Kingstree, South Carolina
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Kingstree is a city and the
county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
of
Williamsburg County, South Carolina Williamsburg County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census its population was 31,026. The county seat and largest city is Kingstree. After a previous incarnation of Williamsburg County, the current count ...
, United States. The population was 3,328 at the 2010 census.


History

The original town was laid out as Williamsburg by the
Lords Proprietors A lord proprietor is a person granted a royal charter for the establishment and government of an English colony in the 17th century. The plural of the term is "lords proprietors" or "lords proprietary". Origin In the beginning of the European ...
in colonial times, but a lone, unusually large
white pine ''Pinus'', the pines, is a genus of approximately 111 extant tree and shrub species. The genus is currently split into two subgenera: subgenus ''Pinus'' (hard pines), and subgenus ''Strobus'' (soft pines). Each of the subgenera have been further ...
was found along the Black River. Since tall white pines were ideal for use as masts for ships, it was claimed by the
Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...
on behalf of the king. The
broad arrow A broad arrow, of which a pheon is a variant, is a stylised representation of a metal arrowhead, comprising a tang and two barbs meeting at a point. It is a symbol used traditionally in heraldry, most notably in England, and later by the Brit ...
mark was carved into the tree to prevent any colonists from cutting it. Though white pines are native to the Appalachians as far south as Georgia, it is the only tree of King George’s ever found in the
South South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...
. Over time, the county kept the name Williamsburg, but the county seat became known as the King's Tree.


Battles


Battle of the Lower Bridge

General
Francis Marion Brigadier-General Francis Marion ( 1732 – February 27, 1795), also known as the Swamp Fox, was an American military officer, planter and politician who served during the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. During the Ameri ...
, known as the Swamp Fox, defeated the British at the Battle of the Lower Bridge in March 1781. A historical marker between US Highway 521 and the Black River denotes the battle.


Battle of King's Tree

After the British had captured Charles Town during the revolution, General Marion gained supporters from Major John James. The Battle of King's Tree took place on August 27, 1780. The city sustained losses, including Indiantown Presbyterian Church being burned to the ground.


Historical homes and buildings

The
Kingstree Historic District The Kingstree Historic District contains forty-eight properties situated along Main Street, Academy Street, and Hampton Street in the commercial area of downtown Kingstree, South Carolina. anaccompanying map/ref> The district includes the courth ...
, M.F. Heller House,
Colonel John Gotea Pressley House Colonel John Gotea Pressley House, also known as the Pressley-Hirsch-Green House and Wylma M. Green House is a historic home located at Kingstree, Williamsburg County, South Carolina. It was built in 1855, and is a -story, weatherboard-clad Gree ...
, Scott House, and
Thorntree Thorntree is a housing estate in east Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. The former Thorntree Ward's population was 6,290, at the 2011 census. Since 2015, the estate shares a ward with Brambles Farm. The housing estate was built in the l ...
are listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
.


Williamsburg Presbyterian Church

Williamsburg Presbyterian Church was founded in August 1736. The church consisted of three structures. Its founders built the first church in 1738 across from the Williamsburg Cemetery in town; the second building was constructed in 1828 and was across from the Williamsburg Cemetery as well. The third, the current structure of the church located on North Academy Street was built in 1914. The stained glass windows on the roof of the church today were imported from Austria. One of the stained glass windows on the roof was removed in 1989 during a renovation and was placed behind the pulpit of the sanctuary. The first person to be buried in the church cemetery was John Witherspoon(1670–1737), the father of James Witherspoon, builder of Thorntree. Williamsburg Presbyterian Church celebrated its 275th Birthday in October 2011. The church held a service to share Kingstree's history. The church is the oldest church that still exists today between the Santee and Cape Fear Rivers in North and South Carolina. Williamsburg Presbyterian is the mother church to 33 other Presbyterian churches. Two daughter churches include nearby Union Presbyterian church in Salters, South Carolina, and Indiantown Presbyterian Church in Williamsburg County. The Kingstree company formed at Williamsburg Presbyterian Church's original churchyard in July 1780. The company was led by Captain Henry Mouzon and later turned into the battalion and then formed a brigade led by Francis Marion against the British.


The Arnette House

The Arnette House is one of the three oldest homes in the town and was built in 1840. The home holds significance in the town because the dining room was used as a school for two periods of history during the early years of the home.


Thorntree House

Thorntree House is the oldest home in the lowcountry area of South Carolina. The early plantation home was constructed from native materials of South Carolina. James Witherspoon built the home in 1749 when the house was located six miles outside of town near where the Battle of the Lower Bridge took place. Witherspoon was a part of Francis Marion's brigade. After Witherspoon's death, Witherspoon's son inherited the plantation home. The British occupied the home during the revolution when it was at its original location, on the Black River. Gavin Witherspoon was the owner at the time. The house was later moved to its current location in 1969 when it was being restored by the Williamsburg Historical Society and is currently registered by the National Historic Register. The Williamsburg Historical Society moved the house into Kingstree city limits to provide protection by the city's police and fire department.


Williamsburg County Courthouse

The Williamsburg County Courthouse is located in the business district of Kingstree on Main Street. The original grounds of where the courthouse stands were the original parade grounds in the town of Kingstree and were used by the militia during the revolution. The courthouse was built in 1823 by Robert Mills, a nationally known architect that hailed from South Carolina. The second level of the courthouse suffered a fire in 1883 but because the walls were 30 inches thick and fireproof, the building was restored. Other changes and additions were added to the courthouse including in parking for horses in 1901, and a third floor in 1954.


Geography

Kingstree is located at (33.671243, −79.828635). According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the town has a total area of , of which are land and (0.63%) is covered by water.


Rivers

The Black River is a free-flowing river surrounded by banks of undisturbed land. The river has habitats suitable for endangered species, including the American chaffseed and the swallow-tailed kite. The black color of the river comes from tannins from cypress trees. The river draws sportsmen because of the variety of fish, including bream, red-breasted sunfish, largemouth bass, and catfish. The Williamsburg County Hometown Chamber Quality of Place Committee was able to get the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources to include a 75-mile stretch of the Black River in the Scenic River Program in 2001. The Black River is one South Carolina's longest rivers and was the seventh addition to the Scenic Rivers. The river is 150 miles long and goes through Williamsburg, Clarendon, Sumter, and Georgetown Counties in South Carolina.


Demographics


2020 census

As of the
2020 United States Census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
, there were 3,244 people, 1,414 households, and 725 families residing in the town.


2010 census

According to the
census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
of 2010, there were 3,328 people. The racial makeup of the town was 28.5%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 70.3%
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.1% Native American, 0.4%
Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, and 0.5% from
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or
Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...
of any race according to the 2000 census. There are 5857 housing units and 88.6% of the units are occupied and 74.7% are owner-occupied units. In the town, the population was widely distributed by age, with 27.7% under the age of 18, 70.3% who were 18 years of age and older, 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34.3 years. There were 932 people or 10.8% of people that held a college or graduate degree, and 2,667 people held a high school degree.


Education

Kingstree has a
public library A public library is a library that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil service, civil servants. There are ...
, a branch of the Williamsburg County Library system.


Notable people

* Karen Derrico- (The mother of 4 sets of Multiples and a grand total of 14 Children) from the TLC program, Doubling Down with the Derricos * Maxine Brown – blues and R&B singer *
Mary Gordon Ellis Mary Gordon Ellis (April 21, 1889 – September 9, 1934) was an educator and politician from South Carolina. She became the first woman elected to the South Carolina Legislature with her election to the South Carolina State Senate in 1928. Life ...
– first woman elected to the South Carolina legislature, was born nearby and raised in Kingstree * Joseph L. Goldstein
Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
winner *
Uhuru Hamiter Uhuru A. "Joby" Hamiter (born March 14, 1973) is a former American football defensive end who played three seasons in the National Football League with the New Orleans Saints and Philadelphia Eagles. He played college football at Delaware State U ...
– American football player * John Mack - civic leader *
Bryant McFadden Bryant McFadden (born November 21, 1981) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football at Florida State and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second round of the 2005 NFL Draft. McFadden was also a member of ...
– NFL cornerback for the
Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
*
Yancey McGill John Yancey McGill (born September 18, 1952) is an American politician from South Carolina. He was a member of the state Senate from 1989 to 2014. He served as the 90th Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina from June 2014 to January 2015. , he is ...
– former Lt. governor of South Carolina *
Wesley Mouzon Wesley Mouzon (August 15, 1927 – July 1, 2003) was a professional boxer. Born in Kingstree, South Carolina, Mouzon moved as a child to Philadelphia, long considered one of the best ''boxing school'' cities in the United States. In Philadelphia, ...
- professional boxer *
Teddy Pendergrass Theodore DeReese Pendergrass (March 26, 1950 – January 13, 2010) was an American soul and R&B singer-songwriter. He was born in Kingstree, South Carolina. Pendergrass spent most of his life in the Philadelphia area, and initially rose to musi ...
– R&B singer * Thomas D. Singleton
United States Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
from South Carolina * Stephen Atkins Swails – soldier and politician * JoAnn Haysbert – first female president of Langton University, first female university or college president in the state of Oklahoma * Rollee McGill – R&B Singer, musician, saxophone player


Festivals


Kingstree Pig Pickin' Festival

The "Pig Pickin'" Festival is held every fall for all the chefs of Kingstree to compete in a barbecue recipes. The festival draws crowds from all over to test the Williamsburg County vinegar-based barbecue. In 2010, the festival had a record breaking number of contestants. Seventy groups competed with contestants that traveled from other states including North Carolina and Georgia. The area golf course, Swamp Fox Golf Course, sponsors a golf tournament to begin the events every year for the festival. Other events include tennis tournaments, car show, arts and crafts, food venders, live music, and activities for children.


Kingstree Trials

Since 1996, the Williamsburg Hometown Chamber has sponsored "The King's Tree trials" for those in the Kingstree community. The races take place at the McCutcheon training center in the Cedar Swamp area on a weekend in November. Jockeys and their horses are brought in for the event. Horse racing has been taking place in Williamsburg County since before the Revolution. Nine quarter races take place while families and people from the business community chat and eat barbecue.


See also

*
Kingstree Historic District The Kingstree Historic District contains forty-eight properties situated along Main Street, Academy Street, and Hampton Street in the commercial area of downtown Kingstree, South Carolina. anaccompanying map/ref> The district includes the courth ...
*
Kingstree (Amtrak station) Kingstree station is a train station in Kingstree, South Carolina, operated by Amtrak, the United States' railroad passenger system. It was originally built by the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad in 1909. The station survived the merger of the Atlanti ...


References

{{authority control Towns in South Carolina Towns in Williamsburg County, South Carolina County seats in South Carolina