1650 – English Civil War, Foundations of Carolina.
Parliament passed an act which prohibited trade between England and Barbados. During the English Civil War Barbados became an asylum for Royalists seeking to avoid the conflict. After the execution of Charles I, Parliament sought to punish Barbados for remaining loyal to the King by restricting their trade. This eventually created an economic crisis on the small island.
Twenty years later, the Carolina colony became the “promised land” for many Barbadian merchants and planters.
1718 – Piracy
Half Moon Battery
Col. William Rhett triumphantly returned to Charles Town with two vessels which had been captured by the pirate Stede Bonnet, the Fortune and the Francis. Rhett delivered Bonnet and his men to the Provost Marshal of Carolina, Capt. Nathaniel Partridge, who placed them in the watch-house at the Half Moon battery to await trial.
Stede Bonnet remained in the custody of Capt. Partridge at the latter’s residence under armed guard. David Herriot and boatswain Ignatius Pell were also kept in Partridge’s residence, as they had agreed to give evidence for the Crown.
Stede Bonnet imprisoned in Charles Town.
1767
Henry Laurens confronted Gov. Daniel Moore and rebuked him over his behavior. When Moore responded with an insult Laurens grabbed him by the nose and twisted it before a crowd of people. Laurens and other Charlestown merchants filed several lawsuits against Moore charging him with illegal extortion of fees. Moore quickly sailed to London to present his case to the Royal authorities.
1769 – Backcountry
In a letter to Lord Hillsborough, Lt Gov. William Bull complained about those:
backcountry inhabitants who chose to live by the wandering indolence of hunting than by the more honest and domestic employment of planting … little more than white Indians.
1776
A grand jury in Charlestown recommended:
that Jews and others may be restrained from allowing their negroes to sell good in shops, as such practice may induce other negroes to steal and barter with them … a profanation of the Lord’s Day.
1793 – Slavery, Haitian Rebellion
The ship Maria, bearing refugees from Haiti, docked in the city’s harbor.
1833 – South Carolina Railroad
The Charleston & Hamburg Railroad began to run two passenger-only daily trains from Line Street to Ridge Road, located between Cypress Swamp and Four Hole Swamp. The first train left Charleston at 6:00 a.m. and returned at 9:00 a.m. The second train left at 1:00 p.m., returning at 3:00 p.m. For the first time, people could visit to Charleston and return home 30 miles away in one day.
Henry Laurens, was sentenced to the Tower of London for “suspicion of high treason.” His imprisonment was protested by the Americans. Laurens was captured by the British navy while acting as an envoy for the Continental Congress, negotiating treaties with European countries to support the American cause against the British. During his imprisonment, Laurens was assisted by Richard Oswald, his former business partner and the principal owner of Bunce Island. Oswald argued on Laurens’ behalf to the British government.
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