We arrived at Mid-Atlantic Oaks at South Point near Yemassee, SC on 11/14/2012. On 11/17/2012 We visited Frampton House. The “Frampton House” property was part of an original King’s Grant to the Frampton family in the 1700s. In 1865, General Sherman’s troops burned the plantation house and all the farm buildings that stood on this site. In 1868, John Frampton rebuilt the present charming Lowcountry farmhouse and continued to work th e land. About 1930, major renovations were made to the old house that included adding indoor plumbing and electrical wiring and applying the first thin sheet rock or dry wall, replacing the old lath and plaster walls. In December of 1993, Wymann Boozer, a Columbia developer, donated the “Frampton House” to the Lowcountry Tourism Commission for the creation of the Lowcountry Visitor’s Center and Museum thereby assuring restoration of the old farmhouse. The preservation of the magnificent old oaks that frame the building and the Civil War earthworks in the backyard (erected by Robert E. Lee’s troops in defense of the important railroad supply line for the Confederacy from Savannah to Charleston) were also guaranteed. Today, major renovations have taken place to prepare the “Frampton House” for resurrection and a new life. The Lowcountry & Resort Islands Tourism Commission has moved its offices into the upstairs of the “Frampton House” and the downstairs now serves as the Lowcountry Visitor’s Center and Museum. The picture is of the front of the Frampton House.
Then on 11/18/2012 we visited the following: Old Sheldon Church near Sheldon, SC, Thomas Heyward JR Tomb in near Ridgeland, SC, Argent Steam Locomotive in Hardeeville, SC, and Purrysburg Monument near Hardeeville, SC. The Old Sheldon Church Ruins is a historic site located in northern Beaufort County, South Carolina, approximately 17 miles (30 km) north of Beaufort in the Sheldon area.[2][3] Known also as the Sheldon Church or Old Sheldon Church, the pre-existing building was originally known as Prince William’s Parish Church. The church was built in the Greek Revival style between 1745 and 1753. Prince William’s was burned by the British in 1779 during the Revolutionary War. In 1826 it was rebuilt and later burnt by William Tecumseh Sherman, in 1865, as told by signs at the site. An alternative view has more recently come to light, however. In a letter dated February 3, 1866,[4] Miton Leverett wrote that “Sheldon Church not burnt. Just torn up in the inside but can be repaired.” The inside of the church was apparently gutted to reuse materials to rebuild homes burnt by Sherman’s army. The ruins lie amongst majestic oaks and scattered graves. Inside the ruins of the church lies the remains of Colonel William Bull, who “greatly assisted General Oglethorpe in establishing the physical layout of Savannah, Georgia. Bull surveyed the land in 1733 to form the basic grid pattern of the streets and squares.” The picture is of the Northwest corner of the church.
Thomas Heyward, Jr. (July 28, 1746 – March 6, 1809) was a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence and of the Articles of Confederation as a representative of South Carolina. He was born in St. Luke’s Parish, South Carolina and educated at home, then traveled to England to study law where he was a member of the Honorable Society of the Middle Temple. He was elected to the Continental Congress in 1775 and signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776. Heyward returned to South Carolina in 1778 to serve as a judge. In command of a militia force, he was taken prisoner by the British during the siege of Charleston. He continued to serve as a judge after the war, retiring from the bench in 1798. The picture is of the Tomas Heyward JR Tomb.
This wood burning steam locomotive with balloon smokestack was built by the H.K. Porter Company about 1910. It was used by Argent Lumber Company, a leading are employer established in 1916 to haul timber from the forest to mill. In 1960 the locomotive was donated to the Town of Hardeeville for public display as a logging and lumbering relic of this area. The picture is of the Argent Steam Locomotive a 2-8-0 Steam Engine.
A lonely, cross-shaped monument of stone on the banks of the Savannah River marks the site of Purrysburg, an early Swiss settlement that eventually failed. In 1731, the King of England granted land on the Savannah River to Swiss colonizer Jean Pierre Purry. Hundreds of German speaking and French speaking Swiss colonists arrived with the dream of establishing a silk trade in the new colony. But malaria and other hardships proved fatal to the European colonists, and the settlement died a slow death. Purrysburg lingered on until the time of the American Revolution, serving as the first headquarters of the American army under General Benjamin Lincoln. After the Revolution, Purrysburg was granted a US Post Office that remained open until 1848, and the town could be found on many SC maps well into the late 1800s. Today, the river landing and the cemetery at Purrysburg are still in use, and several fine, new homes are being built near the site. The picture is of the Purrysburg Monument.
On 11/25/2012 we visited Fort Jackson in Savannah, GA. Climb the ramparts of Fort Jackson, and it is easy to see why this site was chosen to build a brick fort to protect Savannah on this spot. The year was 1808 and our relationship with Britain had worsened considerably over the past few years. Authorized by President Thomas Jefferson, Fort Jackson was built in Thunderbolt (now a section of Savannah) to protect the city from naval attack. Named for James Jackson, the fort is the oldest standing fort in Georgia. It was not the first fort to occupy the site, however. In 1776 Savannah residents built an earthen fort, which was destroyed by the construction of Fort Jackson. The fort was manned almost continuously during the first months of the War of 1812, when British privateers were setting fire to American sloops and schooners just off the coast of Georgia, and again near the end of the war when a British fleet under the command of Vice Admiral Alexander Cochrane was reportedly in the area (Georgia and the War of 1812). Residents of Savannah turned to old Fort Jackson for protection from the Union Navy during the War Between the States (Civil War). In addition to Fort Jackson, there were ironclads, (the Georgia and the Savannah), and a line of obstructions. The Navy never made it inland from Fort Pulaski. General Sherman did, though, after completing his March to the Sea. The picture is of the Fort Jackson.
The picture is of rare passing of two ships on the Savannah River by the Fort.
The picture is of a Firing of a small cannon.
