Indiantown in Williamsburg County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Indiantown Presbyterian Church: “Disarm in the Most Rigid Manner”
Photographed by Anna Inbody, March 18, 2012
1. Indiantown Presbyterian Church: “Disarm in the Most Rigid Manner” Marker
After Francis Marion’s initial victories in August and early September 1780, British military authorities in South Carolina moved to eliminate the threat of an insurgency in Williamsburg District. Lord Cornwallis ordered Maj. James Wemyss to sweep through the area with a large force of British regulars and Loyalist militiamen and “disarm in the most rigid manner, all Persons who cannot be depended on” to support the King. Faced with a much larger force on his trail, Col. Marion had little choice but to retreat into the swamps of eastern North Carolina, but his decision left Williamsburg undefended.
On September 20, Maj. Wemyss reported to Cornwallis that he had “burnt and laid waste about 50 houses and Plantations, mostly belonging to People who … are now in arms against us.”
According to local lore, Weymss also ordered the burning of Indiantown Presbyterian Church, calling it a “sedition shop.” Founded in 1757 and the heart of community identity for the rebellious Ulster Scots (or “Scots-Irish”) families of the area, it probably was a center of Whig activity in Williamsburg. The church, a simple log structure on the site of the present building, was rebuilt after the Revolutionary War and again in 1830.
Erected 2012 by Francis Marion Trail Commission of Francis Marion
this page online
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Colonial Era • Religion & Religious Structures • War, US Revolutionary. In addition, it is included in the Francis Marion Trail series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1780.
Location. 33° 43.508′ N, 79° 33.718′ W. Marker is in Indiantown, South Carolina, in Williamsburg County. It is on Hemingway Hwy (State Highway 261/512), on the left when traveling west. In the yard of the Indiantown Presbyterian Church. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 4865 Hemingway Hwy, Hemingway SC 29554, United States of America. Touch for directions.
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 the North Atlantic Region, 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: Indiantown Presbyterian Church (within shouting distance of this marker); Mt. Seal Methodist Church (approx. 0.6 miles away); Benjamin Britton Chandler (1854–1925) (approx. 5.7 miles away); Cooper's Academy / Bethesda Methodist Church (approx. 6.9 miles away); Browntown (approx. 8.4 miles away); Ebenezer United Methodist Church (approx. 9.4 miles away); Witherspoon’s Ferry / Johnsonville (approx. 10.1 miles away); Francis Marion at Witherspoon's Ferry (approx. 10.2 miles away).
Photographed by Anna Inbody, March 18, 2012
2. Overview
Photographed by Anna Inbody, March 18, 2012
3. Present Day Indiantown Presbyterian Church
Credits. This page was last revised on May 25, 2026. It was originally submitted on March 25, 2012, by Anna Inbody of Columbia, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 2,048 times since then and 86 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on March 25, 2012, by Anna Inbody of Columbia, South Carolina. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
