One of the more interesting places in Camden is the Town’s Quaker Cemetery. Located on Meeting Street, a short distance from the Historic Camden Revolutionary War Site, the cemetery is a quiet, shady oasis as well as the final resting place for several interesting and historic figures.

The cemetery was founded in 1759 and originally was about 4 acres. A Quaker Meeting House also was on the property. It is no longer standing. Now comprising about 50 acres, it also incorporates the adjacent Old Presbyterian Cemetery which is the site of the Camden Revolutionary War Park which contains memorials from the State of Delaware and Maryland in memory of troops from those states who were killed at the Battles of Camden and Hobkirk’s Hill.

Among the notables buried at the Quaker Cemetery include:

• Dr. George Rogers Clark Todd (1825-1900) who was a doctor in the Confederate Army as well as Abraham Lincoln’s brother-in-law.

• Gen. Joseph Kershaw, (1822-1894), a General in the Confederate Army as well as a descendant of one of the original families in the area, also a native of Camden.

• Sgt. Richard Kirkland(1843-1863): the so-called “Angel of Marye’s Heights” who brought water to dying Union troops at the Battle of Fredericksburg.

Kirkland is buried in a section of the cemetery known as “Little Arlington.” This section also contains the graves of three Medal of Honor Winners. There is also a section for unknown Confederate Veterans.

Admission to the cemetery is free. There is a brochure available at the cemetery entrance which points out the location of historic burial sites as well as the location of the original Quaker meeting house.

Camden is about a 30-45 minute drive from Columbia. Proceed east on I-20 to Exit 98. Turn left off the ramp toward downtown Camden. Turn left on Meeting Street which is just beyond the Historic Camden Revolutionary War Site. The street ends at the cemetery gate.

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July 14, 2010 | Columbia Examiner (SC)
Author/Byline: Douglas Steimle | Section: Columbia History Examiner