Blank
Historic Property
Alternate Name:
Fort Moore - Savano Town
Street Address:
On E. bank of the Savannah River or bluff 100 yards E. of SC 28 bridge, Beech Island (Vicinity), SC
Site Number:
S108042001100173
Site Number:
(38AK4 and 38AK5) 2-AuEQ-1
Date Surveyed:
1973
Category:
Site
Current Use:
Landscape
Signficant Architectural Features:
Site is presently being used as a clay borrow pit, resulting in the destruction of nearly 1/2 of the site. The portion of the site remaining on the Gaines property is in grass and has not been cultivated in recent years. SC 28 passes through the center of the site. Little is known of the original appearance of the Fort Moore-Savano Town. Prior to 1716, it is known that there were one or more traders or factories in the town. Archeological excavations have exposed of a factory in use from ca. 1710 to the late 1740's. This factory consisted of a square or rectangular palisaded enclosure, 105' on a side, surrounding a number of timber and clay structures situated parallel to the walls. A description of Fort Moore was written in 1763 by George Johnston, shortly before it was abandoned: "...on a beautiful and commanding Situation, is another Fort, named Fortmore, about one Hundred and fifty Miles West from Charles-town; it is built of six-inch Plank nailed to Posts of light Wood, with four Towers or Bastions on the Angles, on which are small Cannon mounted; on the Inside is a Banquet, with loop-holes in the Courtines for small-arms; it has neither Ditch nor Glacis, but very good Barracks for one Hundred Men." The remains of this fort have not been as yet identified, but more extensive archeological work in the undisturbed portions of the site may disclose them. OUTBUILDINGS:
Alterations:
altered
Historical Information:
The site of Fort Moore-Savano Town was strategic in the relations between the govt, of the Colony of SC and a number of powerful Indian groups located along and west of the Savannah River. Indian groups associated with Fort Moore-Savano Town include the Savano, Creek, Yuchi, Cherokee, and Chicasaw. The construction of Fort Moore at Savano Town was a step toward the attempted monopoly of the southern skin trade and the control of Indian groups in the interior. Fort Moore served as a military deterrent even though no battles took place. The settlement of Augusta on the west side of the Savannah River marked the end of Fort Moore as a controlling factor in the skin trade and the fort was abandoned by late 1763.
Source of Historical Information:
National Register nomination prepared in 1972.
Archives Location:
Box 11, Series 108042, Survey of historic resources (county by county data on surface properties), circa 1971-2014
