Craven County, South Carolina was one of the three original counties established by the Lords Proprietor of the English colony of Carolana in 1682 to include the colony's lands stretching from Awendaw Creek north to the western shore of Winyah Bay and inland. In 1685, the original county of Berkeley was expanded to include the southwestern part of Craven County, and in 1691, land was added to Craven County from the previously unorganized land to its northeast.