Two special events related to Redcliffe Plantation State Historic Site are scheduled for Oct. 20.
The regularly scheduled tours at 1, 2 and 3 p.m. that day will have a different twist, according to park interpreter Elizabeth Laney.
"We'll highlight the strange characters and unusual circumstances" associated with the house, she said.
At 4:15 p.m., the focus will turn from the house to the Hammond Family Cemetery, also known as the Beech Island Cemetery, for another event, Beyond the Gravestone.
"We'll be discussing interesting things such as the history of the cemetery," she said.
Gov. James Henry Hammond, who built Redcliffe, is among those buried at the cemetery.
Also buried there is a woman named Geraldine, who came to Beech Island with her husband. She died unexpectedly, and her husband abandoned her body. The Hammonds allowed her to be buried in the family cemetery.
Ms. Laney will discuss alternative ways to preserve the history told in headstones. For many years, people have made rubbings of gravestones, but that can lead to further deterioration
The symbolism involved in the images on gravestones also will be discussed.
Some graves will not be part of the tour.
The Hammond family's slaves were buried on Silver Bluff Plantation, not in the family cemetery. Ms. Laney said she did not know the exact location of the slave burial grounds.
"We'll talk about what slave cemeteries looked like. There was a different belief and value system, and we'll talk a little about that," she said.
Ms. Laney said she had to get special permission from the Hammond family to conduct the cemetery program.
House tours are $4 for adults, $3 for children ages 6 to 16 and $2.50 for South Carolina senior citizens. The Beyond the Gravestone tour is $5 per person and is recommended for those 15 and older. Reservations must be made to attend the cemetery program. The deadline is Oct. 19. Directions to the cemetery will be provided.
For more information, call (803) 827-1473.
Reach Charmain Z. Brackett at czbrackett@hotmail.com.
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