Formerly known as Barnettsville, Lancaster County lies in the Charlotte Metropolitan Area in South Carolina.
Founded in the 1750s by settlers from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the eponymous seat of Lancaster County is also famously known as the Red Rose City.
The region surges with landmarks of historical importance, such as Buford’s Massacre Site, Old Presbyterian Church and Cemetery, and the Old Lancaster County Jail, among others.,
The city also boasts different tourist destinations, including the Andrew Jackson State Park, Lindsay Pettus Greenway, and Buford Battle Ground Monument, to name a few.
Take a tour with your family or friends and discover the best things to do in Lancaster, South Carolina.
Bill Fitzpatrick, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Robert W. Gill built the historic Springs House in 1830, later purchased by Col. Leroy Springs in 1888, who turned it into his primary residence.
Springs founded Lancaster Textile Mill, one of the state’s biggest textile mills.
The house is an admirable two-story frame residence located on W Gay Street in downtown Lancaster.
It began as a small house and grew upon the development of the textile industry; it underwent remodeling and expansion in the 1850s.
The Springs House continued as a residence until 1957, when the town bought it and converted it into a city hall.
This is the homestead of Andrew Jackson, the seventh President of the United States.
The Andrew Jackson State Park integrates arts, history, and community activities into one setting, making it one of the state’s famous parks.
The state park offers a museum containing Revolutionary War artifacts and bygones from Andrew Jackson’s life and synergetic exhibits that narrate his childhood in the South Carolina frontier.
You’ll also find the “Boy of the Waxhaws,” a statue sculpted by Anna Vaughn Hyatt Huntington, a prominent American sculptor in the early 20th century.
Located on Andrew Jackson Park Road, this beautiful state park offers campsites, picnic shelters, loop trails, and a lake for boating and fishing.
The whole family will have a fun and memorable day in this park.
You can bring your pets along.
They have permission to explore most outdoor areas as long as they are controllable or on a leash no longer than six feet.
World-renowned sculpture artist Bob Doster owns and operates Bob Doster’s Backstreet Studio and Gardens, located along Gay St #2543 in Lancaster.
This fantastic studio is notable for all things art.
For over 50 years, Doster designed and crafted art ranging from eccentric memorabilia to significant public works of art.
Doster has also worked with over 150,000 students of different ages.
Aside from a working studio, the place also offers a captivating outdoor botanical and sculpture garden and an art gallery that features the work of several prominent artists.
Bob Doster’s Backstreet Studio and Gardens is a private garden with 55 fishponds and waterfalls.
Even if you’re not an art lover, you’ll appreciate the artwork featured in this studio, which you can also rent for private occasions such as weddings.
Old Waxhaw Presbyterian Church is an old building in upstate South Carolina.
Andrew Jackson was baptized in the church, and his father was buried in the churchyard.
Sometimes called Old Waxhaw Presbyterian, the church became the center of Presbyterianism in this region during its organization.
Presbyterians who came to the region in the mid-18th century from Pennsylvania and Virginia established the Old Waxhaw Presbyterian Church.
The church got its name from the region where the Native American Waxhaw tribe lived.
Located on Old Hickory Rd, Lancaster, the church also served as a hospital for the survivors of the Revolutionary War who needed medical care.
Benford Brewing Company is a family-owned company in Boxcar Rd., Lancaster, which started in 2012 as Boxcar Brewery, LLC.
Unfortunately, the said company name already exists in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
So, the Benford family changed their company name to the Benford Brewing Company.
This palace is interesting because it’s South Carolina’s only agricultural brewery.
This is a great place to go if you’re looking for a comforting environment with live entertainment and a brewery tour.
Enjoy the legendary craft beer at the Benford Brewing Company on Boxcar Road, Lancaster.
Dubbed the “Grand Daddy” of local tracks, the Lancaster Super Speedway is one of the oldest existing dirt tracks in South Carolina.
Located in Shiloh Unity Rd., the speedway had its first race in 1954 and hosted two NASCAR races in 1957.
The race track offers fee onsite, non-electric campsites, and free parking, as well as free admission for kids aged 12 and below.
Anyone can enjoy watching the race at the speedway because it’s also handicapped-accessible.
You can bring alcohol or buy drinks at the Lancaster Super Speedway, but smoking is prohibited at the grandstand.
Also known as Buford’s Massacre Site, the Buford Battleground is a historic battlefield with a memorial commemorating Colonel Abraham Buford and his company of 350 Virginians.
Almost all of them died or suffered wounds from the assault by Colonel Banastre Tarleton of the British Army, even if they had already waved the white flag.
You’ll find two monuments at the site that mark the battleground where the Battle of Waxhaws happened, a horrible loss for the Patriots.
The Continental army in the South used the atrocity to stoke anti-British sentiment across the colonies.
Located on Rocky River Rd., Buford Battleground is open to the public with free admission.
The Edgewater Golf Club is an 18-hole golf course developed along rolling terrains and the glorious pine trees of South Carolina.
Considered the Hidden Gem of the Carolinas, you’ll find this scenic golf course on Catawba Ridge Blvd.
It’s also a common scenario to see wildlife such as whitetail deer, wild turkeys, and occasional visits from foxes.
The course itself is challenging, and it’s up to you to overcome the obstacles.
Use your wit and ability, and have fun!
One of the club’s holes that will test your skill is the par-4 seventh, a downhill dogleg that will compel you to drive right-center of the front nine.
If you’re in for some sports, invite your friends or family to the Edgewater Golf Club and enjoy a friendly competition.
The Lancaster Bowling Center is great for meeting, gathering, celebrating, eating, and playing with family and friends.
Located on Reece Road, this bowling center offers many exciting activities for the whole family.
Listen to good music, have fun bowling, play mini indoor glow golf, arcade games, virtual reality, and jump up and down at bounce houses.
If you want a place for the whole family, go to Lancaster Bowling Center, where you can eat, bowl, and party!
Just remember that the Lancaster Bowling Center prohibits drinking or smoking.
Hiking is an excellent exercise to keep the body fit and healthy, and the best place to hike in Lancaster is the Lindsay Pettus Greenway.
Situated on Colonial Avenue, this ADA-accessible trail comprises a hard surface for running, walking, and cycling.
It features an environmental education space with a small sheltered pavilion for group itineraries and classes and for explaining the area’s history and ecology.
Along the route are benches and bike racks, and you’ll see wildlife everywhere while you follow the trail winding through the charming hardwood tree canopy.
There’s no admission fee and enough parking spaces for everyone.
You can bring your pets along if you keep them on a leash.
Experience a great hike as you’ve never had before at the Lindsay Pettus Greenway.
The Garden of the Waxhaws Trail is a mile-long path that winds through the park’s 18-acre lake.
Unlike other paths, most of the trail hides from the water in a shady forest of combined hardwood and pine trees.
A small portion of the route gets sunlight, an expansion of grassy walkway crossing the dam, while the rest stays under the shade of the forest canopy.
The trail is easy to follow and provides fishing access, including the breathtaking lake views within Andrew Jackson State Park.
However, don’t forget to use insect repellent to ward off bugs and mosquitoes.
While walking down the Garden of the Waxhaws Trail, you will see wildlife like squirrels, waterfowl, snakes, and more.
Located on Conservancy Rd. Kershaw, South Carolina, the Forty Acre Rock Heritage Preserve is famous for its birding, hiking, and 14-acre granite Flatrock abundant in various wildflowers.
It’s a 26-minute drive from Lancaster if you don’t have any stopovers.
Within the preserve is the Forty Acre Rock and Beaver Pond Loop, an intervening hike with panoramic views along the way, including a beaver pond and waterfall.
Begin from the upper parking and follow Conservatory Rd. for a brief stretch.
You’ll start hiking in the forest and follow Flat Creek to Beaver Pond but don’t forget to bring a pair of binoculars for bird-watching.
A small waterfall follows the pond, then moves up to the fascinating Forty Acre Rock.
Spend the day at the Forty Acre Rock Heritage Preserve.
The Chester County Historical Society Museum is an old-time museum and home to a unique Confederate Chester Gun.
It is located on McAliley Street, Chester, Chester County, South Carolina, a 44-minute drive from Lancaster.
The museum was once the Chester County city jail, constructed in 1914.
You’ll find a vast collection of military archives and ammunition from each major US war, starting with the American Revolution right up to the modern day.
The unearthed cannons are Confederate-made ten-pound Parrot rifles.
Learn history at the Chester County Historical Society Museum.
After enduring week-long stress at the office or school, you must destress for a healthy mind and body.
Plan and take your family on a weekend getaway to Cane Creek Park in Waxhaw, North Carolina, 17 minutes from Lancaster County.
The park is the perfect place for the whole family to enjoy and remember.
It’s a recreation area that covers 1,050 acres of land, enveloping a 350-acre lake where you can fish for largemouth bass, crappie, catfish, and bluegill without a fishing license.
You can set up a camp, go boating or kayaking on the lake or beach, ride your bike, or go hiking.
If you like immersing yourself in nature, you must visit the Mineral Springs Greenway on McNeely Rd, Waxhaw, North Carolina, 28 minutes from Lancaster County.
This serene parkland’s 5.6-km out-and-back trail is a bit of a challenging route that takes approximately one hour and six minutes to complete.
It’s an excellent trail perfect for hiking, bike riding, horseback riding, and birding, so don’t forget your binoculars.
You might also see various wildlife on your way and other people exploring the trail.
Dogs are welcome to the Mineral Springs Greenway, but you should always keep them on a leash.
Nothing beats a good time than spending quality time with your family.
Whether you plan to watch a movie, a race, go swimming, or fish, there are many activities that the whole family will enjoy in Lancaster County.
Go out with the family and discover the best things to do in Lancaster County, South Carolina.
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