Early Settlers

Front: Among the first settlers of Williamsburg County, members of the Witherspoon family sailed from Belfast to Charleston in 1734, arriving about December 1. With a year's provisions, they embarked on an open-boat voyage. Traveling up the Black River, the settlers came ashore near here and lived in Samuel Commander's barn while constructing their "dirt houses." Reverse: By 1775, Potatoe Ferry was operating on the Black River about ¼ mile downstream from here. During the Revolution, Brigadier General Francis Marion employed the ferry to transport troops on a planned expedition against British forces in Georgetown. In 1810, Bishop Francis Asbury, pioneer of American Methodism, crossed the river here during his travels.