Singleton and Related Genealogy Pages
A history of many families.
1784 - 1859 (75 years)| Name | Malachi BROGDON [2, 3, 4] | |
| Birth | 1784 | North Carolina  [2] |
| Gender | Male | |
| HIST | of Foreston, Clarenton County, South Carolina Reflections by Sammy Way: The growth and development of two microcommunities in Sumter County The Brogdon family sits for a portrait. The family became established in Sumter in 1790, when Malachi Brogdon moved to Sumter County from North Carolina. SUMTER ITEM FILE PHOTO Posted Saturday, January 24, 2026 6:00 am By SAMMY WAY sammy@theitem.com Reflections recalls the founding of two small communities during the era prior to the Civil War. These communities were established by two families who were creative and flourished, greatly assisting in the growth and development of the Sumter community. Data and photos used were obtained from the late Edwin Brogdon; the writings of Dr. Anne King Gregorie and Cassie Nichols were also used. The paper is presented in two parts with a modicum of editing. Education has often been referenced as the hope or key for the next generation. Granted, any young person who passes through secondary school without training in computer applications is certainly at a disadvantage in a world which turns on microchips. The dependence of the current generation upon education, however, is in no way greater than the generation of Americans in the first half of the twentieth century. The nature of the tools has changed, but the need for their application has not. Among that generation of the early twentieth century were two families in eastern Sumter County, South Carolina. The families differed little culturally and shared in part their approaches to education; they also shared the common ground of influence and power. These two diverse families, joined by little more than geography, share in the impact that they affected in the development and growth of Sumter and Sumter County. These families founded the microcommunities of Brogdon Station and Britton Siding; both are situated on the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad line running southeast from Sumter, and both carry the indelible stamp of their patriarchs, John Bagnal Brogdon and John Bossard Britton. Malachi Brogdon first came to South Carolina and settled in what would become Sumter County in 1790. He moved from North Carolina and erected his home near Brewington's lake, a part of the Sumter District which later became part of Clarendon County after its secession in 1855. John Bagnal Brogdon was one of the 10 children of Malachi Brogdon, and he married Elizabeth Priscilla Davis in 1839 and constructed a home near her father's house. The timbers used in the construction of this domicile were taken from the best heart pine on the plantation and were sawed into planks with the use of handsaws. The bricks used to construct the chimneys were made of clay near the home site and were sun-dried. The hinges and the blinds that adorned the windows were handmade and beautifully constructed. The hand-sawn boards were affixed by the use of pegs rather than nails, and the rooms all had 13-foot ceilings which were lit by windows made of hand-blown glass. It was here that John Bagnal Brogdon and Elizabeth Priscilla would celebrate the birth of several children. The house, over the course of time, has experienced a series of events which have resulted in numerous intriguing stories; some have even speculated that there were varied spirits haunting the premises. In 1865, John Bagnal Brogdon, then a member of Company A of the Holcombe Legion Calvary, participated in Sumter's only battle of the Civil War. He and his youngest son left home and saw action at Dingle's Mill during Gen. Potter's infamous raid through Sumter County. As the northern soldiers advanced along a route which today parallels U.S. 521, the soldiers came upon Brogdon's home. The Black soldiers, members of the 54th Massachusetts, were directed to burn all of the outbuildings as well as the main house. The Union troops were successful in destroying a thousand bushels of corn, peas, fodder and rice. They met with little to no opposition; however, when the soldiers placed torches beneath the home, Priscilla Brogdon gave the Masonic signal for distress in sheer desperation. A young Union officer immediately ordered the fire extinguished. It was determined that he himself was a member of the fraternal order of the Masons. He later informed Mrs. Brogdon that he wished she had given the signal earlier; her outbuildings and crops would also have been spared. Following the conflict at Dingle's Mill, John Bagnal Brogdon returned and lived in the home that he constructed until his death on Nov. 22, 1871. It is the progeny of John Bagnal Brogdon who came to construct Brogdon Station, which is located on the patriarch's land near Boots Branch Road, a mere three miles from the original homestead. Although a train station was constructed with the arrival of the Atlantic Coast Railroad Line, it occurred long after the death of Brogdon. His descendants also erected several structures along the rail bed to include a general merchandise store, three plantation homes, mammoth cotton gin, saw mill, grist mill and later a one-room structure (Graham School) designed to educate the children of W.T. Brogdon; however, most have ceased to exist. [1, 3] | |
| _UID | AC98475E8EB940FAA0CACD089DC002EBF354 | |
| Death | 23 Nov 1859 [5] | |
| Person ID | I70463 | Singleton and Related Families |
| Last Modified | 24 Jan 2026 | |
| Family | Mary Anne TOBIAS, b. 7 Jan 1788 d. 21 Jan 1849 (Age 61 years) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| _UID | 215B7B3D86AA4ED7A595D374803D9DB1157C | |||||||||||||||||||||
| _UID | 215B7B3D86AA4ED7A595D374803D9DB1157C | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Children |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
| Family ID | F49074 | Group Sheet | Family Chart | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Modified | 23 Mar 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Sources |
