This cemetery is one of the remaining historical structures from the Henry Laurens era at Mepkin. During Laurens’ time, Mepkin was a prominent plantation with hundreds of acres of rice fields. Laurens owned several plantations but chose this spot as the burial place for himself, his wife Eleanor, and their children and grandchildren, including his son John, a Revolutionary War patriot.
Henry Laurens (1724-1792) was a merchant, slave trader and rice planter who became a political leader during the Revolutionary War. He succeeded John Hancock as President of the Second Continental Congress and was a signatory to the Articles of Confederation.
Laurens' son, John (1754-1782), was the first to be buried at Mepkin. A noted patriot, abolitionist, and soldier, John died in 1782 in the Battle of the Combahee River. He is remembered for his criticism of slavery and his efforts to help recruit slaves to fight for their freedom as Revolutionary soldiers.
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