Andersonville was a town in

Anderson County, South Carolina Anderson County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 203,718. Its county seat is Anderson. Named for Revolutionary War leader Robert Anderson, the county is located in northwestern ...

, that was settled around 1800. It was named for Robert Anderson, who was a Revolutionary War veteran. Although it had been a thriving textile and trading community, it suffered from repeated floods and was bypassed by the railroad. The construction of

Lake Hartwell Lake Hartwell is a man-made reservoir bordering Georgia and South Carolina and encompassing parts of the Savannah, Tugaloo, and Seneca rivers. Lake Hartwell is one of the Southeastern United States' largest recreation lakes. The lake was created b ...

displaced the remnants of the community. Today the nearest incorporated communities are

Hartwell, Georgia Hartwell is a city in Hart County, Georgia, United States. The population was 4,469 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Hart County. History Hartwell was founded in 1854 as seat of the newly formed Hart County. It was incorporated ...

, across the lake to the southwest, and

Anderson, South Carolina Anderson is a city in and the county seat of Anderson County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 28,106 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, and the city was the center of an urbanized area of 75,702. It is one of the prin ...

, to the North.

History

The town of Andersonville was settled at the fork of the Seneca River and the

Tugaloo River The Tugaloo River (originally Tugalo River) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 26, 2011 river that forms the border between the U.S. states of Georgia and South C ...

. In 1801, the

South Carolina General Assembly The South Carolina General Assembly, also called the South Carolina Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of South Carolina. The legislature is bicameral and consists of the lower South Carolina House of Representatives and t ...

established the town. The town was named for Robert Anderson, who was one of the commissioners that laid out the community. The town grew as a trading and textile center. The Southern Clock Company and

textile mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...

s were built in the town. In 1840, a flood struck the community and destroyed the textile mills. The textile mills were rebuilt, but they were destroyed by another flood in 1852. The railroads bypassed Andersonville. As rail traffic overtook the river traffic, the town lost its industry and many residents. The Andersonville post office was closed in 1893. The area was largely flooded in the construction of Lake Hartwell. Most of those buried at the cemetery were moved to Andersonville Baptist Church on the eastern shore of the lake. Andersonville Island, which is a narrow island about two miles long, is all that remains of the community.

References

*Louise Ayer Vandiver, ''Traditions and History of Anderson County'', Ruralist Press, Atlanta, GA, 1928. *Frank A. Dickson, ''Journeys into the Past: The Anderson's Region's Heritage'', Sponsored by the Anderson County Bicentennial Committee, 1975.

External links

Rootsweb
Information about Lake Hartwell grave reinterment.
GNIS Feature ID for Andersonville
Populated places in Anderson County, South Carolina Ghost towns in South Carolina Submerged settlements in the United States 1800 establishments in South Carolina {{US-ghost-town-stub