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Official Website
Kershaw County was named for Col. Joseph Kershaw (1727–1791), an early settler considered as "the father of Camden". Originally part of Camden District, Kershaw County was formed in 1791.
During the American Revolutionary War, the British occupied Camden from June 1780 to May 1781. Fourteen battles took place in the area, including the Battle of Camden in 1780 and the Battle of Hobkirk's Hill in 1781.
Several notable soldiers have come from Kershaw County. After the state seceded from the Union, six men served in the American Civil War as Confederate generals: James Cantey (1818–1873), James Chesnut (1815–1885), Zachariah C. Deas (1819–1882), John Doby Kennedy (1840–1896), Joseph Brevard Kershaw (1822–1894), and John Bordenave Villepigue (1830–1862). Richard Rowland Kirkland, a Confederate soldier and hero at the Battle of Fredericksburg, was also from Kershaw County. He served under General Kershaw. In the last months of the war, Union troops under Gen. William T. Sherman burned parts of Camden in February 1865, in their March to the Sea.
Adjacent Counties
- Fairfield County
- Lancaster County
- Richland County
- Chesterfield County
- Darlington County
- Lee County
- Sumter County
Cities, Towns & Communities
- Antioch
- Bethune
- Boykin
- Buffalo
- Camden (County Seat)
- Cassatt
- DeKalb
- Elgin
- Liberty Hill
- Lugoff
- Mt. Pisgah
- Westville
Cemeteries
Links
National Register of Historic Places
Kershaw County Historical Society
