Kershaw County has a long association with horses. The second oldest polo field in the United States is in Camden. It can be found at the end of Polo Lane in the middle of town, near the sites of the large hotels that once served as winter residences for northerners seeking to escape the cold winters back home.
Camden, SC is home to the second oldest polo field in the nation. Built in 1898, the polo field is an intrinsic part of the history of Camden as well as South Carolina. For fifty years, polo was played here and drew visitors from around the world. The beginnings of the equine industry in Kershaw County can be traced to the development of Camden as a winter resort with polo as a chief attraction. The second half of the 20th century saw a steady decline in the play of polo here, but that trend was reversed temporarily in 2001 when the Arts Center of Kershaw County hosted an annual fundraising exhibition match.
The Camden Polo Field, located in the midst of history Camden, is held in perpetual trust by the Palmetto Trust for Historic Preservation and has been declared a National Landmark. Efforts to save this field from development have been heralded across the state and in polo circles around the country.