South Carolina Department of Archives and History
National Register Properties in South Carolina

Stono River Slave Rebellion Site, Charleston County (off U.S. Hwy. 17, Rantowles vicinity)
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One of the most serious slave insurrections which occurred during the colonial period took place about twenty miles southwest of Charleston in Stono, September 9-10, 1739. A number of conditions existed in South Carolina during the 1730s which were conducive to a slave revolt: large numbers of slaves fresh from Africa had been imported into the province; these first and second generation Africans retained a large measure of their culture; the blacks vastly outnumbered the white population; the military threat posed by the Spanish in Florida and the constant intrigue on their part to lure slaves into Spanish territory; the accessibility of weapons; and above all, the institution of slavery itself. Approximately eighty slaves participated in the Stono rebellion which brought destruction to several plantations in the area. The rebellion was led by a man named Jemmy who was an Angolan slave. It was at this location that slaves under his leadership attacked the Hutchinson warehouse located near the river. After killing the two guards and seizing the arms within they proceeded towards Savannah and hoped for freedom. Listed in the National Register May 30, 1974; Designated a National Historic Landmark May 30, 1974.

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