Uncovering History
We invite you to visit the preserved locations along the Liberty Trail and to immerse
yourself in the extraordinary events that determined the fate of a nation.
The Battle of Sullivan’s Island, fought near the site of today’s Fort Moultrie in June 1776, was the first significant Patriot victory of the Revolutionary War.
In the final days of the Revolutionary War, Rockingham became General George Washington’s last wartime headquarters, where he penned his Farewell Orders to the Armies of the United States. As he prepared to step away from military command, news arrived that the Treaty of Paris had been signed, securing America’s independence.
When Jane Black Thomas overheard Loyalists plotting a surprise attack on her son's militia camp, she rode nearly 60 miles through dangerous territory to warn him. Her daring ride gave Colonel John Thomas Jr. and his Spartan Regiment time to prepare an ambush that repelled the attackers — fueling Patriot momentum toward the war-changing Battle of King's Mountain just three months later.
This park features the Lands Ford crossing, used during the Revolutionary War by both British and American troops under Cornwallis and Sumter before and after pivotal battles.
Now under the man-made Lake Marion, British Lieutenant Colonel John Watson and Patriot Brigadier General Francis Marion, the “Swamp Fox,” skirmished in Wyboo Swamp near Santee Road.
Francis Marion was a skilled military leader during the American Revolutionary War, known for his guerilla tactics and strategic maneuvers in the Southern Campaign. His contributions to the war effort and his enduring legacy as a symbol of American resilience and military ingenuity remain today.
An architectural treasure in its own right, the South Carolina Historical Society Museum is housed in a National Historic Landmark building and features interactive exhibits on the people, places, and movements that shaped the state and nation.
A former British headquarters, explore the reconstructed Kershaw/Cornwallis House, British redoubts, and programs about colonial life.
In September 1780, Loyalist Colonel Tye captured Patriot captain Joshua Huddy after a fierce struggle. A Patriot ambush capsized their boat, allowing Huddy to escape while Tye suffered a wound that would prove fatal.
One of the final battles of the Southern Campaign, the Battle of Guilford Courthouse cemented the British path to final defeat at the Battle of Yorktown.
An ingenious Patriot deception provokes a prominent Loyalist to surrender his outpost
Built in 1716 for Paul de St. Julien in Berkeley County. The house was later dismantled and moved to Clemson University and functions as a house museum.