History

Frontier History

Upstate South Carolina was once the homeland of thousands of Cherokee Indians. Williamston today would stand near the center of the Cherokee territory. Settlement of the area was a matter of time because of the plentiful water supply and compatible lands that would suit farming.
The Treaty of Dewitts Cornor was signed in 1777 and from the treaty the Indians abandoned the area. The South Carolina Legislature opened the area of Old Ninety-Six for settlement in 1784. In 1799, the remaining area of Indian Territory in Northern South Carolina, except one small strip of land, formed the Pendleton County. This area was known as the Washington District from 1791 to 1799. The area was again divided to form Anderson and Pickens County. The small strip of land in Pickens County that consisted of the last portion of Indian Territory was granted in 1784. The remaining Cherokee Indians once again ceded their land to the State.

A Town built around a Spring

Migration took way and the settlers came to take
stake from the land grants by the government.
There were not any bridges, roads, or town. The
area was thick with forest and the water sourceful.
The land was cultivated for farming and the trees were used for building.
Founded in 1788, the Big Creek Baptist church was created. This was the place where all of the surrounding families would travel to worship and to meet. These people would become part of Williamston's first settlers. From the East side of the Saluda River in Greenville County, a man named Samuel Williams resided.

Source-"A Town Springs Forth" by Gene Welborn - " Samuel Williams moved from the upper part of Union County, South Carolina to Greenville County just across the Saluda River from the Big Creek Baptist Church. He married his cousin, Mary Williams. Samuel became a sizable landowner in Greenville and Pendleton Districts. They had five children: Richard, Austin, Jane, Samuel Jr. and West Allen. West Allen Williams was born in 1804. He settled in the White Plains area of Anderson County and was the first postmaster at the White Plains Post Office in 1839. In the 1840s, he acquired land from his father on Big Creek in the area that is now Williamston and moved to the village........It was in the 1840s that Williams found the mineral spring." Several legends are told on the discovery on the Mineral Spring, which is mentioned in Gene Welborn's book, "A Town Springs Forth". The spring was believed to have medical properties. This brought travelers from all over to the mineral spring. The belief of it's healing virtues brought the needed visitors. People began building homes in the area. West Allen Williams had given the mineral spring and much of his land to the town. From this generosity the town was named in his honor, Williamston. "This water shall be free to all people forever" quote by West Allen Williams.

Williamston Chartered

In 1849, a proposed plan for the railroad that would travel from Greenville to Columbia would also cross Williams land would also bring opportunity for the Village to grow.
On September 3, 1850, 48 men signed a petition to the State Senate and House of Representatives to incorporate the Village of Williamston. Another attempt was made November 26, 1851 with 63 members signing. In the second petition, members included the village population as 275. The General Assembly of South Carolina chartered the town of Williamston in December 1852.

For more information on Williamston and its history below are some recommended books.

"Our History", Mrs. W.T. Lander-Mrs. Mary Lander Henderson
"A Town Springs Forth" The Story of Williamston, SC, By, Gene Welborn