On April 9, 1865, the Civil War ended with the surrender of the Confederate army at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia and almost immediately, celebrations all over Hilton Head erupted. By this… Continue reading Free at Last: The Civil War Ends
Following Lincoln’s assassination, President Andrew Johnson repealed a special order which distributed abandoned land to the formerly enslaved. This caused a great upheaval in areas surrounding Hilton Head, as planters… Continue reading Land Disputes: Hilton Head Island/Mitchelville is Spared
With the end of the Civil War, the Union Army began to leave the island, which led to scores of freedmen leaving too, either following the Army for jobs, moving… Continue reading Mitchelville Starts to Decline
The Drayton Plantation (on which Mitchelville was located) was returned to the heirs of its former owner in April 1875, with the federal government deed failing to provide any protection… Continue reading Land Disputes: Drayton Returns to Reclaim Mitchelville
Much of the land for Mitchelville was purchased by March Gardner and managed by his son, Gabriel. Due to lawsuits and a series of land purchases, the land that was… Continue reading Mitchelville Today
On the night of August 27, 1893, a major hurricane, the largest and most powerful to hit South Carolina until that time, made landfall just east of Savannah, GA, with… Continue reading The Last Straw: the Devastating Hurricane of 1893
What had begun as only a military mission grew into something more than that. Mitchelville became a vibrant, self-governed community, both defined and accentuated by the customs and cultures.
40 Harriet Tubman Way
Hilton Head Island, SC 29926
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