Saturday, December 5, 2015
Vol. 1, No. 7
For Unto Us a Child is Born by Anne Fulcher “For unto us a child is born, unto us, a child is given……” The words of Handel’s Messiah ring out to us this time of year. How the Christ Child was born in a manger in Bethlehem to Mary and Joseph is a story we have grown up with. But there was another child born that has played an integral role in the history of Graniteville, SC. The story of “The Little Boy” has been told for 160 years. The child was on the train from Charleston to Hamburg, SC alone and with a high fever. Talk has it that the conductor stopped the train in Warrenville and the wife of the Graniteville Hotel owner met the train at the station and picked up the child assuring the conductor that she and the townspeople would take good care of the little boy. The sick child was never able to share his information with his Graniteville caregivers and died, nameless, a few days later. Remember, this was in the year 1855 and times were hard for everyone. The people of the town pulled together to build a coffin for the little Angel and William Gregg donated a burial plot as well as a cedar marker for the grave. The cedar marker would make due until the community could save enough money to buy an appropriate headstone for the boy’s grave. By the time the Graniteville folks saved up
Photo courtesy of Cleve Koon
enough money for the marker, the official date of his death had been forgotten. The two lines on his headstone read “The Little Boy” and October 1855. As a mother, my heart breaks every time I hear this tale of the sick little boy. He must have been so very scared. Where were his parents? Where was he going? Tears well in my eyes as I think about this precious child. But the kindness of the Graniteville community members who took care of the child, in life and in death, speaks volumes about where we live. Even today, people drop off presents to the grave of the little boy
as a way to let his spirit know he is still loved and remembered. The people of the GVW area have looked after one another for hundreds of years. These communities share a closeness that many towns will NEVER know. From going to Leavelle McCampbell High School together to working alongside one another in the mills, this is a family community. Brothers and sisters working and playing together with dreams of a brighter future. Those same dreams are dreamed today. While that train wreck in 2005 may have redirected the plans of the area, it is now
time for those dreams to return. New birth is abounding around us with new historical restoration and redevelopment through the Horse Creek Trust. New industry is vying for a spot in the area and now we can finally see the blue sky. In this time of birth, let’s take the time to help those who may not be as fortunate as we are. Is there a “Little Boy” in your neighborhood who may be in need of your help? Please, take the time to reach out to that child like the people of Graniteville in 1855. You, too, can make a difference in the lives of others. Merry Christmas