The Confederate Cemetery is now located in a part of the town of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina called the “Old Village.” This section of town was where the original settlements on the east side of Charleston harbor could be found. Until 1837 this part of town was known as Greenwich, when it and Mount Pleasant Plantation were incorporated into the town of Mount Pleasant. In the late 19th century, Emily C. Tew, sister of Col. C.C. Tew who is found on the Confederate monument, maintained the cemetery. After her death, the cemetery was poorly taken care of and was soon overgrown with weeds. Then, in 1922, Robert V. Royall entrusted the cemetery to the United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC), and it was cleaned up and revitalized.

The cemetery itself is a part of a much older cemetery in that section of the town, as records show that it extended from Carr Street all the way across to Royall Avenue, quite a bit larger than the present fenced area. The area was part of Greenwich Common, where property owners from along the waterfront could find firewood and graze their livestock. The tombstones that are still present in the cemetery date as early as 1814 (Abraham Roach) and as late as 1917 (Catherine A. Hale), although evidence suggests that there are many unmarked graves in areas surrounding and within the present fenced area. None of the 17 existing tombstones are signed by the carver, and people no longer are buried there.

Around 1884, when the Berkeley County Courthouse was being constructed across the street, the ladies of Mt. Pleasant erected the Confederate Monument, although the exact date for that monument is unknown, and the ladies fenced off the area in the process. The cemetery became known as the Confederate Cemetery, even though tombstone dates do not necessarily center around the Civil War. When the area near the cemetery was being excavated, probably for the foundation of the courthouse, many unmarked skeletons were found buried around the area. During the Civil War, it was tradition for soldiers who died in the nearby hospital, the present Mount Pleasant Presbyterian Church, they would be buried in large unmarked graves. The soldiers found during construction were soon reinterred in the cemetery, and a “home made” cement monument marks the final resting place of these Unknown Soldiers.

The War of 1812 monument had been standing at the corner of Pitt and King Streets before the Civil War, but it was moved to the cemetery in 1922 for protection from vandalism. The monument marked the burial place of the Third Regiment of State troops from the War of 1812, who had died at Haddrell’s Point from disease. In 1923, General C. Irvine Walker of the Confederate War Veterans had the inscription put on the monument. Both the War of 1812 monument and the Confederate monument are listed in the national Save Outdoor Sculptures (SOS) index.

The Confederate Cemetery today is marked off by a square fence measuring 50 feet, three inches on each side. The full plot from Carr to Royall Street measures approximately 100 feet by 200 feet.In recent years, some construction on adjacent property have uncovered additional remains that have been interred within the confines of the site.

The Cemetery was owned by the Confederate Memorial Association and maintained by The Town of Mt. Pleasant. In September, 2008, the Cemetery was bequeathed to the Sons of Confederate Veteran's Moultrie Camp #27 by the Confederate Memorial Association. They have taken over the responsibility for the upkeep and preservation of the Cemetery.