The Ashley River is a river in South Carolina which meets with the Cooper River in Charleston before discharging into the Atlantic Ocean. State nickname: Palmetto State Other U.S. States Capital Columbia Largest city Columbia Governor Mark Sanford Official languages English Area 82,965 km² (40th)  - Land 78,051 km²  - Water 4,915 km² (6%) Population (2000)  - Population 4,012,012 (26th)  - Density 51. ...

The river was named for Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury and chief Lord Proprietor of the Carolina Colony Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury ( July 22, 1621– January 21, 1683) was a prominent English politician of the Interregnum and during the reign of King Charles II. Cooper, born in Dorset County, suffered the death of both his parents at a young age and was raised by relatives... The Carolina Colony grants of 1663 and 1665 The Province of Carolina was a North American English colony that existed from 1663 to 1729, when it was divided into the Provinces of North and South Carolina. ...