Park to be named after African American Revolutionary War soldier

The approximately 10-acre parcel located in the Eutaw Springs Battlefield Park will be named after Jim Capers, in what officials believe to be the first memorial park in the state and nation to be named after an African American. 

“That is a gem for Orangeburg County,” Chairman of the Orangeburg County 250 Commission Harold Donnelly told Orangeburg County Council Monday. “This guy was truly a hero,” “We are really happy to name this park after Jim Capers.”

The goal of the commission is to highlight South Carolina and Orangeburg County’s role in the Revolutionary War dating from 1770 until 1783, when the state was declared a free nation.

The park is about 75 percent complete and will include picnic tables and benches funded by Orangeburg County, said Donnelly. The park will be located on the southside of the battlefield on the original roadbed of the battle, said Donnelly.

Various other agencies will also help in the development of the park including the Eutaw Springs Battlefield Association, the South Carolina Battlefield Trust and the South Carolina Daughters of the American Revolution.

The central/existing 14-acre park is and will remain Eutaw Springs Battlefield Park, according to the American Battlefield Trust, a heritage land preservation organization.

The ABT says the proposed memorial to Capers has not received official recognition by the organization at the current time.

Donnelly said the Eutaw Springs Battleground is one of the most undeveloped Revolutionary War battle sites in the country, but there are efforts underway to change that. He said hopes are the park will one day be named a national park. 

Donnelly said the potential of Eutaw Springs as a national park is great.

He said Ninety Six Revolutionary War site in Greenwood, South Carolina brings in about $4.6 million a year into Greenwood County.

“Imagine that coming into Orangeburg County,” Donnelly said.

According to the ABT, Capers’ pension record indicates that he was born on September 23, 1742, on a plantation owned by Richard Capers located opposite Bull’s Island in South Carolina.

Richard Capers owned eight enslaved people, and, upon his death in 1763, his will identified Jim as one of his most valuable assets, according to the ABT.

Jim Capers was 33 years old when the American Revolution began, and he enlisted in the 4th South Carolina Regiment as a Drum Major in June 1775.

However, there is some question on whether he was free at the time of his enlistment.

As a Drum Major, the beat of Capers’ drum was used for communication at a time when officers had to give orders verbally.

Music could be heard over the din of battle and was essential for passing on orders to advance, withdraw, or change formation.

Music also regulated the daily life of soldiers in camp and in their garrison, from daybreak to sunset, and he was present for inspections, parades, and drills.

Capers saw action in five Revolutionary War battles.

In 1779, Capers and his unit served in the Siege of Savannah. Capers witnessed the fall of Charleston and the dark days that followed as the British overran much of South Carolina.

Rather than large battles, men like Capers became part of guerilla raids and smaller engagements.

Capers received four wounds at the 1781 battle of Eutaw Springs, including two saber cuts to his head and one to his face, and a shot that passed through his side, killing the drummer behind him, the ABT said.

Capers continued his service until the Revolutionary War’s end. He was discharged from the army in 1782, according to the ABT.

After the war, Jim returned to Sumter County.

In 1826, Capers married a woman named Milley, who was still enslaved at the time of their marriage.

By 1840, the couple moved to Pike County, Alabama, and had six children: Harriet, Eliza, Jim, Jenny, Harriet, and Charles.

Nine years later, in 1849, Capers filed for a pension for his service in the American Revolution.

His pension records indicate that Capers lived on a plantation owned by Norman McLeod in Pike County, Alabama, where Milley was enslaved.

Eventually, Capers was approved to receive an $8.00 a month pension but was not able to receive his pension before his death in 1853.

In 2015, his grave was marked by the Alabama Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, the ABT said.

Related to the Eutaw Springs battle site, a cleanup of the park was held October 24 as Keep America Beautiful kicked off South Carolina’s participation in the Greatest American Cleanup.

S.C. Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and the President and CEO of Keep America Beautiful Jennifer Lawson were both in attendance.

Nationally, the goal of the cleanup effort is to remove 25 billion pieces of rubbish in 25,000 communities between now and July 4, 2026.