Pickens County was Cherokee Indian Territory until the American Revolution. The Cherokees sided with the British, suffered defeat, and surrendered their South Carolina lands. This former Cherokee territory was included in the Ninety-Six District.

In 1791, the state legislature established Washington District, a judicial area composed of present-day Greenville, Anderson, Pickens, and Oconee counties, at that time composed of Greenville and Pendleton counties.

Streets for the court house town of Pickensville (near present-day Easley) were laid off, and soon a cluster of buildings arose that perhaps included a large wooden hotel, which served as a stagecoach stop. In 1798, Washington District was abolished, and the territory was divided into Greenville District and Pendleton District.

In the new Pendleton District, which included what eventually became Anderson, Oconee, and Pickens counties, the town of Pickensville was now just another town. In 1826, the Pendleton District (county) was abolished and Pickensville was now in the new county of Pickens District (county). Soon thereafter Pickensville began to decline for a while until it was renamed to Easley.