Editing Walterboro, South Carolina (section)

==History==
{{Moresources|section|date=February 2023}}
Walterboro (original spelling: Walterborough) was founded in 1783, as a summer retreat for local planters looking to escape their [[malaria]]-ridden, [[South Carolina Lowcountry|Lowcountry]] [[plantations in the American South|plantations]]. The original settlement was located on a hilly area, covered with [[pine]] and [[hickory]] trees and called Hickory Valley. Two of the earliest settlers were brothers, Paul and Jacob Walter. The brothers were prosperous, plantation owners, in nearby [[Jacksonboro, South Carolina|Jacksonboro]]. Paul's small daughter Mary, was taken ill with malaria; a common disease among the families who had plantations in the [[Marsh|marshy areas]] of the Lowcountry, due to the ground's suitability for rice production. To prevent Mary from succumbing to the deadly microbe, the Walter brothers went looking for a healthier location in which to live during the summer months, and came to settle the town; with its later being named in their honor.

In 1817, Walterboro was designated as the third [[county seat]] of Colleton County, and has remained such through present-day. This designation was followed by, the construction of a [[Colleton County Courthouse|county courthouse]] and [[Prison|county jail]] in 1821. The courthouse was designed by well-known architect [[Robert Mills (architect)|Robert Mills]]. 

The town quickly spread from the original Hickory Valley location, after its population experienced a significant increase; this being fueled successively by, the town becoming the county seat in 1821, and the establishment of a [[South Carolina Canal and Railroad Company|railroad line]] that connected the city with [[Columbia, South Carolina|Columbia]] and Charleston in the 1880s.

In 1832, the Irish Catholic community in rural southern Waltersboro (at one point termed Thompson's Crossroads) established a parish called [[St. James the Greater Catholic Mission|St. James the Greater Catholic Church]], dedicated by Bishop [[John England (bishop)|John England]]. The community later was known as Catholic Hill. After the church was burned down in 1856, and the [[Emancipation Proclamation|emancipation of the slaves]] roughly a decade later, the White community largely left the area. The [[Black Catholicism|Black Catholic]] community maintained their religion for decades without a priest, before a new church was built for them in the 1890s. They became notable in the media in the 21st century, and a documentary on the community was released in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Documentary features Catholic Hill|url=https://walterborolive.com/stories/documentary-features-catholic-hill,32671|access-date=2021-07-09|website=Walterboro Live|date=August 13, 2020 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=|date=2018-10-25|title=Catholic Hill|url=https://cchaps.com/2018/10/25/catholic-hill/|access-date=2021-07-09|website=Colleton County Historical and Preservation Society|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2012-05-02|title=St. James the Greater Catholic Church|url=https://www.scpictureproject.org/colleton-county/st-james-the-greater-catholic-church.html|access-date=2021-07-09|website=SC Picture Project|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|last=Wingard|first=George|title=We Came A Long Way By Faith: Catholic Hill and St. James the Greater Catholic Church|date=2020-05-06|url=https://vimeo.com/415619367|access-date=2021-07-09}}</ref>

An [[Aerodrome|airfield]] was established in the 1930s. In 1942, Walterboro became home to the [[Lowcountry Regional Airport|Walterboro Army Airfield]], a sub-base of [[Columbia Metropolitan Airport|Columbia Army Air Base]], and part of the national network of army air training facilities erected across the [[Military history of the United States during World War II|U.S. during World War II]]. The base was established for the purpose of providing advanced air-combat training, to [[Fighter pilot|fighter]] and [[bomber]] groups. It also hosted the largest [[camouflage]] school in the United States, as well as, a 250-person [[prisoner of war]] camp. 

In 1944, the airfield changed command and became an advanced [[Combat|combat training]] base for individual fighters, primarily the black trainees graduating from [[Sharpe Field|Tuskegee Army Airfield]] in [[Tuskegee, Alabama]]. Over 500 of the famed [[Tuskegee Airmen]] trained at Walterboro Army Airfield, between April 1944 and October 1945, including individuals training as replacement pilots for the [[332d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron|332nd Fighter-Interceptor Squadron]], along with the entire [[447th Air Expeditionary Group|447th Bombardment Group]]. The base closed in October 1945, returning to its origins as a local airfield.

The establishment of [[Interstate 95 in South Carolina|Interstate 95]] in the 1960s, made the town a prime overnight stop on the road to Florida or New York.

Presently, Walterboro is dotted with [[National Register of Historic Places listings in South Carolina|historic homes]] dating back to 1820, and a downtown area that has kept many of its historic buildings. The city has become increasingly known as an [[Antique|antiquing]] destination, and is a popular day-trip from Charleston and [[Beaufort, South Carolina|Beaufort]].