must apply separately to the Honors College and demonstrate significant academic achievement.

[40] During his tenure as president of the University of South Carolina, John Palms articulated a "Cathedrals of Excellence" budgeting philosophy.

[41] The strategy would pay off in the long term when these programs became nationally prominent, making a name for the University of South Carolina and attracting grant money.

[41] Former President Andrew Sorensen raised even larger sums for research, including a $300 million grant for colorectal cancer.

In the spirit of Palms' budget, the board of directors moved to transform university land on Assembly Street into an "innovation district" called Innovista that will develop four areas: biomedicine, nanotechnology, environmental science and alternative fuels.

President Pastides commented on the grant, "This award solidifies the university's position as a leader in alternative-fuel research.

Now renamed the SECU, the initiative was a collaborative endeavor designed to promote research, scholarship and achievement amongst the member universities in the Southeastern conference.

The concept is to create a better social and learning environment by housing students with similar academic or career interests together.

[50] Since campus academic enrollment exceeds the capacity of on-campus housing, the university is adding more residence halls, most of which will be suite-style.

[57] The Gamecock reported in its March 1911 issue that very little progress had been made on the alma mater for the university despite a reward of $50 by the faculty.

English professor, George A. Wauchope, took it upon himself and wrote the lyrics for the alma mater in 1911 set to the tune Flow Gently, Sweet Afton by Robert Burns.