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 HISTORY, 
 
 Description and Resources 
 
 OF 
 
 DARLINGTON COUNTY, 
 
 STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA 
 
 CHARLESTON, S. C. 
 THE xp:ws and courier job presses. 
 
 1874. 
 
/;?^7;- 
 
 ( c 
 
5 
 
 _9 
 
 [Extract from Minutes of the Convention of the Granges of 
 Darlington County, at its Session at Darlington Court 
 House, May i^tJi, 1874.] 
 
 Resolved, That the Committee on Immigration be directed 
 to prepare a Pamphlet descriptive of the County and its 
 resources, for distribution among- tlie Granges of the other 
 States of the Union. 
 
 J. A. LAW, President. 
 
 John W. Williamson, Secretary. 
 
DARLINGTON COUNTY, 
 
 STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA. 
 
 Situation, Boundaries, and History of Settlement. 
 
 Darlington County lies in the Eastern portion of the State 
 of South Carolina, and is a part of the rich and extensive 
 valley formed by the Great Pee Dee and its tributaries. 
 
 The General Assembly, in 1785, by what is known as the 
 County Court Act, divided the famous old Precinct of The 
 Cheraws into the three Counties of Chesterfield, Darlington, 
 and Marlborough. In 1793, on the abolition of the County 
 Courts, these, as well as the other judicial divisions of the 
 State, received the name of Districts. The State Conven- 
 tion of 1868 declared that the judicial divisions of the State 
 should, thenceforth, be denominated Comities. 
 
 The County is bounded on the Northeast by the Great 
 Pee Dee River, which separates it from the County of Marl- 
 borough ; Northwest by the County of Chesterfield, from 
 which it is divided in part by Cedar Creek ; Southwest by 
 Lynche's Creek, separating it from the Counties of Sumter 
 and Kershaw ; and Southeast by the County of Marion, and 
 Lynche's Creek separating it from the County of Williams- 
 burg. It is of a very compact shape — approximating a 
 square in form — contains 576,000 acres, and is, on an aver- 
 age, thirty miles square. 
 
 Darlington and the adjacent Counties lying along the 
 Great Pee Dee, date their settlement from 1737, when a 
 Colony of Welsh, from Pennsylvania, located on that River. 
 To this Colony were added, shortly afterwards, a number of 
 English, Scotch, and Irish families, some from Virginia, and 
 
many directly from across the Atlantic. The people of the 
 Pee Dee Valley arc justly proud of these first settlers. 
 Honest, energetic, intelligent, and religious, the impress of 
 their character is still conspicuous in the country of their 
 selection, despite the many changes that have taken place, 
 and despite the incoming of men of every national it}' ; their 
 form of Protestantism — the Baptist — still dominates ; and 
 among the prominent men of the valley their names have 
 still a large representation. 
 
 The Welsh selected the Pee Uee Valley for tire cultiva- 
 tion of hemp and flax, but the great natural inducements to 
 stock raising — the extensive ranges, the fine natix'c grasses, 
 the abundant mass of the forests, and the immense cane- 
 brakes along the streams — directed their attention to that 
 more profitable business. Soon " Cheraw Bacon " became 
 famous in distant parts of the country, and immense herds 
 of cattle and horses were driven South to Charleston, and 
 North as far as Philadelphia. 
 
 About the year 1745 the fortunate discovery was made 
 that Indigo grew spontaneously in tlie Province, and was 
 found almost everywhere among the wild weeds of the for- 
 est. Seed was imported from the W'est Indies, and soon 
 the cultivation of this plant was found to be the shortest and 
 easiest road to A\-ealth. Stock raising still, though as a 
 subordinate industry, received attention ; Lumber was sent off 
 in large quantities ; Wheat, Corn, and Tobacco were pro- 
 duced in abundance, and Tar, Pitch, and Turpentine were 
 among the exports. " Wealth poured in upon the Colonists 
 from a thousand channels. The fertility of the soil gener- 
 ously repaid the labor of the husbandman, making the poor 
 to sing, and industry to smile through every corner of the 
 land. None were indigent, but the idle and unfortunate. 
 Personal independence was fully within the reach of ever)' 
 man who was healthy and industrious."- 
 
 With the beginning of the present century Indigo gave 
 place to Cotton, as the chief source of wealth, and with what 
 
 *Ramsay's "History of tlic RcvoUuion in South Carolina," \ ol. 1, p. 7. 
 
7 
 
 result is shown by the fact, that before the kite war Dar- 
 lington was among the very wealthiest of the purely agricul- 
 tural Counties of the United States. 
 
 This brief histor\', which cannot be gainsayed, is in itself a 
 demonstration of the wonderful agricultural resources of the 
 County. We see a country which, in its brief history of not 
 much over a century in duration, has presented to its peo- 
 ple three distinct industries, of a character so remarkably 
 profitable as to make to all, except the unfortunate or the 
 criminally inert, the road to wealth short and easy, and to 
 concentrate upon each, in its turn, to the neglect of other 
 occupations, the energies of the people, physical and mental. 
 
 VlIJ.AGES. 
 
 The County has within its borders four thriving villages : 
 Darlington Court House, Society Hill, Florence, and Tim- 
 monsville. 
 
 Darlington Court House, the seat of justice for the Coun- 
 ty, situated near its centre, is a beautiful village, embowered 
 in a grove of shapely and majestic evergreen oaks, with a 
 population of between 900 and 1000. Here the Court of 
 Common Pleas and General Sessions for the Count}' holds, 
 annually, a Spring, a Summer, and a Fall Session. 
 
 Society Hill, the oldest of the villages, is situated in the 
 Northeast corner of the County, on high and healthy sand 
 hills, one mile from the Great Pee Dee River. A good 
 bridge across the River connects the place with the County 
 of Marlborough, and makes it the point of shipment, b\- 
 River and Railroad, of much of the produce of that County. 
 Society Hill had its origin, in the need felt by the planters 
 of the River low lands for society and a healthy residence, 
 and still deserves its name, its white inhabitants being dis- 
 tinguished for refinement and hospitality. It numbers be- 
 tween 500 and 600 inhabitants, is one of the loveliest vil- 
 lages of the State, and unsurpassed as a healthy and de- 
 lightful place of residence. 
 
8 
 
 At I'lorencc, near the Southeastern border of the Count}', 
 three Railroads meet, one of which, the Northeastern, has 
 there its workshops. Its population is in the neighborhood 
 of looo. Florence is a thrifty and enterprising little town, 
 is growing rapidly, and regards the future with grand and 
 not unreasonable expectations. 
 
 Timmons\-ille, in the Southwestern part of the County, on 
 the line of the Wilmington, Columbia, and Augusta Rail- 
 road, is a busy and hopeful village of some six hundred in- 
 habitants, having a fertile and well settled country around 
 it, and shipping a large portion of the produce of the County. 
 
 Other villages are springing up, the most prominent 
 among which is Cartersville, a Station on the Wilmington,. 
 Columbia, and Augusta Railroad, in a mile of where the 
 Road crosses Lynche's Creek, and passes beyond the limits 
 of the Count}^ 
 
 Rivers. Crkkks, Roads, and Market FAcnjTiES. 
 
 A better watered County it would be difficult to find in 
 the United States. From Northwest to Southeast, nearly 
 parallel with each other, run across its territory Rivers, and 
 Creeks deserving the name of Rivers, leaving between them 
 only narrow strips of upland, while numberless small tribu- 
 taries flow from the uplands to feed these larger streams. 
 In whatever direction the traveller rides, neither he nor his 
 horse can suffer for water. W^ells need not be applied to ; 
 he finds numerous springs along his route, and c\cry mile or 
 two crosses running water. 
 
 Forming the Northwest boundary of the Count\- — a dis- 
 tance of between thirty-five and forty miles — flows the ma- 
 jestic stream of the Great Pee Dee. The River rises in 
 North Carolina, and empties into W^inyaw Bay, near George- 
 town. Its average A\idth along our border is 150 )-ards, and 
 it is navigable froni its mouth to the town of Cheraw, in 
 Chesterfield, about 120 miles, by air-line, from the ocean. 
 Five Steamboats now find profitable employment upon its 
 
waters. The River abounds in fish of fine quality, such as 
 Catfish, Bream, White and Speckled Trout, White Perch, 
 Redhorse, anci Rockfish, while in the Spring the Shad 
 Fisheries become profitable. The Swamp proper of the 
 River has an average width of two and a half miles, and 
 then comes what is known as the upper loiv lands, above 
 high water mark, and with an average width of from one 
 and a half to two miles. Of the Swamp proper, from one- 
 third to one-half has been or is now under cultivation. 
 The portions uncleared are covered by a growth of valuable 
 trees, such as White and Red Oak, Cypress, Ash, Hickory, 
 and Gum, and still repays the toil of the hunter in pursuit 
 of Deer, Wild Turkeys, Ducks, and other varieties of South- 
 ern game. Along the banks of the Great Pee Dee the first 
 Colonists of the valley located, attracted by its fertile lands, 
 splendid timber, grazing facilities, and the abundance of its 
 fish and game. Before the late war, the River along its 
 Darlington border had been well embanked, and its low 
 lands, thus protected from freshets, were so productive, that 
 thirty dollars per acre was deemed not too high a price for 
 clearing them from trees, and the opportunities for their 
 purchase, at any price, were exceedingly rare. In 1865 a 
 great freshet broke the levees and flooded the low lands. 
 Coming at a time when emancipation and the other results 
 of the war had reduced our people from riches to poverty, 
 the disaster could not be repaired, and to this day the 
 greater part of these valuable lands remain without proper 
 cultivation. The owners are impoverished, and the lands 
 can be bought at prices ranging from $1.50 to $5 per acre. 
 Such an opportunity for speculation rarely occurs. The 
 capitalist who would invest his money in the repair *of the 
 embankments, and the restoration of these lands, could not 
 fail to increase enormously his wealth. 
 
 Leaving the Pee Dee, and riding Westward, the traveller 
 would next come to Black Creek, the pride of the County. 
 This stream, deserving from its size the name of River, 
 rises among the high sand hills in the Northwest corner of 
 
lO 
 
 Chesterfield Count)-, and windinL^ with a serpentine ccnirse 
 through the Eastern portion of our County, empties itself 
 just below our Southeast corner into the Great Pee Dee. 
 In its course through Darlington it has very little of swamp, its 
 banks being mostly high and dry, and shaded by stately trees. 
 Its bottom is of hard fullers earth, and it is fed mainly b}' innu- 
 merable springs of pure and cold water. The riparian lands 
 of this stream are among the most health)' in the .State, and 
 though not unfit for the cultivation of Cotton, are distin- 
 guished in the County as fine grain lands. Owing to the 
 absence of Swamj), the altitude of the countr)- from which 
 it takes its rise, and the character of its tributaries, there is 
 no more delightful bathing stream ; its waters are singularly 
 pure and cold, its fish, though not numerous, are distin- 
 guished for fine flavor, and the hardness and whiteness of 
 their flesh, and the current is unusually rapid. There is a 
 general expectation among the people of the County, that 
 Black Creek will, one day, become famous for its manufac- 
 tories ; and despite the difficulties arising from the want of a 
 rock bottom, and the rapidity of its rise after a rain-fall, the 
 opinions of competent engineers, who have studied its capa- 
 cities, justify this expectation. The flow of water is con- 
 stant, and the fall is estimated at three feet to the mile. 
 The abundance of fine Pine Timber upon its banks for the 
 construction of dams, the healthfulness of the country, mild- 
 ness of the climate, both in Summer and Winter, vicinity to 
 Railroads, cheapness of labor, and sa\'ing of transportation 
 of the raw material, make the location a superior one for 
 Cotton P^actories. Sweet Afton deserved not niore the ad- 
 miration and song of a poet. Its pure waters vary in color 
 as they pass from shallow to deep pool, its banks are adorn- 
 ed by a rich and varied foliage, and as it pursues its sinu- 
 ous course, with every turn it presents miniature scenes of 
 surpassing beaut)'. 
 
 Going Westward, the traveller next crosses Swift Creek, a 
 fine stream, with rich low lands, then comes to High Hill 
 Creek and Jeffries Creek, along both of which are some of 
 
1 1 
 
 the finest farms in the County ; then crosses Middle Swamp, 
 Lake Swamp, Sparrow Swamp, Newman's Swamp, Deep 
 Hole — all fine perennial streams — until, at last, he reaches 
 Lynche's Creek, the Southwestern boundary of the Count}-. 
 This stream, like Black Creek, deserves the name of River. 
 In its course along our boundary it forms an arc with a gen- 
 tle bend. If, at a distance of six miles from the Creek, you 
 draw a line parallel with it, between this and the Creek will 
 be included what is now the most prosperous portion of the 
 County. The lands are mostly divided into small farms, of 
 about one hundred acres each ; there are few negroes ; 
 Churches and School Houses are numerous ; and the people, 
 honest, intelligent, and industrious, as a general rule, raise 
 their provisions, and make, besides, fine crops of Cotton. 
 
 Forming a part of the Northwestern boundary is Cedar 
 Creek, a fine, never failing stream, fed by numberless 
 springs. During the war of i8i2, General D. R. Williams, 
 an enterprising citizen of the County, established on this 
 stream a small Cotton Factory, which, for many years after- 
 wards, paid a handsome dividend on the capital invested. 
 
 The County possesses unusual facilities for travel within 
 its borders, and for reaching market quickly and cheaply. 
 Fine Roads abound, and these are good through all seasons 
 of the year, the land being level, and the soil resisting well 
 the wear and tear of travel. From Cheraw, in the County 
 of Chesterfield, to Florence, runs the Cheraw and Darling- 
 ton Railroad, visiting in its course the villages of Society 
 Hill and Darlington Court House. From Cheraw a Road 
 is being built to Salisbury, in North Carolina, Avhich, when 
 completed, will afford to the people of the County ready- 
 access to all parts of North Carolina, and \\\\\ lead to the 
 passage, through our borders, on the w-ay to Charleston, of 
 much of the produce of the Old North State. Florence is 
 the Northern terminus of the Northeastern Railroad, run- 
 ning up from the City of Charleston, a distance of only 102 
 miles. Through Florence, also, passes the Wilmington, 
 Columbia, and Augusta Railroad, an important link in one 
 
12 
 
 of the great lines of travel between the North and the 
 Soutli. 
 
 As has been said, five Steamboats on the Great Fee Dee 
 afford cheap water transportation to the City of Charleston. 
 Lynche's Creek was once navigable eighty miles from where 
 it empties into the Pee Dee, and Black Creek thirty miles 
 from its junction with the same River; and there only needs 
 the removal of obstructions, consisting entirely of logs and 
 trees, to render these streams again open to boats for the 
 same or greater distances. 
 
 Population — Colored Element. 
 
 The County is divided into twenty-one Townships, differ- 
 ing but little in size. By the Census Report for 1870 the 
 population is stated as 26,243, composed of whites 10,097, 
 and colored 16,146. There is. however, a manifest error in 
 the Report. The statistics from three of the Townships, in 
 two of which the whites are largely in the majority, were 
 cither not forwarded, or were overlooked by the Depart- 
 ment. Besides, it is believed that there is an error in the 
 number of negroes in the Townships reported. At the time 
 the Census was being taken, the colored people were in ex- 
 pectation of some bounty from the Government, and there 
 was prevalent among them a rumor that their names were 
 being taken with a view to the distribution of this bounty. 
 Under these circumstances it is difficult to resist the con- 
 clusion that fathers, in many instances, exaggerated the 
 number in famil}-. By those best informed, it is believed 
 that the present population of the County is some 30,000, 
 the colored being between one-fourth and one-third in ex- 
 cess of the whites. 
 
 Negro slaves were introduced into the Pee Doe Valley 
 very soon after the arrival of the first Colonists, and proved 
 so valuable that their price quickly reached a high figure. 
 Treated kindh', their natural" increase was rapid, and, in ad- 
 dition, their numbers were constantly augmented by pur- 
 
chase. In 1840 the colored element of the population in 
 this County was slightly in excess of the whites, and, after 
 that, rapidly went ahead. Darlington was, just after the 
 war, the Headquarters of the Military occupation of the Pee 
 Dee Valley, and, as a consequence, large numbers of negroes, 
 inspired by hope and fear, flocked in from the adjacent 
 Counties. But for the strong local attachments of the race, 
 the negro population would, on account of their want of 
 landed property, and their credulous and excitable natures, 
 be of a very uncertain character. A slight inducement 
 leads the negro off, but the old plantation, where he was 
 born and bred, has attractions that rarely fail, in time, to 
 bring him back. Thus, while numbers are constantly leav- 
 ing the County, numbers are as constantly on the return. 
 
 Treated kindly, with few exceptions, while slaves, their 
 emancipation led to no scenes of violence and bloodshed. 
 Urged to take advantage of his opportunity, and do his 
 worst, by vile men — the offscouring of the North, who fol- 
 lowed the army of occupation — the negro could not rid him- 
 self of his attachment to his master's family, and was utter- 
 ly unable to regard and treat as enemies those who had been 
 his life-long friends. His conduct in this County, after 
 emancipation, as in other Counties similarly situated, expos- 
 ed, in the most striking manner, one of the delusions of the 
 leaders of the abolition movement. The relation between 
 master and slave was, as a general rule, distinguished by 
 mutual affection and kind offices— this the abolitionist was 
 naturally unable to understand. After the State was reor- 
 ganized under the measures of. reconstruction, the negroes, 
 banded together in secret political leagues, under the most 
 solemn of oaths, grateful to the Republican party, which 
 had bestowed the boon of freedom, and, in their ignorance, 
 fully persuaded that the carpet-baggers had been sent to 
 them by the Republican party, to be their leaders, voted 
 solidly against the respectable whites. Honest efforts have 
 been made, and arc still being made, to disabuse their minds, 
 and to induce them to unite with the whites in the interests 
 
14 
 
 of good government, but so far nothing has been accom- 
 plished. Mean\sliile, in all concerns, except that of poh'tics, 
 there has been, and there is now, no real bitterness of feel- 
 ing between the races. The negro treats the decent white 
 man with all the respect of former days; to him, in prefer- 
 ence to all others, he goes.for advice and assistance; if in 
 distress, it is to some member of old master's family that he 
 goes with implicit confidence; and if any member of that 
 family has come to grief, the slaves of the past are most 
 likely to come to the rescue with sympathy and assistance. 
 Despite, however, this kindly feeling and interchange of kind 
 offices, politics remain a forbidden subject. Let the white 
 man mention it, and immediately the negro becomes either 
 silent or an assenting hypocrite. Even where, from superior 
 intelligence, the negro is convinced that he should break 
 through the trammels of party, his timid nature makes it 
 impossible for him to go contrary to the majority of his 
 race. Besides, he lias been led to entertain the vain hope of 
 speedily bringing about, by means of his political ascenden- 
 cy, social equality ; and this hope binds him fast to an or- 
 ganization and to leaders, the evil ends of which, and the 
 corruption of whom, are now apparent even to his eyes. 
 
 Could an immigration of honest white men from the North 
 be induced, of sufficient magnitude to give the majority to 
 the whites in this and the other Counties of the State, simi- 
 larly in minority, the political evils and social troubles that 
 now impair the prosperity of this rich country, would soon 
 disappear. Such a change would be, if anything, a greater 
 blessing to the negro than to the white man, as, for obvious 
 reasons, the present misgovernment of the State presses 
 upon the former most heavily. A return by the means 
 above indicated, to honesty and capacity in the administra- 
 tion of the affairs of the State, would reduce the heavy taxa- 
 tion, the greater part of which he is, though indirectly,, made 
 to pay, would bring about entire harmony between him and 
 the w'hitc man ; would remove from his mind many vain 
 hopes and delusions that now interfere with his success in 
 
15 
 
 life ; would expel the only question likely to bring about a 
 conflict of races — the question of social equality — from the 
 dangerous field of politics ; would teach the negro to hope for 
 the gratification of this, his eager ambition, alone through 
 the legitimate means of refinement, education, and wealth ; 
 and, lastly, would lead him to occupy contentedly his proper 
 place in our social fabric. His strong vote, backed by kind- 
 ly feelings and an intelligent sense of interest on the part 
 of the better class of whites, would be a guarantee against 
 any legislation inimical to his race; and, instead of, as now, 
 being looked upon as a source of trouble and apprehension, 
 the negro would again, as in the past, be justly regarded as 
 a valuable element in the population. 
 
 In this County he has had, and still has, every encourage- 
 ment to better his condition and render himself independ- 
 ent. As soon as our Courts were opened, after the war, and 
 lands began to be sold, almost invariably, when large tracts 
 were brought under the hammer of the auctioneer, they were 
 cut up for sale into lots, small enough to suit negro purchas- 
 ers, and after some little natural hesitation, landlords began, 
 cheerfully, to let out their surplus lands to negro tenants. 
 Numbers now own and work their own lands, and still 
 greater numbers cultivate the land as tenants. Among 
 these some are doing unusually well, exhibiting a rapid ac- 
 cumulation of property, and a consequen' elevation of char- 
 acter. The large majority still obtain employment as house 
 servants and as laborers on the farms and plantations. The 
 money wages range according to the age and character of 
 the employee, from $5 to $10 per month, and rations. The 
 most popular plan of employment on the farm, however, is 
 an arrangement by which the laborers receive a share of the 
 crop — usually one-third — and buy their provisions from the 
 employer, on a credit, until the crop is harvested. Theft 
 and idleness were alarmingly common just after the war, but 
 since have been rapidly and steadily on the decrease. \/ 
 
i6 
 Religkjn — Education, 
 
 The prevailing forms of Protestantism in the County arc 
 lUptists, Methodist, Presbyterian, and EpiscopaHan. The 
 Baptists are believed to be most numerous, though the 
 Methodists are not far behind. A Catholic Church is being 
 erected at Elorcnce. 
 
 The educational advantages of the County would be all 
 that could be reasonably desired — the system pursued being 
 well devised and the appropriations large — did not the mel- 
 ancholy political condition of the State fail to secure an 
 honest disbursement of the funds raised for education, and 
 prevent the election and appointment of competent Super- 
 intendents and Teachers to preside over its interests. There 
 is an average of three Public Schools to each of the twenty- 
 one Townships, and, besides. Private Schools are numerous. 
 According to last year's Annual Report of the County School 
 Commissioner, while the scholastic population was near 8,000, 
 the number in attendance on the Public Schools was 2,600. 
 
 Soil — Productions. 
 
 Darlington County, only about sixty miles from the Ocean 
 by air line, lies, as might be expected, wathin the alluvial 
 formation of the State, being below the falls of the Rivers. 
 The greater part of its territory is within what is known as 
 the Third Section of the soil of the State, counting from the 
 Coast, a region of an average width of thirty miles, lying be- 
 tween the Tide Swamp lands and the Sand Hills, and stand- 
 ing in the same relation to the Ocean that the Upper Low 
 Lands do to our Rivers. It is of secondary formation, and 
 abounds in shell lime stone. A rich stratum of this marl, 
 containing on an average sixty per cent, of Carbonate of 
 Lime, is exposed at points on Black Creek-, Swift Creek, 
 High Hill Creek, and Lynche's Creek, and is believed to be 
 continuous, throughout at least all the space between these 
 different localities. It is easily obtained in quantit}', and its 
 
17 
 
 great value in the improvement of our lands has been fully 
 demonstrated. It neutralizes the acid principle of the soil, 
 alters its texture and absorbency, quickens growth, and re- 
 strains the production of malaria. 
 
 Along the Northwest border of the County, widening 
 as you go West, is a narrow strip of country, which be- 
 longs to the Fourth Section or Sand Hill Region of the' 
 State. These Sand Hills running through the State, about 
 the same distance, everywhere, from the Coast, are believed 
 to mark the line of the ancient shore of the Ocean, and to 
 have once been washed by the waves of the Atlantic. This 
 Sand Hill Region of the County is just beginning to be prop- 
 erly appreciated. In the past it. has had no attractions for 
 the farmer, its arable land being believed to be confined to a 
 few narrow strips of rich soil in its hollows and along the 
 banks of its streams. Quite recently a few enterprising men 
 have demonstrated, by the indisputable evidence of profita- 
 ble farms, that its area of land, capable of making a rich re- 
 turn to cultivation, is far more extensive than was supposed. 
 It is covered densely by a valuable growth of Pitch Pine and 
 Black Jack. Such of its lands as are apparently unfit for 
 cultivation, afford a splendid pasturage and range for stock. 
 Cattle and Hogs require, the year round, but little help from 
 the farmer's barn, and no country can be better adapted to 
 the raising of Sheep. The air is remarkably salubrious, and 
 the water pure and pleasant. Taking the whole year round, 
 there is no country more healthy ; the Summers are very 
 free from bilious, and the Winters from inflammatory dis- 
 eases. These lands, so capable of being made highly profit- 
 able, range in price from fifty cents to three dollars per acre. 
 
 Leaving the sand hill country, the other lands of the Coun- 
 ty may be classed as Swamp Lands, Upper Low Lands, and 
 Ridge Uplands. The Swamp Lands have been partially 
 described in speaking of the Great Pee Dee. They are al- 
 luvial lands, of recent formation, and are wonderfully pro- 
 ductive. Properly drained and protected from freshets, they 
 produce from 40 to 75 bushels of Corn, and from 1500 to 
 3 
 
i8 
 
 2000 pounds of Seed Cotton to the acre. I-on^^ before the 
 war efforts were made, by patriotic and intelhgent citi/xns, 
 to enf^age the State Government in the great work of re- 
 claiming its Swamp Lands, but owing to various circum- 
 stances, unnecessar)' to mention, the scheme failed to become 
 popular, except in certain localities, and nothing was done. 
 The present State Government, with its burden of debt, is 
 not likely, for many years to come, to be prepared to attempt 
 the task. What has been done in the past, however, de- 
 monstrates that the work, great as it is, would prove not 
 beyond the means of individuals, if efforts were made simul- 
 taneousl)-. This reclamation of our Swamp Lands would 
 open up for cultivation thousands of acres of the richest 
 lands of the whole South, and, at the same time, by remov- 
 ing tlie only local cause of disease, would render our coun- 
 try one of the healthiest in the whole world. The work 
 within the limits of this County, along the Pee Dee, would 
 be mainly one of restoration — the repair of damages done 
 by the freshet of 1865. No great amount of capital w'ould 
 be required to accomplish this, and it would be easy to de- 
 monstrate that the investment would prove exceedingly 
 profitable. Not more than one-fifth of the Swamj) Lands of 
 the County have been or are now in cultivation. 
 
 The Upper Low Lands are, at present, the most valuable 
 in the County. They are the finest Cotton lands, have a 
 stiff clay sub-soil, and are susceptible of high and rapid im- 
 provement. With fair manuring, and ordinar\- cultivation, 
 they yield from 1000 to 1800 pounds of Seed Cotton t(j 
 the acre. 
 
 The Ridge Uplands have generally a thin soil, but are 
 easy of enrichment, and repay most generously every effort 
 made for their improvement. Before the war there prevail- 
 ed a reckless use of our lands. Land and labor were cheap 
 and i)lcntiful, and the planter made little or no eftbrt to 
 keep up and improve the soil, but abandoned a field as soon 
 as it showed signs of exhaustion, and in new clearings of his 
 forest, sought fresh lands. After the war necessity led to 
 
19 
 
 wiser conduct. Confronted by diminished capital, uncertain 
 labor, and the unwonted evil of tJicft from the Juids, the 
 planter was compelled to confine himself to the fields around 
 his dwelling, and to seek his support in the concentration of 
 his money and efforts upon bringing these few acres to a 
 condition of extraordinary productiveness. Such radical 
 changes are not brought about in a day, but this agricultu- 
 ral reform has, under the pressure of necessity, advanced 
 with rapid strides, and is now observable throughout the 
 County. There are unusual facilities for this work of land 
 improvement. Besides the manures of the stable yard and 
 lot and the marl-beds of which we have spoken, the excel- 
 lent Fertilizers made near Charleston, are obtainable on easy 
 terms, and these, composted with the rich and abundant surf 
 and muck of the near at hand forest and swamp, supply to 
 the land just what it needs to enable it to do its best. 
 Many an old field, long abandoned as worthless, has become, 
 under this treatment, as highly productive as the freshest 
 lands of the County, and one now rarely hears the old time 
 talk of the poor and worn out lands of South Carolina. 
 Mr. Calvin Rhodes, one of the best of our farmers, planting 
 improved uplands, in the neighborhood of Swift Creek, that 
 were formerly old fields, made last year (1873), on a 20 acre 
 field, 25 bales of Lint Cotton, each weighing 500 pounds, 
 and eight of the bales were gathered from five acres. Few 
 intelligent farmers are now willing to risk their judgment in 
 fixing a limit of cotton production to the capacity of our 
 lands. 
 
 The Upper Low Lands and Ridge Uplands of the County, 
 in farms and plantations varying in size from 100 to 2,000 
 acres, well fenced, and having upon them all needed buildings, 
 range in price from $3 to $15 per acre, the terms of sale be- 
 ing usually one-third cash, and the balance on a credit of 
 one and two years. Before the war land with us might 
 justly be spoken of as a monopoly, and could rarely be pur- 
 chased without the approval of neighbors. Since the war 
 vast quantities have been thrown upon the market, while 
 
20 
 
 the buyers have been few. Only within the last three or 
 four years lia\e the negroes, in any number, been prepared, 
 by reason of their savings, to purchase; but the number now, 
 with every year, is rapidly on the increase. These facts, 
 with the political condition of the country, account for the 
 price of our lands, and a present observable upward tenden- 
 cy. Looking to their intrinsic value, the price of our lands 
 is strikingly low, as is illustrated, by constantly occurring 
 instances of purchases of land entirely on credit, and the 
 purchaser, in the course of two or three years, besides sup- 
 porting himself and family, paying, wholly with the profit of 
 his lands, the entire purchase money. 
 
 The great value of the Cotton Crop, and its consequent 
 absorption of the labor of the County, has been attended by 
 evils that are, just now, being fully understood and appre- 
 ciated. This monopoly of the industry of the County has 
 prevented the development of its manifold agricultural re- 
 sources, discouraged a wise economy, and deprived us of that 
 independence which is the fruit of a varied agriculture. 
 Just after the war, as is well known, the price of Cotton was 
 exceedingly high. The planter was induced to see in this 
 the opportunity for a rapid rebuilding of his fortune, the ne- 
 cessity for economy was not felt, and he, naturally, kept up his 
 old time, loose and extravagant mode of living and expendi- 
 ture. Cotton paid so well, that it seemed foolish to devote 
 an acre to anything else. There were not wanting those who 
 called attention to the fact that the permanently prosperous 
 farmers and planters of the past were they who made their 
 own provisions ; but these warnings were silenced by a short 
 and apparently unanswerable mathematical demonstration. 
 The price of Cotton gradually fell, but, unfortunately, in its 
 fall, fluctuated to such a degree as to keep up hopes painful 
 to be surrendered. Cotton has, therefore, continued to re- 
 ceive undue attention, and the planter, in too many in- 
 stances, instead of rebuilding his fortune, has become a bonded 
 slave to his factor, and powerless to turn back on a road 
 which he now clearly sees is leading him to ruin. 
 
21 
 
 This year (1874) though no great increase has been made 
 in the area of Corn cultivation, the season has been so pecu- 
 Harly favorable that there is every prospect of a provision 
 crop large enough to meet the demands of the coming year. 
 This opportunity concurring fortunately with a low price for 
 Cotton, and a growing conviction of the folly of the past, 
 will, it is hoped, produce a radical change, and lead our farm- 
 ers, hereafter, to plant less Cotton and more Corn. The soil 
 presents no obstacle. Though so well adapted to the cul- 
 ture of Cotton, it produces in abundance Corn, Wheat, Rye, 
 Oats, Peas, and other provision crops. A good illustration, 
 saving words, is furnished by the fact that Mr. W. E, Dar- 
 gan, a young and enterprising farmer, in the neighborhood of 
 Timmonsville, harvested early this Summer a crop of Red 
 Oats, which measured out sixty-five bushels to the acre, and 
 has now upon the same land a growing crop of Corn that 
 cannot fail to yield him twenty bushels to the acre. 
 
 Minor Industries and Resources — Orchards — Gar- 
 dens — Organizations of Farmers. 
 
 Rice is raised almost entirely for home consumption, but 
 could easily be produced in quantities for exportation, much 
 of our soil being admirably fitted for the culture of a variety 
 very little inferior to that of the Tide Swamp Region. 
 
 Every thrifty farmer has his Sweet Potato patch, yielding 
 with little labor and attention, from 200 to 500 bushels to 
 the acre. The Sweet Potato is more valuable in product 
 than that of any root crop of more Northern climates, high- 
 ly and deservedly as root crops are there prized. It is one 
 of the chief articles of food met with on the table of the 
 Southern farmer — cheap, palatable and nutritious — is easily 
 preserved from crop to crop, and its exportation could be 
 made very profitable. 
 
 The yield of Irish Potatoes is large, but difficulties, aris- 
 ing, perhaps, mainly from inexperience, have been met 
 with in their preservation after removal from the soil, and 
 
22 
 
 their culture is almost entirely confined to the garden. They 
 come to maturity very quickly in our soil and climate, the 
 early varieties beino- ready for use in April — and two crops, 
 on the same ground, in the same season, are common. 
 
 In soil and climate the County closely resembles some of 
 the most populous and most productive of the countries of 
 the Old World, such as parts of India, China and Japan, and 
 the portions of Europe bordering on the Mediterranean. 
 Midway between extremes both of soil and climate, with 
 few exceptions, the most valuable productions, both of the 
 cold regions of the North and of the tropics of the South, 
 can be grown abui;dantly within its borders. 
 
 The Vine can be cultivated with great success. Native 
 vines, in their wild state, abound in our forests and clamber 
 along our fences. Since the war, much attention has been 
 given to this industry, and it has, already, become a marked 
 feature in our agriculture. Young vineyards are common, 
 and every year adds to their number, while such as have 
 reached maturity bountifully repay the labor and attention 
 bestowed by their owners. A successful vinegrower of the 
 County estimates the annual \\'ilue of his vineyard at $1,000 
 per acre. The Scuppernong, Flowers and Thomas are the 
 most certain, prolific and valuable of the vines cultivated ; 
 but other choice varieties, such as Concord, Clinton, Catawba 
 and Isabella, though requiring more attention, do well and 
 yield abundantly. 
 
 Plantations of Olive Trees have already succeeded in the 
 State, and there is no doubt that the tree could be grown 
 with profit in this County. The Tea Plant has been success- 
 fully grown, in the open air, in an adjoining County, and 
 English Walnut and Pecan Trees do so well that in the last 
 two or three years a good deal of intelligent interest has 
 been manifested in their increase. 
 
 The soil and climate arc admirabi)' adapted to the Mul- 
 berry Tree. Groves of the best bearing varieties of the edi- 
 ble Mulberry were planted before the war, by many of our 
 planters, for feeding hogs. The varieties that have been 
 
23 
 
 found by experience to furnfsh the best food for the silk- 
 worm, can be easily and rapidly grown, and are hardy and 
 luxuriant. There can be no doubt that the production of 
 silk could be made a profitable industry in this country. In 
 1759 South Carolina produced 10,000 lbs. of raw silk. 
 
 The capacit}' of our soil and climate to yield many other 
 valuable productions besides those mentioned, has been well 
 ascertained, among the most prominent of which we mention 
 Tobacco, Groundnuts, Flax, Hops, Castor and other Oils, 
 Mustard, Pepper, Bhene Seed and Opium. Our forests and 
 fields abound with medicinal herbs and plants having mar- 
 ketable value, such as Jessamine, May Apple, Jamestown 
 Weed, Boneset, Golden Rod, Snakeroot, Pleurisyroot, Wild 
 Horehound, Fennel, Queen's Delight, Mullein and Sumach. 
 
 Fruit of great variety and excellence is abundant during 
 the Spring and Summer months. Peaches and Watermelons 
 are in the greatest plenty, and if equalled elsewhere, in size 
 and flavor, are certainly not surpassed. Blackberries, Straw- 
 berries, Apricots and Raspberries are ripe in April and the 
 early part of May. Plums, early Pears, Apples, Peaches, 
 Figs and Nectarines follow. Watermelons and Muskmelons 
 continue from July to October. Late Peaches, Pears, Apples 
 and Grapes come in during the middle and close of the Sum- 
 mer, and Persimmons and a variety of nuts in the P^all. 
 Recently a lively and very general interest has been mani- 
 fested in the extension and improvement of the fruit culture 
 of the County. 
 
 It would be difficult to name a desirable vegetable that 
 cannot be readily grown in our gardens. Vegetation being 
 checked but a few weeks in the depth of Winter, the garden, 
 changing its products with the seasons, supplies to the table 
 the year round its best and cheapest food. The earliness 
 and excellence of our vegetables would render their exporta- 
 tion common and profitable were there proper facilities for 
 sending them promptly and safely to Northern markets. 
 Among the favorite and most abundant productions of our 
 
24 
 
 gardens wc mention English Peas, Irish Potatoes, Asparagus, 
 Green Corn, a variety of Beans, Squashes, Okra, Tomatoes, 
 Salads, Onions, Beets, Egg-plants, Carrots, Cucumbers and 
 Cabbages. 
 
 The forests, whicli still cover the largest part of the terri- 
 tory of the County, and are so distributed as to supply every 
 farm with abundant fire-wood and lumber for fencing, build- 
 ing and repairs, are distinguished for their variety of hand- 
 some and \'aluable trees. Chief among these trees, and 
 forming by far the larger part of our forests, is the Pitch 
 Pine, which has been well said to be one of the " great gifts 
 of God to man." *' The forests of Pine are not only useful 
 but beautiful. The characteristic moan of the wind through 
 their branches, their funereal aspect, almost limitless extent, 
 and the health-giving influences which attend their presence, 
 all contribute to make the Pine an object of peculiar interest 
 to the people of the Southern States. The terebinthinate 
 odor of the tree, some electrical influence of its long spear- 
 like leaves, a certain modification of 'ozone' (an allotropic 
 condition of oxygen, see P\arnday's examinations), are sever- 
 ally esteemed to modify the atmosphere and diminish the 
 effects of malaria."* Eor fencing purposes, for boards, lum- 
 ber, laths and shingles ; for Tar, Pitch, Turpentine and 
 Rosin — the foreign as well as domestic trade fully attests the 
 value of the Pine ; for fire-wood it is emphatically the poor 
 man's candle ; its leaves furnish an abundant material for 
 manure and for medicinal purposes, and its seeds are edible 
 and nutritious and are largely consumed by hogs. 
 
 Next to the Pine in abundance is the stately Cypress, the 
 largest of the trees of the State. It grows in the swamps 
 and along the banks of our streams. Its wood, soft and 
 easily worked and yet resisting unusually well the action of 
 weather and the changes of temperature, is used for making 
 the interior work of houses, posts, shingles, sta\-es, &c. Of 
 
 'Porcher's Resources of Southern Fields and Forests, p. 495. 
 
25 
 
 other trees there are Post, Live, White and Red Oak, Maple, 
 Poplar, Gum, Ash, Blackjack, Sycamore, Wild Locust,' 
 Birch, Hickory, Walnut, Dogwood, Holly, Juniper, Persi- 
 mon, Wild Cherry, Pride of India and Cedar. The Persi- 
 mon — one of the most valuable of our trees — abounds. The 
 fruit, which is not ready for use until after frost, is very sweet 
 and pleasant to the taste, yields on distillation, after fermen- 
 tation, a quantity of spirits, and furnishes a most excellent 
 Beer. The juice of the unripe fruit is said to be preferable 
 to oak bark for tanning, and a black dye may be extracted 
 from it. The wood of the tree is very hard and of fine 
 grain, and has been used for engraving. 
 
 These varied resources would make to the farmer of the 
 County the road to wealth short and easy, were he prepared 
 to " make every edge cut." Li other words, could he find a 
 market at his door for the many productions of his field, his 
 garden, his orchard and his forest. But while he has every 
 help and facility for the preparation for market of his Cotton, 
 his Turpentine and his Lumber, and competing buyers on 
 hand and eager to purchase, when he varies his industry, and 
 seeks to sell some other production of his farm or his forest, 
 he meets with no assistance, and finds that he must take 
 upon himself all of the trouble, expense and risk of its ship- 
 ment to and sale in some distant market. This difficulty is 
 aggravated by his inexperience, and, most commonly, the 
 result is pecuniary loss, the laughter of his neighbors, and a 
 damper put upon his spirit of enterprise. The purchasing 
 house is not likely to be established until the article to be 
 purchased is produced in sufficient quantities to meet the 
 demands of a large business, and yet production is limited 
 and depressed by the want of a purchasing house. This 
 difficulty can be overcome by a combination of capital and 
 enterprise ; but this combination the County does not pos- 
 sess, and is most sadly in need of. The prospect, however, 
 is not without hope. Our people are thinking over and de- 
 siring, as they never thought over and desired before, the 
 4 
 
26 
 
 development of the manifold resources of their soil and cli- 
 mate. There is no lack of enterprise, and though many have 
 failed, some few are succeeding, despite all difficulties and 
 discouragements, and are inducing others to join in their 
 efforts. There is a well founded hope that many years will 
 not pass before the Count)' will be richer and more prosper- 
 ous than ever in the past. 
 
 There are several prosperous organizations of farmers look- 
 ing to t-lie improvement of the agriculture of the County. 
 An Agricultural Society, established long before the war. 
 still exists, and holds an Annual Session, in the Summer, at 
 which an Address is made and Reports read on various agri- 
 cultural topics. Several years ago an Agricultural and Me- 
 chanical Fair Company was established, which now owns 
 beautiful grounds, near Darlington Court House, is in a sound 
 financial condition, and holds annually two Fairs — one in the 
 Summer, for Fruit, Vegetables, and Flowers; and a General 
 Fair in the Fall. The Patrons of Husbandry have estab- 
 lished a number of Granges in the County, and these are full 
 of life, rapidly increasing in numbers, and doing much for 
 the elevation of the farmer and his occupation, the increase 
 of his social enjoyments, and the introduction of skill and 
 economy in the management of his financial affairs. 
 
 Climate — Health — iNvrrATiox ro Imm k ;kants. 
 
 The climate of Darlington County is a medium between 
 that of tropical and of cold temperate latitudes. The Sum- 
 mers are temperate, and the Winters mild. The number of 
 extremely warm days rarely exceeds thirty in a \-car, and 
 during these the thermometer seldom stands aboxe ninety- 
 two degrees. Of these warmest days, it is not often that 
 more than two or three come together. Thunder showers, 
 often accompanied by hail, occur frequently, and greatly 
 moderate the Summer heat ; while a fresh breeze usually 
 springs up in the evening, rendering the nights cool and 
 pleasant. 
 
27 
 
 The number of very cold days during the Winter does not 
 exceed the average annual number of very warm days. 
 Vegetation is checiced for about six weeks. The ground is 
 rarely frozen so hard or to such a depth as not to be quickly 
 thawed by the rising sun. Ice ot half an inch in thickness 
 rarely occurs. It is not often that a Winter affords more 
 than two or three light snows, quickly melted. In some 
 years January, and in others February, is our coldest month. 
 Fires are kept in our houses, with not unfrequent interrup- 
 tions from warm days, from four to six months in the year. 
 The architecture of our houses shows, palpably, that their 
 builders looked more to protection from heat than protec- 
 tion from cold. 
 
 Rain is frequent and well distributed the year round. In 
 July and August we have most rain, while May and June 
 are usually our driest months. 
 
 An impression prevails abroad that the whole of lower 
 South Carolina is very unhealthy ; but this is an error easy to 
 be exploded, by a comparison of our bills of mortality with 
 those of sections of country having high reputation for 
 health. The mildness and regularity of our climate is favor- 
 able to health, while the single local cause of disease — the 
 malaria of our swamps and low lands — is easily avoided by 
 drainage or location of dwelling houses on the healthy up- 
 lands. 
 
 These uplands, forming the largest part of the County, 
 compare, in point of healthfulness, advantageously with the 
 most favored sections of the United States. 
 
 Our sickly months are August and September, the rest of 
 the year being healthy. In Winter, the diseases consist of 
 Catarrhal affections and Pneumonia of a mild type, rarely 
 producing permanent or organic injury to the lungs, with oc- 
 casional Rheumatisms ; in the Spring bowel affections — such 
 as Diarrhoea and Dysentery — are met with, yielding readily 
 to treatment, and rarely fatal, except among children ; in the 
 latter part of the Summer and the early })art of the Fall, oc- 
 
28 
 
 cur the Fevers produced by malaria. These Fevers of the 
 Summer and Fall are either Intermittent or Remittent. The 
 first is the most common, and is light in its character, and 
 but little dreaded. The Remittent Bilious Fever is the only- 
 serious disease peculiar to the climate. Its treatment is well 
 understood, and where medical assistance is promptly sought, 
 the patient rarely fails to recover. 
 
 Instances of longevity are numerous in the County, there 
 being now very many residents over the age of eighty. 
 
 Another false and injurious opinion that prevails abroad, 
 concerning this and the other Counties of the State, is, that 
 incoming strangers, and particularly settlers from the North, 
 are, by the whites, not desired, and are received and treated 
 with coldness. This opinion has arisen from a mistake as 
 to the spirit with which our people acknowledged defeat and 
 accepted its results, and from a knowledge of the scorn and 
 contempt with which they have treated and still treat the 
 carpet-baggers, who, coming to us after the war, avoided 
 every honest avocation, busied themselves in arraying the 
 negro against the white man, filled our public offices, and 
 amassed fortunes by all manner of corruption and dishones- 
 ty. Such settlers as have sought their living by honest 
 means, and have evidenced character, have had, and have 
 now, no reason to complain of their treatment. 
 
 This pamphlet demonstrates the true disposition and desire 
 of the white people of Darlington County. Prepared by direc- 
 tion of the Granges of the County, composed of its representa- 
 tive farmers and citizens, it is meant for distribution among 
 the Granges of the other States of the Union, and particu- 
 larly of the North and Northwest, as an invitation to honest 
 men, of whatever political opinions, to come and join us in 
 the work of developing our resources, and share with us the 
 wealth and prosperity that must speedily result. It says to 
 such settlers, you will be met, as you enter our County, by 
 an organization of farmers, eager to give you a Southern 
 welcome, and, by every practical assistance, to smoothe your 
 way to an advantageous settlement within our borders. 
 
29 
 
 With no ill will to the negro — believing that \vc subserve 
 his best interests, as well as our own — we seek, by the peace- 
 ful means of immigration, to overcome the negro majority in 
 our County, to restore to its offices capacity and honesty, to 
 bring out the hidden riches of the land, and to make our 
 County once again, as in the past, wealthy and prosperous, 
 R. W. BOYD, Darlington Court House, 
 B. F. WILLIAMSON, Darlington Court House, 
 JOHN A. WILSON, Society Hill, 
 
 Conunittcc on Iiinnigration. 
 September istii, 1874. 
 
LE N 10 
 
1 
 
 HISTORY, 
 
 Description and Resources 
 
 OF 
 
 DARLINGTON COUNTY, 
 
 STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA 
 
 CHARLESTON, S. C. 
 
 THE NEWS AND COURIER JOB PRESSES. 
 1874. 
 
rs 
 
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