History & Genealogy

Pride in local history prompted the town of Sharon and a historical society to establish the museum in June 2003. In a rural setting the museum offers visitors an insight into local history in 5,000 square feet of exhibit space. Main exhibits include a 1930-1940 country kitchen, an 1860 Yorkville bedroom, an 1890s eclectic dining room and the War Room where veterans of Western York County are honored for their service. Open Saturdays, 10 am–3 pm and other times by appointment. Admission: Adults $5.00, Students $3.00, 12 and under free. Groups welcome. Select genealogical research documents from primarily Western York County. No paid researchers.

The Battle of Musgrove Mill was fought on this site near the Enoree River on August 19, 1780. A detachment of American militia engaged and defeated a superior British force composed almost entirely of loyalist troops. Occurring at a time when American prospects for winning the Revolution seemed to grow dimmer by the day, the success at Musgrove Mill bolstered patriot morale in the Carolina backcountry. The park consists of nearly 360 acres. Hours (Main Gate): Open year round, 9 am–6 pm daily; (Horseshoe Falls Road Area): sunrise to sundown, daily. (Visitor Center): Fri-Sun, 10 am--5 pm. Other days vary depending on season and available staff. Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. For more information, call or send the park an e-mail. Free park admission.

Lancaster County sits within the lands once held by the Catawba Indian Nation, and the current Catawba Reservation is located about 15 miles from the campus of USC Lancaster. With strong geographical and historical ties to the Catawba, USCL has begun to develop curricular and public programs focused on Native American art and culture, with a special emphasis on the Catawba and other Native communities in South Carolina. The Center houses the world’s largest single collection of Catawba Indian pottery, five galleries, the only archive in South Carolina devoted in Native American history and culture, an archaeology lab, meeting and classroom spaces, and more.  Launched in 2018, the Native American South Carolina Archive (NASCA) is a comprehensive digital archive for tribal histories, photos, correspondence, oral histories, and more (www.nativesouthcarolina.org). Every March, USCL hosts Native American Studies Week with lectures, performances, and arts and crafts sales. The gardens are a site on the summer SC Ag + Art Tour.  Admission is free.

Designed by Robert Mills  who is best known as the designer of the Washington Monument, this facility was completed in 1823. The downstairs cells were meant to hold debtors, a practice that soon waned. In 1965 soldiers under command of General Sherman tried unsuccessfully to destroy the jail. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it is the only known example of Mills' use of medieval design.

Offers visitors insight into the upcountry cotton plantation of South Carolina’s “Secession Governor,” William Henry Gist. Rose Hill served as Gist’s primary residence during his tenure as governor and during the tumultuous months of pending Civil War. The house, its furnishings, surrounding gardens and outbuildings document the lifestyle and changes experienced by the Gist family and the enslaved African Americans who occupied the plantation from the antebellum era through Reconstruction. Includes a picnic shelter and hiking trail to the Tyger River. Park hours: 9 am–6 pm daily (no admission fee). Mansion tours: Mar–Oct, daily at 11 am, 1 & 3 pm; Nov–Feb, Thurs–Mon at 11 am, 1 & 3 pm. Fee charged for tours and special events. No mansion tours on Thanksgiving Day or Christmas Day. Shelter can be reserved for a fee.

The farm is home to Dorinda "Dori" Sanders, the best-selling author and peach farmer from Filbert. In 1990 her book, Clover, was published for which she received the Lillian Smith Award. Later it was made into a TV movie. Dori's latest novel is entitled Her Own Place. Summer months find her doing what she really loves: farming. She once said, "Farming is who I am. If someone asks me what I do, I say, I'm a farmer. And only later do I say, Oh, and I also do some writing". Often during the growing and harvesting seasons, a lucky traveler can find Dori at the roadside market, autographing books, telling stories and entertaining customers as only she can. A site on the SC Ag + Art Tour.  Seasonal during daylight hours, or until the produce runs out.