COLLETON MUSEUM

Rich in history from the Spanish explorers in the late 1500's to today's preservation of the pre-Revolutionary rice fields in the ACE Basin, Colleton County is a quiet reminder of an eloquent past. The Carolina territory was established in 1663 when the King of England granted land to eight English noblemen. This land grant stretched from ocean to ocean. The territory was divided into three counties as early as 1682, making Colleton one of the oldest counties in the country. Walterboro was established as a summer colony in 1784 in order for lowcountry plantation owners to escape the malaria epidemics during the hot and humid summer months.  Planters, living along the banks of the rivers and marshes of the lowcountry, produced rice, indigo, and later, cotton. Rice remained a major product of Colleton County's plantations until the early 1900's. The first homes in Walterboro were built by two brothers, Jacob and Paul Walter. A portrait of their mother hangs in the Colleton County Memorial Library as a tribute to the "Mother of Walterboro." By 1817, Walterboro was designated as the County seat and was incorporated in 1817.

The Colleton Museum features a permanent collection which explores the history of Colleton from prehistoric times to the early 1900's. The Museum also has an on-going exhibit on "Animals of the ACE," a natural history display featuring wild animals indigenous to the South Carolina Lowcountry.