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If the hallowed grounds of the Old Churchyard cemetery at the Parish Church of St. Helena (Episcopal) could talk, they would tell the long, storied history of not only the church but of Beaufort itself.
Parish Church of St. Helena (Episcopal) continues restoration efforts 284-year-old cemetery
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In the 1987 publication, "Old Churchyard: St. Helena's Episcopal Church," Lawrence Rowland, associate professor of history at the University of South Carolina Beaufort, called the cemetery "one of the most historic graveyards in America."
Bob Barrett, the church's archivist and member, and chair of the Old Churchyard Committee, couldn't agree more. The cemetery was founded in 1724 -- 12 years after the church's founding and 13 after Beaufort was founded.
"We have nearly 60 Confederate soldiers buried in the churchyard," said Barrett. "That makes it one of the largest private burial grounds for Confederate soldiers. We also have military figures throughout history. This is a history of not only (the Parish Church) but also of Beaufort and the Lowcountry. It's important to the United States as a whole."
The Parish Church of St. Helena (Episcopal) has undertaken efforts to restore and preserve the Old Churchyard since 2004, when the church's Vestry called on St. Helena's Cemetery Corporation to form a churchyard committee for the purpose of developing and implementing a preservation plan.
The committee eventually commissioned the Center for Historic Cemeteries Preservation in Raleigh, N.C., in partnership with Stone Faces and Sacred Places in Mineral Point, Wis., to evaluate all grave sites and prepare a preservation plan to guide the restoration and preservation process.
Beginning in 1724 with the burial of Col. John Barnwell, aka "Tuscarora Jack," the Old Churchyard serves as the final resting place of parishioners who served the church, the British Empire, the Confederacy and the United States of America.
The May 2008 burials of Susan C. Hardy, wife of the late John W. Hardy, and the Rev. Jim Law, a "beloved member" of the church's clergy, were the most recent commitals in the churchyard.
"We've also (been working with) the American College of the Building Arts in Charleston," said Barrett. "They're trying to restore the old European building arts to America. It's really a great resource for the Lowcountry. Our first priority was restoration of the tabby and brick structures. That's almost complete."
The tabby restoration included the rare tabby box tomb of the Rev. William Eastwick Graham, a former Rector of the church who died in 1800. Church parishioners, as well as people from the Cemetery Corporation and the Old Churchyard Committee, have helped to remove weeds, overgrowth, debris and brush.
"In early October, the youth of our church helped us spread dirt fill as we were leveling out the plots," said Barrett. "That was very helpful. In the future, we have plans to document the plant materials in the church yard."
The Vestry approved a master churchyard preservation plan in September 2007, which prioritizes restoration work over a 10-year period. A copy of the churchyard preservation plan is available for review in the church office.
Barrett said that metal and ironwork will be completed in the latter years of the project, and in the coming years, a new ministry will be created to provide parishioners opportunities to assist in the churchyard's ongoing restoration and preservation. Earnings from the Preservation Trust for Historic St. Helena Church's endowment fund are assisting the Vestry in funding the project.
"We would have a difficult time doing this without their support," said Barrett of the Preservation Trust. "It's been critical."
Barrett added that future restoration plans include trying to replace several inscriptions on tombstones that have worn off over the centuries.
"In 1930, all of the inscriptions were published through the South Carolina Historical Society, so we're going to go back and compare," he said. "We might be able to recapture some of the information that's been lost since that time. We come from such a rich history. The church was founded shortly after the town itself, and it was also founded by members who founded the town, so the town and the church are interlocked."
CEMETARY TIMELINE (1712-1867)
1712 - The Commons House of Assembly, under the Lord Proprietors of Carolina, establish the Parish Church of St. Helena as a colonial parish of the Church of England.
1724 - The earliest known burial in the Old Churchyard cemetery, Col. John Barnwell, better known as "Tuscarora Jack" because of his role in the battle against the Tuscarora Indian tribe in the Tuscarora War.
1769 - The church is enlarged.
1804 - A brick wall is constructed to enclose the cemetery.
1861 - The entire congregation flees during the Union occupation of Beaufort. Federal troops convert the church into a hospital.
1867 - Services are held in the church again on the Sunday after Easter.
1874 - A new roof is installed on the church, with one-half of the expenses paid by friends of St. Peter's, Perth Amboy, N.J.
1896 - A hurricane destroys the east end of the church.
1941 - The present steeple is built, restoring one built in 1817 that had been removed in the 1860s.
1959 - The church is repaired
following Hurricane Gracie, which ripped off half of the roof.
1998 - The 286-year-old church, badly in need repair, begins major work on both ends of the building.
2000 - After 19 months, the church reopens on Palm Sunday.
2008 - Susan C. Hardy, wife of the late John W. Hardy, and the Rev. Jim Law, are laid to rest in the Old Churchyard.
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