Oconee Station State Historic Site

In the late 18th and early 19th century, a small plot of land along South Carolina’s western frontier served as a military compound against attack from the Cherokees and later a trading post.

Today, that plot of land is Oconee Station State Historic Site.

The park just off S.C. 11 (Cherokee Foothills National Scenic Highway) contains two structures: Oconee Station, a stone blockhouse used as an outpost by the U.S. military from about 1792 to 1799, and the William Richards House, named for the Irish immigrant who built it as a trading post in 1805.

Beyond the park’s historic significance, there’s a fishing pond and 1.5-mile nature trail, the latter connecting to a half-mile trail that leads into Sumter National Forest and ends at Station Cove Falls, a 60-foot waterfall that’s considered one of the prettiest in the state.

Walk the trails during the spring wildflower show or as the leaves turn in the fall for a particularly visual treat.