A history of our town
The first European to travel inland in South Carolina was Ponce De
Leon, a Spanish explorer. He was followed in 1520 by Capt. Francisco
Gordillo, who was dispatched by Lucas Vasquez. In 1521 Pedro de Quexos,
and Francisco Gordillo met in Winyah Bay. Quexos was a slave trader. It
was recorded that they were at 33112 Degrees, and explored what the
Indians called Chicora ( which is South Carolina ). It is also recorded
he took 140 Indian slaves. In 1524 an Italian Navigator Giovanni in the
service of King Francis I of France sailed the Atlantic coast line and
landed in the Carolinas. From 1523 to 1524 Lucas Vasquez de Ayllon, with
Pedro de Quexos and Francisco Gordillo with 500 soldiers and six ships
landed in Chicora and explored inland. They came very close to
Blackville. By the late 1600's the English were settling Charleston.
They determined there were five different type groups of Indians in the
area. The names of some of the tribes were the Ashepoos, Catawba,
Combahees, Edistos, Kiawahs, Santee, Yemassee, and Wandos. In South
Carolina you can determine the location of particular tribes by looking
at the names of the rivers. Some of these tribes practiced cannibalism.
The Blackville, Barnwell County area, was part of Lord Colleton's land
grant from the King of England. It was called the "back country." The
last Indian left the area when Nathaniel Walker, some times called Gen.
Walker, purchased, or traded with the Indians to gain control of Healing
Springs. Mr. Walker was a trader doing business with the Indians along
the Cherokee Trail. He set up trading posts and stage coach stations on
that trail which became the old Charleston-Augusta Highway, which runs
parallel to the Edisto river on the south side. Spurs started branching
off to the South, and the back country started growing in population.
Germans slowly settled in the area from 1670-1775. They were poor, but
had a strong desire to survive. By the middle 1700's the Highland Scots,
the Scotch-lrish, and the Irish were clearing land fast. They came out
of Charleston. Then there was a migration from the North, mainly from
Pennsylvania and Virginia. Already in the low country were black slaves
who were brought in by rich land holders mainly through Beaufort, later
through Charleston. The migrants brought more black people in from the
North. It has been established they were people of two entirely
different characters. Though punishment to the black man was always
cruel, the slaves of the low country, in many cases were left in the
back country and often left to survive on their own. Sometime they did
not see their holders for months. This allowed them the opportunity to
develop their own cultures.
There were combinations of Christianity, as well as religious practices
and customs brought from the West Indies and Africa, as well as a
mixture of languages; English and different African dialects. From this,
today commonly in the low country and coastal islands, we have what is
known as Gullah. The Slaves who were brought in from the North were
totally dominated by their holders.
As the area was cleared, plantations were built and more black slaves
were introduced into the area. Most towns were built in locations where
there was a good water supply for drinking and transportation. The
Village of Barnwell was one such case. It did not become a political
entity until 1829. A great deal can be gathered about the living
conditions of the time and place from the memoirs of the grand old man
Tarleton Brown, whose family migrated to the area from Va.. Tarleton
Brown of Barnwell is not to be confused with the "Bloody Butcher" Lt.
Col. Baluster Tarleton Brown of the Revolutionary war.
During the Revolutionary war the population was split. Tories were
Partisans in support of the King and his troops and American partisans
were simple farmers with no backing or support, but men with a strong
belief in freedom. One of the bloodiest of all battles was fought just
north of Blackville and was known as Slaughter Field. It has been
referred to in many reports and papers, but the exact location was never
recorded, Because of this the S.C. Dept. of Archives refuses to
recognize the location.
After the war, the first known settler in what is now Blackville proper
was an Irishman, Cornelius Tobin, whose family had re-patronized to
Ireland from France. He entered through the port of Charleston in the
late 1700's, acquired ten black slaves, and built a plantation which ran
from the Edisto River to Barnwell, and from what is now Denmark to
Williston. He built a home near where the Blackville Country Club
swimming pool is today. The plantation was named Fairmont, and was
described as splendid than any thing in Charleston. By 1833 the railroad
was completed from Charleston to Hamburg (which is in the North Augusta
area). It was the longest railroad in the world, and the first
commercial steam locomotive train in the United States. It could run
only in the daylight hours because it had no lights. It ran on wood
rails with flat iron or steel on top and inside of the tracks. According
to reports, it ran a fantastic average speed of 18-1/2 MPH, and had to
stop about every ten miles to take on fuel and water. It was the
responsibility of John Alexander Black to choose the locations of these
stops, and Blackville was chosen as an overnight stop because it was one
day's run from Charleston.
Mr. Black moved his family to Blackville, and the town was named after
Mr. Black, and called the Village of Blackville. MR. Black hired Mr.
Cycil 0. Pascallas Esq., a civil engineer who surveyed the railroad bed.
Mr. Black died in Blackville and his grave is now under the Methodist
Church. During the construction of the railroad, the Company purchased a
large number of black slaves to build the railroad bed. Many of these
slaves were brought to Blackville. A list of the names of those slaves
still exists and some of those names still are found among the people in
Blackville.
The Village of Blackville was first Chartered on December 27,1837, but
was a village long before that. In 1846 Blackville was first mapped and
a plat drawn by James Clark, also a civil engineer with the railroad.
Mr. Clark also moved his family to Blackville. The name of the Village
of Blackville was changed to Clinton in 1849. They expanded and declared
limits which were to be 112 mile from a point on the railr6ad in all
directions.
Again, on December 16, 1851, under Charter act 4062, the name was
changed to The Town of Blackville, declaring the same political powers
that Barnwell had. In that same Act, permission was given to form a Fire
Department.
The railroad grew and Blackville grew with it. Blackville became a
marketing and transportation center. From this beginning grew the
largest transport system in the world. Freight sheds and docks with
spurs in Blackville took farmers' goods to ports where they were
transported all over the world. With the train, people came from allover
the world, Polish, Russian, and even Chinese, (there was a Chinese
laundry in Blackville) and along with them also came their religious
beliefs.
The Civil War began in Charleston on April 12, 1860. This war was known
in the North as The War of the Rebellion. This was to bring great
changes to the South. Slavery, its plantation system, and its way of
life changed.
Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman's troops first marched into Blackville at
1 p.m. on February 7, 1865. By February 12, 1865, up to 60,000 troops of
the Union Army marched through and camped in Blackville. In a last ditch
effort to save the town of Blackville and the Railroad to Augusta.
Hagan's Confederate Cavalry Brigade attempted to make a stand against
Gen. Kilpatrick's Union Cavalry Division. By 2 p.m. Kilpatrick was
setting up his HQ. of the Cavalry Command. On Feb. 8th Kilpatrick
departed Blackville heading west toward Aiken tearing up the Railroad as
he went. On Feb. 9th the 20th Corps entered with 5 Brigades of 4
Divisions. They were followed by the remainder of Sherman's Army. By
Feb. 12th all of the Union Troops were crossing the Edisto River at 4
different bridges.
Sherman's Army attempted to destroy the town when they departed, and
were successful in burning down 45 major structures. Some buildings were
saved however! This was done by deception. The railroad and every thing
owned by the Railroad was destroyed.
After the war when turmoil was the general rule in the South, Blackville
seemed to function as a normal community and started rebuilding. Most of
the black community did not leave the area, but stayed and helped
rebuild. They formed a political base of their own, and worked with the
land owners in building a new system of farming known as the share-crop
system. This rebuilt the agriculture industry stronger than what it was
before the war.
From 1869 to 1874 Blackville was the County seat. Circuit Court was held
in many buildings around Blackville (including the First Baptist Church)
until the people built the Court House in Blackville. The building was
built on Court House Square, on the north side of Pascallas Street
facing south. It eventually became the first Blackville white public
school and was enlarged twice. This building was torn down about 1952.
Pieces of the granite columns, hauled in by train, used as foundation
columns in the courthouse basement still remain on the location where
the courthouse stood (near the Blackville Library).
On the first property bought by the Town Government a building was built
and called Market Hall ( built in 1859 ). The location of this property
is on the Northwest corner of Lartigue and Dexter Sts. Most of the
Original building still remains and is presently the James Hammond
Museum. The oldest house in Blackville located on the corner of South
Boundary, and Clark St. which is now Solomon Blatt Ave. is the Lartigue
House, built in 1832. The family cemetery Js located a short distance
behind the residence. In the cemetery you will see that there were many
ties with other prominent families of South Carolina.
The Lartigue family played a very important part in the history of
Blackville providing the town with doctors, lawyers, and many government
officials.
Other interesting homes with great history cover the area of three
blocks of Main St. of Blackville. One of these homes is the home of
Nathan Blatt, father of Solomon Blatt, who served 47 years in the state
legislature and was nominated as Supreme Court Justice of the United
States by Franklin D. Roosevelt, but declined the appointment. The
residence of Samuel H. Still, who was legal council to Congress and then
made librarian of the Congressional Library where he retired, is located
on Dexter St. The Patrick Farrell home on Main St. was built by Patrick
Farrell, who was an Irish emigrant and in Charleston the day Fort Sumter
was fired on, is another important part of the history of Blackville.
Doctor 0. D. Hammond, brother of Sen. James Hammond, and the Rivers
Carroll home next door to the Hammond home are two more historical homes
located in Blackville.
There is a great deal more to the history which is discussed in history
books concerning Blackville. If you wish, take a look in the local
cemeteries, its like looking at " Who's Who's of the World."
History written by Stanley McDonald