The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1901-09-12
INTEkESTING HISTORICAL
FACTS
From Il Participant in the Me
diacv"l History of Pick
CnS County.

cnS County.
You may notice in our historic.
that but title Is said OF the south
west corner OF our State. Proba
bly, this is because it was not set.
tied until frvm ll3 to l2O years
after the scttlement of Charleston
Nha, Is now GrreEvilIc, Anderson
oconrr and Pickrns counties wa.
coded ~ the Cherokee Indians
under their CHIEF, AttacullucuIla
to the whites III l177, as thoy had
been conquered III September, l71C
10y Coz. Williamson in Il desperate
battle At Nrowcc or Korweo.
fttrvu rr sixteen years before,
! there were tw" great battles with
them nj "r near Etrhuce, the first
hy Co.. Mrn;Somoly, the second
| hv Coz. Grant.
The legislature either during or
soon after the war formed two dis.
trirts trrm this newly acquired
territory. GrrrnNille. named frr
| General Girru, ut revolutionary
tame, Au& frnd.rtrn from Judg,
NcuI,r;ru who came from Nir.
/ GlniA.
! The <,,W>litut}Nual convention Of
| l.9N rlra,sI these two districts in
tN a lu[.ri"l district. suppose
there We're urt enough People to
Justify them IN hrldlug courts in
each. The legislature. in l79l, ap-
pointed hy AL ar;, is special COM
mlSSiNners tN locate and build Il
court house, all, etc Gen. Andrew
IrrkrnS, Coz. Robert Maxwell, Ma
l"r John Bowen and Mr.. John Hal
I"m. They located and built at
PickensviIle. In l7N2 the legiSla-
turr enacted "rhat the place shall
always I've known in law as Pickens-
vile from Gen. Andrew Pirkcns."
The first deed recorded in Pen.
dleton district was on April Sd,
1890.
| suppose as soon as thesA dis
tricts became sufficiently populous,
each one built n court house. l
have not been able to get the dates
Of the building of the court houses
at GreenviIle and Pendleton. 1t
was through the kindness Of our
members of legislature, School
Commissioner and Clerk of Court
at Anderson that | have gotten the
dates given.
The Legislature, in 1926 27, di-
vided Pcndloton into Plckens and
Anderson and ordered that the
court should bo held at Anderson
on the 3rd Monday in May, 1928,
and at Plckcns ON Friday follow
ing and 1t might be held for TWO
days, if necessary.
The lirstEdeed recorded at Old
Plckcns was ON the 28th day of
October, 1928, by Clerk VIM. l. .
Keith, lio held that Office fol
twonty years ard was succeeded by
the Hon. james e. Hagood, who
hold it until the county was again
divided into O,oncc and Pickons
by the constitutional convention OF
1865. The convention namnd as
commissioners to locate and builG
tho court house, etc, the Hons
JAS. E. llagood, James II. Am
bier, Mr.. jas. Lewis, Mr.. Reese
Bowen and the writer with orders
to locate 1t as near the center of
the county rs practicable. We be.
llevod the center to bo little mort h
OF the place selected, but the cho-
sen site Is nearer tho center OF
population. Gcuoral Candy, the
military governor, ordered an elcc.
ton for mombors of tho legisla.
turo to be held on tho 14th, 18th
and 10Th Of April, lSGS-threc
days given, SO rs to give tho nowly
created citizens-tho colorcd men
ample time to cast their maiden
votes.
TO my very great surprise, some
of the good old citizous held eau.
Gus and selected Mr.. Thomas Rog-
ers for the Senate and tho writer
for the Lower House, and dcpu.
tlZed MIR. John Bowen to rntify us
and he would have no excuse; he
said the thing was fixed and we
must submit.
The legislature convened in july
following. ] have my certificate
OF election yet. | hope our state
Will mover be in that condition
again, to be ordered around by
non-rosldcnts and to have such q
body to rule over us as was there
convened. Almost all were colored
Or northern men and the Speakers
stand in the House was occupied
almost overy day by from ten to
twenty colored women. They were
teaching social equality. ] have a
group picture of the members Of