• As the first self-governed town for the formerly enslaved, Mitchelville, named posthumously after its founder, General Ormsby Mitchel, was a fully functioning town with a mayor, councilmen, a treasurer and other officers, who all oversaw every aspect of Mitchelville, from town disputes to sanitary regulations.
• The town of Mitchelville also established the first compulsory education law in South Carolina, requiring education for every child from the ages of 6-15 years of age. 
• At its height, the town stretched to over 200 acres on the former Fish Haul Plantation, which borders the shore.
• The US Army Headquarters remained the central source of employment and life for the residents of Mitchelville, as most residents worked for the military.