Chesterfield County is located in Northern South Carolina. The economy relies principally on agriculture. Chesterfield serves as its county seat, but Chesterfield County also boasts “The Watermelon Capital of the World”, Pageland, and “The Prettiest Town in Dixie”, Cheraw.
The county was founded in 1785 and named after Lord Chesterfield. However, it remained part of the Cheraws District until 1800. A combination of Welsh, Scotch-Irish, and English settled the area. During the Civil War, Union soldiers occupied the county.
Recreation and Tourism. Accessed June 02, 2016
Photo
The "Ghio," a rear-wheel paddle steamer, docks at the landing at Cheraw around 1900. Note the trolley or incline railway that carried loads from the river landing up the steep bank to the level of the...
Audio
"W" is for Williams, David Rogerson [1776-1830] Congressman, governor.
Audio
“S” is for St. David's Church in Cheraw. St. David's Parish was established in 1768 and construction on the parish church—known locally as “Old St. David's”—began in the 1770s. Although similar to...
Photo
The Lafayette House in Cheraw is in the Adam style, an adaptation of the early Classical Revival. Built in 1823 by Dr. William Ellerbe, it was the site of a public reception for the Revolutionary War...
Photo
A gospel tent is set up on the town green in Cheraw around the turn of the century. Courtesy of the Cheraw Visitors Bureau.
Video
Cheraw State Park was the first state park built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Formerly used as farm land, the park was acquired in 1934 during the Depression, so the land could be...
Photo
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (1917- ), a native of Cheraw, began playing the trombone and the trumpet in 1929. He studied harmony and music theory at Laurinburg Institute in North Carolina before...
Photo
The Sandhills of South Carolina marked the edge of the ancient ocean shoreline nearly 55 million years ago in what is now South Carolina. The Sandhills today form a band that separates the Midlands...
Video
In 1972, Charles Duke served as the pilot on Apollo 16, whose crew was the first to inspect, survey and sample the surface features of the highlands of the moon. He discusses the history of space...
Photo
The Malloy Family Singers, of Chesterfield in Chesterfield County, have been performing gospel music together for over twenty years. Their repertoire encompasses traditional and contemporary music of...
