History & Genealogy

Built by Barham (Barrum) Bobo between 1812 and 1814, this priceless piece of history is one of the best examples of Colonial Georgian in the upstate. It was a working plantation and came under the stewardship of the Union County Historical Society, with the assistance of the County of Union, in October 2006.  Presently consisting of more than 20 acres, the site is being restored in a plantation re-creation effort. Original buildings have been repaired and three log cabins from around Union County have been moved to the site. Each spring the visit of President Jefferson Davis, CSA, is reenacted. For more information or to arrange a tour call the Union County Museum.

Jazz king Dizzy Gillespie (1917-1993) virtuoso trumpeter, composer and founder of modern jazz is now playing a long term gig in his hometown of Cheraw. A seven foot bronze statue of Gillespie-cheeks bulged to play his trademark bent horn-was unveiled in October 2002 on the 85th anniversary of his birth on the Town Green. Born John Birks Gillespie, Dizzy attended the public schools in Cheraw and graduated from Robert Smalls School in 1933. It was in Cheraw that Dizzy first played in a band and first performed in public. Because of his musical talents, he received a scholarship to the Laurinburg Institute in North Carolina. Dizzy and his family attended Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church (c. 1915) on Greene Street. As a child, Dizzy was fascinated by the movies. He became so adept at sneaking in to see the shows that the theater manager gave him the job of keeping the other kids from doing the same. His pay was that he got to see the movies for free. The theater, built in 1920, was then called the Lyric Theater. Recently renovated, it is now known as The Theater on the Green and is used for live performances. The statue was designed by internationally known artist Ed Dwight. Cheraw also celebrates Dizzy's life with the South Carolina Jazz Festival the third weekend in October. For more information or a free self guide to Dizzy Gillespie-related sites, contact the Cheraw Office of Tourism.

In 1919 a bond election was held to raise $75,000 to build a combined grammar and high school for black children in the southern part of Rock Hill. The school was built in 1920 and its first principal was Professor Frank Neal. It was named for Emmett J. Scott who became secretary of Tuskegee Institute in 1898 and served as Assistant Secretary of War during WWI. In 1970 the school was closed. The City of Rock Hill purchased the property from the school district and dedicated it as a neighborhood center in 1973. Special tours by appointment.

The largest and oldest cemetery (c. 1858) in the city has an area set aside for Confederate War soldiers. This area includes a memorial marker, two headstones of known soldiers of the Confederate War, and 55 headstones of unknown soldiers. This area is located near the middle of the cemetery on the right side. There is one grave of a Union soldier who died in Chester on March 14, 1866. 

Union soldiers made the pulpit area into a bandstand and danced in the interior. The Confederates had used the church as a hospital.

The church building which dates back to the 1890s is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Although architecturally significant--the brick building is dominated by a three-story bell tower--Hermon Presbyterian Church has also played a valuable role in the history of the community. Founded by former slaves in 1869, it provided educational opportunities before the public schools were open to African-American children. This building was sold by Hermon Presbyterian Church prior to the construction of a new worship center on Heckle Boulevard. The new owner is restoring the structure and plans are to use it for a center of community activities.

Many local African-American leaders are buried in this cemetery, including Reverend M.P. Hall, founder and president of Friendship College, Ida Mae Barber, a teacher at Emmett Scott School and J.A. Gatlings, a local doctor. The cemetery has fallen into a state of disrepair over the years, but recently, a group of concerned citizens volunteered to clean up and look after the area. It appears that there are more than 100 graves dating from the early 1900s to the late 1940s in the cemetery.