The Barnwell County Courthouse in South Carolina is a historic 1879 Greek Revival structure located on the town’s downtown circle. Famously situated in front of the building is an 1858 vertical sundial, legendarily recognized as one of the only free-standing vertical sundials in the U.S. that remains accurate to within two minutes.
This Historical Site Marker Reads, “Barnwell County, originally Winton County, was created out of Orangeburgh District in 1785. Renamed Barnwell District in 1798 for John Barnwell (1748-1800), a S.C. militia officer in the Revolution and afterwards, it became Barnwell County in 1868. The first courthouse was built at Boiling Springs in 1789 and was replaced by a courthouse built here in 1800. Later courthouses here were built in 1819 and 1848. (Front)
The 1848 courthouse was burned by Federal troops in 1865. Court was held at Barnwell Presbyterian Church 1865-69 and again 1874-78. The county seat was moved to Blackwell 1869-73 but returned to Barnwell permanently in 1874. This courthouse, the fourth on this site, was built in 1878-79 and enlarged in 1901 and 1921. The nearby sundial, donated by state senator J.D. Allen (1812-1880), was erected in 1858. (Back)