Monday, September 12, 2011

Colonial Dorchester

One Sunday in July Donna and I headed down toward Charleston to visit the site of Dorchester, a town that flourished from 1697 through the Revolutionary War. It was comprised of 116 lots, a school, a church, and a fort. Today the bell tower from the church, the fort, and several gravestones provide a glimpse into the long-abandoned community's existence.

The British burned the church and many of the houses during their occupation of the area in 1780. All that remains now is the church's bell tower, built in 1751.












A grave from 1790.


The grave of James Postell, who died in 1773; the British, during their occupation of the area, used his grave marker as a chopping block for the camp's meat; you can see the hatch marks covering it.


It rained off and on during our visit, which was actually nice. It brought the temperature down a good deal, gave us the area to ourselves, and made for a nice ambiance.




The fort, made of tabby, which is a mixture of lime, water, sand, ash, and oyster shells; it was used throughout the coastal southeast from the 1500's to the 1850's. It's remarkable how well the fort has held up over all these years!










A couple of flora shots.






This was a very cool place to visit and was just a small fee of $2, so I highly recommend checking it out!