History & Genealogy

Capt. Obadiah Hardin’s Grave In Brushy Fork Church Cemetery
Carlisle, SC 29031
Captain Obadiah Hardin commanded a 38-man company known as the Chester Guards, composed mostly of men from western Chester County. He was wounded at Drainesville December 20, 1861 and died December 28th at a hospital in Richmond, VA. Location: West of Chester, off Highway 9. Follow Highway 9 W for about 11 miles and turn left onto Wood's Ferry Road. The cemetery is located 32 miles on left in front of Brushy Fork Baptist Church. Contact: Chester District Genealogical Society (P.O. Box 336, Richburg, SC 29729).
Carmel United Presbyterian Church
Chester, SC 29706
In its early days, Carmel served as a worship center for the students and faculty at Brainerd Institute. The organizing of the church, as led by Reverend Samuel Loomis in 1868, was known as the Chester Mission. Since its beginnings, Carmel has focused on the religious training of African-American youths. View from outside; open on Sundays. Special tours by advance appointment.
Cash/Inglis House (c. 1830)
Cheraw, SC 29520
Around 1860, Col. E. B. C. Cash briefly owned this dwelling. Cash was a planter, and, for a short time, a Confederate officer. He is most famous for participating in the last fatal duel in South Carolina. The house was later owned by William Cowper Inglis, Capt. 8th SC Infantry and his family.
Catoe's Chapel Church of God In Christ
Bethune, SC 29009
The vision for the Catoe Chapel began in 1946 when African Americans working on the Catoe plantation approached the owner for land to build a church closer to where they lived. Sometime between 1947-48, John Catoe donated the lumber from an old house and actually helped with the building of the church. In 1949, services began in a 16 x 14 foot building that was named Catoe Chapel Holiness Church in honor of her benefactor. The original church was remodeled and expanded three times. A new modern facility was dedicated on December 24, 1996 and sits on property adjacent to the original structure. The church's founding mother, Mother Martha Brown, is buried in a cemetery located between the two church buildings. View from outside; open on Sundays.
Clinton Cemetery
Lancaster, SC 29720
This cemetery is full of southern history with graves dating back to the 1890s. Many of the local residents buried here are among the most famous in Lancaster's African-American history. One of the founders of Mount Carmel campground, noted businessman and politician, Isom Caleb Clinton's grave and those of many of his relatives occupy a beautiful plot near the center of the cemetery. Located behind Clinton Elementary School.
Clinton Chapel AME Zion Church
Kershaw, SC 29067
This is believed to have been the first separate African-American congregation established in Kershaw in the early 20th century. The church was named for Isom Caleb Clinton, a former slave who was a prominent minister in the AME. Zion Church and was ordained a bishop in 1892. The present church was built in 1909 and has undergone few alterations since that time. It stands as an intact example of the Gothic Revival style church architecture common in the period, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is representative of an early 20th-century institution in Kershaw's black community. View from outside; open on Sundays.
Clinton Junior College
Rock Hill, SC 29730
Founded in 1894 by the Reverend Dr. Nero Crockett and the Reverend W.M. Robinson, it was named for the presiding Bishop of the South Carolina Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion (AMEZ) Church at that time, Caleb Isom Clinton. Clinton Institute, as it was originally called, served as a boarding high school and provided a very high quality education to hundreds of newly freed black citizens. The name was later changed to Clinton Normal and Industrial Institute and the school was authorized to grant state teachers certificates. Today, Clinton Junior College is focused on providing a quality liberal arts education and retains close ties to the African Methodist Episcopal Zion (AMEZ) Church.
College Inn Restaurant
Cheraw, SC 29520
This building sits on property that once belonged to the Coulter Memorial Academy, Chesterfield County‘s first school for African-American students. The restaurant took its name from the school, which began offering junior college courses in 1933 and continued until 1947. Charles “Neil” Cole, a local teacher and businessman, sought to fill a void by providing a lunch counter that served black students during the time of segregation. He opened the College Inn in 1935 and employed mostly students from Coulter Academy. He served local diners, including Cheraw native Dizzy Gillespie. The restaurant, now operated by Cole’s daughter, Carolyn Cole-Green, serves mouth-watering ribs and more in this historic setting. Open for dinner, Thurs-Sat.
Confederate Monument (Camden)
Camden, SC 29020
Erected in 1883 in memory of the local "brave sons who fell during the Confederate War, defending the rights and honor of the South". The monument features a dove on top. Located at Monument Square.
Confederate Monument (Chester Town Square)
Chester , SC 29706
Erected in 1905 at the town square to honor the men who gave their lives for the confederacy, the monument is made of granite and stands 41 feet high with Location: Town Square, Gadsden Street.
Confederate Monument (Union ARP Church)
Chester , SC 29706
Confederate Monument erected by the Lafayette Straight Chapter of the Daughters of the Confederacy on May 7, 1939.
Confederate Monuments at Fishing Creek Presbyterian Church
Chester, SC 29706
The first Confederate Monument was erected by the Lafayette Straight Chapter of the Daughters of the Confederacy in 1929. The monument consists of granite mortar and a podium built upon two granite grist meal stones. In 2002, another monument was erected to honor Revolutionary and Civil War veterans. On this monument are the names of 38 Confederate veterans buried in the church cemetery. Location: In front of historic Fishing Creek Cemetery, Fishing Creek Presbyterian Church, c.1752.
Confederate Park (Fort Mill)
Fort Mill, SC 29715
Approximately one-fourth of the town’s Main Street is devoted to this park which has four monuments. One is dedicated to “faithful” slaves loyal to the Confederacy, another to the soldiers of the Confederacy, the third, to the women of the Confederacy and last, to the Catawba Indians who served in the Confederate Army.
Corinth Baptist Church
Union , SC 29379
Baptist Church was constructed in 1894 as the first separate building to house the first black congregation in Union. The congregation was established around 1883 and first held services in the former Old Union Methodist Church. The owner of the mill that stood on an adjacent lot purchased the lot and building from the congregation for $600 in 1893. The congregation purchased the lot on which the Corinth Baptist Church now stands in January 1894, and the building was completed by the end of the year. The church which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is a late 19th-century vernacular interpretation of architectural styles common to religious buildings in the region. View from outside; open on Sundays.
Cornwallis House
Winnsboro, SC 29180
One of the oldest extant dwellings in the second-oldest incorporated town of the up-country, the so-known Cornwallis House is documented in letters and diaries as being the residence of Lord Cornwallis in the "winter of his discontent" or the months of October 1780 through January 1781. Though several houses of the town were commandeered by British officers at the time of the occupation, precedence is given to the family traditions of the owners of the houses to preserve the story of that residence. British troops are documented to have occupied the Mount Zion Institute campus across the street from the Cornwallis House, and for years fragments of the weapons and ammunition have been found in the neighborhood. The first recorded records of the house date from 1797 when it was deeded to Captain John Buchanan, a Revolutionary soldier, by way of a sale at public auction to settle the estate of the prior owner Alexander Millar. The Buchanan family owned the property until 1862. Over the years the house has undergone several renovations and expansions, the latest in 2001. This is a private residence. Group tours available by appointment only. Contact the chamber for access.