14.8.15

History of Clarendon County, SC: The 1800's


The following are key historical events that took place in and around Clarendon County, South Carolina, in the 1800's:
  • The War of 1812 between U.S. and Great Britain ended in 1814. It was essentially a stalemate, but it did reconfirm America's Independence from Great Britain.
  • On December 19, 1855, a legislative act was passed establishing the Clarendon District with the same boundaries defined in the Act of 1785. The State Constitution of 1868 would later change districts to counties.
  • Shortly after the re-establishment of Clarendon as a county in 1855, Captain Joseph C. Burgess was selected to determine the geographical center of the county so that a courthouse village could be built. The commissioners responsible for locating the county seat then decided on the site where the present courthouse now stands in Manning. Captain Burgess deeded to the state six acres, which provided sites for the courthouse and jail, in addition to streets 75 feet wide on four sides.
  • On June 25, 1856, the Clarendon county post office was officially established.
  • On April 21, 1858, the "Sumter Watchman" reported that court was held in Clarendon county courthouse for the first time with a large number of lawyers in attendance. 
  • In 1859, a weekly newspaper called the Clarendon Banner opened in Manning and began publication.
  • The town of Manning was officially chartered by an act of the state legislature on January 28, 1861. It was re-chartered by the Secretary of State, March 15, 1904.
  • The American Civil War began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces fired upon Fort Sumter, a key fort held by Union troops in South Carolina. Eleven states seceded from the Union and formed the Confederate States of America (CSA). South Carolina was the first state to secede from the Union. The war came to an end four years later with Gen. Robert E. Lee's surrender to Gen. Grant at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.
  • In 1865, a body of General Sherman's Union troops under command of General Potter raided Clarendon county. A large portion of the original town, including the court house, was destroyed during "Potter's Raid". The raid took place only a few days before Gen. Robert E. Lee´s surrender at Appomattox. The county recovered slowly from the Civil War.
  • Following the Civil War, the difficult Reconstruction Era of former Confederate states began, lasting from 1864 to 1877.
  • On December 6, 1865, the Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, thus officially abolishing slavery in the U.S.
  • In July 1868, after the S.C. State Legislature ratified the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the state was finally permitted to regain official representation in Congress. The amendment addressed citizenship rights and equal protection of the laws for all citizens, including former slaves.
  • In 1869, Joseph Rainey became the first African-American in South Carolina to be elected to serve as a Congressman in the U.S. House of Representatives.
  • With the controversial election of Gov. Wade Hampton III in 1876, new state and local laws began to be passed restricting voting and civil rights of black citizens across the state. See Jim Crow Laws.
  • In 1884, The Manning Times newspaper was established. It is the oldest ongoing community newspaper in Clarendon county. See Manning Live.
  • The town of Alcolu was established in the mid-1880's by D.W. Alderman. It housed the employees of his timber company and lumber mill and their families.
  • In the 1890's, Telegraph systems were introduced into Manning and Summerton.
  • In 1890, the first public school, known as the Manning Collegiate Institute, was opened. By 1899, the school was in debt and in danger of being closed. Local farmer, merchant and civic leader, Moses Levi, bought the property, cleared the debt, and donated it to the city. The school was renamed the Moses Levi Memorial Institute, which operated from 1899-1910.
  • In 1895, a large fire spread through downtown Manning destroying numerous stores along Boyce Street across from the courthouse.
  • In 1898, there were 18 townships listed in Clarendon county which included: Douglas; Sandy Grove; New Zion; Midway; Plowden Mill; Harmony; Sammy Swamp; Manning; Mt. Zion; Brewington; Calvary; Fulton; Concord; Friendship; St. Paul; St. James; Santee; and St. Mark.
  • The Spanish American War began in April 1898. Company D, 2nd South Carolina Volunteer Infantry Regiment, was formed in Manning, S.C., and mustered into service May 21st, 1898. Fortunately, the war came to a quick end with the signing of the Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898. The unit was mustered out of service on April 19, 1899.
For more detail about the county, make sure you visit the Historical Clarendon County web site.


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History of Clarendon County, SC: Its Earliest Settlers and the 1700's

Prior to the arrival of European settlers, the Native Indian tribes living in what is now South Carolina included the Bear River Indians, Cape Fear Indians, Catawba, Cheraw, Cherokee, Chowanoc, Machapunga, Moratok, Natchez, Occaneechi, Santee, Saponi, Shakori, Tuscarora, and the Waccamaw tribes. See YouTube videos on the History of Native American Indians.
  • In 1566, the colony of Santa Elena was established in South Carolina by the Spanish.
  • In 1670, the first English settlement was established in South Carolina at Albemarle Point on the Ashley River.
  • In 1682, Craven county within the Carolina colony included the area now known as Clarendon county.
  • Clarendon county  is named after Edward Hyde, the Earl of Clarendon, friend and supporter of King Charles II of England. At one time he served as the Lord High Chancellor of England. He was one of the lords proprietors to whom the King gave all the land in this part of the American colonies.
  • In 1701, John Lawson, an English trader and explorer wrote of the Santee Indians of this area. In his writings he spoke of the friendliness and hospitality of the Santees. Examples of their ways of life and customs can still be found in and around their burial mounds at Fort Watson near the Santee waters.
  • In 1711 the Santee Indians joined the settlers to fight the Tuscarora Indians of North Carolina, but in 1715 the Santees joined the Yemassee Indians in a war to destroy the South Carolina settlers, and they almost succeeded. The few Indians left at the end of that war moved up the river to join the Catawba Indians, leaving no Santee Indians in our county.
  • In 1721, South Carolina officially became a Crown Colony.  Sir Francis Nicholson was appointed the first royal governor of the colony.
  • In 1757, St. Mark's Parish was formed out of Craven county. It contained the area of land that would eventually become known as Clarendon county.
  • In 1769,  the colonial general assembly divided the occupied part of the colony into seven judicial districts, each with its own courthouse and county officers. St. Mark's Parish was put in Camden district.
  • The American Revolutionary War began in 1775 when local militias clashed with British troops at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts. By the end of 1775 rebels had seized control in all thirteen colonies and on July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress issued the Declaration of Independence. 
  • In 1778, the British shifted their attention to the southern colonies, recaptured Georgia and South Carolina for the Crown. In 1781, British forces suffered a major defaeat at Yorktown, Virginia. The defeat broke Britain's will to continue the war. Limited fighting continued throughout 1782 until the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783, officially ending the war and recognized the sovereignty of the United States of America.
  • A number of Revolutionary War battles or engagements took place in Clarendon county. They included the Battle of Half Way Swamp took place December 1780. Various other battles that took place in the general area are the Battle of Richbourg’s Mill, the Battle of Nelson’s Ferry, the Battle of Fort Watson/Santee Indian Mound, and the Battle of Tearcoat.
It was General Francis Marion's strategy to surprise and strike the British forces and then disappear into the swamps. British General Lord Cornwallis sent one of his top officers to try to catch Francis Marion and they chased him to the edge of our Ox Swamp and then turned back in disgust, with the comment that the devil himself could not catch that fox. From then until now, General Marion is known in history as the 'Swamp Fox'. There is now a Swamp Fox Murals Trail which consists of historical landmarks depicting the American Revolution and the exploits of General Francis Marion.
  • In 1785, a legislative act was passed which divided Camden District into seven counties. One of them was Clarendon county.
  • South Carolina was admitted to the Union on May 23, 1788. South Carolina was the 8th State to join the United States of America.
Many of the first settlers of Clarendon county were Huguenots, French Protestants who fled their country between 1685 and 1787 in order to avoid persecution in France because of their religious beliefs. Many of these early settlers came up the Santee River from coastal areas around the year 1700 and received land grants in the area. Some of the names are still with us, such as DuBose, Gaillard, Des Champs, Richbourg, Lesesne, Guerry, Millette, Mouzon, and others
  • In 1790, Clarendon county had two representatives and shared one senator with Claremont County, which included neighboring Sumter County.
  • In 1792, Salem County was created from Eastern Clarendon and Claremont counties.
  • In 1793, the Santee Canal was constructed to facilitate the transportation of settlers goods inland. The canal was closed early in the 1850 as the railroads made the canal obsolete.
  • In 1798, three counties - Clarendon, Claremont and Salem - were combined to form Sumter District.
For more detail about the county's history, make sure you visit the Clarendon County Historical Society and the Historic Clarendon County web sites.

 
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Investing in Big Oil and Fossil Fuel Companies in the 21st Century


Editorial - The end of the “Age of Fossil Fuels” is fast approaching. More leaders are speaking out against the use of fossil fuels as scientific data mounts showing it is leading to destructive global climate change. Fortunately, competitive alternative energy sources and new technologies now exist that can be used as the world starts to phase out its use of oil and coal to generate energy.

Another clear sign that the end of the “Age of Fossil Fuels” is now upon us can be seen in the growing movement by individuals and large organizations to divest themselves of stock holdings in “Big Oil” and other fossil fuel companies.

To support these claims, check out the following news and information published over the past two months:



As you can see, “Big Oil” keeps lobbying hard and pushing ahead with their attempts to keep us all hooked on fossil fuels for as long as they can, no matter what the cost to our planet.

As the 'Age of Fossil Fuels' slowly comes to an end, oil companies are racing to drill for oil in every sensitive environmental location on Earth they can find while they can - off the Carolina coast, in the Arctic ocean, at the North Pole, off California's coast, near sensitive underwater reefs...

One would thing that if “Big Oil”companies want to survive in this 21st century, they would be trying to invest heavily in the growing alternative energy industry - solar power, hydro-electric, wind energy, fuel cells, nuclear power... Unfortunately, that doesn't yet appear to be happening. Their focus is still on the short term, driving the cost of oil down, and keeping the world hooked on the use of costly, polluting fossil fuels.

Fortunately, we now know that strategy will fail over the long term and more and more individuals and companies will continue to divest themselves of stocks in these companies if they don't change. What do you think? Give us your feedback on the Future of Energy in America.


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12.8.15

Clarendon County Democratic Party Meeting - August 2015


The Clarendon County Democratic Party is the local county affiliate of the South Carolina Democratic Party (SCDP). The local party meets the 1st Thursday of each month in Manning, S.C.

The Clarendon Democrats met this past week at Bassard’s Pond House, 4162 Rev. J.W. Carter Road in the Ram Bay community of Clarendon County. SC Senator Kevin Johnson was on hand to give a brief overview of the past legislative session and plans for the next session, e.g. Roads, domestic violence, economic development, police body-cams, healthcare. He praised the legislature for their actions related to the removal of the Confederate battle flag from the grounds of our state capitol.

A statement by SC Representative Robert Ridgeway III was then read and entered into the minutes. This was followed by a presentation emphasizing the need to build up the local parties information and communication infrastructure as we head into the 2016 election cycle. Specifically, the need to work on the Clarendon County Democatic Party Facebook page, Twitter, web site, ...

Attendees were urged to bring a friend to the next meeting. Efforts will also be made to ensure precinct representatives attend the monthly meetings whenever they can. The meeting came to a close just as a major storm rolled across the county.

The following are key links to state and county Democratic Party web sites and social media pages:

The South Carolina Democratic Party (SCDP) is the state affiliate of the national Democratic Party. It is headquartered in Columbia, S.C.


The Clarendon County Democratic Party is the local county affiliate of the SC Democratic Party. Within the county, there are 26 precincts.



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11.8.15

Republican Party Overview and Links to Key Web Sites


The national Republican Party, commonly referred to as the Grand Old Party (GOP), it is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States. It was founded by anti-slavery activists and members of the Whig Party back in 1854.

Politics is defined as the art or science of government. In other words, it encompasses a wide range of activities that relate to influencing the actions and policies of governments and its use of its resources.

The Republican National Committee (RNC) is responsible for overseeing and promoting Republican campaign activities. This includes managing the process of writing the Republican Party National Platform. The RNC also organizes and supervises the activities of the Republican National Convention.


The South Carolina (SC) Republican Party is the state affiliate of the national Republican Party. It is headquartered in Columbia, S.C.

While the GOP came into being back in 1854, the SC Republican Party only came to dominate state politics over the past 50 years. The Democratic Part was dominant from 1880 through 1948. It was the 1948 Presidential Election that marked the beginning of the winds of political change in the state when Senator Strom Thurmond broke away from the national Democratic Party and ran for office as a State's Rights Democratic Party (Dixiecrat) candidate. The shift in political climate continued with President Lyndon B. Johnson's signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This finally led to the current domination of the state's political landscape by the conservative Republican Party.


The Clarendon County Republican Party is the local county affiliate of the SC Republican Party. Key web sites include:


2016 Republican National Convention - The gathering at which delegates of the U.S. Republican Party will choose the party's nominees for President and Vice President of the United States of America that will run in the 2016 national election. The Republican National Convention will next convene in Cleveland, Ohio on July 18-21, 2016.

No matter what your political party affiliation, it's time to start getting ready for the 2016 nation-wide elections. Pay attention to the candidates and their stance on the major issues facing the US. Also, check out the political platforms of both major parties.

* Visit America's Future: 2020-2050 web site to learn more about the political parties in the US.


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