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Confederate Headquarters & Ammunition Depot

Adam's Run, SC

Adams Run was established as a summer village in the 1830’s for St. Paul’s Parish planters. The village was owned by three families (Wilkinson, Clements, and Barnwell) and village lots were rented for $15 per month. William Wilkinson was the first to build his summer home, which still stands today.

 

When Robert E. Lee assumed command of the Confederate forces in South Carolina in November 1861, he divided the South Carolina coast into six military districts, each with its own commander.  Brigadier General Nathan George “Shanks” Evans was the commander of the Third Military District, headquartered in Adams Run. Evans chose the Adams Run summer residence of William Wilkinson to establish his headquarters and suggested that his wife Victoria join him there.

 

Several thousand troops arrived in Adams Run for training and constructing defenses. The Stono Scouts (John’s Islanders) and the Rebel Troop (Edisto Islanders) were headquartered in Adams Run, though they served as pickets on John’s, Wadmalaw, and Edisto Islands. In Adams Run, they served as guides and couriers for the commanding general’s staff.

 

In May 1862, Evan’s command at Adams Run was renamed the Second Military District.  Later in July, Evans was ordered to a new command in Virginia and Colonel Johnson Hagood, a regimental commander on James Island, was

promoted to general and placed in command of the Second Military District in Adams Run.  Hagood continued to use the Wilkinson property as his headquarters. In November 1863, Hagood was transferred and replaced by Brigadier General Beverly H. Robertson for a short tenure.

 

In December 1863, the districts were reorganized once again and Brigadier General Henry A. Wise of Virginia was placed in command of the newly established Sixth Military District headquartered at Adams Run. In May 1864, Wise was ordered to return to Virginia and Robertson was re-established as commander, a position he held until the end of the war.

 

On February 16, 1865, all Confederate forces in South Carolina were ordered to evacuate their positions and to retreat to North Carolina. Adams Run was evacuated the same day and the village was under Federal control on February 17, 1865.

 

Since the war, the property has been owned by only two families until it was purchased by the South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust. The property was purchased with funds provided by a grant from the South Carolina Conservation Bank.