Encounter at Halfway Swamp/Site of Original St. Mark’s Church

On December 12, 1780, according to tradition, British Maj. Robert McLeroth was surprised near here by Gen. Francis Marion. The British first agreed to a staged combat with twenty men on each side, but slipped away during the night, escaping an all-out battle. Credence is given to the event by the skirmish on December 13th at Singleton’s Mill, 10 miles north.

The first church of St. Mark’s Parish, established in 1757 by commissioners Isaac Brunson, John, Joseph, and William Cantey, James McGirt, Mathew Nelson, and Richard Richardson, stood nearby at Halfway Swamp. Burned by the British during the Revolution, it was rebuilt four times and now stands near Pinewood.