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.