Coosawhatchie (koo-saw-HATCH-ee) is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) located in Jasper County,

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

, United States at the northern

head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple ani ...

of the Broad River. It served as the headquarters for General

Robert E. Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...

during the early part of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. It was first listed as a CDP in the 2020 census with a population of 57. It is accessible from

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

via Exit 28.

History

The area derives its name from its original inhabitants, the Coosaw band of Native Americans and their word for river, ''hatchie''. A sub-group of the Muskogees, they spoke a mixture of the Muskogee and

Koasati language Koasati (also Coushatta) is a Native American language of Muskogean origin. The language is spoken by the Coushatta people, most of whom live in Allen Parish north of the town of Elton, Louisiana, though a smaller number share a reservation ...

s. Located on the King's Highway that stretched from

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

to Charleston, Coosawhatchie was settled by trappers in the 1740s. The town grew around a store owned by

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

planter brothers, Henry and Daniel DeSaussure. During the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, much of the town was burned by

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

forces in 1779. It became the seat of Beaufort District in 1788. In 1810, the local

court of equity A court of equity, also known as an equity court or chancery court, is a court authorized to apply principles of Equity (law), equity rather than principles of law to cases brought before it. These courts originated from petitions to the Lord Cha ...

was relocated to Coosawhatchie. Seven years later a new courthouse was constructed in town. Designed by British architect William Jay, the two story structure remained in use until 1840, when the county seat was moved to nearby Gillisonville. After 1840 Coosawhatchie declined somewhat due to the perception that its marshy terrain was unhealthy. During the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, it was the site of several small battles.

made his headquarters in Coosawhatchie when he was fortifying the coastal defenses of South Carolina and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

during late 1861 and early 1862. To protect the railroad bridge in Coosawhatchie against Federal

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...

s coming up the Broad River, Lee's troops dug massive earthworks along its banks. Lee bought and named his famous horse Traveller in Coosawhatchie. In 1912, Coosawhatchie became part of newly created Jasper County.

Demographics

2020 census

Transportation

Roads

*, the major north–south

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights of way. In the United States, it is also used as an equivalent term to controlled-access highway, or ...

on the Eastern Seaboard runs through Coosawhatchie. A single diamond interchange serves the community on SC 462 at Exit 28. *, a principal route connecting Charleston, Savannah and beyond overlaps I-95 between the interchange with I-95 in Ridgeland at Exit 22 until Point South at Exit 33. Until the mid-1970s it ran along Nuna Rock Road which is now a frontage road for I-95. *, known locally as Morgandollar Road, runs eastward from its starting point at U.S. 321 in Robertville. Within Coosawhatchie it intersects with Nuna Rock Road (former U.S. 17), then turns south along that road and then east again at Coosaw Scenic Drive before it goes over I-95/US 17 at Exit 28, and continues eastward towards the hamlet of Okatie at SC 170.

Rail

The

CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Railroad classes, Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of trac ...

Railway's Charleston Subdivision (also known as the Charleston-Savannah Railway) currently operates both

freight In transportation, cargo refers to goods transported by land, water or air, while freight refers to its conveyance. In economics, freight refers to goods transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. The term cargo is also used in ...

trains and

passenger A passenger is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. The vehicles may be bicycles, ...

trains (via

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

) along the lines, but do not stop at Coosawhatchie. The line runs west of Nuna Rock Road, having run parallel to it as far south as Ridgeland, then has one grade crossing with Morgandollar Road (SC 462) until crossing a bridge over the Coosawhatchie River and running through the swampland surrounding that river.

Notable residents

* William F. Colcock, politician * Mary Gordon Ellis, politician, first woman elected to the South Carolina legislature - lived nearby with her husband * James L. Petigru, politician and judge

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Jasper County, South Carolina Census-designated places in South Carolina Unincorporated communities in Jasper County, South Carolina Unincorporated communities in South Carolina Hilton Head Island–Beaufort micropolitan area 1740s establishments in South Carolina