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Following exploration of the coast in 1521
by Francisco de Gordillo, the Spanish tried unsuccessfully
to establish a colony near present-day Georgetown in 1526
and the French also failed to colonize Parris Island near
Fort Royal in 1562.
The first English settlement was made in 1670 at Albemarle
Point on the Ashley River, but poor conditions drove the
settlers to the site of Charleston (originally called
Charles Town). South Carolina, officially separated from
North Carolina in 1729, was the scene of extensive military
action during the Revolution and again during the Civil War.
The Civil War began in 1861 as South Carolina troops fired
on federal Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor and the state
was the first to secede from the Union.
Once primarily agricultural, South Carolina today has many
large textile and other mills that produce eight times the
output of its farms in cash value. Charleston makes
asbestos, wood, pulp, steel products, chemicals, machinery,
and apparel.
Farms have become fewer but larger in recent years. South
Carolina grows more peaches than any other state except
California; it ranks fifth in overall tobacco production.
Other farm products include cotton, peanuts, sweet potatoes,
soybeans, corn, and oats. Poultry and dairy products are
also important.
Points of interest include Fort Sumter National Monument,
Fort Moultrie, Fort Johnson, and aircraft carrier USS
Yorktown in Charleston Harbor; the Middleton, Magnolia, and
Cypress Gardens in Charleston; Cowpens National Battlefield;
the Hilton Head resorts; and the Riverbanks 200 and
Botanical Garden in Columbia. |
