Sometimes, history plates up a great big serving of a savory kind – a remnant of the past that should be long gone, but somehow remains for all to respectfully witness and get a taste for the past. Such is the case with a little-known island in the middle of Lake Hartwell. It’s an island now known as Cemetery Island, although some locals prefer to call it Ghost Island. It’s located close enough to the mainland that anyone should be able to paddle on over and see what the island has preserved for generations long gone and for many more generations to come.
With a canoe or kayak you can launch from a number of spots (listed below) along the shore of beautiful Lake Hartwell and take a slow, enjoyable paddle over to Cemetery Island.
Hartwell Dam opened in 1962 and created the reservoir known as Lake Hartwell along the Savannah River. During the filling of the reservoir a large property established during the Revolutionary War was flooded. It was owned by the Harris family, prominent during the war. Harrisburg Plantation got its name from the Harris surname as well as the place where John Harris, Jr. (owner of the plantation) was from: Harrisburg, PA.
When Lake Hartwell filled with water, the large plantation begun by the Harris family was flooded - all except a high knoll where, incidentally, the family cemetery lay.
Small motor vessels can also easily park along the shallow shore here. If it's your first visit, be sure to leave enough time to explore the entire island in search of the Harris cemetery.
The plantation's founders, John and Mary Pickens Harris are interred here, of course.
Pickens was a militia leader in the Revolutionary War and later became a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from South Carolina. He owned nearby Hopewell Plantation across from Seneca on the eastern side of the Keowee River.
When you're ready to launch your canoe or kayak to go explore Cemetery Island there are several nearby places to drop your boat in the water.
Oconee Point Campground in Seneca (pictured) is less than half a mile away. Coneross Park and Campground in Townville is a little more than a mile from Cemetery Island. And the Friendship Boat Ramp in Seneca is approximately 1.25 miles from the Harris Cemetery on Cemetery Island.
Learn more about the cemetery and its fascinating history with a visit to the Harrisburg Plantation Cemetery‘s listing on FindAGrave.com.
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