Anthony Hampton

Title

Anthony Hampton

Description

A pioneer farmer best known for suffering from a Native American attack near Greer, SC

birthday

February 5, 1750

Birthplace

New Kent County, VA

Death Date

July 30, 1776

Occupation

Farmer

Biographical Text

Anthony Hampton was the second-eldest of the twelve children of John Hampton and Margaret Wade. He was one of the first Virginians to move to upper South Carolina, where he owned a farm. He married Anne Elizabeth Preston on March 10, 1741, and they had at least six children; the most famous of these, Wade Hampton, became a legendary general and war hero of the American Revolution in upper South Carolina.

Anthony Hampton is perhaps best known for his involvement in the Hampton Massacre on July 30, 1776, when a group of Cherokee who had previously attacked nearby colonist families entered his farm and murdered him alongside several family members. According to Johnson’s Traditions, some of the Cherokee who approached them were familiar to the family, leading the Hamptons to believe the visit to be friendly. As Anthony was greeting them in good faith, one of the Cherokee shot his son Preston Hampton, and soon afterward Anthony and his wife were also tomahawked. Some of his family was absent at the time and so escaped, including his son Wade Hampton, but likely at least five family members were killed. The survivors of the massacre are believed to have fled to Wood’s Fort for safety. This incident was not yet finished, however, and it led to a strong reprisal as the South Carolina militia, commanded by Anthony's son Henry Hampton, passed through Cherokee territory, burning and destroying property and increasing the already severe tension between the South Carolina government and the Cherokee.

Bibliography

News Clippings on Hampton Massacre

Anthony Hampton Family Tree

News Article "Greer Man Looks for Massacred Family's Grave"

Spartanburg-Revolutionary War Trail Tour

Colonial and Revolutionary History of Upper South Carolina by J. B. O. Landrum

History of Greenville County, South Carolina, Narrative and Biographical by James M. Richardson, 1930

Johnson’s Traditions and References

Logan, J. H. A History of the Upper Country of South Carolina. Volumes 1 & 2, Reprint Co.: Spartanburg, SC, 2009.

Relation

Maj. Joseph McJunkin

Wood's Fort