Ridge Spring Cemetery

Front: This cemetery, dating to the early 19th century, was originally the Watson and Boatwright family cemetery before it was enlarged to become the town cemetery. Many descendants of Capt. Michael Watson (1726-1782) are buried in the walled section, built ca. 1850 by Chloe Wimberly Watson. They include Sarah Pressley Watson (1885-1959), who directed the Foyer International des Etudiantes in Paris 1920-1959. Reverse: William H. Scarborough (1812-1871), the leading portrait painter in 19th-century S.C., is buried here. A Tennessee native, he came to S.C. in 1836 and settled in Columbia in 1846. His portraits of prominent politicians and others are in collections such as the State House, State Museum, Columbia Museum of Art, and Gibbes Museum of Art. At first buried in Columbia, his remains were moved here by his widow Miranda when she lived in Ridge Spring.