Since I visit and love to shoot in the old cemeteries here I thought to capture the military (US Civil War) headstones and gather information on some. It’s just a ‘Google’ right. Not so.
The headstones here are from CSA (Confederate States Of America) and many areas here were devastated during final confrontations with the US Union Army. Record keeping was not a high priority.
I did find the following information;
The final resting place of Thomas Hayes, a private in H company, Rhett’s artillery battery. He was found near the barn on Crawford’s Tenant Farm during the battle of Gettysburg, PA.
Rhett’s Battery
Rhett’s battery was an artillery unit made up of men from Charleston and Pickens districts of South Carolina. It was formed in Virginia and became part of the CSA army of Northern Virginia.
Commanders included P. G. T. Beauregard, Joseph E. Johnston, Gustavus Woodson Smith, Robert E. Lee. The battery was one of the units surrendered at the Appomattox Court House to end the US Civil War.
The unit was part of many of the notable battles during the war.
Considering the limited information I hope to do as well with other headstones. All information was gathered on line from various information sites.
Taken at Magnolia Cemetery, Charleston, South Carolina.
Pon Pon, only ruins today but so much history in this one spot. So yes, this might be a longer than usual article.
Pon Pon is the Yemassee indian tribes name for ‘big bends’, referring to the Edisto river nearby. Being called a ‘chapel’ was a way for the local parish in 1706 to not address the issue of not building a formal church in this desolate region. There was a single plantation and the Yemassee tribe.
As expected the new (late 1600’s) British and Barbados land owners claimed everything. A little earlier the Yemassee tribe moved up here from Savannah Georgia (right down the road) because the Spanish governor enslaved local tribes. In 1715 the British did the same and Yemassee had enough, hence the Yemassee War. The first Pon Pon Chapel was burned with the rest of the British property here.
The Yemassee eventually left the area and went back south, this time to Florida and joined the Seminole.
Pon Pon Chapel Of Ease
In 1725 a new chapel was built after an arrangement with the new parish. Again not a church, a chapel. There were no winners in the Yemassee War so the number of settlers was even less now since the parish and most all settlers had been killed or moved on.
Pon Pon Chapel Of Ease
A little more history here, the founder of Methodism (Methodist Church) came and preached in the second building. Also George Washington, the first US President came here visiting the southern plantations.
Pon Pon Chapel Of Ease
This now brings us to version 3.0 of the Chapel. In 1754 a brick structure finally replaced the fragile wooden building. Modern times, and right before the US revolution.
So… you guessed it. In 1801 the brick building burned down. It did take 20 years to rebuild this time. The chapel had a new name at this point too. ‘The Burnt Church’. Catchy name.
Pon Pon Chapel Of Ease
All this history brings us to the building we are looking at here. This is version 4.0 of the chapel. It was completed between 1819 – 1822. Right after the War Of 1812 when everyone came back.
And of course in 1832, it was destroyed like you see it now. Records don’t exist to say fire, it is scarred black. This is an earthquake area so that may have started a fire.
The Pon Pon Chapel Of Ease was abandoned in 1832. I think they had enough.
Pon Pon Chapel Of Ease
Even though the chapel was just ruins, and in a secluded location, that was not the end. For a number of years after the grave yard was still in use.
Buried in the churchyard is Congressman O’Brien Smith (1756-1811) at whose nearby Duharra Plantation on the Combahee River in present Colleton County President George Washington during his southern tour was a guest on the night of May 10, 1791. Smith served as a State Representative (1788-92; 1793-1800; 1808-11); State Senator (1800-05); Member of Congress (1805-07); and as second President of the Hibernian Society of Charleston. Also buried in the churchyard is Aedanus Burke ( 1743-1802), a State Representative (1779-88) and later a judge.
Pon Pon Chapel Of Ease
To learn more about this chapel, and many other similiar things I suggest you visit here; SCPictureProject.org. This is a long term project documenting the history and culture of South Carolina. South Carolina is a Mecca for photographers and it takes advantage of this resource. You might even find my work there.
In the South Carolina Lowcountry this is a well known ruin. Considering it’s on a dirt road easement it’s surprising people ever visit here at all.
Pon Pon Chapel (1)
At first this was a ‘Chapel Of Ease’ not a church. Nice way of saying there’s a plantation down the road, and nothing else so you don’t get a church. Kind of rude considering in 1706 there wasn’t anything… anywhere.
It’s also known as the ‘burnt church’. The second time they gave up.
I plan on another group of photographs but I want to learn a little more about it first.
In 1725 a chapel was allowed, in Pon Pon, by the Angelican church. No site for a church in this rural plantation area was agreed on so ‘chapels of easement’ were authorized.
At Old Pon Pon Chapel
Pon Pon burned several times and was finally abandoned around 1830.
The ruins and a small grave yard can be found down a dirt road in Colleton county, South Carolina.
