Granby, South Carolina facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Granby, South Carolina
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Former town
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 Granby, South Carolina
Location in South Carolina
Granby, South Carolina
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | South Carolina |
| County | Lexington |
Granby was an early European settlement in what is now Columbia, South Carolina. It started around 1718 when the British built a trading post by the Congaree River. Many German, Swiss, and Scots-Irish families moved here and started small farms.
Granby was the biggest town and the main center of Lexington County for a long time. But in the early 1800s, it started to shrink as Columbia, the state capital, grew larger. By the mid-1800s, most people had left Granby. Today, this area is part of the town of Cayce.
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Early Settlement and Growth
Granby was built in a good spot. It was just below where the Broad River and Saluda River join to form the Congaree River. This made river travel difficult further upstream, so Granby became a natural stopping point.
The area was once called "the Congaree's lands." This was after the Congaree people, a Native American tribe. Many of them died from diseases like smallpox or from conflicts. The remaining survivors moved away after the Yamasee War in 1715.
In 1716, the British and the Cherokee tribe agreed to build a trading post here. This made it easier for the Cherokee to trade without traveling all the way to Charleston. This British trading post was called Fort Congaree. It was open from 1718 to 1722.
The first town in this area was Saxe Gotha, started in 1733. However, Saxe Gotha often flooded. So, Granby was planned on slightly higher ground nearby in the 1750s.
In 1748, another trading post was built to help the Catawba people. This fort also became a safe place for white settlers during the Anglo-Cherokee War.
Many early settlers came directly from Germany or Switzerland. Others moved from Pennsylvania and Virginia. The town had many successful small farms. They grew crops like corn, wheat, and tobacco. They also produced hemp, flax, beeswax, and raised livestock. Even with the Cherokee Indian War of 1760 and the War of the Regulation, the area continued to grow.
The first public ferry across the river started in 1754. It was run by Martin Friday, an immigrant from Switzerland.
A new trading post was started by James Chesnut and Joseph Kershaw in 1765. It was known as the "Congaree Store." This store became one of the first important trading posts in the colony's interior. It was used to store cotton and other goods. These goods were then shipped by boat to towns on the coast.
Granby During the American Revolution
After the British captured Charleston in May 1780, they wanted to control all of South Carolina. Lord Cornwallis took over the Congaree Store. The British made it into a strong fort called Fort Granby. They built trenches, earth walls, and a place to store weapons. It was surrounded by a wooden fence and watchtowers.
Fort Granby became a key British stronghold. It was defended by over 300 British soldiers and German soldiers called Hessians. Cornwallis named the fort after John Manners, Marquess of Granby, a British army leader.
American rebel forces, led by Brigadier General Thomas Sumter, attacked the fort on February 19, 1781. They tried again the next day but were not successful. On February 21, a larger British army arrived from Camden. Sumter had to stop his attack. Before leaving, he managed to set fire to the fort's weapon storage and destroy other supplies.
Sumter returned in May with a cannon from the Continental Army. While Sumter attacked nearby Orangeburg, another American force, led by Lt. Colonel Henry Lee III, began to surround Fort Granby.
The fort was commanded by Major Andrew Maxwell, a Loyalist (someone loyal to the British). Maxwell had a lot of stolen goods stored at the fort. When attacked by American soldiers and a cannon, Maxwell agreed to surrender. He and his 352 defenders were allowed to leave if they could take two wagon loads of "personal loot." The captured soldiers, including sixty German dragoons, were later exchanged for American prisoners of war in Charleston.
After the War: Decline of Granby
After the war, Lexington County was formed in 1785. It was named after the Battle of Lexington. Granby became the county capital, and a courthouse was built there.
Friday's Ferry was bought by Richard and Wade Hampton in 1785. Wade Hampton replaced the ferry with a unique wooden and iron bridge. This bridge had a large arch and he was allowed to collect tolls for 100 years.
In the early 1800s, Granby was still much larger than Columbia. It had a post office, big stores, and other businesses. In 1802, it was reported to have nearly 200 houses, which was twice as many as Columbia.
As more land upriver was cleared for cotton farming, Granby started to flood more often. Because of this, the county capital was moved to Lexington in 1818. Meanwhile, Columbia, on the other side of the river, became South Carolina's capital in 1786. This helped Columbia grow and caused Granby to shrink even more.
Many of Granby's residents moved to Columbia. Many of the buildings were also moved there. By 1822, the town was almost empty. The county courthouse was moved to Columbia. It was used as a church for over forty years.
Granby remained mostly empty until the Civil War. During the war, an earthen fort built by the Confederates was attacked in the 1864 Battle of Congaree Creek.
The area saw new growth and became part of the larger town of Cayce in 1914. This included the old Granby townsite. The area was settled again in 1960 when the Riverside Park area of Cayce was built.
Archaeological Discoveries
A volunteer project called "Finding Granby" has been working at the site since the 2010s. They have found over 15,000 old objects. These objects help us learn more about what life was like in Granby.
Granby's Legacy Today
The original trading post and later fort was bought by the Cayce family in 1817. They lived there for almost 100 years. Today, a copy of that building is the Cayce Historical Museum.
A special stone marker was placed at the Granby cemetery in 1929. Since the cemetery is on private land, the marker was moved in 2012. It is now on the Cayce Riverwalk, a public trail along the river.
The name Granby is still used today. There is a park in Columbia called Granby Park. Also, the Granby Mill Village Historic District in Columbia includes an old cotton mill from 1897 and the community around it.
An archaeological site that includes the 1718 and 1748 trading posts was named "the Congarees." It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
John Taylor, who became the 51st governor of South Carolina, was born in Granby on May 4, 1770.
