The Waxhaw and Catawba Indians called this area their home well before our ancestors. These indigenous people farmed the fertile land and hunted the woods, which were abundant with deer, turkey and other wildlife. Present-day Van Wyck is located along what was an ancient Indian trading path that ran from the Catawba villages to Camden. They traded with their neighbors and generations later the Catawbas still produce some of the most beautiful native Pottery in the United States.

King Hagler was named Chief of the Catawba Nation in 1750. He had a reputation as peacekeeper with other tribes and colonists. He was known as the “Patron Saint” of Camden, South Carolina, and was the first Native American to be inducted into the South Carolina Hall of Fame.

To learn more about the history of the Catawba Indians in this area, you can visit their website at https://www.catawba.com/about-the-nation.