Galivants Ferry, South Carolina

Galivants Ferry, South Carolina
Unincorporated Community
John Monroe Johnson Holliday House
Country	United States
State	South Carolina
County	Horry County
Established	1790's
Time zone	Eastern
Area code(s)	843

Galivants Ferry is a small unincorporated community in Horry County, South Carolina, United States. It lies on the Little Pee Dee River west of Aynor, South Carolina on U.S. Route 501.

Galivants Ferry was first mentioned in the South Carolina Statues at Large in 1792 at a place then called Elirsee's Landing. The ferry crossing was vested with Richard Gallevan for an initial period of fourteen years and the permitted fees were stated in British pounds sterling. At that time, the county name was Kingston County and the county seat was Conwayboro. The ferry crossing was again mentioned in the 1795 South Carolina Acts relating to Roads, Bridges and Ferries, with the names Elvise's Landing, being vested with Richard Gullivan and the fees paid in U.S. dollars. The road and ferry to Kingston County were the main access point from Marion County, then known as Liberty County, to the county of Kingston, now known as Horry County. As such, the road and ferry were maintained at public expense for the good of all citizens. The first wood plank road through the Pee Dee swamp was built to the ferry in the 19th century. Today one can still see the remains of fertilizer barge in times of low water just upstream of the present highway bridge. It resembles ferry barges from the early 19th century.

Unlike the large plantation-based farms in Marion County, western Horry County was little changed from the early pioneer days. It was an agrarian economy scratched out of a sandy, swampy, landscape. This area of the state was isolated by numerous rivers and swamps, so access was difficult and the inhabitants sometimes referred to the area as the "Independent Republic of Horry".

Joseph William Holliday, orphaned at an early age, inherited a share in the sizable estate of his father, but his inheritance was quickly squandered by his guardian and he soon found himself working for uncaring relatives as an indentured servant. Despite the unhappy start, Holliday worked hard, gave himself a good education, and grew prosperous. His early experience was the fire that forged his success and an iron resolve from which he was known throughout the states coastal plain.