Coker College in Hartsville began in 1894 as Welsh Neck High School. Welsh Neck High School was formed by the local Welsh Neck Baptist Association at the behest of Harstville businessman Major James Lide Coker. With the advent of the statewide public school system in 1908, the high school was no longer needed. The school converted the school to a private Baptist four-year college, Coker College for Women. Coker College remained a single-gender college until men were admitted in 1969