Carolina Ghost Towns

Samish and Atlanta, Revisited

This week I'm traveling and I've got a bad head cold, so I'm reposting an episode from Season 1.  I hope to be back in a couple of weeks with new episodes.

Totness, South Carolina

The town of Totness was a resort for the wealthy in Calhoun County.  It had no central business district or town layout, but it was chartered as a town in 1855. When Sherman's troops came through in 1864 the village was never rebuilt.
Most of the resources used in this episode are from newspapers.com and behind a paywall.  Here are the only two that might be publicly available:
Blog Post on RandomConnections
SC Picture Project

Jalapa, South Carolina

The town of Jalapa was named for Xalapa, Mexico after members of the Palmetto Regiment fought near there in the Battle of Cerro Gordo.  Now just a crossroads in Newberry County, it was once an active community with stores, churches, and a school.
Most of the information I used in this episode can be found on my blog post, Seeking Jalapa.

Lando, South Carolina

Lando is a largely abandoned mill town in eastern Chester County.  It was once the largest producer of blankets in the US.  The only remnants left from the town are the old school and the old mill store, which is now the Lando-Manetta History Center.Please note - in this episode we describe a visit to the interior of the Lando School.  The school is on private property and has been the victim of vandalism.  It is monitored by surveillance cameras and regular law enforcement patrols.  We were able to visit with an escort from the History Center.
Here are some of the resources I used in this episode:
Lando-Manetta History Center
A Trip to Lando - RandomConnections Blog
National Register Listing
Wikipedia Entry
Lando School - SC Picture Project
Manetta Mills - SC Picture Project

How to Find a Ghost Town

Instead of linking all of the resources mentioned in this episode, I decided to do a podcast with a transcript of the show and with the links mentioned, plus a couple of others I forgot to include.  This can be found on the RandomConnections website at this link.

Childsbury

Childsbury was a settlement on the Cooper River, inland from Charleston.  It was one of the oldest planned towns in South Carolina, and Strawberry Chapel is one of the oldest extant buildings in the state.
Here are some of the resources I used for this episode:
A History of Childsbury
Wikipedia Entry
National Register of Historic Places
Childsbury Towne Heritage Preserve
James Child Archives
Child Family Muniments
Childsbury by Henry A. M. Smith
Some Forgotten Towns in Lower South Carolina
Friends of Strawberry
Strawberry Ferry
SC Picture Project
 

Stateburg, South Carolina

Located in the High Hills of the Santee, Stateburg missed out on being the state capital of South Carolina by one vote.  It was the home of General Thomas Sumter.
Here are some of the resources:
Wikipedia Article
Claremont County
Stateburg Historic District
History of Stateburg
National Register Listing
South Carolina Encyclopedia
Church of the Holy Cross
High Hills Baptist Church
Battle of Stateburg Historical Marker

Proctor, North Carolina

The town of Proctor was a logging town located on the north shore of Lake Fontana.  When the lake was flooded, access was cut off to the town site, and specifically to the 34+ cemeteries located on the northern shore of the lake.  A road to the cemeteries was promised, but never completed.  Now, a "Road to Nowhere" ends 10 miles short of its destination.
These are some of the resources used in this episode:
Wikipedia article
Atlas Obscura
Proctor Slide Show (with great photos of the old town.)
WLOS Article from 2023
The Ghost Towns of Hazel Creek
Proctor Cemetery
Road to Nowhere
Clementine Cove
Granville Calhoun Obituary
Interview with Delia Woodard Watkins
Interview with Claude M. Douthit
Interview with Christine Cole Proctor

Judson, North Carolina

When the Fontana Dam was completed in 1944, the newly created lake inundated several communities in Western North Carolina, including the towns of Judson and Almond.  This week we take a look at Judson, on the southern side of Lake Fontana.
Here are some of the resources used in this episode;
Remembering Judson
A Visit to the Judson of 1943
Following Wagon Trails - 1890s Almond
Christopher Columbus Bryson
Interview with Edna and Try Whiteside
Oral Histories of Western North Carolina

Madison, South Carolina

Fort Madison, Old Madison, and New Madison were located on the Tugaloo River in the western part of Oconee County.  Here are some of the links I used in this episode:
Incorporation of Madison
Tugaloo Corridor
Tugaloo Town
Trip to Long Nose Falls