French Huguenots to Charleston

Huguenot Church, Charleston, South Carolina, rebuilt ca 1740. Services have been held at this location since 1680 to the present day. On 30 April 1680 the ship Richmond from London dropped anchor at Oyster Point on the southern tip of the peninsula between the Ashley River and cooper Rivers. There were few settlers at a placed named Albemarle Point. Onboard were forty-five Huguenots, escaping from the religious persecution in France. In 1687 a church was built on the present southeast corner of Queen and Church Streets in Charleston, and later supported other refugees arriving from 1680 to about 1763. Every Sabbath morning Huguenots who had taken up settlement on the Cooper River came to church on the ebb tide. A very ancient cemetery adjoins the church, however, visitors are not allowed inside. However, plaques are installed on the walls inside the building, thus perserving the earliest records. The plaques have been photographed and are available to members ofSouth Carolina Pioneers - Names as follows -

Bacot, Barnett, Blake, Bochet, Caudebec, Cazemore, Cothonneau,
Delaplaine, DeSaussure, Des Marest, DuPont, Duvall, Ferree,Forney,
Gaillard,Gaillard,Gourdin,Guignard,Gummere,Harrower,Howard,Huger,
Hunt,Jenkins,Kopperl,L'Hommedieu,LaFar,Lamar,Lanier,Lespenard,
Macbeth,Mascarene,Mason,Matthews,Maupin,Maury,Mazyck,McDonald,
Meserole,Mercereau,Motte,Naudain,Palmer,Pegues,Pelot,Perrube,
Platt,Porcher,Quintard,Rapalye,Rembert,Remey,Robert,Ruttan,
Serre,Sevier,Steedman,Stoney,Thomas,Turquand,Vaill,Vedder,Wigfall