“In every conceivable manner, the family is link to our past, bridge to our future.”
Our Roots
While we know the roots of our ancestors take us to Africa, our known story starts with Sam Dreher, born into slavery in the early 1800’s in South Carolina.
Sam, our family’s first known enslaved man, was born on the plantation of Daniel Dreher. He married an enslaved woman named Patsy.
Their children were Tomy, Hannah Samuel, Patrick, Allen, Ellen, Susan, and Rena.
1700’s
The first verifiable records of the Drehers date back to 1760’s. Two brothers, John and Godfrey Dreher, came from Germany and settled in a community called “Deutsche” later renamed Dutch Fork. Our family had its origin on the plantation of John Dreher. John’s son Daniel, and his grandson Jacob, where also plantation owners.
The first U.S. Census was taken in 1790. It revealed that John Dreher owned eight slaves. The 1850 census indicated the Dreher family owned seventeen slaves, and the 1860 census indicated they owned twenty-six slaves.
Early 1800’s
The reverend Godfrey Dreher, a Lutheran minister, founded Saint Michael's Lutheran Church. The slaves on the Dreher plantation were allowed to sit quietly in the balcony during the worship ceremonies held by their masters. John Dreher donated land to be used as a burial ground for his slaves. This land is located in the Dreher Quarters on Red Bank Street near Lake Murray. This cemetery still stands today and many of our ancestors are buried there.
Slavery & Sharecropping
on the Dreher Plantation
It was common both during slavery and afterwards for some white men to father children by their slaves. It is known that some of the plantation Dreher slaves were light-skinned with straight black hair. Thus, the slave owners were probably the fathers of some of our descendants.
After the salves were freed, Jake (Jacob) Dreher, ex-slave owner, hired his former Dreher slaves as sharecroppers. It is known that he retained Ellen as his cook and domestic worker for some time. He allowed her to live in the little white house adjacent to his big white structure plantation house.
Ellen left Jake’s plantation and moved her family to Shuler’s Place. Fannie, Tomy’s wife, moved to Columbia so her sons could work the land for Mr. Corley, a Lexington County Black Entrepreneur. The other Dreher children moved to Irmo, West Columbia, and Chapin. Allen and Patrick took the Ferryboat over the river and settled down in Lexington. Rena settled her family in Buckum.
A Desire to Worship
Many of our family members attend Pleasant Spring AME Church. The Drehers founded this church at the Shuler Slave Quarters. The structure was also the first school for the Drehers.
All the Dreher’s would come back every second Sunday in August to celebrate the annual “Big Day'' at Pleasant Springs AME church. Many of our family members are presently members of Pleasant Springs AME Church. Most of our ancestors are buried at Pleasant Spring’s cemeteries.
