Gold
Today, we do not usually think of
South Carolina with the term “gold rush”. However, the
first gold rush in the United States took place in the
southern portion of North Carolina. In 1799, a 12 year
old boy found a 17 pound, yellow, shiny rock in Cabarrus
County, NC. His Dad not recognizing it for what it was
took it to a merchant in a nearby town who gave
him $3.50 for it. It was gold and word about this
discovery and others in the area eventually led to the
“Carolina Gold Rush”. This rush was much slower to
develop than the much later California Gold rush in
1849. It did not reach its peak until around 1830 and
after.
As might be expected, the interest in gold led to
searching in South Carolina and the first gold was
discovered in the Greenville district in 1802. The
state's first recorded shipment of gold to the US mint
was from a Lancaster Mine in 1829.
The search for gold did not miss the Pacolet area.
Gold was indeed found here and was mined locally in
several places. The memory of this still remains in
place names such as Goldmine Road. Just north of Pacolet Station, this
road connects the old Spartanburg Highway (W. Main
Street) to the Clifton - Glendale Road (State Rd. 59)at
the bridge in Clifton. There was also a gold mining
operation near the Goucher
and Asbury communities. It was located near the place
where the old Green River Road
intersects the modern highway, SC 211, not too far
from Wagstop Plantation As late as the 1950’s,
pieces of mining equipment could still be seen here.
After the Civil War, Captain Charles B. Hammett
became a large land owner on the Pacolet River and in
Spartanburg County. He was also the owner of the
“Hammett Gold Mining Company”. The Hammett Grove Community
takes its name from him.
Around 1900, one Pacolet family had its own secret
gold mine. Read the story
at Secret Pacolet Gold Mine.
(Personal Note - My Dad was in the well drilling
business for many years in the Pacolet area. He
frequently found gold dust in the wells he drilled.)
This web site has
been started as a public service to share the story of
Pacolet.