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By Tonya A. Guy
(Extracted from the May/June 2022 Quill) Before the first arrival of European explorers in 1520, Native Americans had lived for thousands of years in what is now called South Carolina. There were at least 29 different Native American tribes here, but the most important were the Cherokee, Creek, Chickasaw, Catawba, and Choctaw. These tribes played a key role in the settlement of the backcountry—both as friend and as foe. As settlers began to arrive in South Carolina, treaties had to be made between the British government and the Native Americans to obtain land for these new people to live on. Also, trade with the Indians became a main source of income for the colonists and the government. However, the most significant part the Native Americans played was during times of war. While some Indians, who were on the warpath, killed many white pioneers, other Indians offered protection for them. These and other reasons are why survival in the backcountry depended heavily on good relations with the Indians. Indian trade was critically important to the fledgling colony of South Carolina. The European demand for clothing (breeches, gloves, hats, etc.) made from deerskin created a tremendous market. In fact, deerskins were the most valuable commodity exported from Charles Town until rice became the primary crop of the colony in the 1730’s. By mid-century, over 150,000 deerskins per year left South Carolina and the value of deerskins accounted for 20 percent of the colony’s exports. By the 1750’s, almost every Cherokee town had its own resident trader, many of whom were allied by marriage to the families of local headmen. For the Cherokee people, ownership of European trade goods conferred social status. Firearms (trade muskets), in particular, cost as much as 35 skins apiece and were highly prized. A Cherokee hunter could use such a weapon to kill approximately thirty deer per season and increase his ability to trade for other items such as jewelry, cloth, paint, and tools. Trade was also seen by the native tribes as a “symbol of ongoing friendship and alliance with others.” Basically, gift giving was a sign of good faith to the Indians. (“The Present Defenceless State of the Country”: Gunpowder Plots in Revolutionary South Carolina, by Philip G. Swan, The South Carolina Historical Magazine, Vol. 108, No. 4 (Oct., 2007), South Carolina Historical Society, pgs. 297-298.) However, in 1715, poor treatment of the Native Americans by English traders resulted in an Indian uprising lead by the Yemassee that became known as the Yemassee War. Approximately 100 settlers were killed, but the Native American loses were far greater. By the mid-1700’s, virtually all of the smaller Indian tribes throughout South Carolina disappeared, probably merging with larger groups, such as the Catawba and Cherokee of South Carolina or the Creeks of Georgia. In 1738, James Glen was appointed Governor of South Carolina and became known for his positive relations with the Native Americans. He served until 1756 and had the longest term of any of South Carolina’s colonial governors. In 1761, he published A Description of South Carolina. One quote in particular from his book would prove to be quite profound. "The concerns of this Country are so closely connected and interwoven with Indian affairs, and not only a great branch of our trade, but even the safety of this Province, do so much depend upon our continuing in friendship with the Indians, that I thought it highly necessary to gain all the knowledge I could of them . . ." (A Description of South Carolina: Containing Many Curious and Interesting Particulars relating to the Civil, Natural and Commercial History of that Colony, by Governor James Glen, London: R. and J. Dodsley, 1761, p. 242.) In 1746, a group of settlers from Pennsylvania and Virginia requested land around Ninety Six. They understood that the land belonged to the Indians, so they asked the provincial government to purchase it for them. The following year, Governor Glen met with the Cherokees and bought the land on the left bank of Long Cane Creek. The colony paid the Cherokees L975 worth of powder and bullets for the land. Then, in 1755, the Cherokees agreed to cede an estimated forty thousand acres to South Carolina, which was supposed to be all their lands in the colony. (Council Journal, PRO Photostats, No. 3, January 14, 1746; Council Journal, No. 16, June 12, 1747, pp. 39-40; and South Carolina Colonial Land Policies, Robert K. Ackerman, Tricentennial Studies, Number 9, Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1977, p. 105.) However, tension continued to grow between the ever encroaching colonists and the native tribes, particularly with the Cherokee. The French and Indian War (1754–1763) motivated even more people to flood down the Great Wagon Road and into the South Carolina backcountry. Prior to 1759, the Cherokees were allies of the English against the French, but relations rapidly deteriorated as isolated incidents of violence occurred between the Cherokees and European settlers. The incident that led to the Cherokee War (1759-1761) actually began in late 1758, in Virginia, when settlers attacked and killed several Cherokee warriors, without provocation, who were returning from fighting against the French. In early 1759, the Cherokees retaliated by attacking settlers in North Carolina, and from there, the conflict began to spread further south. At this time, there were two forts in the area, Fort Moore and Fort Prince George, that were garrisoned to protect the “Ninety Six District” area from Indian attack. (Ninety Six District is put into quotes, because it was not officially recognized as Ninety Six District until 1769.) Fort Moore was built in 1716 as a result of the Yamasee War. It was located in the area now known as Beech Island, (now Aiken County, SC) on the Savannah River. It was considered to be “the most important of South Carolina’s early forts,” and was built to protect the backcountry “from future attack and to guard the vital trading routes to the major Southern Indians.” (South Carolina Highway Historical Marker Guide, by South Carolina Department of Archives and History (SCDAH), Columbia, SC: SCDAH, 1992, page 6.) Fort Prince George was built in 1753, under the direction of Governor Glenn, on the Keowee River in what is now Pickens County, South Carolina. Nearby was the Cherokee town of Keowee and other Cherokee towns lay within fifteen miles of the fort. (A Memoir of the Archaeological Excavation of Fort Prince George, Pickens County, South Carolina Along with Pertinent Historical Documentation, by Marshall W. Williams, Columbia, SC: South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of South Carolina, 1998, page 3.) Both of these forts were abandoned in the mid-1760’s. As the Cherokee went on the warpath in the backcountry, a delegation of Cherokee town leaders arrived in Charleston seeking peace. They included fifty-five men and women, with a number of headmen. The leader, Oconostota, spoke before Governor William Lyttelton and the Council. He apologized for the raids on the settlers and stated that he was “endeavoring to clear all that is bad.” After hearing them speak, Lyttelton took the delegation” under protective care” and carried twenty-two of the headmen along with a military force of about 1,300 men to Fort Prince George. (The Dividing Paths: Cherokees and South Carolinians Through the Era of Revolution, by Tom Hatley, New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1995, pages 114-115) As the troops neared the Cherokee villages in the upper portion of South Carolina, the headmen were taken hostage, which was a high insult to the Cherokee. However, it was smallpox, not Indians, that ravaged the colonial army. In fact, the disease swept through the men so quickly that Lyttleton hurriedly negotiated a treaty, which was signed on 22 December 1759, and headed back to Charleston. Nevertheless, the treaty did not bring peace and Lyttleton continued to hold the headmen hostage at Fort Prince George until twenty-four “Cherokee murderers” surrendered. In response, bands of Cherokees went on the warpath. They conducted a number of bloody raids, which caused many of the settlers to flee to the security of forts in the area. The most famous of these attacks occurred on 1 February 1760. A wagon train of mainly Scots-Irish refugees were on their way to Fort Moore for safety, but were fell upon by a group of Native warriors near Long Cane Creek. Now called the “Long Cane Massacre,” twenty-three people were slain and buried on site, including the grandmother of John C. Calhoun. The day after the assault occurred, Patrick Calhoun, gave a deposition about it that was later published in newspapers in the colonies and England. It appears below: "PERSONALLY appeared before us Lauchlan McGillivray, and Edward Bernard, Esquires, two of His Majesty’s Justices of the Peace for the District aforesaid, Patrick Calhoun, who being duly sworn, saith, “That on Friday, the 1st of this Inst. about Ten o’Clock, in the Forenoon, as this Deponent was coming off from the Long-Cane Settlement in South Carolina, about 50 Miles above Augusta, with all the Inhabitants of that Settlement, being about 40 fighting Men in Number, they were then attacked by a Body of about 100 Cherokee Indians, and after about Half an Hour’s Engagement he, this Deponent, with what were left alive, came off, and that he believes there are about 40 Men, Women and Children killed and taken, with 7 Waggons. This Deponent further saith, that the Indians attacked them on Horseback, just as they had got some of their Waggons out of the Bog, whereby they were not in a Condition to receive them, having the most of their Guns in their Waggons, and had not Time to recover them till put into Confusion, and some did not get their Guns at all. PATRICK CALHOUN.” Sworn this 2d Day of February, etc. (The Pennsylvania Gazette, 28 February 1760. Also in The Derby Mercury, Derby, Derbyshire, England, 28 March 1760.) Patrick and William Calhoun, along with several others, are believed to have built the first Scotch-Irish cabins ever erected in this section of what would later become Old Abbeville District (now McCormick County). ((A History of the Upper Country of South Carolina, from the Earliest Periods to the Close of the War of Independence, Volume I, John H. Logan, Original publisher—Columbia: S. G. Courtenay & Co., 1859, Reprinted—Spartanburg: The Reprint Company, 1960, page 9.) They, like so many other families, had come to settle in this place to seek a new life away from war, but now found themselves right in the midst of conflict. More reports continued to be printed in the newspaper about this and other incidents: "From Fort Moore we learn, that a Gang of about 18 Cherokees, divided into 3 or 4 Parties, on the 15th Instant, way-laid, killed and scalped Ulric Tobler, Esq; a Captain of Militia in those Parts, as he was riding from his Father’s to that Fort; and shot Mr. William Calhoon, who was with him, in the Hand; three other Persons who were in Company, escaped unhurt; the Indian who killed Capt. Tobler, left a Hatchet sticking in his Neck, on which were 3 old Notches, and 3 newly cut. Some Negroes belonging to Lachlan McGillivray, Esq; employed on this Side Savannah River, were likewise beset by the Indians, but being timely succoured, beat off the Enemy. About the same time, two Men were killed and scalped near Mr. James Germany’s Fort, where most of the Broad-River People are. . . . . . Mr. Patrick Calhoon, one of the unfortunate Settlers at Long Canes, who were attacked by the Cherokees on the 1st Instant, as they were removing their Wives, Children and best Effects to Augusta, in Georgia, for Safety, is just come to Town, and informs us, that the Whole of those Settlers might be about 250 Souls, 55 or 60 of them fighting Men; that their Loss in that Affair amounted to about 50 Persons, chiefly Women and Children, with 13 loaded Waggons and Carts; that he had since been at the Place where the Action happened, in order to bury the Dead, and found only twenty of their Bodies, most inhumanly butchered; that the Indians had burnt the Woods all round, but had left the Waggons and Carts there empty and unhurt; and that he believes all the fighting Men would return to and fortify the Long-Cane Settlement, were Part of the Rangers so stationed as to give them some Assistance and Protection. (The Pennsylvania Gazette, 20 March 1760) Shortly after the Long Cane Massacre, one of the Cherokee headmen, Oconostota, who had signed the Lyttelton treaty and was a former prisoner at Fort Prince George, set an ambush for Lieutenant Richard Cotymore, commander of the fort. Cotymore was lured from the fort and attacked by the Cherokees. He was killed and the garrison executed the remaining hostages in revenge. In response, Governor Lyttelton requested British troops to assist in the war effort and then returned to England, leaving the colony in the hands of Lieutenant Governor William Bull, Jr. Meanwhile, settlers continued to abandon their homes and farms, and poured into the forts in and around Ninety-Six and Augusta, Georgia. The forts were crammed with people and disease, especially smallpox, made living conditions even more deplorable. In desperation, Governor Bull sent approximately 400 South Carolina Rangers along with Colonel Archibald Montgomery and his 1,200 Highlanders into the Carolina upcountry, in April and May 1760, to defeat the Cherokees. Montgomery’s troops burned several Cherokee villages and relieved the garrison at Fort Prince George, then he returned to Charleston convinced that the conflict was over. However, the tribes continued their warfare and laid siege to Fort Loudoun (in present-day Tennessee). On 8 August 1760, the Cherokees, led by Oconostota, lured the troops outside the fort and then attacked them, killing the commander and twenty-three others (the number of Native American hostages killed at Fort Prince George), and they took many captives. Governor Bull negotiated to ransom the hostage soldiers and prepared another expedition. (The Dividing Paths: Cherokees and South Carolinians Through the Era of Revolution, by Tom Hatley, New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1995, pages 127-135) In May and June 1761, Colonel James Grant led more than 2,400 troops to subdue the Cherokee nation. His soldiers defeated Cherokee warriors in battle and burned towns and thousands of acres of crops. This “total-war” approach broke the Cherokees’ will to wage war. By July, they were defeated and negotiated a peace treaty, which was signed on 23 September 1761. By this agreement, a pro-English headman, Little Carpenter, was named emperor of the Cherokees, and all Frenchmen in Cherokee territory were to be expelled. Furthermore, a dividing line was established that separated the Cherokees from South Carolina lands. In the division, the Cherokee lost much of their hunting lands to Carolina settlers. (The Dividing Paths: Cherokees and South Carolinians Through the Era of Revolution, by Tom Hatley, New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1995, pages 138-140) Each side, the colonists and the Cherokees, had suffered tremendous losses. Countless people had died from war and disease, and both experienced economic hardships from the cost of war. Though peace was secured on the surface, terror in the backcountry continued for a number of years. Other Native tribes remained a constant threat and the addition of marauders and highwaymen only added to the trepidation. This led to the rise of the Regulators, a vigilantly group formed to bring law and order to the frontier, but even they eventually became part of the problem. Thus, the building of more forts in the area was presented as a solution to the chaos and construction on Fort Charlotte began in the summer of 1765. To Be Continued . . .
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 THE REMARKABLE STORY OF WILSON BUTLER
By Tonya A. Guy (Extracted from the January/February, March/April, and May/June 2019 Quills) January/February 2019 Quill We were first “introduced” to Wilson Butler about a month ago when we were seeking interesting topics for Quill. We were perusing the Butler Surname File at the Tompkins Library and found a very intriguing newspaper clipping from The Edgefield Advertiser that was copied from the Index-Journal (Greenwood, SC). It concerned a remarkable man named Uncle Butler (subsequent articles gave his name as Wilson Butler), who was born on 10 March 1813 and was still alive and going strong in 1934—121 years later. We immediately began to research him and the more we found, the more we wanted to know. A number of newspaper accounts and other documents were found on him and will be shared in this and ensuing issues of Quill. Below is a transcribed copy of The Edgefield Advertiser article, dated 28 March 1934. Former Slave Claims to Be 121 Years Old Some days ago Mayor W. A. Barnette received a letter from Col. Maro S. Potter, a prominent member of the Nashville, Ga. Bar, with regard to an old colored man, a former slave, known everywhere around Nashville as “Uncle Butler.” Col. Potter received the care of the old man as a legacy from his father, who took care of him so long as he lived and then passed the old colored man on to his sons. Col. M. S. Potter has the care of him now and says he promised the old man for years to bring him back to this part of South Carolina where he was born. “Uncle Butler” claims to have been born on March 10, 1813, on the plantation of General William Butler on Saluda river. This would make “Uncle Butler” one hundred and twenty-one years old and probably the oldest man living in the United States. A sketch of the old man appeared in a little magazine published in Decatur, Ga., and called “Deep South” in its December issue. This sketch is by Leland Wallace Bates. In this sketch it is stated that the old man was born March 10, 1813 on the plantation of General William Butler on the Saluda river and that when he grew up he became the slave of George Butler, Esq., a son of Gen. William Butler. George Butler was a major in the War of 1812 and later became a lawyer at Edgefield. About 1830, “Uncle Butler” says he was sold with others to Edward Trenholm of Charleston. He was taught the trade of a shoe maker and became an expert. Slaves who were skilled laborers brought about twice the amount that field hands would fetch in that period. The old man says he was sold by George Butler to the Gilliam family who bought the Butler lands and later was sold to Mr. Trenholm in Charleston. “Uncle Butler” claims to remember when the first train of the old Charleston & Hamburg railroad arrived in Charleston and tells with considerable detail how he and many other slaves stood on the side of the railroad to see the “thing come” puffing and panting into the city. He continued to live in Charleston until the beginning of the war between the states and during the war he and others were sent out to make shoes for the Confederate soldiers. In this capacity, he says he made shoes in Columbia, Newberry, and Greenwood, South Carolina and then in Hendersonville, N. C. “Uncle Butler” claims to remember the process of printing Confederate money, his master’s brother, George Trenholm, being secretary of the treasury of the Confederacy. After the war, “when freedom come,” he went to Macon, Ga., and then to various other places until he located on the Potter plantation near Nashville, Ga., as an overseer of the women field hands of the plantation. He held this position until his health became feeble and then Mr. Potter built him a cabin and allowed him the use of several acres of land around it to work for himself. In his letter Col. M. S. Potter says this old darky cannot read or write, but he is one of the most remarkable characters I have ever known. Of course, he expects to find his master’s old home, George Butler’s, on the Saluda river just as it was one hundred years ago, which you know cannot be true. However, it is his desire to visit the old home place, and I am planning to take him in a few weeks. “I am writing you this letter so that you or any of the old citizens of Greenwood, may know that I am going to carry the old man to Greenwood and if you would like to see him you may do so.” Interested in Story of an Old Negro Mrs. E. T. Crawford was especially interested in the news article yesterday about “Uncle Butler,” an aged negro, who claims to have been born in what is now Saluda county 121 years ago. Mrs. Crawford said the old man was owned by her great-grandfather and that part of the old home which he hopes to visit is still standing.--Index-Journal. The second article that was published in the Index-Journal about Uncle Butler was dated 25 March 1934. It was an interview that was conducted with him by a man named Reuben A. Sumner. We later found Reuben in the 1940 Fulton County, Georgia Census (page 96). He was 25 years old and his occupation was recorded as “lawyer.” The interview is a bit on the snide and derogatory side, which is probably due to Reuben’s young age (only 19 years old at the time), general demeanor, and a sign of the times. However, it is filled with marvelous details about Uncle Butler’s life in Old Edgefield District and is a wonderful introduction to the third article, which chronicles Uncle Wilson Butler’s visit to Greenwood and Saluda Counties. Some of the information presented will be repetitive and we apologize in advance if it becomes tedious at times. We felt that cutting up the narratives would cause confusion and interrupt the flow of the story. The Index-Journal interview, dated 25 March 1934, was transcribed and appears on the next two pages. More On “Uncle Butler” Aged Slave Reuben A. Sumner (In its issue of March 15th, The Index-Journal printed a story on “Uncle Butler” an aged slave now living on the plantation of Col. Maro S. Potter in Nashville, Ga. The old man claims to be 121 years old and wants to come back to the scenes of his childhood and youth. He says he was born March 10, 1813 on the plantation of Gen. William Butler, was owned at one time by George Butler, Esq., and later by the Gillam family of Greenwood (General James Gillam). At the request of Col. Potter, Reuben A. Sumner, of Nashville, has undertaken to collect from the old man some of the main facts in his long life and to correct certain errors in the story published in the magazine “Deep South.” Mr. Sumner has done this admirably and most thoroughly. His letter given below will be read with great interest in this section, Editor The Index-Journal.) The letter of Mr. Sumner, after an explanatory paragraph, follows: The article as written in the Deep South magazine contains a great many anachronisms. A few statements accredited to Uncle Butler are, he says, untrue; he never made them. Also, the earlier dates and incidents are a little misrepresented. Here is Uncle Butler’s story, not in the dialect he uses, as he told me: Uncle Butler’s Own Story He was born on the plantation of General William Butler, near Greenwood, S. C., in the District of Greenwood (there being no counties at that time, and it was not the District of Ninety Six, according to Uncle Butler, as written in the article), on March 10, 1813. In answer to the question “Do you remember General William Butler?” this old slave answered that he remembered General Butler’s relatives talking about him, remembered that General Butler was still living a few years after Uncle Butler’s birth, but did not remember ever having seen him. He does not remember at what time General Butler died. After General Butler’s death, this old slave came into the charge (he believes) of George Butler, a son of General William Butler. He remained in the Butler family for something like forty years, married an old slave negro named Aunt Jenny, and had two children at the time the Civil War began. According to Uncle Butler these children’s names were Minnie, aged 15, and “Little Jenny,” aged 13. These were their ages at the time the war began. Since the Civil War he has seen neither of these children and does not know whether or not they are living, but he thinks (of course) that they are, and that one lives in Macon, Ga., and the other in Indianapolis, Ind. Uncle Butler has a slight remembrance of some of General Butler’s children. He remembers having seen Pierce Butler, and, of course, George Butler; but he did not remember that George Butler was a lawyer at Edgefield court house. He does remember, however, having heard something of his serving in a war. His recollection of the names of the other children is vague; but he believes that perhaps three of their names were John, Sam and Andrew—not sure, however. (Note: Since Uncle Butler made this statement, I have learned that there was one brother named Andrew. He remembers the family as being comprised of only six children, whereas you state that there were eight children; however, you can easily see how an old slave could have forgotten two of them in this length of time. Lived in Greenwood According to the article referred to, Uncle Butler was carried to Charleston, S. C., in 1830 and sold on the block to the Trenholm family. This is an error, for if what Uncle Butler told me is true he was never taken to Charleston in his life, however, he was sold to the Trenholm family, along with the rest of the George Butler plantation, but this transaction was after he had been bought by the Gillam family about seven years before the Civil War. And he was not sold in Charleston, S. C., but in Greenwood. Uncle Butler’s pronunciation of the word Gillam is (gil um). As I have already stated, Uncle Butler passed into the Gillam family just about seven years before the Civil War. His recollection of the transaction is that George Butler died, and his estate was bought by the Gillam family. His recollection of the Gillams, other than General James (Jimmy, he calls him) Gillam, is faint, for the reason that most of his time while in the Gillam family was spent in the trade of shoe-maker. He was sent to Columbia, S. C. by General James Gillam about two years before the Civil War to learn this trade. However, he remembers that there were some other Gillam brothers and sisters. He believes that their names were Lewis Gillam, Martha Gillam, Susan Gillam, Mary Gillam, and Robert Gillam. (Note: Uncle Butler is not positive about any of these names, and as you can see there may be some errors. I note from your letter that you state that Robert Gillam was the son of General James Gillam. You may be right and Uncle Butler wrong. He could easily have recalled James Gillam’s son as being his younger brother. However, he may be right. General James Gillam could have had a brother named Robert, and one of his sons may have been named after General Gillam’s brother. Uncle Butler remembers one of the girls—probably Susan—married a man from Alabama. At the time the Civil War began Uncle Butler was making shoes in Columbia, S. C. He was, as related in the above mentioned article, making shoes at the rate of eight pair a day. When the war began he was put in charge of making shoes for the Confederacy, making shoes in the following towns: Newberry, Greenwood, Columbia, and Hendersonville, N. C. He was at the last mentioned town when the war closed. He was, however, at this time in the charge of Edward H. Trenholm having been sold to the Trenholm family about one year before the war ended. These brothers were Edward H., George L., and Wagner (Wagner may have been a brother-in-law. He is not sure.) After the Civil War ended he traveled through Georgia and this part of the article is mostly correct. In about 1870 Uncle Butler came into the charge of Mr. Lewis Potter of Prattsburg, Ga. When Mr. Potter died he asked his sons to take care of Uncle Butler; and about two years ago he was brought to Nashville by Maro Potter, in whose care he is at this time. Uncle Butler lives alone in the suburbs of the town of Nashville in a little one-room cabin. His reason for living alone is “I don’t want to live with no [Negroes]. I’d rather be independent.” Remarkable Character This old slave is one of the most remarkable characters I have ever come into contact with. He can with a little concentration, recall almost any incident or person in his early life, and his philosophy is worth any one’s time. A most remarkable thing about him is that although he can neither read nor write he keeps up with current events through his conversations with different people. Here are a few stray sentences that I caught while talking with Uncle Butler that will show you what a tenacious memory and mind this old darky has: “John D. Rockefeller is about the most richest man in the world, but all the money that he has could not buy this cap. No, suh.” “I believe that Franklin D. Roosevelt is a good president, but I hope he’s as good as his cousin. That was a fightin’ man.” “When Columbus told the folks over in the foreign countries that the world was round, they didn’t believe him. He started out with his ships and discovered America. He showed them that he was right.” “You think that the first people in this country was Indians. No, suh. The first ones was mountain-builders (cliff dwellers).” Uncle Butler now sits hour after hour in front of his little shack, dreaming of his old master and the many incidents in his early life. He has an old corn-cob pipe that he smokes incessantly, and almost any hour of the day you can find him here, sitting immobile, hardly aware of anything around him. I surprised him yesterday in this mood. After a few moments of conversation with him he said: “I was just thinking about ole Marse Gillam. If I could just get back there and see him and the old place and all the other folks I’d be ready to die.” (Note: Uncle Butler expects to find the plantation very much in the same condition as it was years ago, which of course cannot be true.) “If my God said “I acquire this soul today” I would be willing to go. I just want to see some of the old folks that I knew back there. I’d know ‘em too if I could see ‘em.” In these moods Uncle Butler talks with perceptible solemnity. Another remarkable thing about him is that he can change from a sad mood to one of hilarity in an instant. All you have to do is get his mind on a different subject by talking about it. After talking with Uncle Butler for a great many times, I have become convinced that, although it sounds incredulous that he could be one hundred and twenty-one years old, he nevertheless is this old. He talks with utter sincerity, and I do not believe he would tell a lie if he knew it. I have deliberately questioned him with reference to the ages of his children when the Civil War began, his age, his wife’s age, etc., trying to catch him in an anachronistic statement; but he has never varied over a few years in any of his answers and some of these questions I believe would have caught him had he been lying. He will talk to you as long as you will listen. This is one of the greatest pleasures of his life. He could give some of our world-famed personages a few lessons in interviewing. He says, “Let me have plenty of questions. I can answer most any of ‘em.” He can too. And he had rather be photographed than eat turtle-stew when he’s hungry, and to Uncle Butler that is a very delectable dish. Reuben A. Sumner Nashville, Ga. The remarkable story of Uncle Wilson Butler will be continued in the next issue of Quill, beginning with his visit to Greenwood and Saluda Counties. Readers will see just how much Uncle Butler remembered about the people and places in the area. ‘Willowbrook’ Cemetery At Edgefield Is Resting Place Of Many Famous Southerners Ancient Stones Mark Graves Of Some of Most Illustrious Names Of South
By Hortense Woodson Extracted from The Greenville News, dated 5 January 1931 The old village cemetery in Edgefield, “Willowbrook,” is a never-failing source of interest to lovers of the historic. Here rest men and women whose names are associated with the history of the state and nation. And the memory of whom will linger long after the slabs that mark their graves have crumbled. The list of Edgefield’s illustrious dead includes statesmen, jurists, military leaders, preachers, doctors, and men of the every-day world who wrought worthily in their respective spheres. The Brooks square is remarkable for the number of distinguished men and women who sleep there: Colonel Whitfield Brooks, of the state militia during the War of 1812, and his wife, Mary Parsons Carroll Brooks, formerly of Charleston. The latter, after the death of her husband, moved to Ninety-Six and at the outbreak of the War Between the States, furnished all equipment for the company to which her sons belonged. She contributed largely to the building of the Episcopal church in Edgefield, and was also instrumental in building a church near her home at Ninety-Six. BROOKS BURIED HERE A tall shaft bearing the seal of the Palmetto State, marks the grave of their son, Preston S. Brooks, born in Edgefield village August 6, 1819; elected to the State Legislature in 1844; elected captain of Company D, Palmetto Regiment, in 1846; served during the Mexican war; elected to Congress in 1853, and died in Washington City, January 27, 1857. Preston S. Brooks it was who caned Sumner on the floor of the National House of Representatives, because the latter made a disparaging remark in regard to A. P. Butler, a kinsman of Brooks. Another son is Whitfield Butler Brooks, who was born in the village of Edgefield on December 28, 1825, and died in the City of Mexico on October 2, 1847. He engaged in battles at Vera Cruz, Contreras and Cherubusco, and the inscription on his tomb reads: “At the call of his country he marched with the Palmetto regiment to the theatre of war and on the bloody field of Cherubusco received a mortal wound while gallantly charging the enemy. On the field of battle, with the momentary expectation of death, his only question was, ‘Have I discharged my duty?’ The reply of his gallant general is his best epitaph: ‘Yes, like a man; you are an honor to yourself, your family and your country.’” Two other sons of Col. and Mrs. Whitfield Brooks, who were captains in the War Between the States were John Hampden Brooks and James C. Brooks, father of the late Gen. U. R. Brooks, former comptroller general and clerk of the Supreme court for many years. In the Brooks section also is the grave, unmarked [it is now], of Gen. R. G. M. Dunovant, who served as brigadier-general with a commission from Governor Pickens at the outbreak of the War Between the States. He organized the South Carolina Army and was in charge the first three months of 1861, later serving under General Beauregard as lieutenant-colonel, in command on Fort Moultrie during the bombardment of Fort Sumter. He married a sister of Preston S. Brooks. PICKENS SQUARE A cement wall, blackened with age—as are the slabs marking the graves—surrounds the plot known as the Pickens square. Here South Carolina’s Confederate war governor, Francis W. Pickens, sleeps his last long sleep. Near his grave is that of his second wife, Marion Antoinette Dearing (his first wife, Eliza Simkins, being buried at “Cedar Fields,” the Simkins graveyard); and between them, the grave of their daughter, Jennie Pickens Whaley. Governor Pickens’ third wife, the gracious Lucy Holcombe—noted in the United States and Europe for her beauty and charm—sleeps in an unmarked grave on the square. And above another grave, the single inscription, “Douschka,” tells the story of a sparkling young woman, born in a Russian palace while her father was ambassador to that country—Douschka, name by the Czar of Russia—who grew up at the family home, “Edgewood,” near the village; who donned a “Red Shirt” during the perilous days of reconstruction and rode forth as a modern Joan of Arc. Douschka married Dr. George Dugas of Augusta, Ga., and died at 25 years of age. Her two daughters, Mrs. Dollie Sheppard and Mrs. Lucy Dugas Tillman, now live in Washington, D. C. One of the most interesting graves is that of Edmund Bacon, the “Ned Brace” of Longstreet’s “Georgia Scenes,” whose epitaph was written by Judge Augustus Longstreet. Edmund Bacon was born in Augusta, Ga., April 17, 1776, and during the visit of George Washington to that city in 1791, Bacon, who was a student at the Richmond Academy, only 15 years of age, was given the privilege of making a speech of welcome to the president. “This delicate and honorable task was so well performed,” a historian writes, “that it attracted the special notice and attention of the great man, and induced him to give the youthful orator a handsome present of several law books." ” Judge Bacon was considered the finest lawyer at the Edgefield bar in after years. His wife, Eliza Fox Bacon, is buried here, and while her grave is unmarked, it is said that she lived to be 105 years old. Their son, Judge John E. Bacon, who grave is nearby, was a son-in-law to Governor Pickens, and went as his secretary when Pickens was United States minister to Russia. Later, John E. Bacon was sent by the United States as minister to Buenos Aires. MOTHER AND SON In this cemetery also, a mother and son rest together in the same gave. They are Mrs. Pierce M. Butler and her son, Elbert Butler. Mrs. Butler having died when the news of her son’s death on the battlefield reached her. One son had already been killed in the War Between the States, and previously her husband had lost his life while commanding the Palmetto Regiment as colonel during the Mexican war. Colonel Butler had served his state as governor, and his body was brought in state to Columbia for burial. Another distinguished member of the Butler family buried here is General Calbraith Butler, who had the distinction of serving as brigadier-general in two wars. The War Between the States and Spanish-American war and he was for years United States senator from South Carolina. The grandfather of the present United States Senator, C. L. Blease, also is buried in this cemetery. The inscription on his monument reads: “Thomas Wainwright Blease, born in Liverpool, England, June 8, 1796, died May 31, 1837, leaving a widow and seven children.” The only vault in the cemetery holds the remains of the first Mrs. John E. Bacon, who was Pawnee Butler, daughter of Governor and Mrs. Pierce M. Butler. About the vault was built a small frame structure, within which was placed a trunk, dolls, toys, and a large number of sea shells which had been the property of the deceased when she was a child. For years, children peered in to see these curiosities, which have disappeared within recent years, and the structure has fallen into decay. Among other illustrious personages whose dust lies here are Chancellor Hugh Wardlaw, a member of the Secession convention who wrote the Ordinance of Secession; Gen. William C. Moragne, brilliant writer (editor of The Edgefield Advertiser for years) and orator, in addition to his military service; Col. Simeon Christie, Col. Joseph Abney, Col. Elbert Bland, Col. Thomas G. Bacon, Col. William P. Butler—all with the bona fide military title of “colonel,” and brilliant members of the Edgefield bar; and Judge John S. Jeter, who was likewise distinguished as a jurist. “UNKNOWN DEAD” One Revolutionary soldier buried here is Rev. Joseph Moore, pastor of the Methodist church, who died in 1851 at the age of 84 years. A large number of Confederate soldiers lie there, awaiting the last roll call, and a shaft in one section is dedicated to 37 “unknown dead.” Soldiers of the Mexican war and of the Spanish-American war also rest there, and two soldiers of the last great war, Warren Hill and Frank Jones, were brought to their native Edgefield for burial and sleep in the village cemetery. Here, too, is buried one Charles McGregor, a native of Dunbartonshire, Scotland, born July 24, 1808, died May 21, 1857. Above one grave floats a tiny United States flag a mute symbol denoting the fact that here rests the granddaughter of Francis Scott Key, author of America’s national anthem—Mary Lloyd Pendleton Abney. Mrs. Abney and her husband, the late John Rutledge Abney, although residents of New York, were buried in Edgefield, Mr. Abney’s native county, at their own request. Many, many others, who served their day and generation well, sleep there—where stately magnolias with their creamy blossoms, keep watch above the marble tombs; where tall cedars waft their sighs to the breeze; where tendrils of ivy cling protectingly over the mouldering stones. Here they sleep until the Resurrection morn. And above them, sweet-throated birds chant a continuous requiem. |
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May 2020
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