For many years I have sought the answer to why the people of Western York County (WYC) are so different from other areas of the county, namely the eastern and northeastern sections. Though I will be the first to admit that my conclusions are not inclusive of every aspect, I do think that my present theory is pretty close. But first, I must define what section of the county I’m calling WYC.
There are several ways to define the Western York County area. It can be done using geography, politics, or history. Geographically, the ridge that runs approximately down the center of the county and creates the watersheds of the Catawba in the east and the Broad in the west nearly divides the east from the west.
For the sake of political representation the western side of the county is divided into two districts, which lines are subject to change with a swing in population. Historically, however, WYC is much smaller than either the geographical or political lines.
In the late 1880s, historian James L. Strain defined WYC as it was known before 1850. He wrote, “Roughly speaking, the townships of Bullocks Creek and Broad River along with the towns of Hickory Grove, Sharon, Smyrna and numerous farm communities that have lost their names over time comprises WYC.” Now that we have an idea of the area we’re dealing with, let’s take a closer look at its people.
Urbanization and the flood of newcomers into the county have had little effect on the people of WYC, though we fear it is only a matter of time. There are a sizable number of residents whose roots were planted in these clay hills more than 200 years ago, and a large number of farms with notable acreage are still intact. Also, a common cousin can unite several families.
The people of most urban areas usually choose to identify themselves through performance or accomplishment, while rural York County residents still identify themselves as parts of an extended family. In other words, it’s accomplishment versus background. No wonder we have such a hard time communicating with and understanding one another.
Because of the lack of influence from outside forces, WYC people still retain much of the old South and even social remnants of the mother country. To understand the sociological makeup of WYC, it may seem that I’m going around the world, but I’ll limit our travel to time and a jump across the pond to 14th century Scotland.
The modern idea of Scotland is so full of romanticism that we easily overlook true history and visualize the country filled with a happy, noble people in tams and kilts dancing spirited flings. The Scot’s true role in history is one of hardships, from eking out a living in poor soil to watching for invading armies and constant internal feuds. During the Four Hundred Years War with England beginning in 1292, the Lowlanders (ancestors of the American Scotch-Irish) were in constant danger of England’s scorched earth policy. Every chieftain and his vassals had to be in a state of constant readiness to rise up in arms to keep from being burned out or slaughtered. During the next centuries, Scotland barely survived Viking raids and wars with the Britons, Angles, and Normans, as well as lethargic churchmen.
The Scotch-Irish farmer who migrated to America, beginning in the 17th century, came from one of the poorest, most backward and lawless countries in Europe. To their credit, within 200 years these people emerged from something near barbarism to civilization and arrived in America with a strong sense of individualism unencumbered with an aristocracy.
There was little law enforcement in Scotland in the 1500s, and what little there was seldom bothered with events on the local level. Though the country had a parliament, it was medieval, except for a thin civil veneer derived from its alliance with France. No king since the time of Robert the Bruce (d. 1329) had been able to prevent invasions by the throne of England that were determined to suppress and wipe their religion (Presbyterianism) from the face of the earth.
About 200 years later when the Scots and Scotch-Irish migrated to America, they came with their history of hardships indelibly impressed into their collective memory, seeking a place where they could live in peace and practice their religion without interference from government. The descendents of those immigrants gravitated south with the same ideology and looked upon government’s interference in private life with a jaundiced eye. The desire for life with limited government involvement is still very much alive in WYC.
Christianity came to the Scots in the 6th century when St. Columba set up his headquarters on the island of Iona and began mission work among the Picts and Scots. By the 16th century, the Catholic Church in Scotland languished in a deplorable state, with the general population believing in magic, sorcery, witchcraft, necromancy, ghosts, sprits, and demons. Morally, the people were bankrupt. Cattle stealing, bigamy, adultery, and rape were a common occurrence. John Knox arrived on the coast of Scotland in 1559 with miraculous timing. Nowhere in Europe was the shift from Roman Catholicism to Protestantism more peaceful than in Scotland.
As Scotland waded into the sea of Protestantism, nobles found it more advantageous to make an alliance with England, driving the French from their shores. The Reformation sparked such zeal for Christian living among the Lowlanders that when they migrated to Ireland under the “Ulster Plantation” experiment, they greatly influenced the moral character of those on the island.
Presbyterianism was birthed among a practical people who were almost unaffected by the world at large — the Renaissance virtually bypassed the Scots. When King James VI of Scotland became King James I of England in 1603, Scotland was still a backward country. Even landowners lived in houses little better than a peasant’s hovel. In 1600 towns of Scotland amounted to no more than a cluster of hovels, and the country lived off subsistence agriculture. Because of their hardships the people lived a practical lifestyle — no waste or extravagance.
Generally speaking, much of the population of WYC who descend from the Scots and Scotch-Irish still retain much of the motherland’s practicality. Arriving in America, these practical people were content with good but modest homes, land, and cattle of their own. Farmers and businessmen could acquire a good deal of wealth (and in some cases a vast fortune), but a show of wealth was religiously eschewed. Today, the older generations of WYC still retain this mindset in dealing with wealth.
The Scots and, later, the Scotch-Irish practiced their faith in the same no-fuss fashion. While Knox led the Scots into worship without “aids,” he did not cause the churches of Scotland to be devoid of icons and religious art. The truth is, the Catholic churches in Scotland had no elaborate icons or works of art because it lacked the wealth of European churches. Presbyterians learned to live without these aids and grew proficient in depending upon nothing but faith. It has been less than 50 years that rural Presbyterian churches in WYC began to see the introduction of crosses, pulpit adornments, Advent wreaths, Christmas trees, and observances of near-holy days. Former generations would have considered these things to be “strange fire.”
In regards to pre-Reformation education, Scotland had three universities that were little more than medieval institutes. But after the Reformation and establishment of Presbyterian churches, education took a quantum leap and played a major role in the lives of the people. The church worked to place a school in every district in hopes of producing an educated clergy and giving Christians the ability to “search the Word” for themselves. The trend successfully wiped out illiteracy, and all of Scotland developed an enthusiasm for learning.
The Scotch-Irish who flooded into the South Carolina Piedmont soon built their meetinghouses and shortly after developed a school. In WYC, immigrants established the Four Presbyterian B’s (Beersheba, Bethesda, Bethel, and Bullocks Creek) upon their arrival, and their ministers opened schools.
Immigrants were motivated by two factors — a dissatisfaction with the homeland and the desire for a better life. Those poor but optimistic Scots who participated in the migration to Northern Ireland and later to America were so motivated. On the “Ulster Plantation” many acquired land of their own. While the migration did little to improve their economics, tenants and landholders enjoyed a close working relationship that resembled a democracy. The sons of both classes sat on the same bench at school and their fathers served as elders in the church.
The descendants of these immigrants came to America a century later with their drive to improve life and to live peacefully and free — the same ideology that would later be captured in the Untied States Constitution that confirms the God-given rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Historians agree that the American Revolution was a Presbyterian war for freedom and liberty. How fitting was the announcement to Parliament, “America has run off with the Presbyterian parson!”
The Way We Where Is the Way We Are – Part II
J.L. West – Author
This article and many others found on the pages of Roots and Recall, were written by author J.L. West, for the YC Magazine and have been reprinted on R&R, with full permission – not for distribution or reprint!
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