"florence south carolina" Florence by doug48

florence is the county seat of florence south carolina. a settlement was established near modern day florence by the lords proprietors in 1719. in the 18 th and early 19 th centuries the area was inhabited by subsistance farmers who produced cotton, indigo, and timber. in the mid 19 th century the junction of the wilmington & manchester and the northeastern railroads were built in florence. general w.w. harlee the president of the wilmington & manchester named the town florence after his daughter. during the civil war florence was an important transportation hub for the confederacy. florence was also home to the florence stockade which was a large union prisoner of war camp. two famous residents of florence were henry timrod who was nicknamed "the poet laureate of the confederacy" and FBI agent melvin purvis who led manhunts for baby face nelson, pretty boy floyd, and john dillinger in the 1930's. for the tourist there really not much to see or do in florence unless you are a student of civil war history. sadly many businesses in downtown florence are closed due to our current recession. hopefully downtown florence will be revitalized in the future.