Settled in the mid-18th century by the Bratton family—Scots-Irish Presbyterians, originally of Scottish ancestry, who had moved to northern Ireland in the 17th century, and came to North America in the early 18th century, making the typical migration down the Great Wagon Road from Pennsylvania, through Virginia and western North Carolina, and settling in present-day York County in 1766. Although they were not the first to settle in the area, they were among the first who settled prior to the American Revolution. They took an active part in the struggle for American independence. Three brothers, William, Robert and Hugh Bratton, all fought in the Revolutionary War. William Bratton was an officer in the local militia, served in Thomas Sumter’s militia brigade, and fought in many battles of the American Revolution.
The Video Overview provides some of the history of the family and the expansion of the estate, including a brief history of the buildings that exist at Brattonsville today—the Col. William Bratton House (ca. 1766), the Homestead House (ca. 1823-1826), the Brick House (ca. 1840s), and some original slave cabins, as well as some that are not original to Brattonsville, and some outbuildings and barns brought from elsewhere for preservation.
