South Carolina Genealogy

The Spartanburg County Historical Association offers area residents a
chance to learn about Christmas in times past with holiday-themed events this December.

First, there is “Christmas in Early America” at both the Historic Price House on Saturday, December 4, and at Walnut Grove Plantation on Saturday, December 11. Take a break from the modern holiday hustle and bustle to experience a more modest early American Christmas. Tour each site’s historic home to see the simple wreaths, greenery, fruits and berries used by the Prices and the Moores to mark the holiday season.

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Received the following today and passing it along for the folks at Walnut Grove in Spartanburg:

As the holidays approach, you’re probably getting decorations out of the attic. After the holidays pass, you likely dread putting so much back in the attic. Well, we can help with the candles! If you find candles melted and misshapen, set them aside for us. All those stubs of candles from holiday meals, candlelight services, and advent wreaths are perfect for our needs. We’ll recycle them into new candles. This is your chance to support the Historical Association and save the world, one candle at a time! 🙂

As many of you know, our most popular living history activity for school groups on field trips at Walnut Grove is candle-making. The wax these students use to make their candles comes from old candles that we melt down and we’re running low. We need more candles!! If you have some you can give, please drop them by Walnut Grove in Roebuck or the History Museum in the Chapman Cultural Center downtown. We accept candles year-round, so keep us in mind!

Let me know if you have any questions or if you need pick up service – we can work it out.

Thanks,
Becky

Becky Slayton, Executive Director
Spartanburg County Historical Association, 864-278-9664

Relive the American Revolution at Walnut Grove Plantation’s Annual FestiFall Reenactment Held the First Weekend in October

Roebuck, SC, September 13, 2010 — Hear the muskets fire! Feel the cannon roar! See the American Revolution come to life during FestiFall at Walnut Grove Plantation! Late in the War for Independence, William “Bloody Bill” Cunningham, a Loyalist militia captain and deserter of the American cause, attacked Walnut Grove Plantation, killed three Patriot soldiers, and sparked a skirmish with local militia. At FestiFall, experience a re-enactment of this raid on Walnut Grove by Captain Cunningham and his desperate band of Tories. Witness the brave heroine, Kate Barry, warning her husband Andrew and his Patriot troops of the attack. Although her valiant actions can’t save Captain Steadman and his friends, they do save the Moore family home from being burned by its attackers. Relive the saga of our struggle for independence and be transported back to colonial days!

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Season’s Final Friday Campfire at Walnut Grove Plantation Focuses on Archeology and Native Americans

Roebuck, SC, September 7, 2010 — For one final time this summer, bring the family, gather ‘round the fire, toast marshmallows, and hear exciting stories of the Upstate’s past! The Spartanburg County Historical Association’s summer Friday Campfires Series wraps up this Friday, September 10 at Walnut Grove Plantation. Join Lamar Nelson and others from the Foothills Chapter of the Archeological Society of South Carolina as they share stories and artifacts of our region’s Native Americans from prehistoric days to European contact. Walnut Grove Plantation is located at 1200 Otts Shoals Road in Roebuck. Gates open at 7:30 p.m. for self-guided tours of the site and the campfire program begins at 8:30 p.m. Admission is adults $5.00; ages 6-17 $3.00; ages 5 & under free. Bring lawn chairs and/or blankets. Bug spray encouraged. The event is rain or shine! Although this will be the final Friday Campfire of the season, the series has been a big success and will continue next year!

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This is coming up tomorrow – 11am to 4PM at Walnut Grove Plantation!

Walnut Grove Plantation to Hold Colonial Gardening Day on July 24.

Roebuck, SC, July 19 — The corn fields, wheat fields, and vegetable gardens of 18th-century Backcountry farms and plantations served as crucial food sources for settlers. Walnut Grove Plantation’s Colonial Gardening Day from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, July 24 relives the days when frontier farmers and aspiring planters had to grow their own food! Tim Foster, Walnut Grove’s gardener, and his assistant gardeners will share plants, techniques, and tastes of the colonial-era garden.

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I received this and was asked to share…. quick summary from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, April 24, Walnut Grove Plantation presents “Childhood on the Plantation”.

Childhood on the Plantation Explores Children’s Lives during Peace and War in the Late 1700s

Roebuck, SC, April 15 — Living at the time of the French and Indian War and the American Revolution, children of the late 1700s, particularly in frontier areas like the South Carolina Backcountry, were directly and intimately affected by war. Boys–teenaged and younger–served in armies and militia companies in both combat and non-combat roles. Some even worked as spies. Wives and children followed their husbands and fathers to war, performed many domestic duties in army camps, and at times picked up arms in battle themselves.
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