A native of England, Joseph Kershaw came to South Carolina about 1755 and had moved to Camden (then called Pine Tree Hill) by 1758, where he established a store.
As a member of the colonial legislator, Kershaw promoted Camden's development and secured its town charter in 1769. He introduced wheat cultivation to the area, making Camden an important commercial center.At the outbreak of the Revolution, Kershaw secured the Catawba Indians' allegiance to the Americans. He held the rank f colonel in the American militia when the British occupied South Carolina in 1780. Fearing his influence, British officials exiled him to Bermuda and later to British Honduras.
Kershw returned to Camden after the war and, although he had been financially ruined, worked to help the town recover from vast wartime damage.
"He (Kershaw) was a violent man, and was said to have persecuted the Loyalists."
Lord Conwallis
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