The South Carolina Diary of Reverend Archibald Simpson: Part 2, April 1770-March 1784

Born in Glasgow, Scotland, around 1734, Simpson appeared in South Carolina in 1754 and was a Presbyterian pastor in the lowcountry for almost two decades before returning to Great Britain in 1772. A meticulous and detailed writer, Simpson filled his journals with geographical information, local history, and commentaries on his South Carolina community and its inhabitants. Part 2 comprises Simpson's journals from 1770 through 1784. In these diaries Simpson divulged his failed attempts to remarry in South Carolina after the death of his wife, his family concerns and strife, and his continued ministerial work in the South Carolina lowcountry and his immediate community. Also included are Simpson's firsthand accounts after he returned to South Carolina in 1783 and wrote in-depth descriptions of the ravages of the war and of the chaotic conditions in a postwar society.