Spring Gully near Andrews in Williamsburg County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Chubby Checker Home
Photographed by J. J. Prats, March 25, 2025
1. Chubby Checker Home Marker, Side One
On Oct. 3. 1941, Ernest Evans, later known by his stage name, Chubby Checker, was born to Raymond and Eartle (Scott) Evans in a small house at 1040 Steadfast Rd., approx. 1 mi. SW. In 1947, the family bought the nearby lot at 976 Steadfast Rd., where they likely then built the white shotgun house that still stands. They lived there until moving to Philadelphia, Pa., around 1948.
The descendant of African American farmers, Evans later recalled joining his family doing agricultural work while living here in Spring Gully. His decades-long singing career as Chubby Checker began in the late 1950s. His 1960 cover of The Twist, originally by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, became one of the best-selling singles of all time and a classic of American popular music.
Erected 2020 by South Carolina Department of Archives and History; sponsored by Williamsburg County Council. (Marker Number 45-23.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Arts, Letters, Music • Entertainment. A significant historical year for this entry is 1941.
Location. 33° 31.098′ N, 79° 39.762′ W.
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Regionally, this marker is in South Carolina’s Pee Dee. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Deep South. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 11 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Williamsburg High School (approx. 3.9 miles away); Mt. Zion A.M.E. Church (approx. 4 miles away); Georgetown County National Guard Memorial (approx. 7.1 miles away); Early Settlers / Potatoe Ferry (approx. 7.2 miles away); Suttons Methodist Church
Photographed by J. J. Prats, March 25, 2025
2. Chubby Checker Home Marker, Side Two
Also see . . . Williamsburg County unveils marker to honor birthplace of singer Chubby Checker. 2022 article by Ann McGill on Live5News.com. Excerpt:
In 1959, Rock and Roll was changing American popular culture. Music inspired by white and Black spirituals and the jazz and blues legacy of Black performers of the 1920s, 30s, 40s and 50s had captured the nations youth and was increasingly dominant on radio, television and film. Despite its origins largely with Black performers, the stars were almost all white. Elvis Pressley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Buddy Holly, Bo Didley, Bill Haley and others were the faces of the new, revolutionary music. Only a few Black performers like Chuck Berry and Little Richard were prominent.(Submitted on April 8, 2025.)
All of that changed in 1959 when an unknown native of the Spring Gulley community of Williamsburg County, Ernest Evans, was tapped to do a remake of The Twist, a number originallyperformed by another Black performer, Hank Ballard. Evans took the stage name, Chubby Checker, and he took the country down an entirely new path with his version of the song and the dance he introduced. Rock and Roll was never the same and Black performers were no longer relegated to the back of the Rock and Roll bus.Photographed by J. J. Prats, March 25, 20253. Chubby Checker Home Marker
Photographed by J. J. Prats, March 25, 2025
4. The Former Chubby Checker Home on Steadfast Road
Credits. This page was last revised on May 25, 2026. It was originally submitted on April 8, 2025, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 677 times since then and 137 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on April 8, 2025, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.
