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Two cabins (c. 1836) built by African-Americans to house African-American slaves who were brought to this area to raise cotton remain on the campus of Francis Marion University. The quality of the woodcraft, especially the full-dovetailed corners, shows that the builders were skilled craftsmen who took great pride in their work. The cabins are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The hewn timber cabins are open and available to the general public from 10:30 AM to 2:30 PM on the second Wednesday of each month from March through November, weather permitting.
If you visit the site when the cabins are not open, signs outside each cabin provide visitors with a wealth of information and pictures. Photos show the cabin interiors and artifacts, many of which have been donated by families who lived in the cabins.
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 Florence |
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Historic Brattonsville is a 775-acre Revolutionary War living history site. Explore the Bratton Plantation, owned and lived on for three generations by the wealthy Bratton family. Experience a reenactment of the Battle of Huck’s Defeat, which took place on the grounds of Brattonsville 225 years ago.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the site features more than 30 historic structures open to the public. These “house museums” chronicle the development of the Carolina Piedmont from the 1750s through the 1840s. Historic Brattonsville is one of the few living history sites with African-American interpretation.
Historic Brattonsville also is home to an award-winning Heritage Farm Program. Rare breeds of farm animals such as Gulf Coast sheep, Devon cattle and Ossabaw Island hogs are raised and cared for here, just as they were hundreds of years ago. Demonstrations of historical farming techniques and day-to-day activities are presented by costumed interpreters throughout the year on the Bratton Plantation.
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 McConnells |
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The following tours are for groups only:
Sacred Sites Walking Tour - Experience Columbia's rich religious history through this walking tour of six downtown churches and one former synagogue.
Main Street Columbia - This walking tour offers over 150 years of architectural evolution from the Capitol to the Courthouse.
Homeplaces, Workplaces and Resting Places: African American Sites Tour
This tour includes 25 significant African-American heritage sites in Columbia, highlighting important events and contributions from 1786 to present day. Included are the Mann-Simons Cottage, Benedict College and the Waverly Historic District. A step-off at the South Carolina State House is included to view the African-American monument commemorating the contributions of African Americans to the state's history.
Historic Heart of Columbia Walking and Trolley Tours - Offers informative and entertaining stories about the Palmetto State's capital, the nation's first planned state capital. Includes such landmarks as the Historic Horseshoe of the University of South Carolina, the State House, the Robert Mills Historic District, the Governor's Mansion Complex,and 19th-century churches.
From Homefront to Battleground: Columbia's Civil War -This step-on tour tells the story of Columbia during the Civil War years. Columbia was deemed one of the liveliest towns in the Confederacy because it was sheltered from direct action until February 1865. Included in the tour are sites related to the Articles of Succession, Jefferson Davis, Mary Boykin Chestnut, Civil War hospitals, Arsenal Academy (now the Governor’s Mansion), and the State House.
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 Columbia |
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The numerous buildings and sites featured on this tour highlight Historic Pendleton, founded on April 8, 1790. The entire town, along with an area extending into Pickens County, is on the National Register of Historic Places. Pick up brochures at the Visitor's Center. Step-on guides and customized tours are available by appointment. The African-American Walking Tour features 10 sites.
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 Pendleton |
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Birthplace of Thomas Lynch Jr., signer of the Declaration of Independence, this Lowcountry plantation was built in 1740. Though privately owned, the house is open from the attic to the cellar and is furnished in 18th- and 19th-century antiques. The grounds feature two original slave cabins and beautiful view of the Santee River. Visit our tearoom in our new River Oak Cottage, one of the top rated tearooms in South Carolina by www.teamap.com
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 Georgetown |
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The Rev. Daniel J. Jenkins established the Jenkins Orphanage in 1891 for African-American children following an encounter with four youngsters living on the streets of Charleston. The original site of this orphanage was at 20 Franklin St. in the Old Marine Hospital. This National Historic Landmark, designed by Robert Mills, served as home of the orphanage from 1895 to 1939. Then it moved to a farm outside Charleston. To raise funds for the orphanage, the Jenkins Orphanage Band was organized. The Jenkins Orphanage Band, wearing discarded Citadel uniforms, performed throughout the United States and even toured England raising money for the support of the orphanage. William “Cat” Anderson, Jabbo Smith and Freddie Green are but a few of the alumni from the band who made it to the big time.
Click on the link below and scroll down to Jenkins Orphanage Band to watch a clip of the band's Nov. 22, 1928 performance.
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 Charleston |
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Organized in 1866 by the Rev. James R. Rosewood, a former slave, the church was one of the first separate African-American congregations established in South Carolina after the Civil War. Built between 1899 and 1903, the church is a two-story brick in a vernacular version of the Gothic Revival style.
Listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
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 Greenville |
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This National Historic Landmark (circa 1760) is considered the birthplace and childhood home of Joseph H. Rainey, one of the first African Americans elected to the US Congress (1870-1879). Born to slave parents, Rainey purchased his freedom and that of his family around 1850 and established himself as a barber. Drafted by the Confederacy during the Civil War, Rainey escaped with his wife, Susan to Bermuda, returning to Georgetown after the war. He was a delegate to the Constitutional Convention of 1868, served two years in the state senate and was a state internal revenue agent. Rainey died in Georgetown in 1887.
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Georgetown |
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At a meeting in the Liberty Hill African Methodist Episcopal Church in 1950, parents signed a petition demanding integrated schools. Meetings were held at the church for the selection of petitioners in the complaint that would become Briggs vs. Elliott. The case became part of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education - the landmark case that struck down the "separate but equal" doctrine concerning the segregation of schools in 1954.
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 Summerton |
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Located in eastern Dorchester County, Lincolnville was established in the late 1860s when seven black men became dissatisfied with the treatment they were receiving in Charleston. They took the train north from Charleston in search of land where they might start a new community. The land they chose was known as Pump Pond because it was where the trains stopped for water for the steam engines. The men pooled their savings and acquired the property for $1,000. The settlement was named in honor of President Abraham Lincoln when it received its charter in 1889. Many of the founders and early settlers were members of Ebenezer AME Church. It is one of the few all black towns remaining in SC.
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Summerville |
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