Jacksonboro, Parker’s Ferry, Chehaw Point, Fort Balfour, Old Sheldon Church, Port Royal Island, Beaufort
Total mileage: approximately 82 miles.
THIS TOUR BEGINS at the southeastern end of the historic town of Jacksonboro just as you cross the Edisto River on U.S. 17 and enter Colleton County. Turn right almost immediately into the parking lot of the Edisto Nature Trail. This self-guided 1-mile trail makes its way along the picturesque Edisto River within view of portions of the old King’s Highway, the original road that connected the colonies. In 1791, President Washington crossed the river here on his famous Southern tour.
At the trailhead, you’ll see a state historical marker for Old Jacksonborough, founded in 1735. Several months before Charleston fell, a heated skirmish was fought on the river at Bee’s Plantation just south of town; on March 23, 1780, Banastre Tarleton led a successful attack in which he killed ten American militiamen and captured some badly needed horses.
The town served as the provisional capital of South Carolina after Charleston was captured by the British.
Return to U.S. 17 and follow it to S.C. 64. Turn right and drive 1.7 miles to the junction with a dirt road, where you’ll see a state historical marker honoring Isaac Hayne. To see the grave of this famous martyr for American independence, turn right and follow the dirt road for 0.9 mile to its terminus.
Crape myrtles, holly, and live oaks thrive on the knoll upon which the Hayne family cemetery rests. Other than Hayne’s tomb and the graves of family members, nothing remains of the prosperous plantation that Isaac Hayne owned here when the Revolutionary War began.
Hayne (1745–81) was a man of many talents and business interests. Despite his relative youth when the war began, he was already an affluent planter, a developer of iron mines, a horse breeder, and a civic leader.
Among the Patriots captured when Charleston fell to the British in May 1780 was Captain Isaac Hayne. He was subsequently paroled to his plantation. During the first half of 1781, British forces ordered Hayne to join in the fight against the American army. Believing that this outrage violated his parole, Hayne resumed his activities as a Patriot officer.
As a militia colonel, Hayne played a significant role in the capture of turncoat general Andrew Williamson in July 1781. However, when the British subsequently liberated General Williamson, they took Hayne captive. Charged with treason and espionage, he was brought before a British court of inquiry in Charleston, where, without a trial, he was sentenced to death. On August 4, 1781, the sentence was carried out on the gallows in the port city. According to Lieutenant Colonel Nesbit Balfour, the British commandant of Charleston, the execution was occasioned by “the imperious necessity of repressing the disposition to similar acts of treachery.”
British authorities meant for the execution of Isaac Hayne to be an example to South Carolina Patriots. But to the contrary, Hayne was seen as a martyr by South Carolina partisans, and the “Hayne Affair,” as the incident became known, served as a rallying point.
News of the execution reached General Nathanael Greene while he was conducting operations in the High Hills of Santee. Incensed, he sought to exact revenge against Redcoat officers but not Tories, for he feared that the British would be satisfied to see the Patriots and Tories eliminate each other. He issued a proclamation warning that “reprisals for all such inhuman insults” would be carried out against “officers of the regular forces, and not the deluded Americans who had joined the royal army.”
Two and a half months after Hayne’s execution, Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown. In the wake of the capitulation, the South Carolina delegation to the Continental Congress made demands that General George Washington execute Cornwallis in retaliation for Hayne’s murder. Congress defeated the proposal only after being informed that such action would violate the terms of the surrender agreement.
Another potential target for retaliation was Lord Rawdon, who had also been taken prisoner at Yorktown. But before the Americans could make any such attempt, Rawdon was transported to Brest, France, where he was released on parole. Upon his return to England, he was subjected to scorn on the floor of the House of Lords. A subsequent censure vote against him for his part in the Hayne Affair failed in Parliament.
At Hayne’s grave site, a monument erected in his honor reads in part, “In life a soldier of his Country, In death a martyr to her sacred cause. His memory an undying inspiration to his fellow countrymen, His monument the freedom of his Native Land.”
Return to S.C. 64. Turn right and proceed 0.9 mile to the state historical marker for Bethel Presbyterian Church. Only the ancient church cemetery remains here at the site where a Presbyterian congregation was organized in 1728. George Washington passed Bethel Presbyterian as he traveled along the old Savannah post road.
Continue west on S.C. 64 for 0.2 mile to S.R. 15-40, where you’ll see a state historical marker for Pon Pon Chapel. To visit the site, turn right on S.R. 15-40, proceed north for 0.9 mile to S.R. 15-705, turn right again, and drive 0.3 mile to the ruins of the old brick chapel, located in a beautiful, isolated setting.
Constructed in 1754 on a spot where John Wesley preached in 1735, the Episcopal edifice was a well-known landmark during the Revolution. Although it survived the war, including the fighting at nearby Parker’s Ferry, the church was destroyed by fire in 1801 and has since been known as the “Burnt Church.” Today, the ruined walls and the surrounding eighteenth-century graveyard present a fascinating look at the rural South Carolina of the Revolutionary War era.
Continue north on S.R. 15-705 for 1.1 miles to enjoy a magnificent view of the Edisto River; note that this road is not passable during periods of rain. Near the current tour stop is the site of Parker’s Ferry, which was located on the primary colonial highway. General Francis Marion inflicted a nasty defeat on British troops here on August 30, 1781.
As the controversy over the execution of Isaac Hayne grew in late August 1781, civil war was the order of the day in South Carolina. Some 450 area Tories took up arms and began operations in the Low Country. To aid their cause, the British dispatched Major Thomas Fraser and a force of regulars from Fort Dorchester. Upon learning of the troop movement, Colonel William Harden, the commander of Patriot forces in the area, relayed a desperate plea for assistance to General Nathanael Greene at his headquarters in the High Hills of Santee. Responding to the request, Greene called upon the Swamp Fox.
With lightning-quick speed, Marion swung into action. Accompanied by a hundred handpicked partisans, he moved 100 miles at night to intercept Fraser’s column at Parker’s Ferry. Approximately 1 mile west of the ferry, Marion’s scouts rode headlong into the British force, which included artillery. Sensing that Marion was near, Fraser ordered his cavalry to give chase.
That was just what the Swamp Fox wanted. His marksmen, hidden in the wilderness, were ready and waiting for the hard-charging British horsemen. Suddenly, the Patriot guns were ablaze, inflicting heavy casualties. Fraser regrouped his forces and ordered another charge. Two more volleys produced even greater misery for the Redcoats. Cognizant that his men were low on ammunition, Marion then ordered a withdrawal.
In the aftermath of the battle, the British reported 125 soldiers killed. The Swamp Fox lost not a man.
Retrace your route to S.C. 64. Turn left and follow S.C. 64 for 1.7 miles to U.S. 17 in Jacksonboro. Turn right and drive 5.4 miles west to the Ashepoo River. President George Washington crossed this river several miles to the north on May 10, 1791, during his tour of South Carolina.
Continue on U.S. 17 for 8.7 miles to the entrance to Laurel Springs Plantation. Not open to the public, the plantation grounds contain the tomb of Dr. James Lynch, a surgeon during the Revolution.
Follow U.S. 17 for another 1.9 miles to the bridge over the Combahee River near the former site of the Combahee Ferry. During the last week of August 1782, the British, in an attempt to provide supplies for their besieged garrison in Charleston, assembled a sizable force on the opposite side of the river here. When that British squadron, composed of three hundred regulars, two hundred Tories, and eighteen sailing vessels, began moving down the Combahee on the night of August 27, 1782, Patriot forces on the northern shore—commanded by General Mordecai Gist—braced for an attack. In the battle that ensued, Colonel John Laurens was killed. A state historical marker near the current tour stop honors his sacrifice. (For more information about Laurens, see Tour 3, pages 42–43.)
Turn around near the bridge and drive 2.2 miles northeast on U.S. 17 to S.R. 15-162. Turn right and proceed 6.5 miles south to S.R. 15-161. Colonel John Laurens was laid to rest just east of this junction on the grounds of Stock Plantation after he died in battle on the banks of the river; his unmarked grave lies within a small enclosure.
To visit the site where Laurens fell, turn right on S.R. 15-161 and follow it to the river. What has come to be known as the Battle of Chehaw Point took place here. Under cover of darkness, the British expeditionary force came ashore here and lay in wait for the Americans. Colonel Laurens, a young officer who had served his country well as a personal aide to General Washington and a European diplomat, was ordered by General Gist to lead a force of Continentals to Chehaw Point to confront the enemy. Riding at the head of his column without the aid of scouts, Colonel Laurens was ambushed by Redcoats hiding in the tall grass. He fell from his saddle in the first fire.
The lead elements of the American army began a retreat. Presently, General Gist arrived on the scene to reorganize his forces. At length, the British withdrew and made their way to their vessels. American losses were put at twenty-one killed.
Retrace your route to U.S. 17. Turn right, proceed northeast for 1.3 miles to S.R. 15-119, turn left, and drive northwest for 8.2 miles to S.R. 15-41. Turn right, head west for 0.9 mile to U.S. 17A, turn left, and go 6 miles to the state historical marker for Salkehatchie Presbyterian Church and Cemetery. Although the church building, constructed around 1766, was destroyed during the Civil War, the eighteenth-century church cemetery survives. Buried here are some of the most prominent Scots-Irish settlers of the Low Country.
Continue on U.S. 17A/U.S. 21 for 1.7 miles to the bridge over the Salkehatchie/Combahee River. President Washington crossed the river here on Wednesday morning, May 11, 1791. The bridge he crossed was built by Thomas Patterson after an earlier bridge was burned by the warring armies during the Revolution.
After crossing the bridge, you will pass through Hampton County. Follow U.S. 17A/U.S. 21 for 3.7 miles to the intersection with U.S. 17 at the Pocotaligo River. Fort Balfour stood on the eastern bank of the river near this junction.
Named for Lieutenant Colonel Nesbit Balfour, the British commander of Charleston, the fort was garrisoned by a hundred officers and men. On April 8, 1781, soldiers from the fort bested the Patriot troops of Colonel William Harden in a skirmish called the Battle of Pocotaligo Road.
Sweet revenge came for the Patriots just five days later. Indeed, Friday, April 13, turned out to be an unlucky day for the garrison at Fort Balfour. About noon on that day, Colonel Harden and his men hid in the wilderness surrounding the fort. In a plan designed to lure the garrison out of the installation and into an ambush, the Patriots sent ten cavalrymen toward the fort. Although the scheme failed to work as planned, it produced better results than Colonel Harden could have expected.
As the small band of Patriots rode forward, Fort Balfour’s two commanding officers—Colonels Fenwick and Lechmere—happened to be outside the walls of the post. They were visiting troops wounded in the Battle of Pocotaligo Road, who were recuperating in a hospital located in a nearby house. When the two British colonels heard the Patriot horsemen, they began running for the safety of the fort. However, the Patriots chased them down and took them captive.
Colonel Harden realized he held the upper hand. He dispatched a demand for surrender to the senior officer in the fort, a timid colonel named Kelsell. Kelsell spent less than an hour mulling his alternatives. Then came his decision: the garrison would be surrendered. Colonel Harden thus took the fort without firing a shot. As soon as the prisoners were paroled and the fort’s supplies moved out of harm’s way, he ordered Fort Balfour destroyed.
Continue south on U.S. 17/U.S. 21 for 4.2 miles to S.R. 7-235. Turn left, drive 1.9 miles to S.R. 7-21, and turn right. Almost immediately, you will notice the ruins of Old Sheldon Church. Tall, moss-draped oak trees tower above the remaining brick walls and columns of what was among the most magnificent edifices in South Carolina when it was constructed in 1746. Numerous eighteenth-century graves, including those of the famous Bull family, are on the scenic grounds surrounding the ruins.
Prominently marked is the grave of General Stephen Bull (1733–1800). A noted statesman and a staunch advocate for independence, Bull served in the First Provincial Congress and the new state’s first general assembly. As a Patriot officer, he rendered distinguished service in the fighting around Beaufort and Savannah. Bull Street in Columbia bears his name.
British troops torched Sheldon Church during the Revolution. It was restored before being burned by invading Union troops in the Civil War. Special services are held at the ruins every year on the second Sunday after Easter.
A state historical marker for the old church is located on the roadside near the ruins.
Follow S.R. 7-21 south for 1.7 miles to U.S. 17/U.S. 21. Turn left and proceed 0.5 mile to where the two highways divide. Follow U.S. 21. It is 4.2 miles south to the bridge over Whale Creek; once across the creek, you are on Port Royal Island. Continue 3.8 miles to the state historical marker for the Battle of Port Royal Island.
In this area on February 3, 1779, General William Moultrie used a force of three hundred Charleston militiamen, twenty Continental soldiers, and three pieces of artillery to repel a British column of two hundred regulars from General Augustine Prevost’s army. Although the Americans were forced to stand and fight in the open against the Redcoats, who took cover in nearby woods, Moultrie’s men acquitted themselves well. The British invaders ultimately fled to their boats after sustaining heavy losses.
As a result of the Battle of Port Royal Island, Charleston remained in American control, and the British were forced to wait more than a year before making an attempt to capture the port city.
Continue south on U.S. 21 for 3.8 miles to the state historical marker for the town of Beaufort. On December 20, 1710, the Lords Proprietors authorized the establishment of this beautiful waterfront community. When it was chartered on January 17, 1711, it became the second town in the colony. Named for the duke of Beaufort, one of the Lords Proprietors, it is the county seat of Beaufort County. Ironically, the county was organized in 1768, more than a half-century after the town.
Follow U.S. 21 into Beaufort, where it becomes Boundary Street. Turn right on Carteret Street and drive south for eight blocks to Craven Street. Turn right on Craven and proceed one block west to Scott Street, where you’ll see a state historical marker alongside one of the town’s most venerable landmarks, the Beaufort Arsenal.
This massive bastion was built in 1795 to house the Beaufort Volunteer Artillery; founded in 1775 by local Patriots, that company was the fifth military unit established in what became the United States. Now known as the Beaufort Museum and open to the public, the brick-and-tabby structure is home to military relics and other items related to the history of Beaufort and the Low Country.
Turn left on Scott Street and drive one block south to Port Republic Street. Turn left, go two blocks to New Street, and turn right. The Thomas Hepworth House stands at 214 New.
Constructed in 1717 by Thomas Hepworth, the chief justice of the South Carolina colony, the stately cottage-style house is the oldest dwelling in town. Notice the musket slits in the rock foundation. They were designed to allow the early owners to defend themselves against Indian attacks. The slits proved less effective during the Revolutionary War, when a British gunboat fired on the house.
Follow New Street for one block to Bay Street on the historic Beaufort waterfront. Nearby is a municipal park that affords a magnificent panorama of the Beaufort River.
Turn right on Bay Street and follow it west for two blocks to the John Mark Verdier House, at 801 Bay. Meticulously restored by the Beaufort Historical Museum, this magnificent two-story Federal frame mansion was constructed by John Mark Verdier, a prosperous local merchant, in 1795. It is sometimes called the Lafayette House because the famous Revolutionary War hero spoke from its front steps during his visit to Beaufort in 1825.
Follow Bay Street for another three blocks to the William Elliot House (now the Anchorage House Restaurant), at 1103 Bay. This spectacular structure is one of the few pre-Revolutionary War buildings surviving in downtown Beaufort.
Continue west on Bay for one block to Church Street, turn right, and drive north for two blocks to North Street. Turn right to visit the historic St. Helena’s Episcopal Church.
Very little can be seen of the original church edifice, which dates to 1724. Over the centuries, expansions and renovations have produced the eye-catching structure that now towers above Beaufort.
Beaufort served as a base for the British as early as January 1780. For much of the duration of the war, St. Helena’s was used by the occupation forces for various purposes. Horses were even stabled here.
A gravestone in the church cemetery marks the resting place of Lieutenant William Calderwood and Ensign John Finley, two British soldiers killed in the Battle of Port Royal Island. Another stone marks the grave of Mason Locks Weems, the amateur historian who is said to have invented the story of George Washington chopping down a cherry tree.
Turn around near the church and follow North Street seven blocks west to S.C. 281 (Ribaut Highway). Turn left and proceed south for 2.2 miles to the United States Naval Hospital. On the grounds of this facility are the foundation ruins of Fort Frederick, a colonial fort built of tabby by the English in the 1730s.
The tour concludes here. If you wish to spend more time exploring the area, Beaufort’s fabled islands—among them Parris Island, Lady’s Island, and St. Helena Island—are well worth a visit.
