More Revolutionary War battles and skirmishes were fought in South Carolina than any other state, including major engagements at Sullivan's Island, Camden, Kings Mountain, and Cowpens. Its merchants and planters formed a strong governing class, contributing many leaders to the fight for independence. The interior or upcountry, meanwhile, was being slowly settled by small farmers and traders, who pushed the dwindling tribes of Native Americans to the west.īy the time of the American Revolution, South Carolina was one of the richest colonies in America. The port city of Charleston became an important center of commerce and culture. African slaves were brought into the colony in large numbers to provide labor for the plantations, and by 1720 they formed the majority of the population. Settlers from the British Isles, France, and other parts of Europe built plantations throughout the coastal lowcountry, growing profitable crops of rice and indigo.
The colony, named Carolina after King Charles I, was divided in 1710 into South Carolina and North Carolina. The first European attempts at settlement failed, but in 1670 a permanent English settlement was established on the coast near present day Charleston. When Spanish and French explorers arrived in the area in the 16th century, they found a land inhabited by many small tribes of Native Americans, the largest of which were the Cherokees and the Catawbas. One of the thirteen original colonies, South Carolina has had a rich and varied history.
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