Camden in Kershaw County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Prisoners of War
Photographed By Anna Inbody, October 2, 2011
1. Prisoners of War Marker
Inscription.
Prisoners of War. . Captured Americans were confined in Camden throughout the British occupation. When the American army approached the town in August 1780, British troops locked the town’s patriot leaders in the jail (located on the southeast corner of Broad and King Streets) as a precaution against revolt. After the Battle of Camden, hundreds of captured American soldiers were brought to town and confined in wooden pens. Most were later sent to Charleston. , Constant fighting in the backcountry brought a steady stream of captives to Camden’s jail. Many were exchanged for British soldiers who had been captured by the Americans. A few who had broken their oath of allegiance to Britain were hanged for treason. Teenaged Andrew Jackson, future President of the United States, was a prisoner in Camden in 1781. , “It was an inclosure like those for cows or pigs, and within, sitting or stretched on the bare earth, with no protection from the sun, were hundreds of unhappy prisoners.” Mrs. Thomas McCalla, wife of an American prisoner, September 1780
Captured Americans were confined in Camden throughout the British occupation. When the American army approached the town in August 1780, British troops locked the town’s patriot leaders in the jail (located on the southeast corner of Broad and King Streets) as a precaution against revolt. After the Battle of Camden, hundreds of captured American soldiers were brought to town and confined in wooden pens. Most were later sent to Charleston.
Constant fighting in the backcountry brought a steady stream of captives to Camden’s jail. Many were exchanged for British soldiers who had been captured by the Americans. A few who had broken their oath of allegiance to Britain were hanged for treason. Teenaged Andrew Jackson, future President of the United States, was a prisoner in Camden in 1781.
“It was an inclosure like those for cows or pigs, and within, sitting or stretched on the bare earth, with no protection from the sun, were hundreds of unhappy prisoners.” Mrs. Thomas McCalla, wife of an American prisoner, September 1780
36.105′ W. Marker is in Camden, South Carolina, in Kershaw County. Marker can be reached from Broad Street. The marker is located in the Historic Camden Revolutionary Battle Site. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Camden SC 29020, United States of America. Touch for directions.
The British housed some American prisoners in Charleston’s Exchange Building. One of the captives confined there, Colonel Isaac Hayne of the South Carolina militia, had taken an oath of allegiance to Britain. However, as the South Carolina Royal Gazette reported, he was later captured “in arms … at the Head of a Rebel Regiment.” He was tried by military tribunal and hanged “as a Traitor” on August 4, 1781.
Exchange Building, Charles Town, 1780. Courtesy of South Carolina Historical Society.
Credits. This page was last revised on November 8, 2017. It was originally submitted on November 3, 2011, by Anna Inbody of Columbia, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 770 times since then and 55 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on November 3, 2011, by Anna Inbody of Columbia, South Carolina. 3, 4. submitted on November 7, 2017, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. 5. submitted on November 3, 2011, by Anna Inbody of Columbia, South Carolina. • Craig Swain was the editor who published this page.