Horse Creek Valley
Encyclopedia
Horse Creek Valley is a geographic area along Horse Creek, a tributary of the Savannah River
. It lays within present day Aiken County, South Carolina
(prior to 1872, in Edgefield District / Edgefield County). Presently, this area is alternately referred to as 'Midland Valley'. Rising near Vaucluse, South Carolina
, Horse Creek enters the Savannah two miles downstream of downtown Augusta, Georgia
. Other communities along Horse Creek include Graniteville
, Warrenville
, Gloverville
, Langley
, Burnettown
, Bath
, and Clearwater
. While Horse Creek itself is rather insignificant, its potential for water power led to early examples of Southern industrialization including a textile mill at Vaucluse (1830) and William Gregg's
Graniteville Mill (1845). The textile industry continued to play a primary role until the Graniteville Train Derailment and final closure of the Graniteville Mill in 2006.
recorded Westo Indians
in the area during his pioneering travels from Charleston
in 1674. The Westoes were already well connected with slaveholders in Virginia, and terrorized neighboring tribes by their slave raids. The South Carolinians eventually foresaw more profit in trade than in these slave raids, and engineered an overthrow of the Westos in a 1690 trade war, after which the area was briefly occupied by Shawnee (Savannahs)
(Bowne 2005). In 1723 the South Carolina Assembly invited the Chickasaw
to occupy the area. Located in Northern Mississippi, the Chickasaw relied on South Carolina as a source of guns, and agreed to send a colony under the so-called Squirrel King. In 1737 they were allocated a 21,774 acre tract along the northern / western bank of Horse Creek, extending from the Savannah River up to Vaucluse. These Chickasaws actively collaborated with the English in the defense of this area, especially during the Cherokee War
in 1760. The Chickasaw returned to their homeland shortly before the Revolutionary War (Cashin 2009: 11-36, 107-123).
farming led to commercial growth, first in Augusta on the Georgia side of the Savannah River, then at a South Carolina competitor founded in 1821 by Henry Shultz
under the name of Hamburg. At the end of a growing season, farmers wagoned their bales of cotton overland to either of these towns, for sale into warehouses or onto boats for transport to Savannah
or Charleston, and eventually textile mills in the Northeastern U.S. and Europe. The farmers could then spend the proceeds shopping for manufactured goods to carry back home (Chapman 1897).
In order to divert traffic going by river to the more accessible port at Savannah, the South Carolina Rail Road was completed from Hamburg to Charleston in 1833. At 136 miles in length, this was at the time the longest railroad in the world, and ran on published regular schedules with the exclusive use of steam power (Brown 1871 and Fetters 2008).
Horse Creek's power potential attracted early industries to the area. According to an 1885 survey, "Horse Creek crosses the fall line, and has a rapid fall, offering excellent advantages for power... it offers a good example of the large amount of power which can be obtained at small expense from a comparatively insignificant stream if it is only properly developed" (US Department of the Interior 1885: 132-133). An 1883 South Carolina survey noted 1807 horsepower previously developed, and a capacity for perhaps one-third more (SC State Board of Agriculture 1883: 206).
The first Horse Creek textile mill, located at Vaucluse in 1830, produced disappointing results. As noted by William Gregg, the causes included insufficient capital investment, excessive diversity of products, lack of a widespread marketing area, and insufficient hands-on management (Gregg 1845 in Tompkins 1899). Gregg, a great proponent of Southern industrialization, built a landmark mill embodying his ideas at Graniteville, South Carolina in 1845. While Gregg's success was well appreciated, it contradicted a Southern preference for the agrarian slave economy, and was not imitated for several decades.
Other industries taking advantage of Horse Creek water power were a paper mill at Bath, and pottery works above Vaucluse. In 1860, the Benjamin Franklin Landrum pottery works reportedly manufactured 40,000 gallons capacity of stoneware annually, with three employees and a 1 HP water turbine. In the same year, the Lewis J. Miles pottery works manufactured 50,000 gallons with 13 employees and a 4 HP turbine. The famous potter Dave
worked there as late as 1863. In 1880, this same establishment had a 35 HP water turbine (Baldwin 1995:95-99).
The Charlotte, Columbia and Augusta Railroad
built through the Valley in the late 1860s. After the Civil War and Reconstruction, the textile industry entered a period of great expansion (Harper's Weekly article). By 1900, industrial
establishments included the Graniteville, Seminole, Vaucluse, ... mills and employment along the Valley was ... (Kohn 1907).
. Rich, powerful and famous vacationers included John D. Rockefeller
, Henry Ford
, and Bing Crosby
(source?).
The textile industries suffered the effects of the Boll Weevil
(1920) and the Great Depression
(1930). Labor strife at the Horse Creek Valley mills was a major theme of Erskine Caldwell's book God's Little Acre
. After World War II, the industrial economy continued to decline until 2005, when the last mill left standing was impacted by the Graniteville Train Derailment. Nine people in the area were killed by an early morning chlorine spill. According to Avondale Mills, owners of the Graniteville Mill, lingering chemical corrosion over the following months caused extensive equipment damage, ostensibly making the facility uneconomical to repair and operate, and leading to its closure in 2006 (Augusta Chronicle, 12 January 2005 and 1 June 2006).
After environmental cleanup, Langley Pond at the lower end of the valley has become a recreation area. This former mill impoundment offers an Olympic class rowing course and was used as a practice area for the 1996 Summer Olympic Games. The lake continues to host crews seeking warm weather practice areas during the winter months with regattas attracting over 1,000 rowers ((Midland Valley Area link).
In July 2011, a movie by Bryton Entertainment titled Graniteville: Past, Present, Future was presented at area movie theaters. It begins with William Gregg, continues to the train derailment in the present, and envisions possibilities for the future. Funding was provided in part by the GVW (Graniteville, Vaucluse, Warrenville) Community Investment Corporation.
On 22 September 2011, a one hour movie by Storyline Media titled Horse Creek Valley... A Tale Worth the Telling premiered on SCETV’s Southern Lens. It covers 13,000 years of prehistory and history to the present. Funding was provided in part by Humanities Council SC.
Savannah River
The Savannah River is a major river in the southeastern United States, forming most of the border between the states of South Carolina and Georgia. Two tributaries of the Savannah, the Tugaloo River and the Chattooga River, form the northernmost part of the border...
. It lays within present day Aiken County, South Carolina
Aiken County, South Carolina
Aiken County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. In 2000, its population was 142,552; in 2010, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that its population had reached 160,099...
(prior to 1872, in Edgefield District / Edgefield County). Presently, this area is alternately referred to as 'Midland Valley'. Rising near Vaucluse, South Carolina
Vaucluse, South Carolina
Vaucluse is an unincorporated community in Aiken County in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is located at . Vaucluse is part of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area....
, Horse Creek enters the Savannah two miles downstream of downtown Augusta, Georgia
Augusta, Georgia
Augusta is a consolidated city in the U.S. state of Georgia, located along the Savannah River. As of the 2010 census, the Augusta–Richmond County population was 195,844 not counting the unconsolidated cities of Hephzibah and Blythe.Augusta is the principal city of the Augusta-Richmond County...
. Other communities along Horse Creek include Graniteville
Graniteville, South Carolina
Graniteville is an unincorporated community in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. It lies along U.S. 1, five miles west of Aiken. The town lies in Horse Creek Valley which originates in the nearby town of Vaucluse....
, Warrenville
Warrenville, South Carolina
Warrenville is an unincorporated community in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States, near Graniteville. It is part of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area...
, Gloverville
Gloverville, South Carolina
Gloverville is a census-designated place in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 2,805 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area...
, Langley
Langley, South Carolina
Langley is an unincorporated community in the Midland Valley area of Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. It is bordered by Gloverville, South Carolina, and Lynwood, South Carolina, and more recently, Burnettown which approved an annexation of some unincorporated land five years ago, but...
, Burnettown
Burnettown, South Carolina
Burnettown is a town in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 2,720 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area...
, Bath
Bath, South Carolina
Bath is an unincorporated community in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. The community is located in the Horsecreek Valley, and its zip code is 29816. It is part of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area. Bath is located in historic Horse Creek Valley....
, and Clearwater
Clearwater, South Carolina
Clearwater is a census-designated place in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. It lies near North Augusta, South Carolina, and is part of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area. Clearwater is located in historic Horse Creek Valley...
. While Horse Creek itself is rather insignificant, its potential for water power led to early examples of Southern industrialization including a textile mill at Vaucluse (1830) and William Gregg's
William Gregg
William Gregg VC DCM MM was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.-Details:...
Graniteville Mill (1845). The textile industry continued to play a primary role until the Graniteville Train Derailment and final closure of the Graniteville Mill in 2006.
17th and 18th Centuries
Henry WoodwardHenry Woodward (colonist)
Henry Woodward , often referred to as Dr. Henry Woodward, was the first British colonist of colonial South Carolina. He was instrumental in establishing relationships with many Native American Indians in the American southeast...
recorded Westo Indians
Westo
The Westo were a Native American tribe encountered in the Southeast by Europeans in the 17th century. They probably spoke an Iroquoian language. The Spanish called these people Chichimeco , and, Virginia colonists may have called the same people Richahecrian...
in the area during his pioneering travels from Charleston
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
in 1674. The Westoes were already well connected with slaveholders in Virginia, and terrorized neighboring tribes by their slave raids. The South Carolinians eventually foresaw more profit in trade than in these slave raids, and engineered an overthrow of the Westos in a 1690 trade war, after which the area was briefly occupied by Shawnee (Savannahs)
Shawnee
The Shawnee, Shaawanwaki, Shaawanooki and Shaawanowi lenaweeki, are an Algonquian-speaking people native to North America. Historically they inhabited the areas of Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Western Maryland, Kentucky, Indiana, and Pennsylvania...
(Bowne 2005). In 1723 the South Carolina Assembly invited the Chickasaw
Chickasaw
The Chickasaw are Native American people originally from the region that would become the Southeastern United States...
to occupy the area. Located in Northern Mississippi, the Chickasaw relied on South Carolina as a source of guns, and agreed to send a colony under the so-called Squirrel King. In 1737 they were allocated a 21,774 acre tract along the northern / western bank of Horse Creek, extending from the Savannah River up to Vaucluse. These Chickasaws actively collaborated with the English in the defense of this area, especially during the Cherokee War
Anglo-Cherokee War
The Anglo-Cherokee War , also known as the Cherokee War, the Cherokee Uprising, the Cherokee Rebellion, was a conflict between British forces in North America and Cherokee Indians during the French and Indian War...
in 1760. The Chickasaw returned to their homeland shortly before the Revolutionary War (Cashin 2009: 11-36, 107-123).
19th Century
The rapid expansion of cottonCotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
farming led to commercial growth, first in Augusta on the Georgia side of the Savannah River, then at a South Carolina competitor founded in 1821 by Henry Shultz
Henry Shultz
Henry Shultz was an eccentric entrepreneur in the antebellum American South. Born in Hamburg, Germany, he came to Augusta, Georgia in 1806, built an admirable bridge across the Savannah River, and founded the town of Hamburg, South Carolina...
under the name of Hamburg. At the end of a growing season, farmers wagoned their bales of cotton overland to either of these towns, for sale into warehouses or onto boats for transport to Savannah
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
or Charleston, and eventually textile mills in the Northeastern U.S. and Europe. The farmers could then spend the proceeds shopping for manufactured goods to carry back home (Chapman 1897).
Horse Creek's power potential attracted early industries to the area. According to an 1885 survey, "Horse Creek crosses the fall line, and has a rapid fall, offering excellent advantages for power... it offers a good example of the large amount of power which can be obtained at small expense from a comparatively insignificant stream if it is only properly developed" (US Department of the Interior 1885: 132-133). An 1883 South Carolina survey noted 1807 horsepower previously developed, and a capacity for perhaps one-third more (SC State Board of Agriculture 1883: 206).
The first Horse Creek textile mill, located at Vaucluse in 1830, produced disappointing results. As noted by William Gregg, the causes included insufficient capital investment, excessive diversity of products, lack of a widespread marketing area, and insufficient hands-on management (Gregg 1845 in Tompkins 1899). Gregg, a great proponent of Southern industrialization, built a landmark mill embodying his ideas at Graniteville, South Carolina in 1845. While Gregg's success was well appreciated, it contradicted a Southern preference for the agrarian slave economy, and was not imitated for several decades.
Other industries taking advantage of Horse Creek water power were a paper mill at Bath, and pottery works above Vaucluse. In 1860, the Benjamin Franklin Landrum pottery works reportedly manufactured 40,000 gallons capacity of stoneware annually, with three employees and a 1 HP water turbine. In the same year, the Lewis J. Miles pottery works manufactured 50,000 gallons with 13 employees and a 4 HP turbine. The famous potter Dave
Dave the Slave
Dave the Slave is the most commonly used moniker of an influential American potter who lived in Edgefield, South Carolina and produced alkaline-glazed stoneware pottery from the 1820s to the 1860s...
worked there as late as 1863. In 1880, this same establishment had a 35 HP water turbine (Baldwin 1995:95-99).
The Charlotte, Columbia and Augusta Railroad
Charlotte, Columbia and Augusta Railroad
The Charlotte, Columbia and Augusta Railroad was formed in 1869 with the merger of the Charlotte and South Carolina Railroad and the Columbia and Augusta Railroad.The combined line stretched 191 miles between Augusta, Georgia, and Charlotte, North Carolina...
built through the Valley in the late 1860s. After the Civil War and Reconstruction, the textile industry entered a period of great expansion (Harper's Weekly article). By 1900, industrial
establishments included the Graniteville, Seminole, Vaucluse, ... mills and employment along the Valley was ... (Kohn 1907).
20th Century
During this time, a popular winter resort for the wealthy developed at the headwaters of the Valley, which eventually became known as the Aiken Winter Colony. The Whitney Polo Field, established in 1882, and the Palmetto Golf Course, begun in 1892 characterize the vacation pursuits, and the horse culture still thrives in Aiken. Thirty residences survive in the Aiken Winter Colony Historic District (SCDAH link). Pat Conroy's essay, Horses Don’t Eat Moon Pies explored the juxtaposition of wealthy equestrians and the blue collar mill culture of the valley. In 1903 the Hampton Terrace Hotel opened on North Augusta, SC near the lower end of the Valley, connected to Aiken by means of the Augusta-Aiken RailwayAugusta–Aiken Railway and Electric Corporation
The Augusta–Aiken Railway and Electric Corporation was an electric interurban railroad that operated between Augusta, Georgia and Aiken, South Carolina. Once completed in 1902 the railroad remained in operation until it was abandoned in 1929.- History :...
. Rich, powerful and famous vacationers included John D. Rockefeller
John D. Rockefeller
John Davison Rockefeller was an American oil industrialist, investor, and philanthropist. He was the founder of the Standard Oil Company, which dominated the oil industry and was the first great U.S. business trust. Rockefeller revolutionized the petroleum industry and defined the structure of...
, Henry Ford
Henry Ford
Henry Ford was an American industrialist, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, and sponsor of the development of the assembly line technique of mass production. His introduction of the Model T automobile revolutionized transportation and American industry...
, and Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
(source?).
The textile industries suffered the effects of the Boll Weevil
Boll weevil
The boll weevil is a beetle measuring an average length of six millimeters, which feeds on cotton buds and flowers. Thought to be native to Central America, it migrated into the United States from Mexico in the late 19th century and had infested all U.S. cotton-growing areas by the 1920s,...
(1920) and the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
(1930). Labor strife at the Horse Creek Valley mills was a major theme of Erskine Caldwell's book God's Little Acre
God's Little Acre
God's Little Acre is a 1933 novel by Erskine Caldwell, which was made into a film of the same name in 1958.The novel was so controversial that the New York Society for the Suppression of Vice attempted to censor it, leading to the author's arrest and trial for obscenity...
. After World War II, the industrial economy continued to decline until 2005, when the last mill left standing was impacted by the Graniteville Train Derailment. Nine people in the area were killed by an early morning chlorine spill. According to Avondale Mills, owners of the Graniteville Mill, lingering chemical corrosion over the following months caused extensive equipment damage, ostensibly making the facility uneconomical to repair and operate, and leading to its closure in 2006 (Augusta Chronicle, 12 January 2005 and 1 June 2006).
After environmental cleanup, Langley Pond at the lower end of the valley has become a recreation area. This former mill impoundment offers an Olympic class rowing course and was used as a practice area for the 1996 Summer Olympic Games. The lake continues to host crews seeking warm weather practice areas during the winter months with regattas attracting over 1,000 rowers ((Midland Valley Area link).
In July 2011, a movie by Bryton Entertainment titled Graniteville: Past, Present, Future was presented at area movie theaters. It begins with William Gregg, continues to the train derailment in the present, and envisions possibilities for the future. Funding was provided in part by the GVW (Graniteville, Vaucluse, Warrenville) Community Investment Corporation.
On 22 September 2011, a one hour movie by Storyline Media titled Horse Creek Valley... A Tale Worth the Telling premiered on SCETV’s Southern Lens. It covers 13,000 years of prehistory and history to the present. Funding was provided in part by Humanities Council SC.