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HISTORIC HOU
OF
SOUTH CAROL
A
HARRIETTE KERSHAW
LEIDING
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College of Architecture Library
Cornell University
A
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Sr.L^z
CORNELL
UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY
BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME
OF THE SAGE ENDOWMENT
FUND GIVEN IN 189I BY
HENRY WILLIAMS SAGE
Date Due
HISTORIC HOUSES
OF
SOUTH CAROLINA
NOTES FROM SOUTH CAROLINA ALMANAC 1765
Berkley County takes in the old Parishes of
1. St. Philip's Parish, Charleston
2.
St. Michaels, Charleston
3.
Christ Church
4.
St. Thomas and St. Dennis.
5.
St. John's
6.
St. George (Dorchester)
7,
St. James (Goose Creek)
8.
St. Andrews (West side Ashley River)
County To%\'n— Charleston
Craven Coltnty takes in the old Parishes of
1. St. James Santee
2. St. Stephen
3. Piince George
4. Prince Frederick
5. St. Marks
Count.v Town — Georgetown
Colleton County contains Parishes of
1. St. Paul
2. St. Peter
3. St. Bartholomew
County Town — Jacksonborough
Granville County contains the old Pari.shes of
1. St. Helena
2. St. Peter
3. Purrysburg, (see Peter Purry)
4. Prince William
County Town — Beaufort
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Town House of the Bull Family, Whose Country Estate "Ashley
Hall " Lay in St. Andrew's Parish 204
St. Andrew's Chapel, in St. Andrew's Parish, on Ashley River, near
Charleston 208
" Fenwick Castle," John's Island 210
" Brick House," John's Island, near Charleston 212
Vandbr Horst House, Chapel Street, Charleston 214
Vander Horst House, Kiawah Island 214
The William Sbabrook House, Edibto Island 218
The Hopkinson House, Edisto Island 220
Brick House, Edisto Island 220
" Bleak Hall," the Townbend House, Edisto Island 222
Copied by Miss Phoebe Townsend.
Old House at " Wilton Bluff " 230
Btiilt by Col. Morris.
" Prospect Hill," near " Willtown " or " Wilton " 236
Formerly a Barnwell-Manigault House.
St. Helena's Church, Beaufort 240
Established 1712.
The Rectory, St. Helena's, from the Churchyard 240
" The Point," the Hamilton House, Beaufort 244
" The Anchorage," on " The Bay," Beaufort 246
House in Beaufort, from the Piazza op Which LaFayette Spoke 248
Kitcecen and Wall Made of "Tabby." The Sams' Home, Beaufort 248
Now the Crofut House.
" Woodlands," the Residence op W. G. Simms, Barnwell 248
House on the Road to Columbia 250
Built just after the Revolution by the grandfather of Rev. John 0. Willson.
" Fort Granby," near Columbia 250
From an old print.
One of the Kinard Houses, Richland Street, Columbia 266
Now the Seibel residence.
The " Tom Wilson " House, Columbia 260
A boyhood home of Ex-President Woodrow Wilson.
The Preston Place or "Ainslet Hall," Columbia 264
Chancellor Johnson's Home, near Mar's Bluff, Old Cheraw 270
The Joseph McCullough House, Above Greenville 290
" Fort Hill," Residence op John C. Calhoun, Clemson College 292
John Ewing Calhoun Home, near Clemson College 292
" Lowther Hall," the Trescott House, Pendleton 296
Old Stone Church, Pendleton 300
Built in 1790.
The Burt House, Abbeville 302
Built by a Calhoun. At this house was held the last meeting of the
Confederate Cabinet.
jcvii
HISTORIC HOUSES
OF
SOUTH CAROLINA
THIS LIMITED EDITION HAS BEEN PRINTED
FROM TYPE AND THE TYPE DISTRIBUTED
j; j.^ii ijr;iif: au y'lr mt.
cJI'fi.
R'H
THE MARSHALL HOUSE, COLUMBIA, SOMETIMES CALLED THE DE BRUHL HOUSE
HISTORIC HOUSES
OF
SOUTH CAROLINA
BY
HARRIETTE KERSHAW LEIDING
WITH 100 ILLUSTRATIONS
FROM DRAWINGS BY ALFRED HUTTY, PHOTOGRAPHS
AND PRINTS
PHILADELPHIA AND LONDON
J. n. LIPFINCOTT COMPANY
1921
COPTBIGHT, 19«I, BY J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANT
/\l^'6l^S\
:)^L^^
PRINTED BY J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY
AT THE WASHINGTON SQDARE PRESS
PHILADELPHIA, U. S. A.
A
To
H. G. L.
THE BEST FBIEND
A WIFE EVER HAD
"No fire has touched them, and no flood;
They stand to-day where first they stood;
Places that knew them know them still;
Their doors swing wide, and on each sill.
In sweet confusion, wilting flowers
By noon, by night mark children's hours.
And closer still, like friends well tried.
The trees crowd up on every side.
Folding the roof-tree and the walls.
Each year their gracious shadow falls
Larger and larger; every spring
'Neath southern window some new thing
Lifts up its head and adds its grace
To sweeten the old Homestead place.
From every window to the skies
Women and men lift steadfast eyes.
Coming and going day by day,
Leading the life they must, or may ....
The world is full of open doors;
Step lightly in on friendly floors;
And throw thy rusty keys away
To locks which strange hands lock to-day."
FOREWORD
" The Almighty gives dreams to some and realities to
others. ' ' The dream of the English Empire builders was to dis-
cover, and found a new civilization in the South, and it was
out of the reality of the lives of the men and women who
came and carried out the business of the dreams that South
CaroUna was formed, her homes erected, her fields tilled, and
her civiUzation carried forward and outward; for it is a fact
that from Colonial times South Carolina has been furnishing
other South Atlantic States mth the backbone of their civi-
lization, although it is not generally known that she was one
of the great emigrant States.
If South Carolina is to be judged by the aphorism that
" A State is the product of its people," then this little section
of land, which has stood for so much that is admirable, is
indeed a great State. Little as it is known. South Carolina,
geographically isolated in her early days, left to work out her
own destiny in the following days of the development until
the Revolutionary days surrounded by enemies on all sides
(except to the Northward), has not only held its own but has
led the Southeast in many agricultural, manufacturing and
mining pursuits, led the Union in the yield per acre of com,
oats and cotton, and stands second in cotton manufacturing in
the entire Union.
From the standpoint of inate abihty, bravery, chivalry,
purity of character and unselfish patriotism, the sons and
daughters of Carolina are the equals of any on the American
Continent and today represent the finest type of American
citizen ; yet it is difficult to try and tell the story of this people
of mixed races, several religions, various customs and the
modifications of these various differentations by climate,
occupation, wars and the physical conformation of the land on
the face of which they lived, and moved, and had their being.
It is an interesting peep into the past to envisage the
homes in which these pioneer peoples and their descendants
FOREWORD
dwelt. These homes were the expression of their individuali-
ties modified by their occupations and means. The social,
political and economic significance of these empire builders
stands revealed in the homes they builded as well as the taste
that prompted the style. Means were found for overcoming
distances, securing material, and workmen were either de-
veloped or imported to carry out the design of the desired
habitation, while the landscape gardeners were employed to
decorate and embellish the neighboring grounds. All of these
factors enter into the kind of house and the type of architec-
ture found in lowland and highland of South Carohna.
Undoubtedly it is the sense of a story behind things that
leads to the writing about the homes of olden times and about
the inhabitants thereof by one set of people, and the reading of
story of these houses by another set. Nor need we be afraid
of being classed amongst those who have, as Eupert Hughes
expressed it, " Kicked themselves upstairs into that dreary
attic where the critics go who are what Horace called * the
praisers of the past, ' " if we seek the human story of the indi-
vidual homes and their builders.
If social life reflects the taste and is the measure of
grandeur in the life of these dead and gone Carolinians,
we can reconstruct for ourselves a picture of those yesteryears
which he forgotten in men's memories, but which nevertheless
hold precisely the same human elements as our own existence
of Ufe and love, fun and flirtations, women's fears and wo-
men's tears, and the laughter of little children, all of which
are held together in the scheme of things by men and their
deep desires and ambitions.
Strong-minded persons are apt to think fashion a fickle
jade and a trivial thing-yet in Carolina, indigo culture was
introduced in order to dye the home-woven silks of milady
and it is even whispered that gentlemen were partial to blue,
the product of their staple indigo, yet indigo eventually
rivalled rice and yielded to cotton only after the Revolutionary
War, and became a standard of barter in foreign commerce
FOREWORD
So interwoven are social life, agricultural interests, industrial
evolution with commercial interests, that it is said " The
lady of a Southern planter will lay out the whole annual
produce of a rice plantation in silver and gold, muslins, lace
veils and new liveries, carry a hogshead of tobacco on her head
and trail a bale of Sea-Island cotton at her heels, while a lady
of Boston or Salem, will wrap herself up in the net proceeds
of a cargo of whale oil, and tie on her hat with a quintal
of cod-fish. ' ' Thus it is that the beautiful old houses in South
Carolina grew as the external expression of a certain ease,
grace and dignity of life led by the landed gentry.
Near the coast the spacious verandas came in response to
the need for coolness, and shadowy retreats from the brilliant
sunshine of this sub-tropical climate, tall ceilings, large win-
dows, and lattice jalousie bhnds were borrowed from the
neighboring Spanish Indies, while formal gardens and gate-
ways came over in the inner consciousness of the Cavalier
stock that settled low- country Carolina and found expression
in manner fitting the locality.
Although the first settlers had confined themselves to the
neighborhood of Charleston, the fact that Georgia was being
settled (1732-34) protected the Western frontier of the
State and gave a feehng of security hitherto unknown, so
that the interior of the State received many immigrants;
Germans, Scotch (after the battle of CuUoden), and on Brad-
dock's defeat, refugees from Pennsylvania and Virginia came
and settled in the Piedmont sections of the State. Besides
these various additions to the State, Irish Protestants, Swiss
Colonists, German Redemptionists, Welsh Colonists from
Pennsylvania, all went to the making up of the total popula-
tions and were added to the original English settlers, Cavahers
and gentlemen adventurers as well as the French Hu-
guenot refugees.
Thus it is seen that various considerations enter into the
discussion of the homes of such a mixed people. The homes
of the Bacon and Rice aristocracy, situated in the low coun-
FOREWORD
try, conformed to the English Manor type, being later modi-
fied to suit the climatic conditions, and becoming as Birge
Harrison delightfully puts it, " infected by the spirit of the
West Indian houses as though blown across from the West
Indies," while the homes of the people in the middle lands
of the State were builded and furnished to suit another set
of people and to meet other needs, while the homes in highland
counties conformed to yet another set of standards and con-
ditions. So that the houses of Carolina the Province, Caro-
lina the Royal Ward, when Kings George the First and Sec-
ond, were said to be " Nursing Fathers " to the infant colony,
or the homes of Carolina the devastated, by foreign or civil
strife, all have different meanings and designs, but a spirit
of high Romance permeates the entire history of the State,
its people and their homes.
The present volume has been undertaken as a loving
tribute to South Carolina, who gave to the writer the three
beings most dear to her on earth ; and, because the history of
the houses in South CaroUna is the history of the homes of
kindred and friends, this effort has been made to give to the
world a glimpse of the wonderful men and women of the state
and the homes they builded.
It has been deemed best, incidentally, to mention a few of
the first provincial laws in order that the reader may obtain
some idea of the manner of life contemplated by those in
authority in primitive Carolina. This is necessary because the
history of the colony and its various settlements unwinds itself
like a golden thread from the gleaming web of the history of
the mother city, Charleston, until the outer threads are
far from the center, yet connected by invisible and in-
tangible bonds.
The houses in the upper part of South Carolina were
erected at a later date than those in the low country, and so
have been included in this volume with briefer mention, the
oldest houses naturally being found along the rivers in the
lower part of the state.
FOREWORD
My thanks are due to Misses Lillian Yates, Mary Von
Kolnitz and Elsie Kirkland for their efficient and loving help.
My thaiiks are also due to the many friends and the owners of
properties throughout the state who so kindly responded to
letters written to secure information. I have consulted all of
the standard sources of infoi-mation available, and have
scanned the De Saussure records (the originals of which are
o'wned by my aunt, Miss Isabelle De Saussure) and have in
addition had priceless aid and information given me by my
mother, Susan Boone De Saussure and my father, Reverend
John Kei-shaw, D.D.
Haeeiette Kershaw Leujing
Chaeleston, S. C.
Maech 1, 1920
CONTENTS
PAGE
NOTES FROM SOUTH CAROLINA ALMANAC 1765 xvi
I. OLD CHARLESTON AND SOUTH CAROLINA 1
II. ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON TO THE "TEE".. 12
III. WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER ABOVE THE "TEE" 36
IV. EASTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER ABOVE THE "TEE" 74
V. SANTEE, FRENCH SANTEE, SOUTH SANTEE, NORTH SANTEE 91
VI. GEORGETOWN AND VICINITY 112
VII. UPPER, LOWER AND MIDDLE ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S 131
VIII. ST. MARK'S PARISH 155
IX. FROM DOVER TO CALAIS VIA THE PARISHES OF CHRIST
CHURCH AND ST. THOMAS 178
X. ON THE ASHLEY RIVER AND IN ST. ANDREW'S PARISH. . . 188
XI. JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND. THE PLACES AND
THE PEOPLE 208
XII. BEAUFORT. INCLUDING COMBAHEE AND CHEE-HA DIS-
TRICTS. WITH TWO PICTURES OF WILLTOWN HOUSES
AND ONE AT BARNWELL, SOUTH CAROLINA 233
XIII. ON THE ROAD TO COLUMBIA AND COLUMBIA AND ITS
HOMES 250
XIV. THE OLD CHERAWS, LAURENS, LANCASTER AND NEW-
BERRY 268
XV. JOSEPH McCULLOUGH HOUSE, FORT HILL, LOWTHER HALL,
TOMASSEE AND THE BURT HOUSE IN ABBEVILLE .... 289
ADDITIONAL HOUSES OF HISTORIC INTEREST IN SOUTH
CAROLINA 304
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
PAtiUl
The Marshall House, Columbia, S. C, Sometimes Called the De Bruhl
House Frontispiece
Mepkin Gate Title Vignette
Drawn by E. S. Holloway.
Map op South Carolina of 1715 2
Miles Brewton House, Charleston 4
Showing old coach house and slave quarters.
Judge Heyward's Mansion, Church Street, Charleston 8
As it was when President Washington was there entertained in 1791.
" Dictator" Rutledge's Home, Broad Street, Charleston 10
The Paul House, Broad and Church Streets, Charleston 10
" Bblvidere," Old Shubrick Home 16
Now the Charleston Country Club House.
" Yeamans' Hall," Goose Creek 20
St. James' Church, Goose Creek 22
St. James' Church, Interior 22
" Medway," on Back River above Goose Creek 26
Otranto Club House, Goose Creek 26
Thomas Smith, Portrait 30
" Medway," on Back River, Home op Landgrave Smith 30
" Dean Hall," Cooper River, below the Tee 32
Maum Patience and Her Pet Gobbler 32
" Coming Tee " House on Cooper River 38
Strawberry Chapel, Cooper River 38
" Wappahoola," Western Branch, Cooper River 54
" Mulberry Castle," Western Branch, Cooper River 58
The Dra wing-Room, Mulberry Castle, Cooper River 62
" Dockon," Western Branch, Cooper River 64
" Little Landing " or " Lewisfield " 64
" Exeter," Near Monck's Corner 68
" Gippy," Western Branch, Cooper River 72
Town House of the Ball Family, Charleston 76
"QuiMBY," Eastern Branch, Cooper River 82
" Middleburg," Eastern Branch, Cooper River 82
" Limerick " 84
A primitive house nearly 200 years old.
Avenue of Live Oaks, " Limerick " 84
Pompion Hill Chapel, Eastern Branch, Cooper River 90
"Fairfield " 94
The oldest house on Santee. Drawn by Alfred Hutty.
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Wambaw Chdech (St. Jambs') Santee 98
" Hampton," the Home op the Rutlbdges on South Santee 100
The Dining-Room at " Hampton " 102
The Portico at " Hampton " 102
"El Dorado," on the Santee, One op the Pincknet Homes 106
" Hopseewee " (Lucas House) North Santee 106
Home of Thomas Lynch, the Signer.
Wintah Indigo Society Hall, Georgetown 110
Wintah Inn, Georgetown 112
The Pyatt-Alston House, Georgetown 114
Church, Prince George, Winyah, Georgetown 118
Prospect Hill, Waccamaw River 120
Prospect Hill, Rear View 122
Friendfield House, Near Georgetown 124
The Dra wing-Room, Friendfield House 126
"Somerset," the Cain House, Pinopolis 132
StNKLER House, Adjacent to " Belvidere," Eutawvillb 138
"Belvidere," the Sinkler House, near Eutaw Springs 140
Chapel in St. Stephen's 152
" Milpord," West op Pdjewood 156
" Melrose," Built by Matthew Singleton 158
Drawn by Alfred Hutty.
" HiLLCREST," Statesburg 168
Cornwallis House, the Old Kershaw Homestead, Camden 170
Handbill Issued in 1794, Advertising Sale op Kershaw Lands 172
"Lausanne," the DeSaussure Home, Camden 174
" Mulberry," near Camden 176
Oakland Plantation, Mt. Pleasant 182
Front and rear views.
Christ Church, Christ Church Parish, near Mt. Pleasant 184
The Gibbes House, Charleston Neck, Sometimes Called the Lowndes
House 190
"Archdale Hall," Lambs, near Dorchester, the Baker Homestead, 200
Years Old 194
St. George's Church, Dorchester 196
Designed by Sir Christopher Wren.
The Perry House at Tongueville (Sometimes Called Tongue Well),
NEAR Dorchester 198
" Ingleside " OR " The Haze," Goose Creek 200
Interior at " Ingleside," Goose Creek 200
" Drayton Hall," St. Andrew's Parish, on Ashley River 202
Side View op " Drayton Hall " 202
xvi
CHAPTER I
OLD CHARLESTON AND
SOUTH CAROLINA
LD houses resemble cMldren in that
their characters are greatly affected
by environment and parentage. In
deahng with the South Carohna
homes it must be remembered that
the state was settled in layers, so to
speak, the homes of the sea-coast
people being constructed to suit the
ideas of people from sea-port towns
in the old world, while those of the middle and upper parts
of the state were built to meet the requirements of people who
had drifted into the interior, or come in from other settlements.
It is amusing to read one of the early historical writers,
Oldmixon, who describes Carohna as "lying parallel with the
Land of Canaan, ' ' which would seem to imply the use of tents,
and some of the primitive log-cabins erected by the first set-
tlers were scarcely more than this. A more substantial type of
primitive house was built of mud and clay — such a house is
said to exist in Williamsburg county, near Kingstree. An-
other primitive house of a later period was constructed of a
native cement composed of lime and oyster shell — called
"Tabby" — an example of which is found on Fripp's Island,
near Beaufort. The native marls of South Carolina also fur-
nished materials with which the first settlers builded their
homes. The remains of such a house are found on Fairlawn
Barony on Cooper river.
Numerous descriptions of the colony were printed and sent
out in order to induce immigration, many of which are included
in B. R. Carroll's Historical collection. Some of these were
printed in London "and to be sold by Mrs. Grover, in Pelican
Court, in Little Britain, 1682." A small description and a
map of South Carolina was published by Mr. Richard Blome,
and printed for Dorman Newman, in the year 1678. Yet an-
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
other map of Carolina was printed by order of the Lords Pro-
prietors "newly published in one large Sheet of Paper, a very
spacious Map of Carolina with its Elvers, Harbor's Planta-
tions, and other Accommodations, from the latest Survey, and
best Informations, with a large and particular Description of
the Entrances into Ashly and Cooper Eivers ; this Map to be
Sold for Is. by Joel Gascoyne, near Wapping Old Stairs, and
Eobert Green in Budge Eow, London, 1682."
It will thus be seen that Charleston is the mother of the
state, and a perusal of the Acts of Assembly published in
Grimke's Digest will strengthen this belief. The first law-
makers of the colony were religious men, as is shown by their
first law, which provided for the observation of the Lord's
Day. Having taken this step they proceeded to the "sup-
pressing of idle, drunken and swearing persons inhabiting
within this state. ' ' Having thus provided for the just and the
unjust our forefathers proceeded to the laying out of high-
ways, and so successfully did they accomphsh this latter task
that the roadway system of South Carolina to-day occupies in
large measure the highway system as laid out by our pro-
genitors. One of the first provisions after this was "settfing
the mihtia. " Then reahzing that all these things would cost
money they passed an Act for "raising a tax of £400 or the
value thereof."
One class of settlers that came to South Carolina and built
fine homes was of the CavaHer stock of England. Many Acts
were passed to encourage immigration, among them "an Act
to suspend prosecution for foreign debts. ' ' Another was for
"making Ahens free of this part of the country," and "for
granting Hberty of conscience to all protestants."
Among the early laws permanency of building was pro-
vided for ; the residences of Charleston were to be constructed
of brick, but this was later repealed. Along with permanency
of building came the desire for preservation of record, and an
early Act provides for the registering of births, marriages and
deaths in the colony. Philanthropic and educational enter-
prises were nurtured, rewards given to inventors of agricul-
tural machines, and in every way possible a fine type of
2
OLD CHARLESTON AND SOUTH CAROLINA
civilization established. One of the earhest Acts provides for
a Pro^dncial Library.
Mr. Langdon Cheves writes of the buildings erected in
early days, saying: "Fine old Colonial brick houses probably
did not exist in the up country ; were few in the middle country
and were comparatively rare anywhere. Most of the fine brick
houses were built between the years 1710 and 1760, and in the
neighborhood of Charleston. After 1760 the tradition of stone
and brick houses faded, masons became scarce, and saw mills
developed, then wooden houses on brick basements were built."
Concerning the topography of "Charles Town" (the name
of the chief city was changed to Charleston by act of Assem-
bly in 1783), although the first settlement was on the western
bank of Ashley River the Council journal of date 21st Febru-
ary, 167i/2> says:
"Mr. Henry Hughes came this day before the Grand
Councill and voluntarily surrendered up the one halfe of his
land nere a place upon the Ashley River knowne by the name
of Oyster Poynt, to be employed in and towards the enlarging
of a Towne and common of pasture there intended. . . . "
The natural advantages of Oyster Point had not escaped
even the first Governor, for Secretary Dalton tells us that
"there is a place between Ashley River and "Wando River,
about 600 acres, left vacant for a town and fort, by the direc-
tion of the old Governor Coll. Sayle, for that it commands
both rivers : it is, as it were, a key to open and shut this settle-
ment into safety or danger. ' '
THE HISTORIC HOUSES OF CHARLESTON
There are only two or three buildings which are discussed
in this present volume, as the subject has been thoroughly cov-
ered from an architectural standpoint in the "DwelUng
Houses of Charleston." But it is not out of place to say that
in Charleston one sees over and over again houses on the old
San Domingo model, of a three or four story structure, one
room deep, that tower tall and narrow, as though turning a
shoulder to the world. However, a balcony door let in the
3
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
fagade gives a hint of welcome and provides access to the
verandas which stretch the entire length of the houses. The
advantage of this arrangement is that the house faces the
walled-in garden, while not being set too far back from the
city street. One writer says that "the arrangement of rooms
in these houses is much hke that of the average Enghsh house
in that the drawing room (or with-drawing rooms) parlor and
dining room are all on the second floor, while the library suite
and breakfast room are found on the ground floor. On the
third floor, which affords needed hght and air, are the large,
spacious bed rooms."
In 1706 the building of wooden frame houses in the town
had been declared to be a nuisance and prohibited, later it was
represented that bricks were not always to be had but at such
excessive rates as prevented the building up of waste places,
and the act was repealed. Houses were allowed to be built of
wood, provided the hearths and chimneys were of brick and
stone. McCrady says in his "History of South Carolina
Under Proprietary Government" that "until 1717 there were
few houses at Charles Town out side the fortifications . . .
In that year the fortifications on the West, North and South
sides were dismanteled and demohshed to enlarge the town,
which now began to spread out on the North across the creek,
which ran where the market now stands, and on the West be-
yond what is now Meeting Street. There are but three build-
ings in the City of Charleston of which there are any historical
authorities for believing that they were built during the
Proprietary Government." These are supposed to be found
on the lower part of Church Street, just below Tradd. None
of these houses are very large. In this present volume the
presentation of Charleston houses is confined to several very
well known establishments of a much later date.
THE MILES BRBWTON HOUSE
In " The DwelHng Houses of Charleston " Miss Alice
Huger Smith and her father have given the history of many of
the most significant houses in the City, but it has been felt that
in a book (such as the present one) supposed to be dealing with
4
OLD CHARLESTON AND SOUTH CAROLINA
the historic houses of South Carohna, some mention must be
made of a few of the Charleston phices. The first discussion
will be the IMiles Brewton house, now in the possession of Miss
Mary P. Frost and her sisters, Miss Susan P. Frost and
Miss Rebecca Motte Frost.
Miss Mary Pringle Frost has written an attractive Uttle
booklet called the "Meaning of a House" in which she says:
"My sister, Susan Frost, and I feel that this house should be
known and loved by the community and that it should enter
into the life of the community — it should live side by side with
smaller houses in its love for what is true and friendly. A
house needs friends : it needs interchange of human thought :
it is a human habitation. What would a habitation be without
an inhabitant 1 It would be lonely ; its spirit would faint. ' '
' ' 0 floors that felt our hf e-long tread
Windows whence babes peeped at their stars
Thresholds whence passed away our dead
0 'er which our brides came from afar ! ' '
The South Carolina Gazette and County Journal, August
22, 1769, gives the names of the men concerned in the design-
ing and building of the Brewton house, now best known as the
Pringle house, and occupied by the Misses Frost :
"Ezra Waite, Civil Architect, House-builder in general,
and Carver, from London, Has finished the Architecture, con-
ducted the execution thereof, viz. : in the joiner way, all taber-
nacle frames (but that in the dining room excepted) , and carved
all the said work in the four principal rooms, and also calcu-
lated, adjusted, and draw'd at large for to work by, the lonick
entablature, and carved the same in front and round the eaves,
of Miles Brewton, Esquire's House on White-Point for Mr.
Moncrieff.— If on inspection of the above mentioned work,
and twenty seven years experience, both in theory and prac-
tice, in noblemen and gentlemen's seats, be sufficient to recom-
mend; he flatters himself to give satisfaction to any gentle-
man, either by plans, sections, elevations, or executions, at his
house in King Street, next door to Mr. Wainwright's, where
architecture is taught by a pecuHar method never pubhshed
in any book extant.
N B As Miles Brewton Esquire's dining room is ot a new
construction with respect to the finishing of windows and
5
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
doorways it has been industriously propagated by some (be-
lieved to be Mr. Kinsey Burden, a carpenter) that the said
Waite did not do the architecture, and conduct the execution
thereof. Therefore the said Waite begs leave to do himself
justice in this public manner, and assure all gentlemen, that he
the said Waite, did construct every individual part and drawed
the same at large for the joiner to work by, and conducted the
execution therof. Any man that can prove to the countrary,
the said Waite promises to pay him One Hundred Guineas, as
witness my hand, this 22nd day of August, 1769. ' '
"EzBA Waite."
The Pringle house is one of the oldest houses in Charleston
and known as one of the best preserved and most elegant speci-
mens of Colonial architecture in the country. Miles Brewton,
for whom the house was built, and his whole family were lost
at sea. The house then passed to his two sisters, of whom Mrs.
Eebecca Motte was one. She was living in it at the time of
the occupation of the city by the British. It Avas seized and
used by Lord Eawdon and Col. Nesbit Balfour, Commandant
of Charleston. An interesting item concerning Eebecca Motte
is that a tablet has been erected to her memory in the vestibule
of St. Philip's Church, by the Eebecca Motte Chapter of the
Daughters of the American Eevolution. The marble of the
tablet erected to her memory was the top of a "pier Table"
in her home. The first tablet erected to Mrs. Eebecca Motte 's
memory was also a marble which had served as the top of a
pier table in her country home, and it was also set up in St.
Phihp's Church but was destroyed in the burning of the first
Church on the present site, on February 15th, 1836.
There are traces of Lord Eawdon 's occupancy still visible
in the Miles Brewton house, for the portrait so valued of Mr.
Brewton bears the mark of a sword thrust through it by one
of his officers, and the marble mantel in one of the parlors has
a shght sketch made by some sharp instrument, of a burly
Englishman, with the swords of Sir H. Clinton above it. It
was in this room that Lord Eawdon gave audience to the little
sons of Col. Isaac Hayne, who came with a relative to plead
for their father's life.
At that time and for long years after, the garden at the
6
OLD CHARLESTON AND SOUTH CAROLINA
back of the house went down to Legare Street, and Lord Raw-
don is said to have cut a wooden gate in the high brick wall
that surrounded the premises, that he might have easy access
through the garden wall to another colonial house in Legare
Street, where his suite resided.
The house itself has been altered but very little since it was
built in 1765, thus preserving its former glory. It is a three
story brick building, with double piazzas each supported by
impressive stone pillars. Like most of the houses of this date
the wide hall has two large rooms on either side. On the third
floor is to be found the long drawing-room that reaches across
the front of the house. The beautiful and artistic carvings and
paneUngs of this old home are of great importance and reflect
the character of its builder. Miles Brewton.
HEYWARD HOUSE
Judge Thomas Hej^ward's house on the west side of
Church Street, just north of Tradd, was at one time consid-
ered one of the most splendid homes in Charleston. Although
not so large, nor the enrichments so profuse, this old home has
many features in common with the Brewton house. Formerly
double verandas adorned this three story brick structure. In
the rear is a long brick building where McLane opened his
famous billiard parlor and bar about 1830. The Heyward
house rises to fame, however, in being the place selected to
house President Washington during his visit to Charleston,
that being the most prominent event in the annals of the city.
The President had journeyed by land, stopping at George-
town, South Carolina, and arrived opposite the city at what
is now Mt. Pleasant, on the 2nd day of May, 1791. A com-
mittee consisting of Hon. John Bee Holmes, Recorder, in his
official robes. General C. C. Pinckney, and Edward Rutledge,
Esq., had crossed the river to meet him, and accompanied him
in a barge rowed by the twelve American captains of vessels
then in port, and commanded by Captain Cochran. A flotilla
of boats of all sizes and kinds, filled with ladies and gentlemen,
and two bands of music, attended him over. As he approached
the town a salute of artillery was fired. The following extract
7
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
is taken from a paper giving an account of the proceedings of
the City Council in anticipation of the President's arrival:
"The Intendant and Committee appointed to make the
necessary arrangements for the reception and entertainment
of George Washington, Esquire, President of the United
States, on his arrival in Charleston, recommended that the
house of Thomas Heyward, Esq., in Church Street, at present
in occupation of Mrs. Rebecca Jamieson, be taken for the use
of the President during his residence in this city, together with
the furniture, for which the sum of £60 be paid, it being the
lowest rate at which the said house can be procured. ' '
The President spent a week in Charleston, there was a
series of balls, dinners, breakfasts and other entertainments,
and every attention that hospitality, public and private, could
devise was shown him. One of the handsomest entertainments
given in his honor was a splendid concert and ball at the
"Exchange,"' on which occasion the ladies wore bandeaux of
white ribbon interwoven in their hair, with Washington's por-
trait and the words "long live the President" painted on them.
The late Mr. Charles Eraser says: "Every hand that could
hold a pencil, professional or amateur, was enlisted to fur-
nish them."
The week spent in the old Heyward home by our first Presi-
dent is not the only honor of which this dwelling boasts. It may
well be proud of its first owner. Judge Thomas Heyward, a
grandson of Captain Thomas Heyward, who served in the
British Colonial Army. When the Indians surrendered the
occupation of their lands beyond the Combee River, Captain
Heyward acquired a portion of these lands and thenceforth his
descendants became residents of that part of the province.
In March, 1775, the Provincial Congress enlisted two regi-
ments, and Judge Thomas Heyward was appointed Captain
of the first company. A year later he was chosen, with ten
other men, to report a form of government for the colonies.
Judge Heyward 's name appears among the Signers of the
Declaration of Independence, an honor which was conferred
upon only prominent men of his generation.
The Heyward family was one of the first to give much
s
OLD CHARLESTON AND SOUTH CAROLINA
attention to the cultivation of rice, owning large bodies of land
adapted to cultivation of this grain, by the success of which
they amassed considerable fortune.
The State of South Carolina has erected a monument over
the grave of Judge Heyward in Jasper County and his body
lies buried in a plot on the plantation that belonged to him in
the Revolutionary days.
RUTLEDGE HOUSE
The square brick house on Broad Street, now owned and
occupied by Mr. R. G. Rhett, was at one time the home of Dic-
tator Rutledge. It is set upon a tall brick foundation with
three additional stories above. The main entrance is in the
form of a portico, which is reached on either side by a double
flight of marble steps, protected by an ingenious extension
of the portico. The whole fagade of the building is very hand-
some and is adorned by this portico on the first two stories and
a veranda extending across the face of the house on the second
floor. All of this iron work was added to the house about 1850,
when it was owned and occupied by Wilham S. Gadsden, father
of Norman P. and grandfather of Messrs. William and
Dwight Gadsden.
The inside of this interesting home is finished with hard-
wood floors and walls, which latter are adorned with rare
paintings. The rooms to the right upon entering are con-
nected and are used as reception rooms, while the correspond-
ing rooms to the left are used as dining and breakfast rooms,
the household offices being downstairs in the basement. Up
stairs a magnificent ball room occupies the entire front of this
estabhshment, while the wings are used as guest rooms and
private sitting rooms. The third floor is given over to
sleeping apartments.
Mrs. Rhett (nee Blanche Salley) has seen to it that this
splendid mansion has received the dignified furnishings due
such a historic house. In addition to the many Rhett heir-
looms of furniture, paintings, silver, cut glass, etc., she has
so arranged that their full artistic possibilities are utilized,
and has produced a home of dignity and delight.
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
John Eutledge was the son of a physician, John Eutledge,
who came to South Carolina about 1730, and Sarah Hext. The
young John and his brothers, Edward and Hugh, were sent
to England to receive an education. They all became lawyers
in Charleston. John and Edward were members of the Con-
tinental Congress at Philadelphia in 1774 and also in 1775.
After a battle fought in the harbor during the Revolution on
the 12th of November, John Eutledge was made a member
of the Council of Safety. He was soon afterwards chosen as
first president of the separate and independent State of South
Carolina, and was called "Dictator," being allowed absolute
authority in his efforts for the safety of the State.
Some of the Eevolutionary scenes which took place in and
near the home of the "Dictator" are told in the Diary of Cap-
tain Barnard Elliott :
"(Gen'l Orders,) 28 March, Parole, Aera. Ordered, that
Col. Eobert 's regiment of artillery and all the militia now in
Chas. Town under the conunand of Col. Pinckney do, at 11
o'clock this morning, draw up two deep in Broad Street, on
the side opposite St. Michael's Church. The regiment of ar-
tillery with two field pieces on the right, in order to receive
the Hon'ble John Eutledge, Esq., constitutionally appointed
by the Hon'ble the Legislature as President and Commander-
in-Chief of the same, with the honors due that station. Or-
dered that should there not be room enough for the militia
under Col. Pinckney in Broad Street from the State House
to the Exchange, then that the remainder draw up on the Bay
two deep as before, with their backs to the houses extending
themselves from Guerard's corner on their left as far along
the Bay as may be, in that manner. Col. Eobert 's regiment to
fire 13 guns when President's appointment has been read, at
Eutledge House. Two sentries to be placed at Presi-
dent's door."
OTHER HOUSES
East of the Eutledge house on Broad Street stands a sub-
stantial building of the same type, said to have been erected
by a Mr. Bellinger as a copy of a house in England. It is
stated that Mr. Bellinger never lived in this house and
it is perhaps best known as the residence of Bishop Nor-
10
•DICTATOR" RUTLEDGE'S HOME, BROAD STREET
CHAKLEST(.)N
Now K (J. Rhelt residence
THE PAUL HOUSE, liROAD AND CHURCH STREETS, CHARLESTON
Erom a print
Another house said to be Dictator Rullcdge's
OLD CHARLESTON AND SOUTH CAROLINA
throp a kinsman of the Bellingers. It is now used as the
Episcopal Eesidence.
The old Izard house stands next east of the Bellinger house.
It is said to have been erected previous to 1757 and has escaped
all the great fires, standing to-day a monument of colonial
days. This house was for many years the residence of Judge
George Bryan, the son of Judge George S. Bryan, the son of
Jonathan Bryan, who was a son of George Bryan, Judge of
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, and who was a delegate to
the First Colonial Congress in 1765. On the maternal side
the Bryans are connected with the Lathams, Dwights, John-
sons and Broughtons.
To the west of the Rutledge house stood St. Andrew's H^-ll,
which for many years was the favorite place for fashionable
assembhes and public meetings. It was the home of St. An-
drew's Society, founded in 1729 by Scotch immigrants. His-
torically it is famous as the meeting place of the State
Convention which, December 20th, 1860, there passed the Ordi-
nance of Secession, the act which inaugurated the great War
of Secession. When General LaFayette visited the city, ar-
riving March 14th, 1825, he was assigned, being the guest of
the city, to St. Andrew's Hall, as his residence.
A house sometimes spoken of as the Eutledge house, but
better known as the "Paul House," is a colonial brick struc-
ture at the southwest comer of Broad and Church Streets.
Although the first floor has been altered into business offices,
the upstairs is essentially the same as it was in the olden days.
Its interior is finished as are all the early Georgian houses,
with rooms of panelled wood and possesses high decorated cor-
nices and wainscoating. In this old house is found the char-
acteristic "Beufet" near the mantelpiece. It is desirable
that this house should be kept intact on account of its purity
of style, and as a relic of Colonial days.
CHAPTER II
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLES-
TON TO THE 'TEE"
BELVIDEEE AND ITS NEIGHBOES
COOPER RIVER
HE handsome estate called Belvidere,
now in possession of the Charleston
Country Club, and formerly the resi-
dence of three Colonial Governors,
Craven, Johnson and Glen, and of two
wealthy famihes, the Manigaults and
Shubricks, is situated on the west side
of the Cooper River, north of Charles-
ton, on what is vulgarly called The Neck. The present house
was built about the end of the 18th or beginning of the 19th cen-
tury. This home of the Shubrick family has a long and inter-
esting history, of which space does not permit more than a
brief mention, connected with Magnolia Umbra and the
Cartaret Tract, which lies adjacent to the south where the
old Powder-Horn buildings now are; the former site
of "Exmount."
The Shubrick family were wealthy English merchants and
shipowners who bought the site before the Revolutionary War,
building thereon and calhng the place Belvidere. General
WilHam Moultrie mentions this spot in his memoirs by saying
that at the evacuation of Charleston, "The American Army
was kept at Shubrick 's farm until the British embarked, to
avoid collision between the troops."
Just after the Revolution, one Sunday when the family
were returning from church, they saw a smoke in the distance,
and on reaching the farm (then three miles out from town)
they found the house burned to the ground. The City Gazette
and Daily Advertiser, in March, 1796, says: "Belvidere, the
12
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
elegant seat of Thomas Shubrick, Esq., three miles from this
city, was yesterday morning destroyed by fire. We are in-
formed that all the furniture except what was in the lower
story was consumed. ' '
Tradition has it that this first house was set on fire to cover
traces of theft by a negro slave girl who was infatuated with
the handsome Enghsh gardener. He instigated the theft of the
family jewels, which he duly received, fled the country, and
left the unfortunate negress to face all consequences. In her
frantic endeavor to hide one crime she committed another, and
added arson to theft. She is said to have confessed to both
of these crimes at her trial, and for them she was hung. Some
say her ghost haunts the long double avenue where she was
wont to meet her accomplice and quondam lover.
The present estabhshment, and second house to occupy this
spot, is a square wooden structure set on a brick basement
five feet in height. From this ascends the house which has
two stories and an attic. The house proper contains eight
rooms, exclusive of basement offices and attic rooms. Beside
the main building two tower-like wings project on the north
and south corners of the house ; these are entirely independent,
and partake of the nature of "block-houses," evidently erected
as defences against Indians. The only visible connection these
two flanking buildings have with the main mansion is found
in the substantial brick wall connecting all their basements,
which wall forms a sheltering parapet.
Belvidere house faces westward, but has an open lawn not
only to the rear on the east, but to the north and south also,
where small formal flower gardens lie in the enclosures formed
by the block-houses, after the manner of old fashioned
wall-gardens.
The approach to this staunchly constructed house ^ is
through a magnificent double avenue of venerable oaks lining
the semi-circular driveway. Directly in front of the house is
a grassy sward, bisected by a formal pathway leading up to the
stone steps and flagstone terrace. This latter forms a rather
unusual entrance for a southern home, but affords a delight-
ful promenade from which a scene of rare beauty is enjoyed.
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
This is particularly true on an autumn afternoon when the
western sky is ablaze with crimson and gold. Then the trunks
of the great oaks of the avenue show purple-black against the
flaming sky, while their gnarled branches make perfect gothic
arches for a leafy roof, through the interstices of which pours
a mellow haze. In the pathway forming an aisle to this cathe-
dral of the out-of-doors, the last faint rays of daylight meet
and mingle with quivering lances of light from the "Sublime,
Sweet Evening Star. ' '
The stone terrace gives direct access, through an arched
door with carved lintels and intricate fan-hghts, to a front
hall. From out of this hall open four doors, one of which gives
access to the large rear room, one to the side hall containing
the stairways, and one on each side to two delightful airy
rooms, on the north and south respectively, with high ceilings
and open fireplaces. The chimneys of Belvidere are so placed
as to afford warmth to four rooms at one time, front and rear
on each of the stories.
Just inside of the front door are to be found latticed
jalousie blinds, lending an air of enchantment to the otherwise
plain hall, and producing a mysterious atmosphere as though
some dark-eyed beauty might here secretly look forth at a
booted and spurred cavalier as he clattered up the avenue on
his coal-black charger while the plume from his bonnet waved
gaily in the breeze. A "Romeo Balcony" over the front en-
trance adds to, rather than detracts from, the air of discreet
romancing which the whole house produces. This curved bal-
cony, with the exception of five well placed windows with solid
wooden shutters, forms the only break in the straight, plain
exterior of the house.
Occupying the rear of the house both up and down stairs
are two beautifully proportioned rooms which are quite un-
usually large and command an unobstructed view of the whole
Belvidere tract to the south, east and north. Further afield
the view is wonderful, including glimpses of the city and har-
bor. Cooper and Wando Rivers, Daniel's Island, and the
mainland beyond in Christ Church Parish. This large room
downstairs was evidently the state dining-room, and the cor-
14
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
responding apartment upstairs was the ballroom. On the
lower main floor a flat-roofed piazza forms an agreeable and
dignified finish to the rear exterior, across the whole width of
which it extends and from which the same unbroken pano-
rama as seen from the dining and ball rooms can be enjoyed.
Some of the special interior architectural features are the
stairway with its mahogany balustrade and newel post, the
large arched window on the landing, and the half-window
found on the stairway leading to the attic. These excite the
admiration of visitors to Belvidere, and bespeak refinement
of taste, and abundant means in securing the correct execu-
tion of detail.
Perfect simplicity occurs again in the Adam design found
in the decoration of this house. This is true of the ornamenta-
tion over the doors of the large ballroom and decoration of
the mantelpiece. The scenes over the doors are pastoral in
subject, representing a shepherd piping to his sheep, or wooing
in rustic style. The mantel is decorated in a way quite out of
the ordinary, with a sea-weed and sea-shell motif, the use of
which may be ascribed to sentiment owing to the fact that the
sons of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Shubrick were all gallant sailors.
Capt. Templer Shubrick, one of the sons, distinguished
himself in the war with the Barbary pirates, and was sent
home with dispatches telhng of victory. He sailed on the
Sloop-of -war "Hornet" which foundered at sea and was never
again heard of. Another son, Capt. Edward Eutledge Shu-
brick, also died at sea, and the officers and sailors of his ship,
the frigate "Columbia," asked the privilege of erecting his
monmnent, which now stands in the eastern cemetery of St.
Philip's Church.
It was the father of these young men, Thomas Shubrick,
who built the house. He was a daring soldier of the Revolu-
tion and for his patriotism his estate was sequestered by the
British. His wife was a famous beauty. Miss Sarah Motte,
who was selected, because of her beauty of face and form and
charm of mind and manner, to sit opposite to President Wash-
ington at a dinner given to him upon the occasion of his visit
to Charleston in 1791.
15
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
In spite of his estates having been sequestered, Thomas
Shubriek must have either retained or regained Belvidere,
advertising for a miller in 1806 or 1807. The property was
inherited by Capt. Templer Shubriek, and after his tragic
death his widow returned to her northern home, leaving the
estate in trust for her son Edmund, then an infant. The
property was later acquired by Capt. Edward Eutledge about
the year 1834, and according to a deed of marriage settlement
Capt. Eutledge gave it as a wedding gift to his daughter, Har-
riet Horry Eutledge, who married St. Julien Eavenel in 1851.
By various processes the property passed through the hands
of a Mr. Brewster, the Magnolia Cemetery Company, and Mr.
C. 0. Witte. From the latter was purchased the present por-
tion constituting the Country Club and containing the mansion
house called Belvidere.
THE RAT TRAP
Across the Broad Path from "Belvedere," according to
Judge H. A. M. Smith, and situated on the Ashley river, was
a plantation known as The Eat Trap, later changed to Dr.
Harris' Hayfield Farm.
Near Belvidere lay, says the same authority, the Burnham
Grant, some acres of which were west of the Broad Path, and
some east; upon the portion lying east was found Cochran's
Ship Yard, on Ship Yard Creek, the name then given Long
Point Creek. This tract was afterwards broken up into small
farms, and passed into the hands of various persons of note,
Mr. Joel Poinsette acquiring one portion which was separated
from Belvidere by Shubriek Avenue.
THE FOUR MILE HOUSE
Proceeding to the north, on the Broad Path is found an
interesting edifice by the roadside. It is commonly called the
Four Mile House, for many years a noted road-house or tavern
for travelers on the road to and from Charleston. This inn
was kept, about the year 1812, by a man named Fischer, and
his wife, who robbed and murdered many persons who put
up at this ancient hostelry. These two were finally brought to
16
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
trial for the murder of one of several travelers who mysteri-
ouslj^ disappeared after taking shelter at their inn, and were
convicted and hung. An account of their trial, etc., may be
had from reading "The Dungeon and the Grallows," by John
Blake White, pubUshed in the "Charleston Book" (1845).
Mrs. Fischer was said to have been a beautiful woman, who
expected to be spared on this account ; accordingly she dressed
for the hanging in her wedding finery, but all of her arts
availed naught, and she, with her partner, suffered the penalty
of the Law at Charleston's "Tyburn Hill," then just north of
the present Line Street.
BELMONT
Near the Four Mile House, north of the lands known as
McLaughhn's Grant, and east of the pubhc road, was Belmont,
the country seat for many years of Chief Justice Charles
Pinckney and his descendants, which appears in an old deed
as being on "Cupar" Eiver.
The late Mrs. St. Juhen Eavenel, a descendant of Eliza
Lucas Pinckney, describes the house as "a dehghtful resi-
dence, a large brick house, standing, as most of the country
houses did, a few hundred yards from the water's edge, on a
semi-circular headland making out into a bold creek, a branch
of the Cooper Eiver."
Quotations from a letter of Mrs. Pinckney state that "The
Enemy" was at Belmont in 1780, and "destroyed everything
in the house." Also Garden, in his anecdotes, states that
Colonel Montcrief, of the British Army, destroyed certain oak
trees of remarkable beauty which had been planted by Mrs.
Pinckney 's deceased husband. Apparently the house was de-
stroyed sometime between 1780 and 1785.
STROMBOLI
A grant to John Pendarvis and the next to John Ladson
seem to have been the last grants of land which crossed the
neck from river to river. Upon one of these grants was
founded Stromboh, north of Behnont on Long Point Creek,
and east of the public road.
2 17
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Some time before 1719, 158 acres of this land became vested
in Thomas Elliott (Eleott), and his will (1731) mentions a
house there, it being his residence.
Some portion of these last grants passed to John Clement,
who established Clement 's Ferry ; 15 acres of this tract Clem-
ent apparently called Dover, and 15 acres on the other side
of the Cooper Eiver bore the name of Calais. On these were
the respective landings for the ferry, the signs for which read
"From Dover to Calais."
In 1817 Adam Tunno acquired the ferry tract containing
65 acres, a few days later Dover and Calais (15 acres each)
were sold to Gordon and Spring. Later the portion called
Dover was returned to the ferry tract which had been sold
by Tunno to Nathaniel Heyward, who devised it to his daugh-
ter Elizabeth (wife of Charles Manigault) and the whole tract
became part of the Manigault farm known as Marshlands,
conveyed by Dr. Gabriel Manigault in 1880 to Mrs. Cecelia
Lawton, who conveyed the part containing the residence to
the Government. This is now embraced in the Navy
Yard reservation.
MARSHLAND AND ITS NEIGHBORS
About four miles above Belvidere, on the same side of the
Cooper River, stands a fine old house, which, according to Mrs.
Cecelia Lawton, one of the later owners of Marshlands, was
built by John Ball, one of the numei*ous Balls, and later ac-
quired by Nathaniel Heyward, who devised it to his daugh-
ter, Elizabeth, along with the ferry tract that he had
purchased from Tunno, which was included in the Manigault
farm, better known as Marshlands.
There are many Balls of one family, and to add to the con-
fusion attendant upon properly placing a Ball in town or
county there are in South Carolina two families of this name
absolutely unconnected by ties of blood. Representing the
smaller family is Mr. Wm. Ball, Editor of The State, pub-
hshed at Columbia, S. C.
A clever relation of the "Big Ball" connection, Miss Caro-
line Moreland, has a delightful way of distinguishing the inter-
18
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
locking branches of the larger family. She differentiates them
by bestowing titles derived from the names of the streets upon
which they now reside, as for instance, the "Presidential"
Balls, who reside on President Street, and the "Kingly" and
"Queenly" Balls, who hve on King and Queen Streets respec-
tively. According to her method of nomenclature the "Bully"
Balls belong on Bull Street in the old house, and the "New"
Balls have their habitation in a new house on New Street. Nor
does she omit that charming branch of the family, the Jack
Balls, who live on Pitt Street.
Marshlands has been incorporated in the Navy Yard re-
serve. The building itself is a four story structure including
its attic and a brick basement that is unusually high from the
ground. At the time that it was built it was a dwelhng of
great magnificence, with fine examples of hand-carved wood-
w^ork inside, and mahogany doors and finishings, the front
elevation showing a structure of about the same period as
Belvidere. The tall gabled house, whose windows once over-
looked a broad domain and commanded a view of the waters
of the Cooper Eiver, is now used as an office building. If houses
have thoughts then this old place, modeled after the residence
of an English country gentleman, must sometimes hark back
to the good old days when family life went on within its walls.
In the southwest room upstairs is found in a closet by the
chimney place a secret passage. It seems that in former days
many colonial residences boasted of these inclosures, some-
times said to have been used as retreats in times of danger, and
as methods of escape during Indian attacks. In some old
houses these secret stairways were called "Chambermaid
stairs " ; the most modern building containing a set is that at
Cote Bas, farther up on the Cooper Eiver, built about 1850.
Underground passages are found in the remains of Yeamans
Hall, Goose Creek, and in the structure still standing at Mul-
berry on Cooper Eiver, and at Fenwick Castle on John's
Island. Some authorities dispute this fact, but others admit
the presence of these underground passages, one of which the
writer has traversed.
19
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
In the Navy Yard the Headquarters Building was erected
upon the site of the old TurnbuU mansion, the original stone
steps of which are yet to be found leading directly to the mag-
nificent avenue of oaks marking the walk to the river landing.
Near Marshlands to the north were the plantations "Retreat"
and "Palmettoes," adjoining Goose Creek.
QUARTER HOUSE
West of Marshlands over on the State road just below the
turn where it divides into two branches, there stands a brick
pillar marking the entrance of the old race course of the old
Jockey Club's property. McCrady's "History of South Caro-
lina Under Proprietary Government" (page 345) says that
in 1707 "The neck of land between the Cooper and Ashley
Rivers, about six miles in length was well settled. One passed
about this time in riding up the road which Archdale described
as so beautiful, the plantations of Mathews, Green, Starkey,
Gray, Grimball, Dickerson and Izard on the Cooper ; and fur-
ther up those of Sir John Yeamans, Landgrave Bellinger,
Colonel Gibbs, Mr. Schenkingh, Colonel Moore and Col-
onel Quarr j^. ' '
Bearing out the truth of Mr. McCrady's statement in the
light of later research Judge Henry A. M. Smith, in Vol. XIX
South Carolina Historical Magazine, traces the titles of land
grants from Charleston neck north to Yeamans Hall. In this
article Stock Prior was described as a part of the Christo-
pher Smith property, later known as "Izard's Quarter
House plantation."
On Stock Prior the Broad Path, or country road from
Charleston, made a fork ; the right hand road at this fork went
northwardly to St. James, Goose Creek, the Congarees, etc.,
while the left hand road went southwestwardly to the ferry
across Ashley River, and up along the river to Dorchester. In
a ditch at the side of the left hand road, by the railway tracks,
is a granite post marking the parish line. This road leads to
what is now known as Bee's Ferry, but it was estabhshed by
Edmund Belhnger, second Landgrave of that name, who mar-
ried Elizabeth Butler, daughter of Shem Butler and sister of
20
g
>
2;
C=3
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
Joseph, and lived at Stoney Point (sometimes called Altaraxes
and Eocky Point) although he owned much property in other
parts of the low country. "Shem Town" was at one time
something of a settlement, and Bellinger's Ferry was well
known, as several Public Acts of the Assembly deal with vest-
ing the right of the ferry in Mrs. Bellinger and her children.
Judge Smith states that just south of this fork in the Broad
Path, and near the point where the road divides on the north,
on the east side of the public road was an "Ordinary" or
inn that existed from an early date and was called the
Quarter House.
The Quarter House is frequently mentioned in early rec-
ords. An Act in 1721 directs that "The road from Charles-
ton to the Quarter House be made 40 feet in breadth," and an
advertisement in 1731 names the owner. . . . "On Saturday
the 4th of March nest at the dwelhng house of Mr. Hill Croft,
deceased, commonly called Quarter House. ' ' Again, Thomas
Cooper offers a reward for a horse that had strayed or been
stolen if returned to him in Charles Town or to Mrs. Croft of
the Quarter House.
Another advertisement dealing with this locality tells of
the loss of a snuff-mill; "Lost on Saturday last between
Charlestown and the Quarter House a Snuff-mill, with a silver
Hinge and plaits on Top and Bottom. Engi'aven on the Top —
Quod tibi hoc alteri — , on the Bottom— Non tibi ne alteri —
John Hay. Whoever brings the said Snuff-mill to James Pain,
Merchant in Charlestown, shall have 20s Reward."
The muster ground for the mihtia was here, and Gibbes'
Documentary History says that in 1761 "Mr. Henry Middle-
ton, coming from his plantation on Goose Creek met about
forty Catawba Indians at the Quarter House." This place
survived for many years, and was long called by the original
name, even as late as 1832, when Wm. Dry offers to sell pine
lumber at his "plantation by the Quarter House."
YEAMANS' HALL
Yeamans ' Hall is said to have been bought from the heirs of
Governor Yeamans by Governor Thomas Smith, and presented
21
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
to his son. Certainly a Governor Smith occupied it about
1693. Until shattered by the earthquake in 1886 this large
two-story building set on a liigh basement was fairly well
preserved.; The surroundings are particularly beautiful,
and in the family burying ground are found Poyas, Lockwood
and Smith tombstones.
GOOSE CREEK SETTLEMENT
Goose Creek, sometimes spelled "Goose Crick," is one of
the oldest settlements in the state outside of Charleston. The
church still standing there was begun in 1714 and completed
in 1719. Tradition has it that it was spared during the Revo-
lution because of the fact that above its chancel there are the
Royal Arms of England. In an historical sketch of this spot
Judge Henry A. M. Smith says, ' ' There was a very large set-
tlement in Goose Creek at an early period. The early grants
date as early as 1672 and 1673, and by 1680 all the lands on both
sides of Goose Creek as far as Back River and Foster's Creek,
and even to the headwaters of Goose Creek within five miles
of the present town of Summerville, were taken up, and taken
up almost entirely by Church of England people."
In 1732, according to Mr. Salley, an advertisement ap-
peared in the Gazette designed ' ' To encourage Tradesmen to
settle contiguously in the Parish of St. James 's on Goose Creek,
John Lloyd, Esq., will grant building leases of 64 acres of land,
viz., 8 Lotts consisting of 8 acres each Lott, all fronting the
Broad Path, from the Brow of the Hill Mr. Rich Walker now
lives on, to the Fence joining Mr. Hume 's Land, on the North
West side of the Broad Path. The Land is all cleared, and
very proper for either Pasture, Corn or Rice, within 20 miles
of Charlestown, and four of Goose Creek Bridge; and the
Trades thought most proper to settle on it are, a Smith, Car-
penter, Wheel-wright, Bricklayer, Butcher, Taylor, Shoe-
maker and a Tanner."
Judge Smith states that at Goose Creek "The only excep-
tion to the English settlements was a settlement of Hugue-
nots. . . . One of the first, or rather, the two first to settle
there were the brothers, Abraham Fleury de la Plein and
ST. JAMES' CHURfH, GOOSE CREEK
ST. JAMES' CHURCH, INTERIOR
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
Isaac Fleury de la Pleiii, who both received grants which be-
came the center of a little French settlement. Isaac Porcher,
the ancestor of the Porcher family in South Carolina, first
settled in this country at St. James, Goose Creek, where he
* lived his life' and died."
THE OAKS
The beautiful manor house of the Middleton family was
called The Oaks, and stood where Mr. Edwin Parsons has
erected his maguiiicent home in colonial period architecture,
a fitting and dignified successor to the old mansion which stood
at the head of an avenue of venerable oaks which for nearly
a quarter of a mile form a continuous arch over the broad
approach to the house. These live oaks were planted, so it is
said, in 1680, and the first mansion was built soon afterv\'ards,
survived the Revolutionary War and was burned in the latter
part of the nineteenth century.
With an instinct for what was appropriate, the moving
picture director who filmed "Little Miss Rebellion" selected,
for some of the scenes of this story starring Dorothy Gish,
this house, and used the avenue of giant oak trees as part of
a scene depicting Juvenile Royalty accompanied by her
mounted suite. The ensemble of this company in gorgeous
uniforms and courtly trappings for their mounts revived for
a few brief moments upon the screen all that colorful and stir-
ring life of colonial days and flashed into existence the at-
mosphere of "Courtly knights and Ladies Faire" native to
this fine old place ; and that this type of fife was by no means
foreign to the Middleton family the following extract from
the scrap book of Mr. Frank Hohnes shows :
"Died at sea on the passage from London to Charleston,
South Carohna, in October 1789, Lady Mary Middleton, the
daughter of the unfortunate Earl of Cromartie and rehct of
the late Henry Middleton of S. C.
' ' The Earl had been banished from England for holding a
correspondence with the 'Old Pretender,' who died at Rome
in 1765 aged 78 years, his son Charles Edward at Florence m
1788 at an advanced age. His brother the Cardinal of York
died at Rome aged 82 years. "
23
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
CROWFIELD
Crowfield Hall, four miles from the Parish Church, was
called after family property of the same name in England, said
by Wm. Middleton as late as 1876 to belong to the family, and
found in possession of Admiral Sr. G. Brook Middleton.
When Wm. Middleton, the son of Arthur Middleton who
first built on Crowfield, returned to England (1758-1784) to
take charge of the English Crowfield, he neglected very much
the Goose Creek namesake. Mr. Eawhns Lowndes bought it
in 1776 and resold it to Thomas Middleton, 1778, who then
advertised it again for sale in 1786 as "containing 1400 acres
of land on which stood a very commodious dwelhng house of
excellent brick, having twelve good rooms with fireplaces in
each, besides four rooms in the cellar also with fireplaces."
Crowfield, like Bloomfield, another Middleton place, boasted
of unusually fine surroundings, comprising lawns, woodlands
and formal gardens.
Goose Creek and its vicinity was famous for its scientific
horticulturists, and the gardens prospered accordingly. "Not
many miles from this locality," says Mr. J. I. Waring, "was
situated the botanical garden of Andrew Michaux, the horti-
culturist. Its site has been located by the broken parts of
many flower pots."
Eliza Lucas, in a letter to her friend ' ' Miss Bartlett, ' ' gives
a long account of an "agreeable tour" to Goose Creek, and
describes Crowfield as " a seat of the Middleton Family "...
The tour was designed to show her those parts of the country
in which are "Several very handsome gentleman's seats, at all
of wch we were entertained with the most friendly politeness.
The first we arrived at was Crowfield, Mr. Wm. Middleton 's
seat, where we spent a most agreeable week. The house
stands a mile from but in sight of the road, and makes a very
handsome appearance ; as you draw nearer new beauties dis-
cover themselves; first the beautiful vine mantling the wall,
laden with delicious clusters, nest a large pond in the midst
of a spacious green presents itself as you enter the gate. The
house is well furnished, the rooms well contrived and elegantly
24
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
furnished. From the back door is a wide walk a thousand feet
long, each side of wch nearest the house is a grass plat orna-
mented in a serpentine manner with flowers ; next to that on
the right hand is what immediately struck my rural taste, a
thicket of young, tall live oaks, where a variety of airy chor-
isters poured forth their melody — and my darling the mock-
ing-bird, joyned in the concert, enchanted me with his har-
mony. Opposite on the left hand is a large square bowhng
green, sunk a httle below the level of the rest of the garden,
with a walk quite round bordered by a double row of fine large
flowering Laurel and Catalpas — wch afford both shade and
beauty. My letter will be of unreasonable length if I don't
pass over the mounts, wilderness, etc., and come to the boun-
dary of this charming spot, where is a large fish pond with a
mount rising out of the middle the top of wch is level mth the
dwelHng house, and upon it is a Eoman temple. On each side
are other large fish ponds, properly disposed wch form a fine
prospect of water from the house — beyond this are the smiling
fields dressed in vivid green. ' '
The property was in the possession of Henry A. Middleton
at the time of his death, and in March, 1876, The Washington
Chronicle says, Henry Middleton of Asheville, N. C, for-
merly of Charleston S.C. died yesterday at the residence of
his brother, Commodore Middleton U.S. Navy, at the age of
79 ; he graduated at West Point 1816 but shortly after resigned
his commission to engage in Hterary pursuits, married a niece
of Sir Henry Pollock, resided for a long time in England and
France, and was the author of several works of political char-
acter; his father, the late Hon. Henry Middleton, was Gov-
ernor of South Carolina and member of Congress in 1816
where he served until appointed to represent our government
at St. Petersburg, his residence for 10 years. His grandfather
was Arthur Middleton, one of the signers of the Declaration
of Independence, and his great grandfather Heniy Middleton
was one of the presidents of the first Congress in 1774, the
father of the latter, Arthur Middleton, was one of the first
Eoyal Governors of the colony.
25
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
OTRANTO
Otranto was another Middleton residence. While Edward
lived at The Oaks Arthur dwelt at the Otranto plantation, his
residence being at the spot where the Otranto Club House now
stands; but Mr. Waring states that "The place now known as
'Crovatts' was the original Otranto, and was owned by the
Haniiltons, who constructed a private race track, which started
in front of the house and ran in a circle for one mile, in order
that guests could sit on the piazza and have a full view of the
course and races."
"From 1796 to 1806 the Reverend Mr. Porgson," says Dr.
Burgess in his chronicles of St. Mark's Parish, "occupied the
house known now as the Otranto Club House as a rectory."
But this is not the first parsonage for Goose Creek church.
The first one, according to Dr. Burgess, was the old brick par-
sonage at Goose Creek built about or just after 1714 when the
present church was built. An old plat represents the form and
shape of 100 acres of land given by Capt. Benjamin Schen-
kingh to the parish; "One acre thereof for to build a church
on, and the rest for ye use of the Rector or Minister of said
Parish, for ye time being," the conveyance from him, "ye said
Schenkingh, to the Church Commissioners" being dated 1706.
At the same time there was donated by Arthur C. Middleton
four acres upon which the first parsonage was erected. Evi-
dently something happened to the original parsonage, as Mr.
Porgson occupied the present club house in 1796, the avenue of
which tradition says was planted by Captain John Cantey.
The good parson Porgson was a devoted disciple of Isaak
Walton, and could not refrain from his favorite sport even on
Sunday. One Sunday morning while walking to church carry-
ing his sermon under one arm and his fisMng rod on his
shoulder he stopped on the bridge to see how the fish were
biting. He suddenly hooked a large trout, and in his anxiety
to land his fish he forgot his sermon, which shpped from be-
neath his arm and fell into the water ; there being a strong ebb
tide it floated away, and the congregation probably had no ser-
mon that day even if the minister had his trout.
26
"MEDWAY," ON BACK RIVEU, ABOVE GOOSE CREEK
The home ot Landfrave Smilh and cuw owned by Mr, S. G. Stoney
The oldest brick house in South Carohna outside of Charleston
OTRANTO CLUB HOUSE. GOOSE CREEK
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
According to Dr. Johnson, tradition has it that the ro-
mantic marriage of "Mad Archie" Campbell, famous in the
Revolution, to a young lady of Charleston took place at the
rectory of St. James, Goose Creek, and that they were married
by the then rector, the Rev. Mr. Elhngton. "Mad Archie"
Campbell was a member of the family of the Duke of Argyle,
to which family the last Royal Governor, who lived on Meeting
Street in what is now the Huger house, also belonged.
According to the chronicles of the Brisbane family, com-
piled by E. Haviland Hillman, F.S.G., from 1801 to 1804
Otranto was owned by John Stanyarne Brisbane (Born 1773 — -
died 1850), son of James, and grandson of William the Emi-
grant. "When John Brisbane's father, James Brisbane, was
banished from Charleston in 1782 he intended taking John
with him, but at the last moment, as the vessel was about to
sail, John got into one of the small boats on which passengers
had come on board, hid under a seat and returned to shore,
where he remained with an old aunt, probably Susannah Stan-
yarne. He married, 19th March, 1795, Maria Hall, the
daughter of the Hon. George Abbott Hall and Lois Mathews.
From 1801 to 1804 he owned the plantation on Goose Creek
called Otranto, where the Otranto Hunting Club now is, and
later had his country seat at Malona (Acabee Woods),
Ashley River. ' '
At one time Otranto Club was the residence of Dr. Garden,
well-known botanist and correspondent of Linnaeus, the natur-
alist, who named our beautiful Gardenia after his correspon-
dent. "Subsequently," says Mr. Waring, "it was owned by
Mr. PhiUp Porcher, and was once known as 'Goslington,'
meaning Little Goose, a name said to have been bestowed upon
it by the Hon. James L. Petigru on the occasion of a brilhant
dinner party given in the ancient building, now the Otranto
Club House.
It is a low structure with attics and dormer windows ; the
porch is about one foot from the ground and extends around
three sides of the building ; its roof is supported by heavy brick
columns. It is situated on a hill leading down to Goose Creek,
and is altogether charming in conception and execution. Frank
27
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
E. Slyde, a man of artistic nature and appreciative of all that
is fine in these old southern places, connected with the National
Headquarters of the War Camp Community Service, recently
visited this place, and speaks of the Club House at Goose
Creek as a place where "One need but release his imagination
to see the gay folks at the various parties in the beautiful,
plain, quaint rooms with the furnishings so odd, and to hear
the chnk of glasses and the hale and hearty salutation of
'Heigh-ho, friend, we bid you enter.' "
THE ELMS
The intimate daily chronicles of Goose Creek between the
years 1754 and 1781 may be found in the journal of Mrs. Ann
Manigault, whose grandson, Gabriel Manigault, married Mar-
garet Izard, and who is mentioned frequently as "Grandson
G." This private record deals with the different prominent
famihes of the settlement, and contains many intimate items
of people prominent in colonial life, among others the family
of Izards, who spread out at one time in several branches in
the neighborhood, and whose home place, "The Elms," was
on Goose Creek. Mr. Joseph loor Waring, a descendant of
one of the Waring settlers of the Dorchester and Goose Creek
neighborhood, says that all that remains of this fine old home
of a prominent family is "A single tall column of the lofty
porch, standing hke a monument over its departed glory. ' ' In
this house Mr. Izard entertained LaFayette very lavishly
when he made his tour of the comitry, one of the octagonal
shaped wings of the house being fitted up in great elegance
for his entertainment ; here he spent a night, and ever after-
wards this wing was known as LaFayette 's Lodge. ' '
Says Mr. Waring, "It is difficult now to find even a path
leading to the old house. Around the ruins, in the spring of
the year, amongst wild grasses and weeds, bulbs and garden
plants still grow, marking the site of the flower garden. " The
family, like the home, has vanished, but in the Museum of Fine
Arts in Boston hangs a large double portrait of Mr. and Mrs.
Ralph Izard, painted by the celebrated artist Copley. This
28
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
picture was found in London for Mr. Charles I. Manigault, a
grandson of the originals of the portrait.
The Izard family intermarried, among others, with the
family of the last Royal Governor, Campbell, but before that
time the will of Ealph Izard bequeaths (1722-1724) "All that
my tract of land situate, lying and being on or near the south
side of Goose Creek in the County of Berkley." A memorial
tablet to his memory, and his hatchment, may be seen on the
walls of Goose Creek Church, and his remains are interred
in the cemetery just outside.
Part of the northern portion of the Ehns, an Izard estate,
after passing through several hands, came finally into the pos-
session of Dr. Eli Geddings, a famous physician of Charleston.
His property is described as "Bounding north on Crowfield. "
The city residence of the Izard family is found still stand-
ing in Charleston ; a square brick building on the north side of
Broad street one door west of King.
MBDWAY AND ITS NEIGHBORS
Medway is sometimes called the Back River Place, and
"Back River," says Oldmixon, the historian, "falls in Cooper
River about two miles above Goose Creek. " At the confluence
of Cooper River with this its second western branch, lying
between Goose Creek and Back River is a considerable extent
of arable land separated into several plantations.
The first of these, lying on the eastern side of Goose Creek,
is known as Red Bank, and on this place there was formerly
an extensive pottery for the manufacture of tile, etc. A little
beyond Red Bank on the western side of Back River is Par-
nassus, once owned by the Tennent family. Here is a
beautiful avenue of oaks. Near this avenue is a lonely head-
stone inscribed :
"Rose; a faithful servant."
a mute reminder of the deep affection which existed between
master and servant in the days gone by. Away out in the
woods were two more grave stones inscribed respectively
"Hector" and "Joe." These are said to mark the burial
29
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
many years in the family," but the place is now in possession
of Mr. Samuel G. Stoney, who is preserving all its quaint and
rural charm.
Many ghosts are said to walk inside of these low-ceilinged
rooms, with their large fireplaces and narrow windows. At a
certain window, with its small panes of glass, is seen some-
times a shadowy lady, who sits and watches for the coming of
the young husband who never returned, having met his death
while deer hunting. In another room he who is so bold as to
sleep therein sometimes wakes in the night to see an old gen-
tleman seated comfortably in front of the fireplace smoking
his pipe.
"It was just the place for ghosts to walk, for strange voices
to be heard, for unusual things to happen," says John Ben-
nett, who has immortalized the atmosphere of romantic
mystery mth which Medway is enveloped in his book, "The
Treasure of Pierre Gailhard," in which he revives the eerie
sense of desolation and haunting allurement found only in the
discovery of a well-built brick house in such an isolated spot.
In an old walled cemetery at Medway on a part of the
original tract, is a moss-covered slab of marble over the re-
mains of Eev. Elias Prioleau, a native of Poms and Saintonge,
one of the Huguenot emigrants who, on the Eevocation of the
Edict of Nantes, came with others to South Carolina. Accord-
ing to a mural tablet erected to his memory in the Huguenot
Church, Charleston, he became a minister of that faith, and
the stone at Medway also recites this fact, and states that this
family sprang from one of the Doges of Venice. Miss M. EHse
Langley, of Charleston, S. C, has in her possession some inter-
esting documents or mementos of Antoine Prioli, who died in
Venice 1623, and from whom the family sprang. The Eev.
Ehas Prioleau died at his farm on Back Eiver on Midway,
now Medway, in St. James, Goose Creek, and there his re-
mains repose.
DEAN HALL
At what is known as the T, Cooper Eiver divides into two
branches, to the east and to the west. Many large plantations
31
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
lie along both banks of both branches. Fronting the Cooper
Kiver proper, directly opposite to where it branches, stands
what is known as Coming's Tee plantation on which is found
a beautiful house. If the reader will picture the capital letter
T, and place Coming Tee at the place whei'e the shank of the
letter joins the arms, he will have a working conception of this
river and the plantations in the vicinity. The left arm of the T
will correspond to the western branch, and the right arm of the
T will correspond to the eastern branch. Strangely enough
each branch divides in turn, or rather is formed by two
branches joining to form the head-waters of the rivers, those
of the western or left hand branch of Cooper Eiver being
Wadboo and Biggon Creeks, and those of the eastern branch
being Quinby Creek and the river itself. There is another
peculiar fact to be noted in connection with the two branches
of this river, and one that will serve to assist the reader in
visuahzing the lay of the land, and that is that the Colleton
family (from whom the county derives its name) owned a
Barony at the head of each main branch of the river. On the
western bank of the left hand branch lay FairlaAvn Barony,
and a httle further, on the right of the left hand branch, was
Wadboo Barony, while the grant of a Barony of 1200 acres,
called the "Cypress Barony," is situated on the head-waters
of the eastern branch of Cooper River around Huger 's Bridge.
Many of the houses on Cooper River still standing are found
upon portions of land formerly belonging to the Colleton
family, but now in possession of various other old famihes of
that section.
A great curve occurs in Cooper River to the west just before
it divides at the T, and upon a peninsular, nearly an island,
formed by this great curve and the turn of the western branch
is located Dean Hall plantation, an enchantingly situated
country place. With the handsome house and the outbuildings
Dean Hall is said to look more like a village than a plantation,
and is rightly considered one of the show places of the river,
having been set in fine order by its latest owner, Ben-
jamin Kittredge.
32
■^/-
'%
\ i i^r I'm
i\^^
It*;'
ifii'-i:
'DEAN HALL," COOPER lUVLR, BELOW THE TEE
MALM PATIENCE AND HER PET CiOBBLER
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
The exact age of Dean Hall and the buildings thereon is
not known, but a clue is afforded by an advertisement appear-
ing in the South Carolina Gazette September 2nd, 1757, when
the place was for sale. It was then the property of Sir Alex-
ander Nesbit, a Scotch Baronet, and was bought in by his sons.
Sir John and Alexander. Sir John married a Miss AUston,
but was, before his marriage, a man of sporting instincts and
affable manners. He caused many a flutter in the dove-cote if
an incident taken from Irving 's "History of the Turf in South
Carolina" is to be beheved. Many of the gentlemen of the
neighboring plantations were ardent followers of the Sport
of Kings. Strangely enough this apparently idle hobby was
destined to have a deep significance at the time of the Revo-
lutionary war, because the "Swamp Fox," Marion, and his
men, commanded the use of extraordinarily well-bred horses
in their guerilla warfare against the British, and other cav-
alry leaders knew where to apply for a good mount.
Chief among these men who raised good horses were Daniel
Ravenel of Wantoot, and the Harlestons. The love of the
sport, as well as some of the original stock, survived the Revo-
lution. In February, 1796, a race was run between John Ran-
dolph, of Virginia, and Sir John Nesbit of Dean Hall. Each
rode his own horse; Randolph won. Many of the married
fair ones were heard to confess after the race was over, that
although Mr. Randolph had won the race Sir John had won
their hearts, and that they much preferred him in a match to
his more successful competitor.
The sporting instinct has manifested itself in a succession
of owners, and although rice planting was the chief industry,
hunting has flourished there. This is very natural on account
of the fact that the plantation rice fields, alternately flowed
(flooded) and drained, afforded splendid reserves for wild
duck and deer, in conjunction with the pond-like place where
the water was compounded for irrigating the rice fields in time
of drought.
The house itself is of brick, set six feet from the ground
upon an arched foundation. A veranda surrounds three sides
of the lower story, its low, over-hanging eaves imparting a
33
3
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
tropical appearance to the entire building. TMs veranda,
reached by a double flight of stone steps, is also the entrance,
giving access to the hallway which runs the entire length of
the square establishment, dividing the house, and affording
ventilation as well as light. Upstairs, there being no piazza,
all the rooms look out over the river into the park-like woods
of the estate. Thus, because of its favorable situation for
water sports, hunting and inland excursions into adjacent
fields and woods. Dean Hall has been the scene of much cul-
tured hospitahty, and during the lifetime of the Nesbits it was
visited by an EngUsh scientist. Sir Charles Lyell. During the
occupancy of the Carsons Dean Hall not only housed many
distinguished visitors, but also had much to show them when
they arrived in the way of paintings and sculpture, and many
rare and valuable books.
Concerning his family, Mr. James P. Carson has this to
say: "The name Carson is quite common throughout the
country and frequent advertisements concerning property
owned by them were seen in the Gazette before and after the
Revolution. There was a Dr. James Carson who owned planta-
tions around here, and there are Carsons buried in the church
yard on Edisto Island, but none of these are my kindred. As
a small boy at the circus which I attended with my father we
met Ehsha Carson, who was my father's cousin. There was
a William Carson, who was also a cousin, and to avoid the
miscarriage of their letters my father inserted the A in
his name.
"James Carson, my grandfather, was bom in 1774, and in
1816 died at the age of 42, and is buried at Ballston Spa, New
York. At an early age he came to Charleston and was a factor,
the firm name was Carson and Snowden, which was dissolved
in 1797. He then continued the business, and on his retirement
was succeeded by his clerks, Kershaw and Cunningham, who,
in their turn, were succeeded by Eobertson and Blacklock.
"James Carson (1774-1816) married Elizabeth Neyle
(1764-1848) on May 6, 1796. She was the daughter of Samson
Neyle, a prominent merchant; she probably had money, was
ten years older than James, who evidently had the commercial
34
ON COOPER RIVER FROM CHARLESTON
instinct. They had two children, Laura, who married Henry
Brevoort in 1816, and my father, William A., who married
Caroline Petigru in 1840. In 1805 James bought the Stuart
house at the corner of Tradd and Orange Streets, which re-
mained in the family until about 1850. ' '
In 1820 Wilham A. Carson, who married Carohne Petrigru,
a daughter of Hon. James L. Petigru, the brilliant lawyer,
bought Dean Hall. This was found to be the most valuable
piece of his property at the time of his death, which occurred
during the year 1854, at which time he was a wealthy man and
left much property to his executors and trustees for the benefit
of his wife and children.
The "Ball Book" says that at one time Dean Hall was
bought by ' ' Ehas Nonus, ' ' who had inherited a fortune from
his uncle, Hugh Swinton Ball. He married Miss Odenheimer,
daughter of Bishop Odenheimer, of New Jersey, moved to
Pennsylvania in 1865, and died there in 1872.
In writing of the Carson tenure of the property, Mr. James
Carson says, "My father, Wilham A. Carson, was a rice
planter who wore out his hfe watching a salty river, and died
at the age of 56, when I was 10 years old. ' ' The property was
sold by Mr. James Carson to the present owner, Mr. Benja-
min Kittredge, of Cahfomia, who married Miss Ehzabeth
Marshall, of Charleston.
CHAPTER III
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
ABOVE THE "TEE"
COMINGTEE AND BEYOND ON THE EASTERN SIDE
HIRTY miles from its mouth at Charles-
ton, Cooper River divides into two
branches, eastern and western, like
the letter T. On the little peninsula
thus formed Captain Coming settled,
and named the place " Coming's Tee."
The original grant did not cover the
whole of the present Comingtee planta-
tion, for the next owner, Elias Ball, purchased and added two
adjoining tracts in 1703 and 1704, and in 1735 bought a third
tract, described by his son in 1752 as ' ' lying between the T of the
river, lands of his own, a creek between Nicholas Harleston
(then owner of Rice Hope) and the northwestern branch of
Cooper River. ' '
The plantation has always been considered as two tracts,
' ' Comingtee ' ' and ' ' Stoke. " " Coming 's Tee " was settled by
Capt. John Coming and his wife, Affra Harleston (a sister of
John Harleston, of Molhns, Essex County, England). John
Coming was a half-brother of William Ball, farmer of the
Devonshire section in England, who never came to America,
but sent his brother, Elias Ball, in his place at the time of
Capt. Coming's death. These are the same Charleston Com-
ings mentioned in Charleston history as owning land at
"Oyster Point," and as giving "Glebe lands" to St.
Philip's Church.
After Capt. Coming's death his half-brother, Elias Ball,
came over to America to look after the estates of the widow
Coming. He married Mrs. Coming's sister, Elizabeth Harle-
ston. Capt. Coming and his wife were childless, and after the
death of the latter some time in 1698 or 1699 Coming Tee
36
a
o
p!
^H a
a^
H
W
OS
H
a
o
□
a
o
z"
o
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
passed to Elias Ball, who was hardly more than a youth when
he took possession of his inheritance; but he was a great
sportsman and frequently commanded scouting parties after
Indians. His first wife died about 1720, and 11 months
later he married Mary Delamere, a girl the age of his
eldest daughter.
Of Mary little is known, and nothing remains of her per-
sonal belongings but two books, a prayer book of the Church
of England and a collection of quaint old pamphlets bound
together in one volume. A human touch concerning the life
of these dead and gone people is found in accounts of the eleven
months following the death of the first Mrs. Elias Ball, and the
trouble the bereaved and perplexed widower had with his
children. It is said that in his memorandum book the name of
''Mary Delamere" is scrawled across page after page right
through the daily accounts. The way out of all perplexities
was beginning to present itself, with the result that Elias
married Mary.
There were soon two sets of children, as Mary had by this
marriage seven, two of whom died young, and two girls died
at about fifteen years of age, but another daughter, Eleanor
Ball, lived and married Colonel Henry Laurens, the celebrated
patriot. The exact date of Elias' death can only be surmised,
but Eleanor Laurens' name appears in his will in 1750,
and in a codicil in 1751. His burial place also is a matter
of conjecture, supposedly in "West St. Philip's Churchyard
in Charleston.
The Balls were English people from Devonshire, and in the
Ball Book's description of the house that Elias Ball built in
Carolina, a map of Devonshire, England, from Speed's Atlas,
is shown. This map contains Ball places in England, * ' Stoke, ' '
and "Combe-in-tene" settlements near the mouth of the Eiver
Tyne, and reveals the similar relative positions of the "Stoke"
and "Coming Tee" tracts on Cooper Eiver in America, to
their English counterparts.
The Carolina Stoke had a barn, and negro houses, and was
where the Brick Mill builded by Elias Ball now stands. The
name Stoke appears in the will of Elias Ball when he leaves
37
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
the plantation under discussion to his nephew, John Ball, Jr.,
but the dwelling house was always on Comingtee, which also
had its own bam, corn house, negro quarters and gang
of negroes.
The first owner of Comingtee, Capt. Coming, probably built
on or near the site of the present dwelhng. It is not known
whether he or Elias Ball built the brick house now there, and
there is no clue to the exact date of this building, but it is said
to be one of the two oldest houses in the Parish (the other being
Exeter, high up on the Western Branch).
Tradition has it that the bricks for this structure were
brought from England, and it is thought that the brick house
was built by Elias Ball, while the Comings dwelt in a wooden
cottage which stood on the neighboring slope, opposite the
large sycamores in the avenue, and which was standing as late
as the year 1865, at which time it gave evidence of being quite
an old place. In front of this wooden house were two beautiful
live oaks which still mark the spot. For many years it was
used as the overseer's residence, but after the overseers lived
at Stoke it became the sick-house, or plantation hospital for
the negroes. Eumor held that, as is the case with most
old plantations, the family burying ground was near the
house, and as the graveyard at Comingtee was thought to
be near the wooden house, it would seem that this was the
original dwelling.
A family memorandum book says that there were two
houses at Comingtee in the day of the first and second Elias ;
in proof of this an entry in 1736 is made, ' ' To half a days work
on the old house. ' ' Some house, old or new, underwent repairs
and alterations after 1731, and in 1738 "something was done"
to the garret windows of the brick house that took several
days ' work. In 1743 and 1763 the house was shingled, and was
repaired at a cost of 400 pounds.
The Ball Book says: "The old brick house was built, as
was then customary, without piazzas. This was evidenced by
the horizontal bands in relief on each side and gable of the
building (known in architecture as ' lines of relief ') placed
there for artistic effect. . . . The old house contained origin-
38
^
'^^^^^^'■^
"COMING TEE " HOUSE, ON COOPER RIVER
Where the ri\-er divides into two bradcjies
STRAWMERRY CHAPEL, COOPER RIVER
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
ally only two rooms on each tloor, with no passage-way between
the two lower rooms. Into the larger of these the front door
opened. The staircase also came down into this larger room.
At a later day the panelled partition was erected, forming a
passage-way, and cutting off the South room from the stair-
way. The rooms on both floors had the old-time wide fire-
places with high mantels, and heavy cornices around the room.
Wooden panelhng cut off deep closets on each side of the
chimneys on both lower and upper stories, with narrow gable
windows in them for light. When the piazzas were added, the
lower rooms were so much darkened that it became necessary
to remove the lower closets and enlarge the gable windows to
double their original size. . . . The house when built was
not rough-cast, as it has been for over a hundred years, but
was of plain brick- work, finished with pointing mortar." A
wooden addition as large as the original house was added in
1833 or 1834 by John Ball, the owner at that time.
Both the house and the wooden addition have deep cellars
with fireplaces large enough to roast an ox, and no doubt many
a turnspit has sat here in this corner (himself half roasted)
when helping to prepare a roast pig or Christmas turkey for
the guests above.
Comingtee had a beautiful old-fashioned garden with a
straight walk down the middle, between flower beds bordered
with jonquils, snowdrops and sweet old-fashioned roses, while
crepe-myrtle trees faced each other across this walk. An old
brass dial in a sunny spot marked the passage of the hours.
This place is beautifully situated and easy of access. In
addition to the water front there are two land approaches to
Comingtee ; one the avenue which comes to the house from the
north and leads from the public road that goes up the western
branch to upper St. John's and its settlements; the other
(called quaintly the "So' Boy Avenue") leads to the house
from the pubhc road that winds up along the eastern branch,
leading over Bonneau's Ferry to French Santee.
On this plantation there is a chain of reservoirs for flooding
the adjacent rice fields at need, and the one between Coming-
tee and Fishpond (the Harleston place) has been much dis-
39
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
cussed and disputed about. It was supposed to belong jointly,
and the full history of this reserve would embrace the history
of the entire countryside until 1874 when agreement was made
concerning the break in the dam which caused the first quarrel.
The first EUas, called "Eed Cap," Hved at the plantation
until 1740, then he moved to Charleston, and his son Elias took
possession. About this time John Coming Ball, second son
of the first Elias, married; he built and settled at "Hyde
Park, ' ' a plantation on the eastern branch. EUas, the second,
was a bachelor, and becoming lonely he built and settled at
"Kensington," the next plantation to Hyde Park, in order to
be near his brother. He subsequently married Mrs. Lydia
Chicken, a widow, and their son, the third Elias, inherited and
dwelt at Comingtee. Elias the second was buried, by his own
request, from his old home there.
The plantation remained continuously in the Ball family,
and was famous for its hospitality, even when its owner or
occupant was a bachelor (which happened sometimes during
the long period that Comingtee was in this family) ; yet so
perfect were the arrangements made for guests that in every
sleeping room was to be found the old four-poster, double bed
and a trundle bed or crib.
The property rested finally with Alwyn Ball, Jr., of Euther-
ford, N. J., who removed the wooden annex and restored the
brick building in the old style ; he recollected and replaced in
their old places all the family treasures of furniture, plate and
paintings. A history of the Balls would touch in some vital
way the lives of most men and women of prominence in the
early history of the state, and would include a record of many
interesting events, but space permits of only brief mention of
the lives of some of them in connection with the homes they
builded and occupied. Through the courtesy of Mrs. I. G.
Ball, Jr., (nee Jane Johnson, daughter of Dr. John Johnson,
D.D., soldier, scholar and priest of God) an unusual oppor-
tunity was granted for scanning family records and extracting
and quoting from precious passages of the Ball Book, com-
piled by Mr. A. Alwyn Ball, of Rutherford, N. J., the last
Ball owner of Comingtee.
40
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
CHILDSBURY AND STRAWBERRY CHAPEL
Dr. Irving, in his "Day on Cooper Eiver," states that it
was at Childsbury that the British forces in the Keowe expedi-
tion were landed from their transports and marched under
Governor Littleton: and that at the same place Col. Wade
Hampton took fifty prisoners and burned four vessels laden
with valuable stores for the British Army quartered near
Biggin Church.
At Strawberry Ferry — i.e., the plantation of that name —
says the same writer, the "Strawberry Jockey Club" used to
hold its annual meetings. The club having been dissolved in
1882, the race course was ploughed up and converted into
a corn-field.
The earhest mention of the name Strawberry appears to
be in the act of 17th February, 1705, which declares that "y*
Inhabitants of the Eastern & Western branches of y* T of
Cooper River are wilhng at their own proper Cost & Charge
to make a fferry at y^'' Plantation of Mr. James Childs Known
comonly by y^ name of y* Strawberry Plantation. ' '
The old cypress on which the rates of ferrage was painted
has become mortised into a tree on the Strawberry side — the
tree had overgrown it at least 100 years ago. From this it is
safe to conclude that the signboard has been there for several
generations. The primitive ferry is still in use by those who
wish to pass across the river.
The town must have assumed some position during the life
of James Child, after whom it was called, and in February,
1723, an Act was passed which recited that James Child had
by his will given 500 acres for a common, and money for the
support of a free school, and also a place for a market in the
town, and that "the inhabitants of Childsbury are very much
incommoded as well for want of certain market days in each
week to be appointed for Childsbury town" as for want of
public fairs to be held there at least twice a year. A beautiful
little chapel is still in use at Strawberry.
41
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
MEPKIN
Mepkin, on Cooper Elver's western branch (eastern side)
above the "T," consisted of 3000 acres and was the country
home of the Laurens family, Henry Laurens having bought it
in 1672 from the John Colleton estate. The entrance gates and
avenue to Mepkin are still intact, but the fine old house has
fallen to decay, although it was built of bricks on a high base-
ment. The edifice was two stories in height, and was con-
structed after the same general square plan of the Laurens
town house.
The diary of Timothy Ford says, "Within sight of Wash-
ington is the seat & Plantation of his excellency Henry
Laurens, agreeable prospect of which induces us to visit it
to-day (Tuesday). Contrary to our expectations he had gone
to town, we were not however disappointed of viewing the place
which displays the beauties and advantages of nature no less
than the ingenious improvements of its owner. He is a rare
instance of method, whereby his plantation raises itself above
those of this country in which everything is done immethodi-
cally by the round about means of force & Labour. ' '
Henry Laurens (bom in Charleston 1734, died there 1792)
was a swarthy, well-knit man, somewhat below middle size;
a man very much the master of himself and his moods and
passions. His lips, as shown in the portrait of him by Copley,
recently discovered in London, were naturally so firm as not
to need to be compressed. The nose was not long, drooping
just a little at the end to hide the nostrils, and his eyes were
very watchful. The whole man looked aggressive and just a
bit cocksure. The face was roundish and firm about the jaws.
Henry Laurens was the first son of John Samuel Laurens.
He was raised as a merchant and the wide general education
he possessed was obtained after arriving at manhood through
his habit of extensive reading. In 1744 he was sent to London
to obtain training as a merchant, and in 1736 he was prominent
in the organization of the first fire insurance company in the
United States. In 1739 he closed out his Charleston business
and returned to London, where for many years he carried on
42
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER R IjV.E R
an extensive trade, largely with America. In 1749 he was made
agent for the colony in England, a position which he held until
1750. In 1771 and 1774 Laurens was again in London, but as
a retired Carolina merchant and rich planter.
Young Laurens is said to have met "the beautiful Eleanor
Ball, " daughter of Ehas Ball, at a plantation on Cooper River,
and they were married on July 6, 1750, when he was at the age
of 26. Of Laurens ' 12 or more children who reached maturity
only three survived their father.
While Laurens was a great merchant, he was something
more. Though keenly engaged in business, he looked upon
pubHc affairs as vitally a part of his hf e. In the Indian War
of 1761, in the full tide of his wealth getting, he accepted
a commission, collected recruits and marched into the Ap-
palachian Mountains.
Henry Laurens was first elected to the House of Assembly
in South Carolina in 1757 and continued to be elected except
on one occasion until the Revolution. Toward the end of
October, 1777, Hancock resigned the presidency of the Con-
tinental Congress, and on November 1, 1777, the position was
conferred upon Henry Laurens by a unanimous vote. It was
during his presidency that a strong friendship between
LaFayette and Laurens developed. When LaFayette was
wounded Laurens took him in his own carriage to the officers'
hospital near Yorktown.
In October, 1779, Henry Laurens was commissioned to go
to Europe to purchase leather for the use of the colonial army.
He sailed on the Mercury, which was convoyed by a 16-gun
vessel, but his vessel was captured by a British ship while off
the coast of Newfoundland. He carried valuable papers,
which he endeavored to destroy by casting overboard, but they
were recovered from the sea and used against him. He was
first taken before the admiral at St. Johns, N. F. Thence he
was taken to London and was committed to the Tower of
London on the charge of high treason. In the beginning of
December, 1781, his release, owing to the interest of Edmund
Burke and Franklin, was assured. The release was made
with the view of exchanging him for General Cornwallis. On
43
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
the last day of the year 1781, unable to stand except on
crutches, Laurens was released, and in 1782 was appointed
Peace Commissioner to Paris. His services, terminating only
with his departure for America, were of great importance and
entitled him to be considered the first minister of the United
States to England.
This distinguished father had a scarcely less distinguished
son. John Laurens (bom in South Carolina in 1755, educated
in England and France) served on the staff of General Wash-
ington during the Eevolution ; also served with Major General
Lincoln in South Carolina in 1779, and was wounded at Coosa-
whatchie Bridge. He was a special envoy to France in 1781,
returned to America at the end of the year and took part in
the campaign in South CaroUna in 1782, and was killed in a
fight with the British at Chehaw Neck, on Combahee Eiver,
August 27, 1782.
A portrait of John Laurens is to be found in the State
House at Columbia, S. C, and through the efforts of Colonel
John Dargan was only recently pubhcly "unveiled" with suit-
able ceremonies, as a tardy recognition of the services this son
of Carolina rendered to his native land. The act of unveiUng
the picture was done by Laurens descendants of a collateral
branch of the family, John Laurens having left no "hostages
to the future."
In writing to this son during the Revolution Henry Laurens
once closed his letter with the following lines :
"My Dear Son
I pray God protect you
& add to your knowledge
& learning, if it be necessary,
discretion —
Henky Laueens. ' '
Like all rice planters, Henry Laurens possessed a town
house, situated at the southeast corner of Laurens Street and
East Bay ; it has only recently been destroyed. As originally
built the house was of nine-inch-long brick, and so substantial
from the cellar to the heavily hewn timbers of the spacious
u
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
attic that even after the many years it stood tirm and true until
torn doAvn to make room for the Seaboard Air Line R. E.
With it perished colonial carvings, marble mantels, set-in
book cases, thick walls, secret doors, and, on the upper floor,
a wonderful ballroom. It was in this room that Henry Laurens '
sister, a young girl, was laid out when she died. She lay
facing a window, and her love for the garden, which used to
extend to the river's edge, worked a miracle ; a storm came up,
and through the open window rain dashed into her face. A
watcher, noticing that the little maid's eyeHds quivered, called
help. The maiden revived and lived to be an old lady.
The incident left such an impression upon her brother that
his will directed that his body should be burned at death. He
concluded his will with these words :
"I come to the disposal of my own person. ... I sol-
emnly enjoin it on my son as an indispensable duty that as
soon as he conveniently can, after my decease, he cause my
body to be wrapped in 12 yards of Tow Cloth and burnt until
it be entirely and totally consumed and then collect my bones,
deposit them wherever he shall think proper."
This request was duly complied with, and his body wrapped
in tow cloth and burned on his plantation in an iron coffin at
night. The slaves gathered round the flaming funeral pyre,
while just below the dark waters of the Cooper Eiver swirled
and eddied at the foot of Mepldn Bluff.
ELWOOD
According to the Ball Book, Alwyn Ball, son of the first
John, married, early in hfe, Esther McClellan, and lived at
Elwood plantation, a place situated a Uttle above Comingtee,
on the same side of the western branch. Alwyn combined a
passion for hunting with a gift for music. His house was in
Cordesville, "the summer pineland village." It was after-
wards purchased by his nephew, Keating Simons Ball. The
building was quaint in appearance, with an enormous shed
that made it look like an East Indian bungalow.
Alwyn Ball died in Charleston in 1835 at the early age of
28 years, in a house on a part of the lot now occupied by the
45
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
St. Francis Xavier Infirmary, and was buried at Strawberry
Chapel, on Cooper River, near his old home.
His funeral procession was very dramatic, as his remains
were to be taken up the river on a boat. The cortege wound
its way through the city streets to the wharf where the boat
awaited. First went the hearse, behind which was "Josh," a
faithful servant and huntsman, leading his master's hunting
horse saddled and bridled; with them were Mr. Ball's favorite
dogs, a couple of deer hounds. The family followed in proper
conveyances. When the wharf was reached the coffin was
placed on its trestle in the bow of the boat, the dogs guarded
it all the way up the river. When the coffin was being lowered
into the grave Josh carried out his master's last directions by
sounding a loud blast on his hunting horn, which was then
thrown into the grave and buried with the young master who
so often in hf e had answered its summons to the chase.
RICE HOPE
Rice Hope, adjoining Comingtee, was the property of
"venerable Read," one of the last surviving heroes of the
Revolution, who became possessed of this property by mar-
riage with Sarah Harleston, eldest daughter of Col. John
Harleston. This plantation was banked and cleared in part
from its native wilderness in 1795 by Dr. Read. The titles
are as follows :
John Harleston 's "Will, dated 2 Octo. 1790, devised Rice
Hope Plantation on the East Bank of the Western Branch of
Cooper River to his daughter, Sarah Read, with right of sur-
vivorship to her husband. Dr. Wm. Read, and after their death
to the issue of the marriage. Dr. Wm. Read survived Sarah,
his wife, and died in April 1845 leaving I. Harleston Read and
Ehzabeth A. Parker the only surviving children of the said
marriage, who thus became entitled to one moiety each. ' '
It would seem that Harleston Read bought his sister's
share from a "Conveyance dated 2 feby. 1846, from Peter
Parker and Elizabeth A., his wife, to I. Harleston Read of an
undivided moiety of 'All that certain plantation or tract of
land called Rice Hope situate lying and being etc. . . . meas-
46
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
uiiug and containiaig m the whole 1709 aci"es more or less,
comprising 271 acres of Rice land and Marsh, and the residue
provision, wood, reservoir, pine and other lands. ' The bounds
are given as 'to the north partly on Cooper river, the Childs-
bury Township, and the Strawberry Ferry tract of land be-
longing to the Estate of Ball, to the east on lands of the Estate
of Ball and lands of Calhoun, to the south on lands of Cal-
houn, and Ball, and on Cooper river, and to the west by
Cooper river. ' ' '
Beyond Eice Hope are found the following plantations,
which do not, however, contain houses : Washington, North
and South Chacan and Sportsman's Retreat.
ABOVE THE TEE— THE BLUFF AND BEYOND ON THE
WESTERN SIDE OF THE WESTERN BRANCH
The Bluif is opposite Strawberry Ferry, and consequently
one of the ferry slips is on this plantation once owned by Major
Isaac Harleston.
In the Ball Book : ' ' From a letter of Wambaw Elias we
learn that Ehas of Limerick was not on speaking terms with
his cousin the gallant Major Isaac Harleston. There is no clue
to the cause of this quarrel, unless on the principle that —
'Lands intersected by a narrow frith abhor each other.' "
The house at the Bluff is a long, low, rambhng old building,
quaint enough, yet having no particular quality except per-
manency, but being of deep interest on account of the Moultrie
family, whose country place it was for many years. It passed
finally, by marriage, to the, Ball family, and is now used as a
hunting club.
Timothy Ford, while visiting at Washington, a neighbor-
ing place, said in his Diary (1785-1786) :
"We employ much of our time in sporting with our guns,
which also give me an opportunity of seeing the different
plantations in the vicinity of Washington. They are chiefly
rice plantations & of course there prevails a sameness thro
the whole— but still there is a variety in regard of buildings,
avenues, walks & gardens. There is a common taste for im-
provements of this kind among the planters here about. On
Wednesday M''"- Edwards being informed that Col"- Moultrie
47
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
brother of the Governor & Att. Gen. of the State has arrived
at his seat about 2 miles hence with some company from to^vn
proposes that we all take tea there in the afternoon by which
means I have an introduction to him, his Lady, Miss Smith and
M'- Moultrie his nephew from England. Miss Smith knows
well that she is thought handsome ; she possesses accomphsh-
ments, some sense, & a great deal of vanity. . . .
"M"- Edwards invites the company to dine with her on
friday. Thursday we spend in romping about the plantation
Barns &c. & in vie\ving the negroes at work at the rice — On
Friday the company dine with us & in the evening we attempt
to dance but find the music so bad that we are obhged to desist.
I am more confirmed in my opinion of the rattling disposition
of Miss Smj^th; of the innumerable merits of Miss Beckworth
& the hospitality, generosity, affability, & goodness of M"-
Edwards. M''- and M""- Holmes are no less entitled to my high-
est esteem & gratitude. On Saturday we all received an invita-
tion to dine on Sunday at Col°- Moultries, where we meet an
accession of company from Charleston. Dinner is served
up at 41/2 oClock & the desert by candle light — On Mon-
day we form a maroon party to visit some saw mills about
8 miles hence which in this country are considered objects
of curiosity."
From a sketch by the late Dr. James Moultrie, with anno-
tations by A. S. Salley, Jr., we learn that Dr. John Moultrie,
the Emigrant, and the progenitor of the Moultrie family of
South Carolina, was born in Culross, Shire of Fife, Scotland.
He was a physician of eminence and a graduate of the Uni-
versity of Edinburgh. He came to Charles Town, S. G.,
anterior to 1729 in which year his name appears among the
signatures of the original founders of the St. Andrew's Club,
now Society. Born 1702. Died in 1771. He married first
Lucretia Cooper, and, after her death, Elizabeth Mathewes.
By his first wife he had the following children : John, Royal
Lieut.-Gov. E. Florida; William, Major-General in American
Revolution ; James, Chief Justice E. Florida; and Thomas,
Capt. in American Revolution. By his second wife he had
one child, Alexander, Attorney-General of South Carolina,
who married Catherine Judith Lennox, and whose daughter
Catherine married her cousin, Dr. James Moultrie, fifth son
of Hon. John Moultrie, M.D., of Charleston, S. C, by his sec-
48
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
ond \dte, Eleanor Austin, daughter of Capt. George Austin
of the Eoyal Navy and Ann Ball. Hon. John Moultrie received
the degree of M.D. at the University of Edinburgh in 1749.
He returned to Carolina, where he practiced his profession
until 1767, when he removed to East Florida and was ap-
pointed Royal Lieutenant-Governor of that Province, which
office he continued to hold until Florida was ceded to Spain,
at which time he removed with his family to England. He is
buried in Sheffnal Church, Shropshire. He had several chil-
dren, but we are concerned with only two of them, John
and James.
In an old book of memoranda by Lydia Child is the fol-
lowing entry: "January 5th, 1762, Mrs. Eleanor Austin ran
away with Mr. John Moultrie and was married." Tradition
hath it that Capt. Austin, her father, was opposed to this
match. Capt. Austin, who had been a merchant in Charles
Town, returned to England, where he Uved upon lais estate,
Aston Hall, in Shropshire. After a lapse of some years the
Hon. Henry Laurens undertook and effected a reconcihation
between father and daughter after this manner: "When he
went to England he took with him a picture of Mrs. Eleanor
Moultrie and her two sons, John and James, which, in the
absence of Capt. Austin from home, he hung in the dining
room at Aston Hall," and upon Capt. Austin's return he was
much incensed with his servants for allowing a stranger to
take such a Uberty, but finally the reconciliation was effected
through Mr. Laurens ' action.
Mrs. Jane Moultrie, wife of Maj. George Austin Moultrie,
writing to Mrs. E. A. Poyas in May, 1849, says: "The picture
you allude to of Mrs. Eleanor Moultrie and her two sons, James
on her lap and John, my husband's father, standing by her
knee offering her a rose, still hangs where Mr. Henry Laurens,
perhaps, first placed it, in our dining room at Aston Hall."
Capt. George Austin lies buried at Sheffnal Church. He be
queathed Aston Hall to his grandson, John Moultrie, who
married in England Catherine Ball, daughter of a Tory, Eli as
Ball, called "Ehas of Wambaw," formerly of Wambaw
Plantation, South Carolina, afterwards of Bristol, England,
A 49
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
and his wife, Catherine Gailliard, a South Carolina woman
from one of the plantations adjoining Wambaw.
So John remained in England, but James returned to South
Carohna, and was evidently the "nephew from England" re-
ferred to by Timothy Ford as visiting Mr. Moultrie. He was
a doctor, haAdng received his degree at the University of Edin-
burgh, and returned to Charleston, the place of his nativity,
and married in 1790 his cousin Catherine, daughter of Alex-
ander, fifth son of the Emigrant, as spoken of before.
The fourth son and fifth child of this marriage was named
Wilham Lennox, and Uke his father followed the profession of
medicine. He was twice married, his first wife being Hannah
Child Harleston, by whom he had seven children, and after her
death he took for his second wife Juliet Hall Ingraham
(daughter of Capt. Nathaniel Ingraham) by whom he had two
children, Mary Louisa and Eleanor Catherine. The latter died
in infancy, and the former married in her twenty-third year
Isaac Ball, Esq., Planter. Thus the Bluff passed into the
hands of the Ball family where for many years Mr. and Mrs.
Ball and their large and interesting family resided until their
removal to Charleston, where they are now to be found as
members of the "Kingly" Balls, their sons having married
among the Weissenger, Grimke, Jervey, and Porter families,
while their daughters have married among the Ficken and
Ehett famiUes.
The most distinguished member of the Moultrie family is
Major General William Moultrie, some of whose descendants
are found in the Brailsf ord family of South Carohna. The life
and achievements of General Moultrie are too well known to
be listed, and are briefly told by a memorial tablet to be found
in the vestibule of St. Philip 's Church, Charleston.
PIMLICO
Pimlico, next to the Bluff, has an interesting history, con-
cerning which the Ball Book has this to say (page 140) :
One of Alwyn Ball's brothers, Hugh Swinton Ball (1808)
married "Miss Anna Channing, daughter of Walter Channing,
of Boston. They had several children, all of whom died very
50
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
young. His wife and himself both perished in the wreck of
the steamer Pulaski, on their way from New York to Charles-
ton. The boiler exploded on the night of the 14th of June,
1838; the vessel was blown to pieces, and many of the pas-
sengers were lost. Soon after their death, a lawsuit, which
lasted several years, arose about the property. As the sur-
vivor was to inherit the bulk of it, the question was, which one
was the survivor — a question not easily decided after a scene
of such confusion and terror. The court finally decided in
favor of the plaintiffs — Mrs. Ball's family — the evidence (as
I have heard) showing that Mrs. Ball's voice had been heard
calling in the darkness for Mr. Ball; and the presumption was,
that, had he been living at the time, he would have answered
her. By this decision, not only his wife 's property, which was
considerable, but more than half of his own, went to the plain-
tiffs. His intention had been to leave his plantation Pimhco
to his nephew, Ehas Nonus Ball, son of his brother, Elias
Octavus ; but the plantation and the negroes had to be sold for
division. His nephew, however, found himself in possession
of a very comfortable property on coming of age." After the
sinking of the Titanic in 1914 this case was cited in court.
A wonderfully built and well-finished, hipped-roof wooden
house is found at Pimlico. Its side faces south on the river,
but Pimhco is approached on the landward side by a famous
oak avenue that curves in from the public road a mile distant.
It is now a sportsman's estate, once the home of people who
not only gloried in the out-of-doors, but who skillfully used
the beauties of nature as a worthy setting for a southern plan-
tation residence. According to the present front elevation the
original plan of the house provided for tall columns within the
exterior walls, indicating the presence of a portico, but the
recent addition of a small modern piazza has changed consid-
erably the perfect simpHcity of the old design.
Inside the house a cultured atmosphere of fine colonial
days is immediately restored by the presence of exquisitely
finished, hand-carved woodwork on the windows, wainscoting
and mantels. The stairway, a perfect example of its kind,
rises from the rear of a long entrance hall, adjoining which
51
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
are two large, perfectly proportioned rooms. The exact date
of this house is hard to place, but it is of a similar type of house
found all up and down the river. However little we know of
the date of the construction of this building, the plantation
itself was among the grants made to the three sons of Sir
John Colleton, described as being opposite to Mepkin, near
Strawberry Ferry and on the other side of the river, on a
plantation called Mepshew, and now known as Pimlico.
POINT COMFORT
Adjoining the plantation of Mepshew (said in Dr. Irving 's
day to belong to the Ball estate, and only interesting on account
of the land titles and IndiaJi name) is found Point comfort,
said by Dr. Irving to belong to E. W. Eoper, now in possession
of a Charleston family, connections of the Roper family, which
is to be remembered particularly by the hospital bearing their
name and which was founded by money left through the estate
of this particular branch of the family. The house at Point
Comfort was built by Mr. Eoper, and resembles the Eoper
house on John's Island. Both are going to ruin.
On the plantation can be seen the remains of this beautiful
house built of brick and conforming to the strictest archi-
tectural code. It is said by Mrs. E. P. Tucker (CorneUa
Eamsauer) to be the most satisfying situation for and design
of a home of elegance and beauty, but now gone to ruin, al-
though Mrs. Tucker states that even yet a student of archi-
tecture would find a perfect example of early American
architecture at its best in the front and side elevation of this
large brick house.
The house is situated upon a knoll, and is surrounded by
oak trees draped in moss which give a sombre aspect to this
once busy plantation home, once well planted, well planned and
well developed, now the lonely abode of vagrant mnds.
Underneath the house is a series of large arches acting as
supports, the enclosed part of which affords space for the
household offices and constitutes a basement. Over the central
front arch is built the "grand stairway," after the fasliion of
French Colonial houses, viz., with a central landing at the
52
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
piazza level descending on either side. This stairway is of
marble with iron balustrades.
The house itself, irrespective of the basement, has two
stories and an attic. The lower floor has two very large double
windows, in the French fashion, which are found on either
side of the house, and lead from the piazza directly into two
large front rooms, wliich may be at will thrown together. In-
side there are (so far as the casual inspection possible from
the outside reveals) splendid examples of paneling and wood-
work. The house at Point Comfort will soon be a thing of the
past unless steps are taken to restore to its pristine beauty
this fine old place worthy of a better fate.
WAPPAHOOLA
There stands at Wappahoola, on a creek bearing the name,
a delightful old house built of black cypress, said to have been
constructed under the personal supervision of the owner (a
Mr. Porgson) by slave labor. This property has, of course,
a set of outbuildings, and is a fine and complete example of an
artistically planned home of a farm house type.
It is raised a few feet from the ground, and the front
elevation shows the usual veranda with its low-hanging eves,
the second story being without piazzas of any kind. As this
type of house is met with in a modified form in so many in-
stances along the Cooper River it must have been adopted
because found to be absolutely the best for the daily regime
of plantation fife, while entirely suitable for the residence of
a gentleman and his family of antebellum days; thus the
houses at Wappahoola, Pimlico, Quinby and Limerick are all
modeled on this general plan, with slight variations.
The house was said to have been built by Mr. Porgson, but
in Dr. Irving 's book it is ascribed to E. Lucas; it is better
known as the home of Frank Heyward, whose father's town
house was that wonderful old brick house on Legare Street
now owned by Lamb Perry, just south of the Smythe house
on the eastern side.
Frank Heyward married Fannie Ferguson, a daughter of
James Ferguson and Abbie Ann Barker, and Wappahoola is
53
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
still called the Home of the Heyward family, being the resi-
dence of a son, and a daughter, Marie, and another daughter,.
Mrs. G. Cannon, while another daughter, Panchita, Mrs. Wil-
liam Grimball, resides in Charleston.
DOCKON
The plantation nest to Wappahoola is Dockon. Dr. Irving^
says Dockon plantation near Wappahoola was originally the
property of Jacques duBose, and owned in 1742 by Samuel
and Joseph Wragg, passing to Eopers, Lucas, and Fergusons,
in whom it was vested a century later. Mrs. Samuel G. Stoney
gives the information that the Dockon house was burnt, but
that a beautiful avenue is left, and an unpretentious wooden
house. According to Mrs. Stoney there was at Dockon a very
valuable Ubrary at one time. Certainly a literary flavor of a
spicy quaUty emanates from a famous novel called "Verve
Cliquot," written by Mrs. General Ferguson, who was a lady
from New Orleans and visited at Dockon. Mrs. Stoney is
also the authority for the statement that at one time there
were three Ferguson brothers well known in Charleston so-
ceity, Dugue, Tom, and Sam, all being dead now except Major
Thomas B., who was at one time Minister to Sweden
and Norway.
The progenitor of this flourishing family was Thomas Fer-
guson, who became a man of property and standing in South
Carolina. "He was," said Dr. Johnson, "born on a piece of
land seven or eight miles north of Charleston, between the
Dorchester and Goose Creek roads ; and when an infant was
removed by his parents, on a pillow, to a ferry of which they
had become managers, sometimes called Ferguson's but more
commonly called Parker's Ferry. Young Ferguson grew up
proficient in all outdoor sports, and Mr. John Parker, then a
boy and heir to the ferry (afterwards a member of Congress)
became much attached to young Ferguson. ' '
Mr. Ferguson's first outfit was very hmited. It consisted
of two negroes and a buck saw. He continued, however, to
work hard, secured the good opinion of his friends and neigh-
bors, and finally became overseer to several plantations, gen-
54
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
erally rising from that position to that of manager. He soon
became independent, wealthy, popular and influential. He
married happily and advantageously. In fact, if all that Dr.
Johnson's Traditions tell of him is true, he may be said to have
married early and often, having had no less than five suc-
cessive wives.
It is narrated in Charleston of a certain dignified gentle-
man who was frequently married, that upon the occasion of
his last marriage his eldest son, by his first %vife, failed to
attend the wedding. When asked why he thus absented him-
self from this ceremony he is said to have replied: "Pshaw!
I haven't got time to go to all of Pa's weddings."
"Pa" seemed to have had a short memory also, for a
lawyer is said to have been handling some property that the
gentleman had acquired by one of his first marriages and to
have remarked: "Now this property came to you when you
were married to Miss So and So."
The old gentleman protested that he had never married
that lady, "Only thought of doing so." Finally convinced,
however, that he actually had married the lady in question,
he is said to have given in by saying casually, "Oh, yes, so I
did by the way, and a very good woman she was, too. "
Be that as it may, Mr. Thomas Ferguson was certainly five
times married, and, according to Dr. Johnson, his wives were :
(1st) a Miss Elliott; (2nd) the widow North, of the Perry
family, by whom he had two children, James and Anne, the
latter of whom became Mrs. Charles EUiott and subsequently
Mrs. Richard Berresford; (3rd) Miss Martha O'Reilly, a
handsome woman, by whom he had four sons who grew up and
married; (4th) the widow of Andrew Rutledge, and daughter
of General Gadsden; and (5th) Miss Wragg, who survived
him, with two sons.
Col. Ferguson was one of the most influential men in the
State and gave his best services to the upbuilding of South
CaroUna. His home in Charleston adjoined the Barker prop-
erty on Tradd Street. To reach this latter charming place,
now in the possession of the Manigault family, one has to go
down a delightful old-fashioned lane which opens into a beau-
55
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
tiful old garden. To the north and to the west of the Barker
house were two lots bought in 1762 by James Postelle and
Charles Pinckney and conveyed within a few months to
Thomas Ferguson, who erected thereon his dwelling.
Mr. Ferguson was a large planter of the parish of St. Paul,
and it is interesting to note in addition to the previous data
of this family given in the history of Dockon, that Major
Thomas Barker Ferguson, at present visiting in Charleston,
says that the first map of Charleston shows a Ferguson house
built outside of the town limits. Tradition, he says, has it that
the Fergusons came over with Oglethorpe. There were three
branches of this family, one settling at Philadelphia, one in the
West Indies (from which branch the family in South Carolina
came) and the third in Holland, and when Major Ferguson was
at a diplomatic dinner in Holland he noticed that he was being
closely observed by his host, the reason for this observation
appearing later when Major Ferguson was told that he
very strongly resembled members of the Ferguson family in
that country.
It mil be remembered that Mr. Thomas Ferguson, the
founder of the family, and the grandfather of Major Thomas
B. Ferguson, made his start in life near Parker's Ferry, and
Major Ferguson says that his grandfather was related to the
Parkers. It is interesting to note in this connection also that
Mr. Paul Sanders at Eitter says that his brother now owns and
lives in a quaint old wooden house on a high brick basement
placed upon land exactly opposite to one of Thomas Fer-
guson's first plantations.
As Mr. Ferguson was married five times and had children
by each marriage he seem^ to have disposed of the difficulty of
dividing his property by leaving to each set of children the
property acquired through their mother. There were, it
appears, twenty-six or twenty-seven children by these
various marriages.
Major Ferguson states that, should he live five years
longer, until 1926, three generations of his family, that is from
his grandfather's birth in 1726, his father's birth, 1784, and
his own in 1841 and his life prolonged until 1926, these three
56
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
generations which should be six generations (as conunonly
computed) will cover two hundred years; a fact unique in
American history.
The Ferguson connection with Cooper Eiver property
comes in when Mr. Thomas Ferguson married Miss Anne
Wragg, Dockon being part of the "Wragg property. The
children of this marriage were Samuel, DuGue, Thomas Bar-
ker, Joseph Sanford, and Fanny, who married Frank Heyward
and lived at Wappahoola. (Major Ferguson has this to say
in regard to Wappahoola, that the house there was built by
Parson Porgson.)
The last mention made of the progenitor of this large and
flourishing family, Mr. Thomas Ferguson, is Avhen he was
appointed aide to General LaFayette, who visited this country
in 1821. Thus it will be seen that the dwelhngs, names and
histories of the Barkers, Broughtons, Fergusons and Fitz-
simmons are closely interwoven.
Dr. Sanford Barker was the brother of Major Theo. G.
Barker, and their mother was a Miss Milhcan, whose father
was the builder, for the Broughtons, of the house next
under discussion.
Thomas Ferguson not only merited, but received the friend-
ship of the distinguished men of his day, his friendship with
Christopher Gadsden being a matter of history, where it is
recorded that ' ' an extrordinary intimacy and attachment ex-
isted between General Gadsden and Mr. Ferguson, and con-
tinued to the end of their lives."
SOUTH MULBERRY
A discussion of the geographical arrangement of the plan-
tations on the western side of the western branch of the Cooper
Eiver shows that the first house situated near the water after
leaving PimHco is South Mulberry, formerly included in the
Mulberry tract upon which North Mulberry was built. The
two Mulberry tracts, north and south, were originally included,
by error, in Fairlawn Barony, but their history will be dis-
cussed in connection with the history of Mulberry house.
57
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
On South Mulberry stands an old wooden house sometimes
called "Home Place," the chief charm of the place being the
garden filled with rare shrubs cultivated by Dr. Sanford Bar-
ker, who married Christina Broughton, of North Mulberry.
Dr. Barker was a botanist who failed to record his scientific
achievements, but one who loved to botanize, and with whom
many noted scientists also botanized on long "visits" to South
Mulberry extending over many months at a time
The Barkers, Broughtons, Fergusons and Fitzsimmons
were all connected by marriage. The first mention of Barker
in connection with Cooper River is found in Mills' "Statis-
tics," which tells of the massacre by the Indians of the gar-,
risen at Schinskins. "A similar act of perfidy on the part
of the Indians was committed about the same time, a little
above the Eutaws, at a place called Barker's Savannah. The
commanding officer. Col. Barker, from whose defeat the scene
of action acquired its name, was drawn into an ambuscade
by the treachery of an Indian named Wateree Jack, who pre-
tended friendship, and lured the white people into a snare. ' '
The Barker family residence in Charleston was found on
the southern part of a lot on Tradd Street nearly opposite
to Logan Street.
THE MULBERRY
Mulberry, also called " The Mulberry," or " Mulberry
Castle, ' ' was built in 1714. The land on which the house stands
was purchased from Sir John Colleton by Thomas Broughton,
afterwards the first Lieutenant-Governor under the Royal
Government, and one of the Comicil who signed the celebrated
" Church Act." Mr. Salley says that " at a very early date
there was a landing at ' The Mulberry ' on Cooper River. Col.
Thomas Broughton bought the place and built there, in 1714,
a handsome house which is still standing — onei of the hand-
somest examples of the provincial architecture of that date
to be found in Amerioai to-day. ' '
According to Mills ' " Statistics," " In the Indian War of
1715, St. John's and St. Stephen's parishes were the frontiers
of the province. In or near them were three forts : the first on
58
c ^
i f
J. f.»
5 i Tr'-i'''
■ •-J .^'if.
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
Cooper River, about 3 or 4 miles below Monk's Corner, on
the plantation of Mr. Thomas Bronghton, called Mulberry ; the
second on Mr. Daniel Kavenel's plantation, called Wautoot;
the third on the plantation of Mr. Izard, called Schinskins, on
the Santee River. The garrisons at Schinskins were all mas-
sacred in consequence of their own imprudence in pennitting
a number of Indians to enter the fort under the cloak of peace
and friendship."
Dr. Irving declared that as late as 1842 an old cannon, the
relic of bygone days, was still to be seen in the yard upon an
ancient mound, which mound was doubtless the remains of the
old fortifications at Mulberry.
In the "History of Fairlawn Barony," Judge Smith says:
"On 6th September, 1679, an additional grant was issued to
Sir Peter Colleton for 4423 acres on Cooper River, lying ad-
joining to and south of the Fairlawn Signiory.
"The tract included in this last grant was afterwards
known as 'Mulberry,' although it would appear, from
what subsequently occurred in connection with the sale to
Thomas Broughton, that the 'first bluff bank,' commonly
caUed the 'Mulberry tree,' was within the Lines of the Fair-
lawn Signiory."
In January, 1708, Sir John Colleton, son of Peter, executed
a conveyance to Thomas Broughton of the tract of 4423 acres
granted to his father in 1679, describing it as on the "Westeme
Branche ' ' of the T in Cooper River, which said plantation is
now called or known as the Mulberry plantation, a part of
which continued in the Broughton family for two hundred
years. The error of misunderstanding about the exact loca-
tion of "bluff bank" commonly called "the Mulberry tree"
caused Thomas Broughton to assume that it was on his tract
purchased from Sir John Colleton, and accordingly he placed
his settlements upon it only to find that this was a mistake
and that he had builded upon a southeastern part of Fairlawn
Barony. This was rectified in a neighborly fashion by Sir
John transferring to Colonel Broughton 300 acres off that of
Fairlawn, and receiving in exchange a similar number of acres
59
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
— '
off the northwestern part of Mulberry and a hundred and fifty
pounds additional in money.
Long ago when rice was grown at Mulberry "The Meteor"
says : ' ' The hill at Mulberry was covered with fine oak, cedar,
elm, catalpa, and other forest trees, which, with luxuriant
vines of wild grape and supple-jack, made groupings of beau-
tiful foliage over the Spanish bayonet and fan palmetto that
grow at will on the graceful grass-covered slopes as they trend
toward river and forest. From the windows of the house on
this plantation miles of riceland lie in view, which are in soft
shades of bro-wm and black when ploughed in spring, bordered
by the green banks curving with the course of the river, to be
followed in June by the tender yellow-green of the growing rice
and in September by a waving expanse of golden grain.
"The square red brick building stands on this hill, which
ends abruptly in a bluff thirty-five feet high on Cooper River,
and slopes towards the forest and ricelands. The exterior is
like the picture on the Broughton family tree of the house at
'Seaton' in England, the home of the Broughtons. A Dutch
roof (now Mansard) with dormer windows, covers the main
building, at the four corners of which are built detached rooms
called 'flankers,' which connects with the house by space for
a door way. These 'flankers' have each a pointed roof, sur-
mounted by an iron vane six feet high, of light arabesque de-
sign, upon which swings as weathercock an oblong plate of
iron, out of which the date 1714 is cut. Above this date the
vane ends in a royal crown. Seen as these 'flankers' are, from
some distance across the low-lying rice fields, they give a
quaint, unusual look to the house, and probably led to its being
called Mulberry Castle. ' '
The bricks at Mulberry are unusually good. They are
varied in shade, the darker or overburned ones being used at
the corners and openings as quoins. The entrance to the house
is from a poi'ch into the large dining "hall," as it was called,
with high ceiling, large windows and the broad fireplace of the
time, in front of which stood a heavily built, solid mahogany
table, the top being near two inches thick. The walls of this
and the adjoining "parlor" were covered with family por-
60
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
traits. The foundation of the house encloses a cellar, deep and
wide enough to contain kitchen and store room, with ample
space for the wood required to till the wide hearths above.
Being so much larger and stronger than the neighboring
houses, it was a refuge for many families, during the troubles
with Indians first, and afterwards with British scouts. Loop-
holes for muskets made in heavy window shutters gave means
of defence from the four sides of the house. Trap doors in the
floors of each "flanker" lead to shallow cellars paved with
"French flagstones," in which ammunition was kept. When
the "Broughton" of the day was at home, during the war with
England, he was hable to surprise from British scouts. He
therefore provided a way of escape through a subterranean
passage from one of the flankers.
A letter from Mrs. Nath. Broughton, addressed to "Nath.
Broughton Esqr., In Charles Town, These June y" 15: 1732,"
gives fascinating ghmpses of the domestic life at Mulberry
and neighboring places :
"My Dear
"I sent on Sunday to wassamsaw about the fouls, my father
having forgot to tell me what you desired till Saturday, there-
fore could send no sooner M''- Lawson sent me worde his wife
had none fit for yens as yet, he came down on Tusday and
tould me had heard of Some at wampee but could not possably
git them at wassamsaw till last night or this day, and as my
father thought it was time the things should goe down I have
done my best, could get but 3 dozen yong fouls in all the nabour-
hood which I send with 14 young gees, they have bin well fed
but it is so short a time that be but httle the better, I
design 2 of them for cosin Manigault if you think well of it
should have sent her some fouls if they could have bin had but
hope to make it up another time, pray give my affectionate
servis to her, I was sorry to hear by M"'- Le Bas she was not
well and wish her better health . . . nancy being in want of
gounds desier M^=- La Tour will get withall to make her a
couple, I desire it may be something that looks well they not
being for comon wair, my sister Broughton desiers her to
get her a pair of mens gloves at M"- ceraus (Sereau?) that
will fit cosin manigault she gives her servis to you and all with
you, pray give my lo.ve to M"- La Tour I hope she will excuse
61
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
my not writing to her, I shall be glad to know whether my
neess mazick is brought a bed desier to be remembered to her
if you see her, I wish Capt warren a happy voiage, we are all
as the doct left us, but have heard my has had a bad
night I hope to hear by the unity you continue mending
which will be a great Satisfaction to
Dear Life
your affectionate wife
H. Chablotte Broughton.
I send 4 chairs to be bottomed, since you are likely to
receive some mony should be glad M"- La Tour would bye me
a gound as I desired her."
The town residence of the Broughtons is difficult to locate
in those early days, but in 1771 the following advertisement
would seem to place one of them at least on Tradd Street :
"So. Ca. Gazette, April 4, 1771. Mr. Fournier, Miniature
Painter, &c. Is removed to Mrs. Rivers in Tradd St., ahnost
opposite to Mr. Andrew Broughton's: and having now, in a
great measure, recovered his health, is ready to wait upon
any Gentlemen or Ladies who may be pleased to favor him
with their Commands. ' '
The Broughtons married into neighboring families on the
Cooper Eiver, and Mulberry was for many years the residence
of Major Theo. G. Barker, whose mother was a Miss Millican
(whose father built the house for the Broughton family).
After being in the hands of Major Barker, whose wife was
Miss Louisa Fitzsimmons, the property passed on to other
owners. The history of the Fitzsimmons family is wrapped up
in the history of lands belonging to the Fitzsimmons and Ham-
mond families near the Georgia line. Space does not permit
of more than a brief mention of the Fitzsimmons family, some
of whom are now living in Charleston and the vicinity. The
old family place near Beech Island is in possession of Mrs.
J. P. Eichards at "Red Cliff," a former home of the Gov-
ernor Hammond noted in history as using the famous ex-
pression ' ' Cotton is King. ' ' The Hammond and Fitzsimmons
families have intermarried, and Christopher Fitzsimmons
Hammond had in his possession some portraits by Peale of
ancestors of both branches of his distinguished family. The
62
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
Fitzsimmons burying ground is found at the Cottage tract on
the Georgia side of the Savannah River. Beech Island, an-
other Hammond house, still stands.
Samuel Barker Fitzsimmons resides at old Wiltown. He
has in his possession a most exquisite set of Crown Derby
china and many rare pieces of glassware, along with portraits
and historic furniture which came to him when the Barker
estate at Mulberry was broken up.
Mulberry finally passed into the hands of Mr. Clarence E.
Chapman, who acquired the property when it was in disrepair,
having been unoccupied for approximately ten years. He has
been much interested in restoring this old place, and has kept
intact all of the original interior furnishings of wood and iron-
work possible. Mr. Chapman has even dismounted certain
pieces of ironwork, sending them north. He consulted experts,
and had the pieces duphcated in order to fully restore the
original property correctly from an historical standpoint; he
has also reduplicated the correct furniture for such an estab-
lishment, and has treated "The Mulberry" with the respect
and reverence worthy of its lineage, for the Ancient Lady says
that at Strawberry Chapel "the oldest inscription that is
legible is 1757, on the stone that covers Mr. Nathaniel
Broughton, of Mulberry Castle, in St. John," who built the
house in 1714.
LEWISFIELD
Lewisfield, comprising 1000 acres on the river front, ad-
joining Exeter to the north and Mulberry to the south, was
transferred by Sir John Colleton, 4th Baronet, on the 15th of
September, 1767, to Sedgewick Lewis. At the time of sale this
1000 acres is stated to be known as the "Little Landing," but
after passing into Lewis' hands it acquired the name of Lewis-
field, which it has ever since retained. Through intermarriage,
the place subsequently passed into the Simons family, in whose
possession it continued for many years. Johnson's "Tradi-
tions" says that Keating Simons married Miss Sarah Lewis
in 1774 and "thereby became possessed of a rice plantation
and negroes, on the western branch of Coopere river, which he
63
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
called Lewisfield," which still retains that name, and was in
possession of his grandchildren in 1851. After serving his
country, when Charleston fell into the hands of the British,
Keating Simons became a prisoner on parole, and retired,
as he had a right to do by capitulation, to reside on his plan-
tation, Lewisfield.
Many of Simons' neighbors were unguarded in their ex-
pressions of hatred to the British victors. (Mr. Broughton, of
Mulberry, was one of these, who for his discipline had a troop
of horses quartered on his land.) Shortly after this Lord
Cornwallis, passing down — says Dr. Johnson — from Cam-
den to Charleston, sent a courier to announce that he and his
"family" would dine with Mr. Simons the day after. "Accord-
ingly Mr. Simons provided amply for his reception; killed a
lamb for the occasion and poultry and other plantation fare
in abundance, and arranged his sideboard in accordance. But
his lordship had his cook and baggage wagon with him and was
well served by those who knew his inchnations. Accordingly,
they killed the old ewe, the mother of the lamb; and on Mr.
Simons telhng the Scotch woman, the cook, that this was un-
necessary, and showing the provisions, she replied that his
lordship knew how to provide for himself wherever he went."
The story goes on to show how Mr. and Mrs. Simons were
invited to sit at their own table as guests, but Mr. Simons,
while accepting for himself, said that "He could not think of
his wife becoming a guest instead of presiding at her own
table," and told his lordship that Mrs. Simons was "other-
wise engaged." At this dinner a great game was played over
the wines, Mr. Simons generously providing some of his best,
but again his lordship "enquired of his aides if they did not
bring with them some of his old Madeira, and called for a
bottle or two." His lordship pretended to enquire the history
of it, whether "London particular, ' ' or imported directly from
Madeira, and the young gentleman had an answer ready for
the occasion. It proved, afterwards, that the wine had been
plundered from old Mr. Mazyck's plantation when it had been
visited by Cornwallis.
64
"DOCKON," WESTERN BRANCH COUPER RIVER
■LITTLE LANDING" OR "LEWISFIELD." THE STEVENS HOUSE
WESTERN BRANCH COOPER RIVER
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
Mr. Simons remained on parole at Lewisfield waiting to be
exchanged, until the middle of July, 1781, when General Greene
sent his cavalry do^vn into the lower part of the State, even
within sight of Charleston, and Colonel Wade Hampton com-
manded part of this expedition. It seems that the gallant
Hampton was at that time courting Mr. Simons' youngest
sister, then Hving at Lewisfield. "Love rules the court, the
camp, the cot," and "Love-directed-Hampton" came near to
Lewisfield. He galloped up the avenue to see his "lady love,"
but found instead a party of British from two vessels at the
landing, which vessels were fast aground. Nothing daunted,
Hampton (being an elegant horseman, in the habit of gallop-
ing his steed and at this speed stooping from his saddle to pick
up from the ground his cap, sword, whip or glove) galloped
back to the main road, vaulted upright in his saddle, waved his
sword over his head and shouted to his command to return.
This they did, and engaged the enemy. Some of the Brit-
ish escaped, although many were taken and the boats burned.
Suspicion falUng on Mr. Simons as being accessory to the
surprise and capture, an expedition of Black Dragoons was
immediately sent out from Charleston with orders to bring
him in dead or alive, but being warned, he did not await their
arrival, broke his parole, and joined General Marion in the
Swamp. Meanwhile his house and plantation were being
searched for him, but luckily he was away, and remained with
the old Swamp Fox as an aide, to whom he continued firmly
attached, not only to the end of the Eevolutionary War, but
also to the end of his life ; at the death of General Marion,
Simons' loyalty was transferred to his family, and at the death
of Mrs. Marion (so says Dr. Johnson, from whom all the above
narrative is extracted and quoted) she left her plantation and
negroes to Mr. Simons' eldest son, Keating Lewis Simons.
Lewisfield is now in possession of Mr. Charles Stevens,
whose wife was the fascinating Mary Wharton Sinkler, of
Belvidere. An amusing story is told that at Lewisfield, during
the Civil War, a clever ruse was employed by the owner's
family to save their valuables. It was given out that a relative
had died in Charleston, and that the body would be interred
s 65
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
upon the plantation. Accordingly a coffin was brought, but
in it was secretly placed the family silver, plate, etc. An elab-
orate funeral was held and the valuables buried. As the
negroes never discovered the ruse employed, raiding parties
could not extract from them information they did not possess,
and the valuables remained hidden safely until after the strife
was over and the former owner returned to his home. One day
he decided to recover his buried possessions, taking with him
an old negro man, who had been present at the "funeral" years
before, to assist him. The owner waxed so hot in the search
that the old darkey, who was helping to dig up the supposed
relative, exclaimed: "Lord, Maussa! By dis time you sho mus
be unjint 'um" (unjoint him).
The house at Lewisfield is the regulation square pine or
cypress building, facing the river landing. The estabhshment
is set up on a high brick foundation, as a precaution against
the rising of the river in freshet times. From the ground a
high flight of steps leads to the wide piazza which forms the
front to the lower story of Lewisfield, and lying along this
piazza are the two front rooms of the place. There is no " front
door" proper, but entrance into the house is made (as is often-
times the case in houses of this section) through long French
windows opening directly into these rooms. The only other
entry into the house is at the rear where another flight of
steps is found leading to the back hall, which penetrates only
half the depth of the house, and affords space for stairs leading
to the upper story, while separating the two rooms in the rear.
In all these old plantation places, which are ringed around
with rice fields and blue-gum and cypress swamps, the out-
buildings are set a little way from the main building in order
to dispense with the household offices going forward in the
main house. The servants like this arrangement, as it gives
them greater freedom, and a little domain all their own. Many
a southern child has looked with delight upon a stolen visit
to the servants' quarters and there learned folk-lore stories
akin to those "Uncle Remus" told the "Little Boy." No one
lives at Lewisfield now, and the name is being changed (against
history) to "Chacan," an adjoining place across the river,
66
WESTERN BRANCH OP COOPER RIVER
also o\viied by the same Stevens family, the very handsome
house upon which was unfortunately burned.
EXETER
Sir John Colleton, the fourth Baronet, made the following
transfer of property — "On the 15th September, 1767, to Mary
Broughton, 988 acres on the river front, adjoining the 511
acres transferred to Thomas and Nathaniel Broughton. ' ' In
this deed the 988 acres is styled ' ' Exeter" plantation, by which
name it has ever since been known. Miss Marie Heyward, of
Wappahoola plantation, is the authority for the statement
that the house at Exeter was built by Governor Broughton for
his daughter.
Exeter house is two miles north of Mulberry. It is a quaint
dwelhng of bricks of Enghsh measurement laid in Flemish
bond. The two houses are in plain sight of each other ; Exeter,
with the date 1712 engraved in its brickwork on the chimney-
side, and Mulberry with the date 1714 in its weathervanes, are
companion houses in historic interest. The plantations of
Mulberry and Exeter were Broughton residences, but Sir
Nathaniel Johnson was supposed to have hved at Exeter at
one time, before he lived at Silk Hope, on the eastern branch
of the Cooper Eiver.
A portrait of Sir Nathaniel was at one time in possession
of Dr. Barker, of South Mulberry, and one of his wife, said
to be Anne Overton, a descendant of the general of that name
who served under Cromwell, hung for a time at Exeter along
with other interesting portraits. Wherever he lived, it is cer-
tain that Sir Nathaniel Johnson was buried at Silk Hope, in
St. Thomas' Parish, and from respect to his memory his grave
was surrounded by a brick wall by Mr. Gabriel Manigault, who
purchased the plantation, many years after the death of the
old knight, from his descendants.
In "Cameos of Colonial Carolina," exquisitely written by
that most "perfect, pure and gentil" knight of the pen, the
Rev. P. D. Hay, which Cameo appeared in Harper's, Vol.
LXVI, No. 391, 5, a full history of Sir Nathaniel Johnson is
given, and Exeter is described as being his home.
67
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
"We have but to step over the threshold of one of the old
houses to cross a chasm of two centuries. Let us, for instance,
visit Exeter, the country home of Sir Nathaniel. As we enter,
two cabinet pictures, representing respectively a blonde and
brunette of the time of Charles II, welcome us, clothed, as to
their shoulders, in wonderful folds of white and blue and crim-
son. Their stories and their names are ahke forgotten.
' ' Skied up over a door of the hall is the portrait of a young
Huguenot maiden dressed as a shepherdess, and taken in Lon-
don, it is said, by Sir Peter Lely, as she passed on her way
from France to Carolina. On the left of the chimney a robust
English matron appears in heavy bronze satin, while over her
shoulders is thrown a snowy kerchief of lawn. On the opposite
side is her daughter as a younger matron, born about 1703,
with a complexion as fair as the wide band of pearls encircling
her neck, and a face eloquent of sweet womanly virtues. She
is dressed in blue silk, cut away from the neck only enough to
show its slope, the waist just under the arms, wide sleeves held
open by a fall of lace, a heavy piece of corded silk several
shades hghter than the dress passing down the entire front,
looking as straight and stiff as a cuirass of steel. In another
place we see a boy of five clad in a short-waisted light gray
surtout reaching almost to the ankles, Avhite stockings, and
crimson shoes. Into a room with walls so peopled it would
not seem very strange to see the good Sir Nathaniel himself
walk, dressed in a shag gown, trimmed with gold buttons and
twist, silk tops for his legs, and a camlet cloak thrown over his
martial shoulders.
"But paintings are not the only art treasures which these
colonial houses contain. Pieces of old jewelry are here — dia-
monds and brilhants set in silver; rare specimens of napery,
which have escaped by successive miracles the accidents of
great wars and fires, expressing in exquisite damask-work
legends such as Elijah fed by the ravens ; antique musical in-
struments, which have by turns shivered to the Cavalier tune
of 'Green Sleeves,' or pulsated responsive to the rhythm of
some soft air born among the vine-clad hills of France ; time-
stained inventories of the furniture once filling a stately Eng-
lish home in the days of Charles I; and deeds of the same
period conveying now in their heiroglyphical characters to the
heirs nothing but doubt and confusion. These, with fragments
of old lace, moth-eaten letters, vellum-bound diaries of the
time, and remnants of beautiful china and glass, may yet
be seen.
m
•EXKTER," NEAK MONCK'S CORNER, WESTERN BRANCH COOPER RIVER
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
"With such a treasury to choose from, it would not be
difficult to furnish forth an old-fashioned tea table on the lavm.
at Exeter, realistic in its minutest details ; nor would it be hard
to till the punch bowl again with genuine Barbadoes shrub, if
Carolinians could be made to agree whether the sweet orange
and lemon should be used in the brewing or the juice of the
sour orange alone.
"Judging from the size of the tea service, genuine Bohea
must have been a rare commodity in those days, and in looking
over an old bill I find Dr. Wilham Rind to have been a debtor
to Alexander Cramahe and Co. ' to I lb. Bohea tea, £4 10s. ' Dr.
Rind was a gay bachelor, and in case the reader should wish
to know what was required by a man of fashion during the
first half of the eighteenth century, I will quote another bill
against him by the same firm :
"To 1 Wigg Comb
To 1 pr. Pumps
To 1 Thread hose
To 7 yds. blue silk
To 1 doz. gold breast buttons
To 2 bottles treacle water
To 1 pair glaz'd white gloves
To V/2 doz. silver breast buttons @ 25s
To 1 prayer book
To 1^ cask rum
"... Sir Nathaniel . . . served the colony as Gov-
ernor for two terms. He was the first one of these officials who
set an example of civil service reform by ahenating from hirn-
self the monopoly of the Indian trade— a perquisite which his
predecessors had apparently enjoyed without embarrassment.
"Governor Johnson was at pains during his administration
to concihate the Indians, and they did him 'yoeman's service'
when the province was invaded.
"In the parish register of St. Thomas and St. Denis, one
of the parishes which he founded, under the date 1712, we may
now read these words :
"The Right Hon"" Sir Nathaniel Johnson.
Buried y° 2'' of July.
His grave lies on Silk Hope plantation."
Since the days of Sir Nathaniel Johnson Exeter has passed
through many interesting adventures, and was near the scene
of action of some sharp encounters during the Revolutionary
War. It is now in the hands of Mr. A. J. Jones.
69
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
The Colleton mansion house stood on Fairlawn Barony at
a spot about a mile east of the present Monck's Corner station,
on the Northeastern E. R. (the county seat of Berkeley
County) between the main pubhc road and Cooper River, and
about a mile from the river. It presents the remains of the
most extensive brick mansion house and offices, and adjacent
buildings in South Carohna of the period. During the war of
the Revolution, the British turned it into a fort and storehouse
and when they were compelled to evacuate the post, set it on
fire, and destroyed it in 1781.
When the British retreated, states Mrs. Graves, the daugh-
ter and heiress of Sir John Colleton, "they burned down the
mansion . . . and destroyed every building, including a
Town built on the Barony for the residence of several people
belonging to the estate, with the granaries, mills, &c. On this
occasion, in addition to the furniture, paintings, and books,
plate, etc., a large sum of money which was in my father's
strong bos, and my jewels, were lost, either destroyed or
plundered." Finding that desolation brooded where plenty
formerly had revelled in her gayest mood, the mansion at
Fairlawn was never repaired nor rebuilt ; a crumbling mass of
broken brick and tile, with fragments of glass and pottery in a
jungle of weed and shrubs is all that marks its site.
The account of Mrs. Graves' life is taken from a little pub-
lication by her, entitled "Desultory Thoughts on Various
Subjects, by Louisa Carolina, Wife of Rear Admiral Richard
Graves, of Hembury Fort, Devonshire, and Daughter of Sir
John Colleton, Baronet, Born Baroness of Fairlawn, Land-
gravine of Colleton, and Sovereign Proprietress of Bahama.
Printed at the British Press 1821." The only known extant
copy of this work in South Carohna was the property of Theo.
G. Barker, Esq.
"Mrs. Graves in so entithng herself was under some mis-
apprehension. She was not the descendant of Landgrave
Colleton, but of the Proprietor, and was therefore not Land-
gravine ; nor is the female heir of a baronet a baroness," says
Judge Smith. Mrs. Graves comes in as a descendant of one
of the John Colletons, who was twice married. She is the
70
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
child by his first marriage, his wife being Anne Fulford,
daughter of Frances Fulford, of Great Fulford. His marriage
to Anne Fulford having been dissolved by Act of Parliament,
he married in 1774 Jane Mutter, and died in September, 1777,
at Fair Lawn and was interred at Biggon Church. By his will
he left all his property to this daughter (by his first wife),
Louisa CaroHna, who married Capt. (afterwards Admiral)
Eichard Graves, of the British Navy, and during her lifetime
the sale and breaking up of the rest of the Barony took place ;
although the final sales of the last of it were not had until
after her death.
The following sales were made by Admiral Graves and his
wife, vis.: 1st November, 1815, to A. C. Mazyck— EUery ; 26th
March, 1816, to M. W. Smith — 416 acres, no name.
Under a family arrangement the estate had been trans-
ferred to Samuel Colleton Graves, the son of Admiral and
Mrs. Graves, and he made sales as follows : to John Wliite —
Moss Grove ; to Keating Simons — no name to tract ; to John
White — the tract called Gippy Swamp ; to Samuel G. Barker
(Trustee)— the tract called the "Old House."
Fairlawn Barony has furnished the background for a his-
torical romance of colonial days. The "Story of Margaret
Tudor," by Miss Annie T. Colcock is drawn from some of the
Shaftesbury papers. Miss Colcock has made romance fit into
history better than any other recent writer of fiction deahng
with colonial history of South Carolina excepting perhaps
Miss Annie Sloan in her "Carolina Cavalier."
INLAND PLANTATIONS OF FAIBLAWN BARONY
GIPPY
In addition to the plantations lying along the western bank
of the river were several inland tracts sold subsequent to the
breaking up of the Barony. The history of these tracts is of no
special significance, except that one of them, Gippy, originally
bought by Alonzo White, possessed a river landing. A list of
these plantations includes Fairfield, Castle Ruin, Bamboretta,
Moss Grove and Gippy, upon which latter a house still stands,
and is now found in the possession of Mr. White's descendants.
71
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
A picture of this shows the southern aspect of the house,
and gives a fair idea of the plantation home of that period.
For many years Gippy was the residence of the Stoney family,
representatives of which are found throughout the State, and
a direct branch of which is located in El Paso, Texas.
FAIRFIELD, CASTLE EUIN AND BAMBORETTA
Behind Mulberry, having no river landings, lie the three
places known as Fairfield, Castle Ruin and Bamboretta, all
originally part of one tract.
On July 26th, 1769, John Mitchell, of SaUsbury, North
Carolina, acquired 1004 acres of Fairlawn Barony, "not situ-
ate on the water front, but bounding to the East on the public
road to Moncks Corner." He died, leaving two sons, John
Mitchell and William Nesbit Mitchell, and by his will his
plantation, which he styles "Fairfield," is left to his son
John, who died in 1800 and left it to his son William, with
remainder over to his brother, William Nisbet Mitchell, should
his son die before twenty-one years of age, without children.
The child must have so died, as we find William Nisbet Mitchell
in possession of the whole, which at his death appears to have
been divided into two plantations, one called by the original
name of Fairfield, containing some 470 acres, and the other of
some 521 acres, on which William Nisbet Mitchell lived, called
Castle Ruin and Bamboretta.
"This William Nisbet Mitchell directs, in his will on rec-
ord, that the burial ground at Fairfield, in which his brother
and his children were buried, and in which his own body was
to be deposited, should, by his executors, be enclosed with a
substantial brick wall." The foregoing is quoted from an
article in the South Carolina Historical Magazine dealing with
Fairlawn Barony.
Showing how tradition in some instances differs greatly
from actual facts, an extract from Dr. Irving 's "Day on
Cooper River" says: "Mitchell directed in his will that his
body should be burned. He died in 1826 ; many years before his
death he purchased an iron chest or coffin, he used it during
his lifetime as a cupboard or bin. After his death his body
72
WESTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
was burned and ashes put in this iron chest and locked and
key thrown into Cooper River. In his will he directed that
his remains were not to be buried, but placed above ground in
the woods on two brick piles ^^^.th brick enclosure around it.
This wish was compUed with, and body placed near his former
residence about two miles West of the 28 mile stone on the
Moncks Corner road, where it may be seen to this day. The
burning of his body was conducted by Thomas Broughton,
Esq. " It is said that the old iron coffin is in use as a drinking
trough for horses.
Beyond FairlaAvn Barony lay Wadboo, Keithfield, Somer-
ton and several other plantations of great historical signifi-
cance and interest, but as no houses now stand upon these
places we pass them over with this bare mention.
CHAPTER IV
EASTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
ABOVE THE "TEE"
WESTERN SIDE OF EASTERN BRANCH OF
COOPER RIVER
FISH POND AND THE HUT
^ CROSS the river from Dean Hall,
and near Comingtee on the western
side of the eastern branch, are Fish
Pond and The Hut. At the time
Irving wrote his '* Day On Cooper
River " they were owned by John
Henry Ingraham. These planta-
tions were originally the property of
=c) the Harlestons, who settled there to
be near their sister, Mrs. Affra Comings, at Comingtee. The
plantations on this part of the river front were not large, and
were in comparatively close proximity so as to form a social
neighborhood of society, the members of which were in easy
circumstances and more or less connected by ties of blood or
marriage or early association.
According to Theodore D. Jervey, the Harlestons were
identified with the history of South Carolina from the settle-
ment of the Province. They were descended from an old and
illustrious family of the county of Essex, England, and bore
a conspicuous part in the Wars of the Roses, being adherents
of the house of York. One member of the family. Sir John
Harleston, was governor of Havre du Grace in the reign of
Edward IV, another was Vice-Admiral Richard Harleston.
In the family records John Harleston is described as of South
Ossenden, while his son is later described as of Mailing. More
than one hundred years prior to this — about 1532 — we find the
same name and place in the County of Essex, England.
The first of the name to come to Carolina was Affra, who
married in 1672 Captain John Comings, the mate of two ves-
74
EASTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
sels, The Carolina and The Blessing, plying between this prov-
ince and England, and Avhose Carolina home was the plantation
at Comingtee, which she later left to Ehas Ball, who had mar-
ried her sister.
Affra Comings was a woman accustomed to wealth and
refinement. "Her father's 'inventorie' shows the furniture
of her early home MoUyns from 'the seller, the parlour, the
Inner parlour, the hall, the kitchen, the larder, ye great Cham-
ber, the hall chamber, the painted chamber, the nurserie,
the buttrie chamb' the back chamb'" the gallerie' to
'the garretts'. "
Mrs. Comings died in 1699 ajid as she had no children she
devised all her estate, at her husband's request, in "joint
tenancy " to the aforementioned Elias Ball, and her nephew,
"John Harleston in the Kingdom of Ireland, the son of John
Harleston late of Malhng in the county of Essex in the King-
dom of England." The family tradition places the arrival of
John Harleston in America at 1699 or 1700. From letters to
him and his rephes to same soon after his marriage to Eliza-
beth Wilhs in 1707 it is apparent that he was a person of im-
portance in the province and that he must have occupied close
personal relations with its rulers at that time. A letter of
John Harleston to John Page (subsequently Lord Mayor of
Dubhn) displays the position they held in the colony:
"The Chief Justice M"'- Nicholas Trott, who is my Perticu-
ler Friend in Carolina . . . Invited him & his wife to my
Weding & set him at table with the Governor & Cap' of men
a ware that lay in oure harbor that saime time, & with the best
of the Country. ' '
Perhaps the most distinguished pubUc member of the fam-
ily of Harlestons was Isaac Child Harleston, who had a notable
record during the Revolution, mnning the title of Major, and
being elected a member of the first Provincial Congress. He
was a great horseman, and upon the death of his cousin John,
son of Edward, by a provision in John's will, he became sole
owner of the celebrated imported stallion Flimnap. The will
reads as if this cousin had a deep respect for the Almighty
even though he was a thorough sportsman. It states :
75
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
"Also my moiety of the above mentioned stud horse Flim-
nap as also my wearing gold watch and the old-family watch
I give unto my cousin Isaac Harleston, son of John Harles-
ton, deceased."
Speaking of Flimnap, a celebrated visitor to South Caro-
hna in 1773, Sir Joshua Quincy, witnessed a race between
this horse and Little David, in which £1000 were won and lost.
He writes :
"At the races I saw a fine collection of excellent, though
very high-priced horses, and was let a little into the ' singular
Art and Mystery of the Turf.' "
Isaac Harleston was a great favorite with his brother-
officers of the Revolution, as the following letter will show :
"Dear Isaac
The Genl: & Col: if I remember were not determined to
dine with you, when invited — I was there last Night — and they
then, upon my taking leave — s" they sh*^ see me at your Quar-
ters at dinner to-day — this hint I give that you may exert
yourself for Eels & fresh butter of which the Genl : & Col : are
very fond — Shubrick is to land at your wharf — Eemind me
when I see you of a small anecdote of Col : Wigf all
Mond''morg— " Y"''' R. Smith.
BONNE AU'S FERRY, PRIOLI AND THE VILLA
As there are few old houses left on this particular part of
Cooper River it is best to briefly mention the places in their
order, so that the continuity of the sketches will be preserved.
Anyone interested in land titles will find all of this definite
information thoroughly discussed by Judge Smith in the South
Carolina Historical and Genealogical Magazine, and no effort
is made in the present volume to re-cover that ground, the
human-interest story being featured in these accounts of the
old houses.
Early in 1712, when Charles Craven was governor, Bon-
neau's ferry was in existence. When a courtship was taking
place in the neighborhood the ferrjonan prospered, and
one of the Ball account-books has item after item put down
to ferriage.
76
EASTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
Prioli, next to the Hut, was sometimes called Bomieau's
Ferry, while it was the property of Dr. T. G. Prioleau. This
arose from the fact that Samuel Bonneau had lived there at one
time. He left two daughters, one of whom married John Ewing
Calhoun, and the other Zekiel Pickens. The latter sold to Mr.
Prioleau and moved to Brick Yard, a plantation on the other
side of the river.
The Villa, next to Prioli, was originally called Gerard's
Plantation. It was once owned by John Harleston, Jr., son of
Edward Harleston, who married the daughter of Thomas
Lynch. After Harleston 's death his widow married Major
James Hamilton, and their son was the General Hamilton of
"Nulhfication" days. They resided for a time at the Villa,
then sold it to Frederick Rutledge, who married Miss Harriet
Horiy, and it was then called "Harriet's Villa."
RICHMOND, FARMFIELD AND BOSSIS
Richmond and Farmfield, the two plantations next above
the Villa, were Harleston places, Richmond being for a long
time the seat of Colonel John Harleston, who had purchased
a large tract of land comprising both Riclmiond and Farmfield
from Dr. Martine. In the subsequent division of property
Richmond fell to Colonel Harleston 's daughter Jane, who mar-
ried Edward Rutledge, and Farmfield to his daughter Ehza,
who married Thomas Corbett.
On the first of these plantations there formerly stood a
noble mansion, placed on the brow of a hill about 200 yards
from the river side. In 1842 it was owned by Dr. Benjamin
Huger, who married a Miss Harleston, and their son, Wilham
Harleston Huger, was one of the best-known physicians of
Charleston. He married Miss Sabina H. Lowndes, a daughter
of Charles T. Lowndes.
Wilham H. Huger attended, as a youth, a private school
conducted by Mr. Christopher Coates, after leaving which he
went to the South Carolina College, where he graduated in
1846, and after a short vacation entered the Medical College
of South Carolina and studied in the office of Dr. Peter C.
Gailliard. After completing a course in medicine he went to
77
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Paris to continue his studies. He took a course of lectures
and a hospital course in the French capital, his companions
there being Dr. S. Weir Mitchell, Dr. Cornelius Kollock and
his close friends. Dr. Christopher FitzSimons. When he had
finished this course he returned to Charleston and began the
practice of his profession, which he continued until his last
ilbiess in 1906.
Shortly after his return to Charleston from Paris, while
a young man, Dr. Huger was elected physician to the Charles-
ton Orphan House; this position he held to the day of his
death. During the Confederate War he was stationed first on
James Island, and later was put in charge of the army hospital
in Charleston. After that city was evacuated, Dr. Huger was
sent to the hospital at Cheraw, and afterwards transferred to
Sumter. Like all of the Harleston people, he was passionately
fond of horse-flesh, and greatly admired fine stock. He was
for mauy years a steward of the Old South Carolina
Jockey Club.
Richmond plantation has on it an old burying ground ; the
inscriptions found on the tombstones include Harleston, Cor-
laett, Read, Withers, and Rutledge names.
Adjoining Farmfield is Bossis, a plantation once owned by
Nicholas Harleston the first. It had at one time belonged to
a Mr. Bosse, hence the name of the property. Mrs. D. S.
Lesesne, of Charleston, has now in her possession some of the
old plantation belongings from this place when it was owned
hy the Harleston family.
EASTERN SIDE OF EASTERN BRANCH
OP COOPER RIVER
THE HAGAN
Just at the point where the Cooper divides into its two
branches there is situated, on the eastern bank, a plantation
known as The Hagan. The first grant covering this was one
made August 24, 1688, to Samuel Wilson of 1000 acres, de-
scribed as bounding west on Ahagan Creek, which was the
Indian name for a creek of considerable size flowing from the
southward into the eastern branch of the river at the T. It is
78
EASTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
variously spelled Ahagan, Hagan and Eliegging Creek. The
high bluff on the river near the mouth of the creek is called
Ahagan Bluff.
In 1748 Daniel Huger bought the Hagan tract from Wil-
liam Moore, and two other tracts adjoining the same planta-
tion from Mr. Hull and Bonneau. Wm. Moore had received
this plantation from his grandmother, Sarah Ehett, wife of
WilHam Ehett, who acquired the land in 1720 from Henry
Miller. He had gotten it in 1708 from nieces of Thomas Gun,
who obtained the property in 1690 from Samuel Wilson, to
whom it had been granted by the Lord Proprietors.
Mr. Huger acquired other lands on French Quarter Creek,
and was also owner of "Limrick" plantation, within the
Cypress Barony. He was one of the wealthiest landholders
in the neighborhood, possessing a place as far south as
Ashepoo. He had much property in the city of Charleston, and
in his will bequeathes :
' ' To son Benjamin my corner House in Charles Town front-
ing the broad Street with my other four Houses adjoining it
and fronting Church Street. To son Daniel Corner House in
Charles Town, fronting on Elliott Street and to Son Isaac
tenement adjoining in Elliott Street."
John Huger, son of Daniel, was left by Ms father "the
plantation called the Hagan. ' '
In 1782 a battle was fought at Videau's Bridge on Brabant
plantation between Coffin's cavalry of the British Army and
a detachment under Col. Richard Eichardson, and although
the Americans later suffered defeat, the British were the losers
in the first attack, and "Mad Archie" Campbell was captured
by two Venning brothers. The horse of one brother refusing
to carry double, Nicholas Venning took the prisoner behind
him on his horse. Finding that he was making an effort to
escape, Nicholas, as ordered, shot him. Mortimer Venning,
his grandson, recorded the incident, and kept in his possession
the sword his grandfather had worn, which, however, was
lost, together with other valuable possessions, after the War
between the States. The sword was made of a saw-blade
79
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
bound with wire to a wooden handle, and was used by Nich-
olas Venning until the close of the Eevolution.
The old house and residence at Brabant shared the fate of
so many of the family residences in St. Thomas' Parish; de-
struction by fire, and abandonment, consequent upon the com-
plete overturn of private and pubUc fortunes by the war
of 1861-1865.
BEYOND FRENCH QUARTER CREEK— PLANTATIONS
CONTIGUOUS TO THE RIVER
CHERRY HILL, CEDAR HILL, THE BLESSING, CAMP VERE
According to Dr. Irving, Cherry Hill was owned by Capt.
Duncan Ingraham, and Cedar Hill by James Poyas. Both of
these places had previously been in the Laurens family. He
also says that the The Blessing plantation, north of French
Quarter Creek, extending along the river as far as Camp
Vere, was owned by the late Henry Laurens.
The history of Blessing and Camp Vere is recited in a
celebrated law suit in which are quoted several old wills. Ex-
tracts from that of Margaret H. Laurens, found in the Bill for
Instruction and Relief, published in the records of the Court
of Equity in the Charleston district in the case of the executors
of M. H. Laurens vs. Annie Isabel Laurens and others, show
that Margaret Laurens was the widow of Frederick Laurens,
of Camp Vere, and that the said Margaret purchased a plan-
tation on Cooper River called The Blessing.
In the suit in which these papers appear a most interest-
ing story is told. It seems that Margaret Laurens had an
adopted grandson, Alfred Raoul Walker, to whom she left a
legacy of $20,000 upon certain conditions. He was the infant
child of Benjamin Walker, then a resident of Canada. The
boy, apparently, was a minor at law, living in Charleston with
Ms godmother. Miss Susan Quash, when Mrs. Laurens' will
was probated. The adopted grandmother being dead, the
question arose as to how Raoul was to be supported and edu-
cated, and as to what would become of the legacy if he should
die under 21 years of age, or should fail to comply with the
■conditions prescribed by the will of Mrs. Laurens, viz.: that
80
EASTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
he was to receive none of the capital until he had studied and
acquired a profession. The will naively reads, "I earnestly
recommend him not only to acquire a profession, but to prac-
tice it. ' ' She also recommended to him to assume the surname
of his great-grandfather, Mr. Pinckney. The celebrated Dr.
John D. Irving, who wrote "A Day on Cooper River," was a
mtness to this will.
MIDDLEBURG
On the plantation of Middleburg, situated in old St.
Thomas and St. Denis' Parish, across the river from Rich-
mond, stands a fine old wooden house, very difficult to describe
except as belonging to the farm house type. Here also is still
standing a rice mill, built in 1800 of black cypress ; one of the
first toll-mills for rice in operation in South Carolina. Rice
was sent here from Georgetown and other distant places.
Middleburg is best identified as the residence of the Simons
family. Judge Smith says that the plantation of Middleburg
is in a personal aspect one of the most interesting in the State.
It was the starting point of the Simons family, one of the most
prohfic and well known from its character and widespread
connection in the low-country. The first owner and settler of
the place was Benjamin Simons, the first immigrant of the
name. The record does not show exactly when he arrived, but
he is supposed to have been one of the French Huguenot immi-
grants. The name Middleburg, which is found attached to the
plantation from a very early date, is supposed to be after
Middleburg, the ancient capital of the province of Zeeland in
Holland; however, any connection, if any, which Benjamin
Simons might have had with the foreign Middleburg is not
generally known.
The first Benjamin Simons took out grants for considerable
acreage in this parish, and was weU to do. Benjamin Simons
the second had 13 children, and Benjamin Simons the third,
who married Catherine Chicken, made large additions to the
Middleburg tract. The immigrant Benjamin Simons married
Mary Esther duPre, and the graves of both are found at
Pompion Hill Chapel.
6 81
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
After the death of the third Benjamin, Middleburg was
partitioned among his three daughters. The home place, Mid-
dleburg, was allotted to Lydia, who married Jonathan Lucas,
and after her husband's death it was left to their son, Jon-
athan Lucas. The Lucas family retained it until long after
1865, so that the part of Middleburg granted to Benjamin
Simons in 17D4 remained in one family over a hundred and
sixty years, and passed later, with Horts and Smoky Hill, to
Mr. John Coming Ball, with whom it now rests.
A study of the Simons family has revealed the fact that
Keating, James, Robert, Morris and Edward Simons took up
arms in the cause of American Independence. Our own time
shows the names in recent histoiy of Colonel James Simons
and Dr. Manning Simons as distinguished descendants of these
no less distinguished ancestors.
LONGWOOD
Longwood plantation adjoins Pompion Hill Chapel, which
stands on land between Middleburg and Longwood on the
Cooper Eiver front. On June 12, 1738, Longwood was con-
veyed by Benjamin Simons to Thomas Hasell, who, in 1747,
conveyed it to John Hasell; the latter in 1750 disposed of it
to Samuel Thomas, Rector of St. Thomas' Parish as early as
1738. It afterwards became the property of the vestry, who
sold it in 1784 to Capt. Thomas Shubrick ; from then it passed
to Gabriel Manigault.
Alfred Huger, a former Postmaster of Charleston, once
owned the property called Pompion Hill; during his owner-
ship, and presumably by him, the name of the place was
changed from Pompion Hill to Longwood. The reason for
this is not known, but the old name fell into disuse as applied
to the plantation, and was restricted to the bluff on which the
Chapel stands. The plantation is still called Longwood, and
after Mr. Huger 's death after the war of 1861-1865 it was
'^^^ ^^^y- QUINBY
Quimby, now corrupted to Quinby and sometimes Quenby,
was originally the ancestral seat of the Ashby family, who
82
"QUIMBY," EASTERN BRANCH COOPER RIVER
The Astibj' home, now a Bull House
'MIDDLEBURG," EASTERN BRANCH COOPER RIVER
The auoeatral hume uf the Simoua fumily
EASTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
had so named their Carohna pkce, after their place at Quimby,
England. This plantation is situated opposite Bossis, and
adjoining Longwood to the northeast, on the east bank of the
eastern branch.
Elizabeth Ball, once Mrs. John Ashby, was three times
married. Upon her tombstone it is recorded that she was a
woman of rare economy. She was the third daughter of Ehas
Ball the first, and when she was about the age of sixteen, mar-
ried in 1727 John Ashby, a mdower with one son, of St.
Thomas' Parish. His home was Quimby, the Ashby place
about eight miles up the river from Comingtee, and on the
opposite side; but Love and Capt. Bonneau's ferry foimd the
way to bridge the distance, and so Elizabeth and John con-
sented together in the Holy Estate.
Their married hfe must have been of brief duration, for
his will dates 1728. It was generous to his widow of barely
eighteen, and his plantation is left to his son and heir, John
Ashby, along with Webdoe on the Santee, but should this son
die without heirs both plantations were to go to Elizabeth,
who was to have the right of residence until John became
of age.
Eleven months after Mr. Ashby 's will was made, a mar-
riage contract was signed between his widow and John Vicar-
idge, a merchant of Charleston. Elizabeth married still a
third time, becoming Mrs. Eichard Shubrick, of Belvidere.
She died September, 1746, at the age of 35, and was buried
alongside of her sister, Ann Ball-Daws- Austin, in St. Philip's
Churchyard, where her tombstone may still be seen by the
south door. In 1802 Mr. Roger Pinckney bought Quimby from
Thomas Shubrick and sold it later to John Bass for his
son Isaac.
It was on the plantation of Quinby that Lt. Col. Coates'
command, of 500 infantrymen and 100 cavalrymen, was at-
tacked by Lt. Col. Lee with the Legion, and Lt. Col. Hampton
with the State Cavalry. Marion and Sumter, coming up with
reinforcements, continued the engagement. The Americans
killed 40 British and took 140 prisoners, quantities of baggage,
and about 100 horses. Those who fell were buried by the road-
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
side, lining the road that leads from Quinby Avenue to
Quinby Bridge.
LANDS ADJACENT TO HEADWATERS OF EASTERN
BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER— CYPRESS BARONY
Landgrave Thomas Colleton, second son of Sir John, re-
ceived, in addition to the two grants to himself and his two
brothers, a grant in 1681 of 12,000 acres, called the Cypress
Barony, situated on the headwaters of the eastern branch of
Cooper River.
LIMERICK
In 1707 the Lords Proprietors permitted the Cypress
Barony to be aUenated and divided into smaller tracts ; there-
upon it was parceled out, 5000 acres to Dominick Arthur, and
3500 a,cres to both John Gough and Michael Mahon, who took
out new grants for their portions. Michael Mahon was a
native of Limerick, Irleand, as was also Dominick Arthur, and
the name of Limerick became attached to the part of their
shares subsequently sold to Daniel Huger, son of the first
Huger emigrant, who made Limerick his place of residence.
With the sale and partition of the Cypress Barony, and its
plantation equipment, the family of Landgrave Thomas Colle-
ton lost all touch with the province. In later years all the part
of the Cypress Barony allotted to Michael Mahon and John
Gough, with 7341/2 acres off the Arthur portion, had become
the property of members of the Ball family.
It is impossible to relate all of the notable achievements of
the family of Hugers. Daniel Huger the third, to whom
Limerick had been devised by his father, conveyed it on March
12th, 1764, to Elias Ball of St. John's Parish, Berkley County,
as containing 45641/2 acres. It continued to be owned by the
Ball family for over a century and a quarter, not passing from
their hands until after 1890.
There stands to-day on Limerick, the old plantation dwell-
ing which has attained the venerable age of two hundred and
odd years. Though slightly run down at the heels, it is cer-
tainly a quaint and curious old-fashioned affair that has stood
84
•LIMERICK," A PRIMITIVE HOUSE NEARLY iOO YEARS OLD
A Huger bouse
AVENUE OF LIVE OAKS. •LIMERICK," EASTERN BRANCH COOPER RIVER
EASTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
the acid test of years. A glimpse of the swamp around the
headwaters of the Cooper are seen in the background of the
iUustration. This house is fairly typical of the dwellings of
that day and time in those isolated regions, as is the mag-
nificent avenue of oaks which marked the approach to most of
these plantation residences.
Elias Ball, of Limerick, was held in high esteem by his
brother parishioners, who erected a mural tablet to his memory
in Strawberry Chapel, an honor bestowed on no other layman
of that parish. He was strong-willed, kind-hearted, clear-
headed, resolute, generous and affectionate. On his planta-
tion his word was law, although he was kind to his slaves. As
an illustration of his undisputed sway the following anecdote
is told :
One of the overseers on the plantation was to be married,
the feast was ready, the company had assembled, minister and
groom were on hand ; but the bride at the last minute refused
to be married at all. She would listen to neither coaxing,
threats nor arguments. Mas 'Lias fortunately happened to be
on the plantation ; to him a little negro boy was sent.
"Mas 'Lias, Mis' Katie say she wun't married."
"Tell Miss Katie I say she 'must married.' "
Back sped the messenger in hot haste mth the tidings— and
she was.
Isaac Ball, second son of John Ball, Sr., came into pos-
session of Limerick at the death of his uncle a few months
after (1810). He married his cousin, Eliza Catherine Poyas.
They settled at Limerick and lived a happy useful life. Hav-
ing no children they adopted a little nephew of Mrs. Ball's. ^
Limerick passed to WilUam James Ball, whose wife, Julia
Cart, had charm of manner equal to her beauty of face. After
her death in 1858, near the close of the Civil War, he married
his cousin, Mary Huger Gibbes, and lived at Limerick, where
he died in 1891.
Ebenezer Roche owned and settled Windsor before the
Revolutionary War. He died in 1783, and his executors sold
the place to Edward Harleston. In 1786 Edward Harieston
moved to Fish Pond, and sold Windsor to Joseph Brown, a
85
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
son-in-law of Eawlins Lo^\Tides, who sold it in 1788 to Evan
Edwards. The widow of the latter continued to hold it until
1840, when it was purchased by Dr. Irving.
The place was in a high state of improvement, with a large
park well stocked with deer. The fine family mansion on the
hill was destroyed by fire in 1815, and a httle cottage built, in
which Dr. Irving lived.
HYDE PARK AND KENSINGTON
The present house at Hyde Park, the plantation across the
river from Silk Hope, was built about 1800 by the second John
Ball (bom 1760, died 1817), who was living at Kensington
when it was constructed. The original house, built in 1742,
by John Coming Ball, younger son of Ehas the first, was
burned some time after 1772.
The second John Ball, of Kensington, was kno^vn in the
family as John Ball, Sr. At the age of 16 he was managing
his brother EUas' plantation interests. Before he entered the
army in the Revolution he married his cousin, Jane Ball,
daughter of John Coming Ball and his wife Judith Boisseau.
He must have been a thrifty man, for at his death in 1817 he
owned the plantations of Kensington, Hyde Park, White HaU,
Midway, Belle Isle, on the Santee River, St. James, or the
Saw Mill tract. Marshlands, near Charleston, and a large brick
house in the city at the northeast corner of Vernon Street and
East Bay.
On Kensington plantation, which adjoins Hyde Park on
the western bank of the river, there is an old three-story house.
It was constructed by slave labor, of cypress from the planta-
tion. Instead of nails, round wooden pegs are used in the
construction, while in the outbuildings all of the nails are hand-
wrought. There are large piazzas downstairs, and old batten
doors and shutters. Although it was built on the river opposite
Silk Hope, the dwelUng house fronted on the road which led
from Bossis and Hyde Park, and was not far from Cordes-
ville. Kensington passed into the hands of Dr. John Irving,
and back again into the Ball family.
86
EASTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
A plantation in olden times was a community in itself,
which required thorough organization and complete system;
and whatever the evils which were inseparable from the insti-
tution there were many and great compensations, such as the
present conditions of affairs do not afford, nor have afforded
since the sudden freeing of slaves worked such hardship upon
these people by forcing them into an economic struggle for
which they were absolutely unprepared.
McCrady writes :
Though unsuited to the climate, the models of the houses
were after those of the houses in London and the English
country seats. The furniture and carriage horses, chaises or
coaches (of the planters) must all be imported, and tailors and
milUners often brought out the fashions from London (for the
use of the well-to-do). Households were organized on the
Enghsh model, except in so far as it was modified by the insti-
tution of slavery.
In every well-organized planter's household there were
three high positions, the objects of ambition of all the negroes
on the plantation. These were the butler, the coachman, and
the patroon. The butler was chief of all about the mansion ;
his head was often white with age. His manner was founded
upon that of the best of the society in which his master moved.
He became an authority upon matters of table etiquette, and
was quick to detect the slightest breach of it. He considered
it a part of his duty to advise and lecture the young people
of the family upon the subject. . . .
The coachman . . . was scarcely less of a character than
the butler. He had entire charge of the stable, and took the
utmost pride in the horsemanship of his young masters, to
whom he had given the first lessons in riding. The butler
might be the greatest man at home ; but he had never the glory
of driving the family coach and four down the great "Path"
... to town and through its streets.
The oldest plantations were upon the rivers ; a water front,
indeed, and a landing were essential to such an establishment,
for it must have the periago (a colloquialism for a large canoe
used in those days) for plantation purposes, and the trim sloop
and large cypress canoes for the master's use. So besides the
master of the horse — the coachman — there was a naval officer
too, to each planter's household, and he was the patroon — a
name no doubt brought from the West Indies. The patroon
87
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
had charge of the boats and the winding of his horn upon the
river told the family of his master's coming. He, too, trained
the boat hands to the oar and taught them the plaintive, humor-
ous, happy catches which they sang as they bent to the stroke,
and for which the mother of the family often strained her ears
to catch the first sound which told of the safe return of her
dear ones. Each of these head servants had his underlings,
over whom he lorded it. . . . The house was full, too, of
maids and seamstresses of all kinds, who kept the mistress
busy, if only to find employ for so many hands. . . .
Outside the Overseer was responsible for the administration
of the plantation.
The type of life which proceeded at Hyde Park may be
considered typical of that which went on in all the attractive
homes and estates up and do\vn the river. These old places
were extremely beautiful, although the houses were not impos-
ing from an architectural standpoint ; many of them were situ-
ated on high bluffs overlooking the Cooper River and its
tributaries. Before the eye of the beholder stretched out mile
after mile of rice fields, all under bank. The dwellings were
surrounded by lawns, gardens and meadows, while extensive
woodlands formed a background to the rear.
No one can imagine the fife which went on in these estab-
lishments. A little glimpse of the country Hfe in South Caro-
lina in "Ye Olden Tymes" has been preserved in a poem
written by Catherine Gendron Poyas, a niece of "The Ancient
Lady," called "Limerick." In this she tells of the neigh-
boring places :
' ' Through pleasant fields, on river-banks we stray,
Where beauteous Cooper winds his placid way,
Now classic grown, since Irving 's spreading fame.
Has given it, for aye, a place and name!
To Richmond hill, or Farmfield, we repair.
Or Bossis, sylvan spot, where balmy air
Revels on sunny day, 'mid fragrant flowers,
Or gently whispers 'round its woody bowers.
Perhaps, on Hyde-Park's breezy hill, we stand;
Or Kensington, whose ancient oaks demand
The admiration that we show before
The pleasant mansion opes its friendly door. ' '
EASTERN BRANCH OF COOPER RIVER
The sports in which the guests indulged are glowingly de-
scribed ; then she speaks of childhood days :
' ' Oh, carping care ! 0 sorrow ! little then
Dreamt I j'ou waited on the steps of men ; ' '
and tells of playing Avhoop-and-hide
"Beneath the moon's pure, placid silvery ray —
But one will say, ' some nig-hts there is no moon ; '
I'll show you where we passed those evening-s, soon —
In some old negro's cot, where blazing nigh.
The ample pine log sent its flame on liigh.
There would we sit around the chimney wide,
List'ning the tales of ghosts — of one who died
In the old war — and still is heard or seen
At dead of night, upon the road between
This gate and Kensington, — a neighboring place —
Sometimes this horrid phantom comes, they say,
As gallant steed, carparisoned and gay ;
Anon it changes to a savage dog,
That fiercely one attacks ; then, as a hog,
Goes grunting on its way — but oh, most dread !
It last appears — a man without a head !
But lighter tales sometimes we would require,
As close we crept around the cheerful fire :
Of what ' old master ' used to do and say ;
Of how ' mass Jack a courting went one day ' ;
And many a pleasant tale of lady fair.
With rich brocade, and gems, and raven hair ; —
But turn we now from childhood's joys and cares.
To the bright dreams of youth 's extatic years ; ' '
The day begins with a stag hunt, and the band of gallants
hoping to catch a ghmpse of the girls before they start :
' ' They wait, they loiter o 'er each cup of tea,
In hopes, before they start, the girls to see ;
To win a smile — to have the old shoe tost^
Without this charm, the field, the day were lost !
The hunters off, the maidens find the day
By far too long, and tedious on the way ;
But now at last the old clock strikes — 'tis two !
They fly upstairs to dress themselves anew ;
Hark ! Hark ! the huntsman's hom^ — they come, are near ;
The mistress orders — 'bid the cook prepare
To serve-up dinner in the shortest space ;
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
And good old Joseph, quick, the side-board grace
With the refreshments, and with generous wine,
For, weary from the hunt, before they dine
They must some relish take . . . "
After dinner the ladies retire to the parlour :
' ' While still the gentlemen remain around
The social board, where wit and song abound.
'Tis Christmas — and the sable train rejoice :
Now in their humble cottages the voice
Of song and mirth is heard : . . .
Nor does the slave alone this season hail :
What though the Christmas lamp bums dim and pale
On our domestic altars, yet the day
Can never pass unheeded quite, away.
' Call in the rustic fiddler — clear the hall
Of chairs and carpets, for a mimic ball ;
For merry Christmas must not pass us by.
Unless 0 'er polished floor our light foot fly. '
Crowding each door and window, now a throng
Of negroes press, and join their voice in song ;
Their cheerful notes, unchecked, increase the rout.
And help the tune by fiddle old squeaked out ;
Cotillions, country-dances, gallops, flings.
In quick succession each is tried — and brings
At last in turn, the graceful waltz — that dance
Conceived in Germany — brought up in France !
Old Limerick, to my heart forever dear,
Where are thy merry crowds dispers 'd. Ah ! where ? "
CHAPTER V
SANTEE, FRENCH SANTEE, SOUTH
SANTEE, NORTH SANTEE
"SANTEE"
BY KATHERINE DEAYTON MAYEANT SIMONS
' ' Child of the coasts, by pale-eyed night,
Where the slim-stemmed lilies lie in white
And cold ;
Where the dank, green fennel hangs its wreath,
And summer 's pulse-beats stir the breath
Of stagnant-pooled, dull-rainbowed death
Deep gold;
Where the stars of the ghost-white dogwood bloom
Shine pale as pearl in the still night gloom
Awake ;
When the woodbine drips its honeyed blood.
And the spotted adder seeks her food
From the death scummed bowl of the still swamp flood
And brake.
Nurse of the night's lone- woven spells.
Mother of tales that the Waxhaw tells
Of thee:
In reach of thine moss sleeved arms' long quest,
Where the Waxhaw's campfire, burned to rest.
And the Waxhaw's grave-mound, scar thy breast;
Santee! "
FRENCH SANTEE
N ORDER to include local history be-
longing to territory adjacent to the
headwaters of the eastern branch of
Cooper River, to show the geo-
graphical connection obtaining, and
to knit up the family connections, as
well as to show why feehng against
the Tories was so strong, extracts
^ have been taken from a brief nar-
rative of the life and services of Francis G. DeLiesline during
the war of the Revolution, from the year 1777 to the year 1783
when peace was declared. He says of himself: "I was born
91
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
at my father's plantation at St. James Santee, about 40 miles
from Charleston. My grand- and great-grandfathers were
Huguenots who fled from the persecution of Louis XIV at the
Revocation of the Edict of Nantes, and with many others
settled there among the Indians about the year 1685, and this
part of the country has ever since been called French Santee.
' ' My father died when I was very young, leaving my mother
a widow with a handsome estate of slaves, lands and other
property; when the war commenced I had just entered my
fourteenth year and I volunteered my services in the company
of Capt. John Barnett and with others to protect the coast,
from the mouth of the Santee to Sewee Bay and Bull's Island,
from the EngUsh privateers who were plundering and carry-
ing off slaves and other property of the inhabitants. Our com-
pany remained on this service for some time, then marched
off to Winyah Bay, near Georgetown, at Cat Island Fort,
where we were enrolled under the glorious old banner of thir-
teen stripes, commanded by Capt. Davis, a Continental Officer.
My company, after some time, was marched back to our for-
mer station at Santee, until Tarleton with his legion took pos-
session of all the country from Charleston to Santee. Our
company as well as all others broke up and everyone shifted
for himself ; my brother and three others and myself encamped
in the river swamp opposite my mother's plantation, a little be-
low Santee Ferry, to avoid Tarleton, as well as the Tories."
When Col. Washington came to aid Gen. Lincoln he found
the country on the south of the Santee in possession of the
enemy, and remained on the north side awaiting events, but
it was not long before they suddenly crossed the river at
Lenud's (Lanneau's) Ferry, made a foray about twenty miles
down to Col. Ball's plantation, and surprised a British guard
of fourteen men who were left with Ball to assist in collecting
horses for Tarleton as well as to guard him. Tory Ball made
his escape over the fence into Wamba Swamp near his house,
where he had stables built for the horses he collected; he
mounted one of the fleetest and pushed across the country for
Strawberry Ferry, on Cooper Eiver, the headquarters of CoL
Tarleton and informed him of the capture of the guard, etc.
92
THE SANTEES
The Huguenot refugees on the Santee settled plantations
or farms on or near the western bank of the river, northwardly
from Wambaw Creek, and the community of French Santee,
as it was known, built their church) about fifteen miles north
of the creek, giving it the name of the creek. The edifice
built in 1767 is still standing, and is still known as
Wambaw Church.
The point on the north side of the creek, near its mouth,
wasi settled by Daniel Huger, and was called "Waterhorn. "
A monument to his memory was recently discovered by Alfred
Huger, of Charleston, in a field not far from the' chapel. In
Mr. Lawson's description of his visit in January 1700-1 by
canoe to this vicinity, he speaks of "Mons. Eugee's house,
which stands about 15 miles up the river, being the first
Christian dwelling in that settlement." In the Record of
Daniel Huger is the following entry :
"Thursday, August 17th, 1704. My dear daughter Mar-
garet Huger was married by License of the Hon. Sir Nathaniel
Johnson, Governor, directed to Mr. Peter Roberts, Minister
of the Holy Gospel at Santee, to Elias Horiy, bom at Paris
in France."
His son, Daniel Huger, married Ehzabeth Gendron; and
the residence of Philip Gendron was on the Santee River, a
short distance above the church, at or near Lenud's Ferry.
Another plantation in this vicinity was on the southern side
of "Wambaw Creek, nearly opposite Waterhom, and was
settled by Mr. Elias Horry. It was called Wambaw; and
although Mr. Horry was not among the first set of immigrants,
he became thoroughly identified with French Santee. He ar-
rived in 1690, and married the daughter of Daniel Huger.
The house, standing untOl a few years ago, and said to have
belonged to Elias Horry, is described as follows: "It was a
high and quaint structure. The high basement was of brick
with two stories above of wood, and a roof with three gables.
Steps led to the second story, and rested there upon a small
veranda. This story was 'finished with wooden and rather
heavy paneling. ' ' '
93
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
In 1700 Mr. John Lawson visited the French settlement on
Santee River, on a tour which he made through the interior
of this State ajtid North CaroUna. In 1709 he published an
account of his travels, under the title of "a Journal of a
Thousand Miles, Traveled Through Several Nations of the
Indians, &c." Remnants of the Pedee and Cape Fear tribes
lived in the parishes of St. Stephens and St. Johns. "King
Johnny" was their chief, -\vith one other called "Prince."
There were several Indians in the neighborhood of Pineville.
Associated with French Santee is Jamestown, where there
is an old church, the site of which is known, and near it
are graves which are remembered but now obliterated. The
estate of the late Samuel J. Pahner now owns the land upon
which Jamestown was laid out. It has long been known as
Mount Moriah.
On account of freshets the French settlers moved higher
up the river, into what afterwards became St. Stephen's
Parish. This section had been gradually acquiring settlers,
and had obtained the name of English Santee ; in 1754 it was
incorporated as a parish under the title of St. Stephens. The
Parish Church is about 19 miles above the site of Jamestown.
It will be remembered that the three parishes of St. Johns, St.
Thomas and St. James Santee corner on Windsor plantation.
SOUTH SANTEE
FAIRFIELD
"Fairfield," the Santee home of the Pinckney family,
which is the oldest place on the river, now belongs to Cotes-
worth Pinckney, of Richmond, Virginia. The Pinckneys are
of English descent, sprung from a family widely scattered
over England. It is said that the name is of Norman origin,
and is variously spelled Pincheni, Pinchinge, Pinqueny,
Pinkeni, Pinkeny, Pinkeney, Pinckeny, showing the changes
through which the Norman word passed, until it settled down
into the present form, Pinkney or Pinckney. Though holding
extensive estates in many parts of England, their names are
not prominent in political history.
94
^■1^ tMW '
THE SANTEES
The only event in the family history which rises above the
general level is the claim of one of the name to the crown of
Scotland, in the time of Bruce and Bahol, through his grand-
mother, Alice de Lyndsay. "Ahce had married Sir Henry de
Pinkeney, a great baron of Northamptonshire. Her grandson,
Sir Eobert Pinkeney, claimed the crown of Scotland at the
competition in 1292, as descended from the Princess Margery,
through his grandmother, Alice de Lyndsay."
Three branches of the Pinckney family emigrated to
America ; one to West Chester, New York, in 1684, one to South
Carolina in 1692, and one to Maryland about 1750. William
Pinckney, the jurist and statesman, is the most conspicuous
figure in this latter branch. The first of the name who came
to Carolina was Thomas Pinckney, in 1692. His wife was
Mary Cotesworth, of Durham. He was a man of independent
fortune, and built a house at the corner of East Bay and Tradd
Streets, Charleston, S. C, where he Uved and died. The Bay
was not then encumbered with houses on its water front, but
commanded a full view of the harbor, as the East Battery
now does.
One personal anecdote is recorded of him. In looking out
of his windows upon the bay, he observed a vessel just arrived
from the West Indies, landing her passengers. As they walked
up the street, he was attracted by the appearance of a very
handsome stranger, and turning to his wife remarked, "That
handsome West Indian will marry some poor fellow's widow,
break her heart and ruin her children. His words were in part
prophetic, for he died of yellow fever shortly after, his widow
married the gay West Indian, George Evans, and though he
did not break her heart, as she hved to marry a third husband,
he often made her heart ache with his extravagance, squan-
dering the patrimony of her children. Enough, however, was
saved to enable them to have a hberal education.
Thomas Pinckney 's three sons were Thomas, an officer in
the British Army, who died young ; Charles, the Chief Justice,
and William, the Commissioner in Equity. Charles was edu-
cated in England, and there married Elizabeth, daughter of
95
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Captain Lamb, of Devonshire Square, London. Eetuming to
Carolina, lie became a successful lawyer and accumulated a
large fortune and served as Speaker of the House and one of
the King's Councillors. Having been married some years
without children Charles Pinckney adopted his brother Wil-
liam's eldest son, Charles, as his prospective heir, and sent him
to England to be educated; but a romantic incident in the
family annals interfered with this plan.
In 1739 Colonel George Lucas, Governor of Antigua, arrived
in Charleston with his family. The climate of the West
Indies did not suit Mrs. Lucas ; and her husband brought his
family to CaroUna, to an estate which he owned on the Stono
River, ten miles by water and six miles by land from town.
His young daughter, just twenty years of age, was quite
in advance of her generation, and that she anticipated, at the
junction of the Stono and Wappoo Eivers, the cultivation of
those tropical fruits which are pouring such streams of wealth
into the once barren lands of Florida.
A letter written to a friend not long after her father's
departure gives a vivid ghmpse of the way in which she appre-
ciated the responsibihty thrust upon her.
"I have a httle Ubrary in which I spend part of my time.
My music and the garden, which I am very fond of, take up
the rest that is not employed in business, of which my father
has left me a pretty good share ; and indeed was unavoidable,
as my mama's bad state of health prevents her going thro'
any fatigue. I have the business of three plantations to trans-
act, which requires much writing and more business and
fatigue of other sorts than you can imagine. But lest you
should imagine it to be burdensome to a girl at my early time
of hf e, give me leave to assure you that I think myself happy
that I can be useful to so good a father. ' '
Mrs. Lucas and her daughter were cordially received in
Charleston society, but were especially welcomed in Colonel
Pinckney 's home. So open was Mrs. Pinckney 's admiration
for the young lady that, rather than permit her to return to
Antigua, she declared her readiness to "step out of the way
and permit her to take her place." This kind intention she
96
THE SAN TEES
actually fulfilled by dying the following year; and her hus-
band was considei-ate enough to marry the lady his wife had
chosen for him.
The marriage certificate issued May 25th, 1744, and signed
by Governor Glen, authorized Charles Pinckney and Elizabeth
Lucas to intermarry, and the said Charles Pinckney binds him-
self by a bond of £2000 to the faithful performance of the con-
tract. Mr. Pinckney was also considerate enough to construct
for her another dwelling which stood near the present Sea-
man's Mission.
Justice Pinckney bought a whole square on East Bay, and
built a handsome mansion in the center of it, facing the harbor.
The house was of brick, two stories high, mth roof of slate.
There was a wide hall running from front to rear. One of the
rooms on the second floor was thirty feet long and had a high
ceiling. The whole house was wainscoted. The mantelpieces
were high and narrow, with fronts beautifully carved. In this
house were born the two sons of Charles Pinckney and EUza-
beth Lucas, his wife ; namely, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney
and Thomas Pinckney, who rendered great service to their
country during the Eevolution and afterwards.
"America is indebted," says Bruce Addington, in Smith's
Magazine, "to women like Eliza Lucas Pinckney — possessed
of the advantages of wealth and position, ardent, light-hearted,
high-spirited, but right-minded and earnest and brave. They
were women of fine ideals and fine achievement. Even when
their dreams did not come true, when fate was adverse to them,
they left traditions that have powerfully, however uncon-
sciously, influenced the thought and point of view of posterity.
In the South, as on the forgotten plantations of Rhode Island,
this type of woman was the mistress of noble mansions, and of
a small army of dependents, they keenly appreciated the duties
as well as the privileges which this entailed. They cheerfully
looked after the manifold affairs of household management,
taught their servants and slaves the domestic sciences, and
were untiring in work of charity. To their children they were
the best of mothers."
7 97
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
From her marriage with Mr. Pinckney came the two gen-
erals, Charles Cotesworth, born 1746, and Thomas Pinckney,
born 1750, and one daughter, Harriott, wife of Daniel Horry.
Charles Pinckney, one of the illustrious sons of Eliza Lucas,
in his "Draft of Federal Government," which he laid before
the Convention, included this clause : ' ' The Legislature of the
United States shall pass no law on the subject of rehgion."
The clause was omitted in the form of the Constitution actu-
ally adopted ; but the fact remains that the first step towards
the removal of rehgious disabilities, and the establishment of
equal rights, was made by this able son of South Carolina.
The honor of urging the subject in the Convention is due
to Charles Pinckney, of South Carolina. His State followed
his leading, and in 1790, upon a review of the Constitution of
South Carolina, the clauses excluding Catholics from place
and honor were stricken out.
The other son held, among other high offices, that of Gen-
eral in the Revolutionary War, first American minister ap-
pointed by Washington to the Court of St. James, and Minister
to Spain in 1795. "Fairfield" was the Thomas Pinckney
plantation home and a letter comes from him there in 1791 to
Mr. Edward Rutledge (brother of Dictator John) concerning
a communication from Mr. Jefferson asking whether it would
be agreeable if he (Mr. Jefferson) should nominate Mr. Pinck-
ney to the Senate as Minister to London. Mr. Pinckney said
that almost every private consideration appeared against his
accepting this position, but he writes to Mr. Rutledge : "Pray
let me have your thoughts on these and any other subjects of
immediate consideration, by a letter left for me in town, unless
you should send an express. I am almost ashamed of requiring
this of you but as you made me a governor, and now insist upon
my being a minister, you must advise me in this situation, as
you supported me in the former. ' '
Mr. Rutledge advised acceptance, and as soon as he could
arrange his domestic affairs Mr. Pinckney left home with his
wife, who had been very ill, stopping over in Philadelphia to
confer with the President. It has been alleged that Mr. Pinck-
ney sought this appointment, but the Pinckney point of view
98
THE SANTEES
is fully explained in portions of two letters. ' ' My wife, I thank
God, mends, though slowly. I have not ventured to open the
subject to her. It would be too much for the weak state of her
nerves. Poor Gadsden, too, is gone. My heart is filled with
anguish, while my head is disturbed with this unfortunate
appointment. Once more adieu. Your truly affectionate,
Thomas Pinckney."
The mission to England does not appear more gratifying
to Mrs. Pinckney than to her husband, as will appear in this
letter from Judge Iredell written to his wife in Philadelphia
under date, Charleston, April 19th, 1792. "Major Pinckney
(the minister to Britain) and his family sail to-morrow. I
have received such uncommon courtesies from him and his
connections that I must earnestly entreat you to wait on Mrs.
Pinckney soon after her arrival. . . . She is a most amiable
woman, and none can be more free from any kind of pride or
affectation. I am told that she has been in tears almost ever
since her husband 's appointment. ' ' The Pinckney address for
the next four years was No. 1 Great Cumberland Place
in London.
A letter written by Mr. Pinckney to the Secretary of State
in America show^s that the taint of rebellion still cleaved to our
country and her representatives. "In my first communication
I mentioned the ci\Tlity with which I was received at St. James,
and at the Office of Foreign Affairs. The only circumstance
worth mentioning in my conference with the king was that
Lord North's rope of sand appeared not to have been entirely
effaced from His Majesty's memory; so I infer, from his men-
tioning the different circumstances between the Northern and
Southern parts of our country tending to produce disunion.
... I have been constant in every attendance- at the king's
levees since the return of the court to St. James, and, placing
myself in the circle of foreign ministers, his Majesty never
fails to have a few moments' conversation with me on the
weather, or other topic equally important ; but notwithstand-
ing the great variety of incident that has lately occurred in
Ei°ropean poUtics, he never touches upon that subject with
0!)
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
me. The Queen also was very gracious but quite as non-com-
mittal in her attitude."
America appreciated the service her distinguished son had
rendered his country. When General Pinckney returned to
South Carohna in 1799 the City of Charleston gave him a pub-
lic dinner at the City Hall on Friday, February 8, 1799. The
City Gazette and Daily Advertiser for the next day contains
the following in its account of the ceremonies :
"The Hall, in the evening, was handsomely lighted up, and
at the upper end was ornamented with the portrait of Gen-
eral Pinckney, under which the following transparent labels
appeared, 'il faut de I'argent; il faut beaucoup d 'argent!' —
'No, No ! not a six-pence. ' In front of the City-Hall was exhib-
ited a transparent painting ; a female figure appeared seated on
a rock ; at her side is the American eagle ; at a distance she sees
a dove returning, with the ohve branch she had sent ; she im-
mediately seizes hold of several arrows, which lie at the foot
of the American standard, and seems prepared for war.
Over her head appears, 'millions for defence, not a cent
for tribute. ' ' '
This traditional utterance is found upon the tablet to his
memory in St. Michael's Church, and is still thrust upon him,
though historians contend to the contrary. But if Mr. Pinck-
ney was not beloved in England, he was properly appreciated
at home. An intimacy existed between Mrs. Pinckney and
Mrs. Washington, and a letter from her to Mrs. Pinckney
(copied from "A Catalogue of Rare Letters") written in 1799,
in return for Mrs. Pinckney 's "obUg'in favors," thanks her
for some "mellon seeds" and refers to Mrs. Pinckney 's recent
stay at Mount Vernon: "A place at which we shall always be
gratified in seeing General Pinckney, yourself or any of the
family. In which let me add a hope, if his military duties
should call him to the State of Virginia, that you will always
consider us as your headquarters during your abidance in
it. ... I will with pleasure send you the profiles of the
General and myself, and feel the compliment of them being
asked." She then mentions marriage of "Nelly Curtis to Mr.
Lewis (who you saw here) who is at her mothers or she would
write in reciprocating wishes of yourself and Miss Ehza and
100
THE SAN TEES
would rejoice to hear of the happiness of her friend, Harriet
Eutledge. Closed with sentiments of perfect esteem and re-
gard, I am my dear Madame your most obedient H'ble Ser'vt.
^lartha Washington."
Being on the highway between northern cities and Charles-
ton, General Pinckney's house seldom lacked guests. Unless
in old Virginia more genuine, habitual hospitality could no
where be found than in the low country of Carolina. This
feeling was embodied in the remark of a venerable citizen who
lived in that vicinity, "if I see no carriageis under the visitor's
shed when I return from my fields to dinner, I say to myself,
my friends have not treated me well to-day." An English
gentleman of fortune, Adam Hodgson, of Liverpool, who spent
three years in exploring our country, having brought letters of
introduction, visited General Pinckney at Santee and Eldo-
rado. His impressions of this visit are recorded in a volume
of "Travels" which he published in 1824. The first thing
which struck him as he entered the house was the number and
size of the A\indows, enough to make an Enghshman shudder
when he recalled the tax upon each pane of glass to which he
was accustomed at home. The library was also a surprise.
"My host had an excellent library, comprising many recent
and valuable British publications, and a more extensive col-
lection of agricultural works than I had ever seen before in a
private library. In works on botany and American orni-
thology the supply was large. The latter especially interested
me, not having seen them before. ' '
He accompanied his host on his daily visits to the fields,
the mills, and the hospital, and records his surprise when he
heard this "benevolent master order wine and oranges for
some sick negroes." He inspected carefully the houses, the
food, the clothing of the negroes and admitted that in these
m.atters our laborers compared favorably with those of
other lands.
HAMPTON
When the Horry tract at Wambaw was divided, although
the portion upon which the original house stood was sold, yet
101
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
the eastern moiety remained in the possession of descendants
of the original settler on the distaff side ; it having passed to
the late Mrs. Frederick Rutledge, a daughter of Daniel Horry,
and is now owned and occupied by Col. H. M. Eutledge, a
grandson of Frederick Rutledge.
On this eastern tract there stands, a mile east of the
original Horry house, a large and fine mansion. It was built
in 1730, of yellow pine and cypress, over a brick foundation,
by Mrs. Daniel Horry, widow of the French Huguenot who
came over in 1686 and is buried just north of Hampton at
AVaterhorn. This house has long been the seat of refined hos-
pitality, and is well known as ' ' Hampton. ' ' It came into the
Rutledge family through the daughter of Mrs. Horry, and has
constantly remained a Rutledge home.
Of this place Archibald H. Rutledge, son of Col. H. M.
Rutledge, says it is "one of the great rice plantations (contain-
ing 1285 acres) that lie along the coast country of South Caro-
lina. It was the headquarters of the * Swamp Fox, ' the daunt-
less Francis Marion."
A mile or more of avenue leads to the massive old colonial
house on Hampton, opening upon the wide lawn dotted by
those sentinels of the centuries, which, with the white mansion,
its lofty portico and its simple, but beautiful pediment sup-
ported by heavy columns, in its setting of giant oaks hung mth
Spanish moss, make a charming and impressive picture. Upon
the occasion of a recent marriage in the family, although the
guests were obliged to go by automobile, yet as one drove
through the historic woods one's thoughts went back to olden
times when the cavaliers and Huguenots, resplendent in cocked
hats, ruffled shirts, knee breeches and brilUant coats, with
dames and maidens in gay brocades of silk and satin, hastened
along this way on similar errand bent.
Arrived at the house, instead of stately coaches with coach-
men and outriders in livery, which one naturally would asso-
ciate with this scene, the equipages of the guests were parked
in front of the house, about the historic Washington oak, so
called because the tree was spared from the axe by the request
102
THE UINING-ROOM AT " HAMFTUN '
THE PORTICO AT "HAiSiPTON"
THE SANTEES
of George Washington when he visited Hampton late in
the century.
Perhaps the most impressive feature of Hampton is the
portico which must be traversed in order to gain entrance to
the house. Once inside the hospitable portals of this colonial
home the visitors tind themselves in a great reception hall,
amply supplied with antique furniture and decorated with
family portraits. Some of the rooms possess landscape wall-
paper like that found at Friendfield. One of the beauties of
Hampton is its great ballroom occupying the entire east wing.
This has an immense carved chimneyplace lined with Dutch
tiles, in which it is said that five persons can stand.
Of course, this house has its ghost. The "Ghost-room,"
which is the guest room, is found over the dining-room. No
one has ever seen there a "horrid spectre," for this ghost
only makes a sound, and the noise is Uke someone moving a
carpet stealthily over the floor.
At Hampton is kept a magnificent pulpit-bible, prayer-
book, and "Book of the Institutions," presented to Wambaw
Church by Mrs. Rebecca Motte, who removed to St. James
Santee after the historic burning of her house at Orangeburg.
At the time of the Revolution these wei'e captured by the Brit-
ish and taken to England. Fortunately they were inscribed mth
her name, and tradition has it that a British officer who had re-
ceived kindness from Mrs. Motte, seeing the books exposed in
London on a book-stall, recognized the name of the OAvner,
purchased the books, and turned them over to Mrs. Motte 's
son-in-law, General Thomas Pinckney, then Minister at the
court of St. James, and were by him returned to the parish
of St. James, Santee, where they are now kept at the Rutledge
home at Hampton.
EL DORADO ON THE SANTEE
El Dorado, on the Santee, was built by, and was the home
of, General Thomas Pinckney, our "first American Minister
appointed to the Court of St. James, and Minister to Spain,
1795." It was the second home of General Pinckney, the first
having been at Fairfield, not far distant.
103
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
The house at El Dorado, "situated on a sandy knoll, jut-
ting out into the rice-fields, embowered by live-oaks with their
outstretched arms and lofty magnolias with their glittering
foliage," was a typical Sou,thern home. It was surrounded by
the native evergreen shrubbery through which ran winding
walks. "The spacious mansion, which he planned and built
with his own carpenters, is very suggestive of a French
chateau, with its wide corridors, its lofty ceilings, and its
peaked roof of glazed tiles. . . .
"After his return to America General Pinckney married
another daughter of Eebecca Motte, Mrs. Middleton, the widow
of a young EngUshman who had crossed the Atlantic to bear
ai-ms in the cause of the colonies." He resigned Fairfield and
purchased the present plantation, which he named Eldorado in
remembrance of his Spanish mission, and from the golden but-
tercups which covered the land.
"The house here was built in conjunction with his mother-
in-law. Mrs. Motte had sold her plantation on the Congarees,
and removed to Santee to be near her daughters. . . . The
large rooms, the lofty ceihngs, the numerous windows, seem
now unsuitable for a winter home, and suggest a lack of prac-
tical talent in the builder. . . . The planters in those days,
however, occupied their homes all the year. . . .
"The air was redolent of nature's fresh perfumes. The
yellow jessamine, the sweet-scented shrub, and other native
plants, which fill our forests with their fragrance, met here in
rich profusion. The sweet rose of France, the English and
cape jessamine, mingled with the odors of the orange-blossom
in perfect harmony. . . .
"From the windows of his stately home, General Pinckney
could look out upon his own busy fields, and over many miles
of rice-lands in the delta of the river. The banks and ditches
which marked the separate fields, and the long canals which
intersected the whole ... all were spread out before the
eye. The quiet of the landscape was often relieved by the
white sails of a schooner on the river. . . . "
At the time of the Civil War, Eldorado, being so near the
mouth of the river, was "exposed to the visits of vessels from
104
T H E S A N TEES
the blockading squadron. . . . The house was shelled by
gunboats from the fleet in 1863, and bears the scars of war
upon its face. The mills were burnt by a hostile party, landed
on the banks, and the house only saved from the torch by the
timely arrival of a squadron of Confederate Cavalry under
command of a grandson of its former owner. . . .
"Mr. Pinckney's love of agriculture was manifest all
through the period of his English mission. . . . Through his
second wife a large body of marshlands at the mouth of the
Santee, adjoining the ocean, came into the possession of this
noted agriculturist. It was covered alternately by fresh and
by salt water, and so impregnated with the saline element as to
he considered entirely unfit for cultivation. When the execu-
tor of the estate handed General Pinckney the titles to this
portion of his wife's property, he apologized for offering a
gentleman anything so worthless. But the new owner remem-
bered that the rich lands of Holland had been redeemed from
the sea ; . . . and he imported from Holland a sldllf ul engi-
neer, who soon succeeded in protecting the land from the salt
water, and introduced among the rice-planters of the State the
Van Hassel system of embankment.
"By repeated experiments the saline nature of the soil was
rendered fit for the culture of rice, and by enlarging the culti-
vated area, a large body of inexhaustible fertility was re-
claimed, so that from this once contemptible estate a crop of
twenty thousand bushels of rice was sent to market annually.
Two of General Pinckney 's children received the chief part of
their inheritance from these lands. ' '
In regard to the treatment of his nmnerous slaves, General
Pinckney carried out the idea of the patriarchal relationship
which the Southern planter felt towards them, making it pos-
sible for the slaves to glory in their masters, and to look up
to them as the Scottish clansmen did to their ancestral chiefs.
"In the familiar picture of the Washington family by
Savage, a stately black butler stands behind Washington's
chair. That is General Pinckney's body-servant, John Riley,
a freeman, for many years in his employ. His wife was Mrs.
Pinckney's maid, who accompanied her mistress to England.
105
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Not mshing to separate him from his wife during his residence
abroad, General Pinckney carried Eiley with him to England.
As the painter who was then engaged on the Washington
family picture had no black model at hand, he borrowed John
Riley from the American ambassador to pose as one of "Wash-
ington's servants. . . .
"Thomas Pinckney died on the 2d of November, 1828, in
the seventy-ninth year of his age. The uniform companies of
the 16th and 17th regiments of South Carolina troops, a
squadron of cavalry, and a detachment from the United States
garrison at Fort Moultrie, formed the military escort at his
funeral. His horse, with its trappings and empty saddle,
dressed in crape, followed inamediately after the bier, attended
by his three aides. Colonels James Ferguson, Lewis Morris
and Frederick Kinloch, then the officers of the United States
and State of South Carolina. . . . The procession moved
from his house in Legare Street to St. Philip's Church, on the
north side of which his remains repose. . . .
"The three swords which General Pinckney had used in the
wars of the Revolution and of 1812 he bequeathed by will to his
three sons, with the injunction that 'they never be drawn in
any private quarrel, and never remain in their scabbards, when
their country demanded their service.' In obedience to his
example and his instructions, fourteen of his descendants
sei'ved in the Confederate Army. . . ."
The story of the Life of General Thomas Pinckney, from
which many extracts have been quoted, was written by his
grandson, the Rev. Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, D.D., presi-
dent of the South Carolina Historical Society.
NORTH SANTEE
The peninsula formed by Winyah Bay on the north, the
Atlantic Ocean on the east, and the North Santee River on the
south, with its various deltas, contains rich plantation lands
adjoining the North Santee River. Many of the houses be-
longing to these plantations were not built upon the rice-lands,
but upon the highlands on the other side of the river. Starting
at the ferry, in order are Hopseewee, Fawnhill, White Oak,
106
•EL DOEADO," ON THE SANTEE, ONE OF THE PINCKNEY HOMES
"HOPSEEWEE," (LUCAS HOUSE), NORTH SANTEE
Home of Thomas Lynch, Lhc Signer
THE SANTEES
Kice Hope, Camp Main and Bcarhill. Behind this latter plan-
tation are three tracts, Mill Dam, Pleasant Meadow, and The
Marsh, and on the river again are Green Meadow and
Cat Island.
In 1855 the Bishop's Journal states that :
"Friday, 23rd (March)— At North Santee, preached on
the plantation of Mr. Ladson. ' '
The church at North Santee was then called the Church of
the Messiah, and the Eev. Thomas J. Girardeau was rector.
HOPSEEWEB
Hopseewee on the North Santee River, now o^vned by the
Lucas family, was built about 200 years ago by Mr. John
LjTich, who received the land grant from the King of England.
The house stands on a high bluff on the northern bank of the
river, and is built of black cypress on a brick foundation. The
original veranda fell into decay very many years ago, and
was replaced about 1850 by double piazzas. The floor plan is
that of the typical square old southern dwelhng ; four rooms on
each of the two floors, all opening into the center halls, both
iTpper and lower, which extend the entire length of the house.
In the back of the lower hall is the stairway. The grounds
are enclosed with ancient and majestic live-oaks, and beauti-
ful japonica trees.
Thomas Lynch, Signer of the Declaration of Independence,
was the son of the original owner, John Lynch, and was born
at Hopseewee in August, 1749. He was educated in England,
and in 1772 married Elizabeth Shubrick. He was a distin-
guished poUtical figure in this country from the time of his
membership in the Provincial Congresses of 1775-1776, until
his death in 1779 when he was lost at sea. He is spoken of as
the "Signer," having signed the Declaration of Independence
during his term "as a sixth delegate" from South Carolina to
the Continental Congress.
In 1762 Mr. Lynch sold the property to Mr. Robert Hume,
a Goose Creek planter, and he in turn gave it to his son, Mr.
John Hume, who died in 1845. It then came into the posses-
sion of Mr. Hume's grandson, Mr. John Hume Lucas, who used
107
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
it as a winter home, and it has subsequently been always owned
by descendants of the Lucas family.
A will of Jonathan Lucas, who was probably a famous
member of the family in former days (dated 1874), speaks of
" my mill and planting establishments," but there is nothing
in the will to show where they are located ; he may mean one
on the plantation, or one that we know of in Charles-
ton. As E. G. Memminger, Wm. Lucas, and "W. J. Bennett
were appointed executors of the will it would seem to indicate
that this is the rice mill commonly called Bennett's Mill.
The following extracts are taken from the Year Book
issued by Mayor Courtenay celebrating the Centennial
of Incorporation :
" LUCAS ' EICE MILLS
"The various contrivances for cleaning rice from the crude
wooden mortar and ligiitwood pestle of the seventeenth cen-
tury, as well as the later inventions of Guerard and others, all
passed away when Jonathan Lucas introduced here his im-
proved rice mill run by water-power.
"To this citizen we are indebted for the admirable
machinery by which rice is cleaned and prepared for market —
machinery which in its most improved state has been copied
and introduced in the North and in Europe, serving materially
to increase the consumption of the grain by supplying it in the
most desirable condition to home and foreign markets. . . .
"He was a thoroughly educated millwright, was born in
1754 at Cumberland, England. Shortly after the war of the
Revolution he sailed from England for a more Southern port,
but through stress of weather the vessel was driven on this
coast and stranded near the mouth of Santee River. It was
there that he noticed the laborious process then in use, for
cleaning rice from its hull, and preparing it for market. His
was the thought and his the skill which accomplished the won-
derful economic improvements upon the old 'laborious
processes' by which the great forces of nature were soon to
be harnessed to new machines, and the cultivation and prepara-
tion of this cereal to receive an impetus which subsequently
resulted in greatly increased rice crops.
"In the year 1787 the first water mill was erected by Mr.
Lucas, to whom the credit of the invention is understood to
be due. This was built for Mr. Bowman on a reserve at his
Peach Island plantation on Santee River. Jonathan Lucas,
108
THE SANTEES
Jr., inherited his father's mechanical talent and skill, and
associated with him constructed on Cooper River in 1801 the
first toll mill for cleaning rice. . . . He yielded at length
to the invitations of the British Government, and passed the
remainder of his days in England . . . (in 1822).
". . . The subsequent erection by Jonathan Lucas, Jr.,
and others of rice mills in Europe had the effect of dramng
rough rice supplies not only from Eastern countries but from
Charleston ; under the influence of import duties on clean rice,
that of Great Britain being equal to $4.00 per tierce of clean
rice, mills were kept running in London, Liverpool, Copen-
hagen, Bremen, Amsterdam, Lisbon and Bordeaux, and
Carolina rough rice was shipped hence in cargoes to those
distant mills. . . ."
Other rice mills built on the Santee by Mr. Lucas, Sr., were
on the reserve at Washo Plantation, for Mrs. Middleton, after-
wards Mrs. General Thomas Pinckney ; on a reserve of Winyah
Bay for Gen. Peter Horry ; on the reserve at the Fairfield plan-
tation of Col. William Alston, on the WaccamaAV River ; and in
1791-92 Mr. Lucas built on the Santee, for Mr. Andrew John-
son on his plantation called Millbrook, the first tide mill. A
year or two later he erected an improved tide mill at the
plantation of Henry Laurens, called Mepkin, and in 1795, on
Shem Creek, at Hardell's Point, in Charleston Harbor, he
erected a combined rice and saw mill driven by water-power.
This was the first mill erected in the immediate vicinity of
the city.
" . . . About 1840, Jonathan Lucas, the grandson, built a
steam rice mill upon the Ashley, where now stands West Point
Mill. This mill was burnt, and the pi-esent West Point Mill
Company built on this site in 1860-1861. ' '
This is located at the western end of Calhoun Street, within
the city limits, and was operated up to the year 1919.
Hopseewee, at the present time, is the home of T. Cordes
Lucas and his mother, Mrs. Wm. Lucas, and is in a remark-
able state of preservation. The residents of the historic old
place have a deep and thorough appreciation of it, and the
writer has received much of the foregoing information
through the kindness of Mrs. Lucas and her sister-in-law, Mrs.
T. G. S. Lucas, of Charleston. At a recent exhibit of colonial
109
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
relics at the Charleston Museum, there was displayed an ex-
quisite wedding veil used by this family over one hundred and
fifty years ago, loaned by Miss Sarah Lucas.
WINYAH BARONY
To the north of these, again, on the remainder of the penin-
sula occupying the territory between North Santee and Win-
yah Bay, is that portion known by the name of the Winyah
Barony, deriving its name from its situation on the large bay.
The barony was originally laid out to Landgrave Robert
Daniel, whose ownership continued one day. Landgrave Smith
being the second owner. It is frequently referred to as
Smith's Barony.
Here Thomas Smith had dreams of founding a town, and
the South Carolina Gazette for the week 16-23 July, 1737,
carried an advertisement stating the situation of the proposed
town, and setting forth its advantages. Evidently the lots did
not sell, and some months later Thomas Smith offered induce-
ments "to all poor Protestants of any Nature whatsoever, that
are willing to come and settle" on the Winyah Barony. He
died the nest year, but before his death gave some of the
barony to his eldest son, Thomas, who died before his father,
but who devised 1000 acres of the 3000 given him by his father
to his sister Justinah Moore. (It is to be noted that the 2nd
Landgrave was twice married, and that he had by a second
wife a younger son also named Thomas.)
The rest of the various tracts were disposed of by the will
of Landgrave Thomas; it states that he had at the time 31
grandchildren and great-grandchildren. The land at Winyah
Barony and other Smith lands in the neighborhood are fully
traced in Judge Smith's able article on Winyah Barony.
One of the sons of Landgrave Thomas named his portion
of the Smith lands The Retreat. It is interesting to note that
the lines of Winyah Barony as originally laid out encroach
upon several inland plantations later found in possession of
other people.
"On 28th August, 1733, Mr. Thomas Lynch had obtained
a grant for 4500 acres, lying mainly to the South of the
no
THE SANTEES
Barony. It included, however, the valuable tidal rice swamps
on Santee River which had been omitted from the barony
grant. At the date the barony was run out the value of the
tidal swamps for rice cultivation was not yet known. The
lines of the new grant overlapped or interfered with the lines
of the barony, and the result was Utigation between Thomas
Smith and Thomas Lynch. The exact result of this Htigation
the available remaining records do not disclose, but appar-
ently by some settlement the title of the various purchasers
from Thomas Lynch to so much of their land as was included
in this 'overlap' was confirmed."
Among the plantations affected by this overlap were Cat
Island; Green Meadows; Tidyman's; Annandale; a Hazzard
place upon which is found a fairly representative old house ;
The Marsh, and the Eetreat. Cat Island extends completely
across the peninsula, from North Santee River to Winyah
Bay. Across the head of this island is found the Estherville
Canal, for small boats. Cat Island is a Lowndes possession.
The location of the town called Smiths-Town, apparently
fronted on Winyah Bay just west of Estherville plantation,
and east of the east hne of the Retreat plantation, where the
highland comes to the beach or water's edge, without inter-
vening marsh or mud flats.
Phihp Tidyman, M.D., late of Charleston, owned a place
in Winyah Barony. His will (1843) directs his executors to
keep his whole estate together during the hfetime of his daugh-
ter, Susan Tidyman, and to have his plantations cultivated by
his slaves as they were at the time of his death. After the
death of his daughter, the executors are directed to sell his
real estate, including the Cedar Hill plantation in St. James
Parish. By the breaking out of the C.S.A. and the U.S.A.
War, and the threatened invasion by the forces of the latter
upon the plantations mentioned, the executors were compelled
for the safe keeping of the slaves, to remove them from the said
plantation and abandon the culture thereof. George A. Tren-
holm afterwards bought the Tidyman plantations in the Parish
of Prince George Winyah (North Santee). After various
legacies the will directs that the remainder of the proceeds of
sales are to be equally divided between Mr. Tidyman's nieces.
CHAPTER VI
GEORGETOWN AND VICINITY
GEORGETOWN
^5<_?)HE ground on which Georgetown stands
was originally granted to Mr. Perry, the
ancestor of the present family of Kin-
loch, according to The Ancient Lady;
through mistake it was granted a second
time to the Rev. William Screven, the
first Baptist minister in South Carolina
and one of the first settlers in the Prov-
ince, but was later reclaimed and I'ecovered by virtue of the
earlier grant. The town of Georgetown was projected approx-
imately in 1732 or 1733, but the land was not granted for the
purpose until 1734. The following year George Pawley, Wil-
liam Swinton, Daniel La Roche, and two others were appointed
Harbor Commissioners to "lay out buoys, errect beacons, and
regulate pilotage. ' '
About the year 1740 the indigo planters of the Parish of
Prince George Winyah formed a convival club and decided to
meet on the first Friday of each month in the town of George-
towm. This was called the Winyah Indigo Society. The old
Oak Tavern which stood in Bay Street was the scene of these
monthly reunions. On the first Friday of May, each year,
the anniversary meeting took place, when the important busi-
ness of the Society was transacted, and then the annual dinner,
with its songs and anecdotes, occupied the attention of the
members for hours, and tradition reports it as a very merry
function. Fees and contributions Avere paid in the staple crop
of the section— indigo— and by the year 1753 the club was a
rich association. A proposal was made that the surplus funds
be devoted to the establishment of an independent charity
school for the poor. The meeting rose to its feet. "Every
glass was turned down without staining the table cloth, ' ' and
the school of the Winyali Indigo Society was estabhshed and
112
GEORGETOWN AND VICINITY
has continued its good work to this day. The holdings of the
Society are among tlie most valuable real estate properties in
the city, embracing the imposing and historic brick building
■which was used for years as an academy, and later for the
graded school. It was probably to this building that the notice
below refers :
"Charles Gee of the Parish of Prince George, Bachelor,
and Catherine Bond of the Parish of Prince George, Widow,
were married in the Public School-House of Prince George,
b}^ Banns, this Twenty Fourth Day of April in the Year of
our Lord, 1770, by me S. F. Warren, Rector of St. James
Santee.
This marriage was
Solemnized between us
In the Presence of Charles Gee
Catherine Bond X her mark
Thomas Webb
Peter Maume (?)"
An autograph letter of George Washington referring to
his reception in Georgetown, is greatly prized by the citizens of
the town. It is in the possession of the Winyah Indigo Society,
and is as follows :
"To the Inhabitants of Georgetown and Its Vicinity:
"Gentlemen — I receive your Congratulations on my ar-
rival in South CaroUna with real pleasure, and I confess my
obligations to your affectionate regard with sincere gratitude.
While the calamities to which you were exposed during the
war excited all my sympathy, the gallantry and firmness with
which they were encountered obtained my entire esteem. To
your fortitude in these trying scenes our country is much in-
debted for the happy and honorable issue of the contest.
"From the milder virtues that characterize your conduct
in peace, our equal government will derive those aids which
may render its operations extensively beneficial.
* ' That your participation of every national advantage and
your prosperity in private life may be amply proportional to
your past services and sufferings is my sincere and fer-
vent wish.
"G. Washington.
(Signed)
April 29th, 1791.
o 113
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
The building which was some years since known as the
"Winyah Inn" (now used as a Masonic Temple) was the old
"Colonial Bank of Georgetown," erected before the Revolu-
tion. It also served as headquarters for the British during the
war. It is a substantial structure with spacious verandas sup-
ported by massive white columns. The old rice and indigo
planters here deposited their wealth, and one of the iron vaults
is still to be seen in the building.
THE PYATT OR ALSTON HOUSE
Mrs. John Hose Parker, now living in one of the few old
structures remaining in the town of Georgetown, describes the
place as being the Pyatt or AUston House, situated on the bluff
in Georgetown directly on the Sampit River. It bears the
honor of having had George Washington under its roof as a
guest during his visit to the old colonial town in 1791 while on
his tour of the South. It is now the home of the Pyatt family,
direct descendants of Mr. Benj. AUston, who as a lad was with
Marion's Command during the Revolution, and who made the
old house his home about the year 1820. The records were lost
during the war between the States, so that the exact date of
its erection, and the name of the builder are unknown. It is a
large brick building and must have been erected before the
Revolution, as there was very httle building done between the
years 1783 and 1812. On a window pane in the long dining-room
wing is the inscription, ' ' J. W. Pawley September 2nd 1815, ' '
written twice in parallel lines. The exterior of the house has
scarce been changed since that period. The land slopes di-
rectly down to the river in front, and it is quite probable that
General Washington and his distinguished party landed there.
Tradition has it that Marquis LaFayette was also entertained
in this house, and it is of interest to know that the original
character of a heroine of one of Simm's novels was mistress
of this venerable house. Dorothy Singleton, widow of Colonel
Singleton and second wife of Mr. Benj. AUston, was the proto-
type of the famous "Katherine Walton."
A handsome silver teapot bearing the monogram of Mr.
AUston in large letters, is still used in the old dining-room by
114
<^ 2. :'
52.5
IS
GEORGETOWN AND VICINITY
the family, and needless to say is highly prized. The old ma-
hogany sideboard, a Hepplewhite, and relic of Revolutionary
times, still occupies its accustomed place in the room.
The picture accompanying this account of the Pyatt house
is taken from the rear to show the unusual aspect of the place,
the front view being more conventional. If one should attempt
to describe the building they would have to employ the usual
stereotyped phrases ; a hipped-roof with dormer windows, the
usual two story and a half plan, and chimneys on either end.
The wide piazza downstairs is supported by six circular col-
umns, an interesting feature being the double flight of brick
steps, to the right and left, with an arched entrance under-
neath. The basement, in all probability, was built of ' ' tabby, ' '
a favorite primitive cement much used by colonial builders
on the coast. The round wing so prominent in the picture is at
the rear. Perhaps the most striking feature is the atmosphere
of dignity and age which this brick structure produces.
ALL-SAINTS WACCAMAW AND ITS PLANTATIONS
By Act of Assembly, May 23, 1767, the parish of All-Saints
Waccamaw was taken off from the parish of Prince George
Winyah. It was to consist of "all the lands wliich lie between
the Sea and Waccamaw Eiver, as far as the boundary line of
North CaroHna." William AUston, Joseph AUston, Charles
Lewis, William Pawley, Josiah AUston, William AUston, Jr.,
and John Clarke, were appointed Commissioners for building
a Church, Chapel of Ease, and Parsonage House at such places
as they should approve within the parish.
The register now in existence begins in 1819, during the
rectorship of Eev. Henry Gibbes, which lasted from 1819 to
1829. When Dalcho wrote in about 1820 he states that neither
Journals nor Register were extant, but some earher records
were lost in the storm of 1893, when the house of Dr. Flagg, a
warden was swept away, for a badly defaced copy of the
minutes of the vestry was rescued from the sea.
To show how the plantations are situated in relation to
each other, extracts from a Missionary Tour, published in The
115
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Southern Episcopalian of May, 1855, giving an idea of the
itinerary of the Bishop, are here presented :
"Thursday 29th.— All-Saints' Parish, Waccamaw, after-
noon ... at Mr. P. Alston's plantation. At night same
place. . . .
"Friday 30th.— At plantation of Mr. Weston. At night,
same place. . . .
"Sunday, April 1st.— At All-Saints' Church. . . . Night
... at the plantation of the late Mr. Francis Weston.
"Monday 2d. — . . . same place. At 12 o 'clock laid the
cornerstone'of the Church of 'St. John the Evangelist,' in the
upper part of All-Saints' Parish. Afternoon, at Mr. Motte
Alston 's, in Horry district . . . and at night . . .
"Wednesday 4th. — ... at the lower Church of All-
Saints' Parish.
"Thursday 5th.— Georgetown, at Prince George's
Church. . . .
"Good Friday 6th.— Forenoon . . . Prince George's
Church. . . . Night, at Prince Frederick's, Peedee, preached
on Dr. Sparkman's plantation.
' ' Saturday 7th.— Night, at the plantation of Mr. J. Harles-
ton Bead. . . .
"Easter Sunday 8th.— ... at the Parish Church.
Afternoon . . . at the plantation of Col. Alston. "
A different account of the same visit of the Bishop gives
this information as to the movements of the clerical party :
"March 28th.— (Wednesday afternoon) Bishop arrived ac-
companied by Rev. Thomas J. Girardeau, of the Church of the
Messiah, North Santee.
"29th. — This afternoon we visited True Blue, the residence
of Col. T. Pinckney Alston. . . . Soon after 7 o'clock we
proceeded to the Chapel. . . .
"30th. — Morning ser\dce in the Parish Church : ... In
the afternoon we visited Hagley, the residence of Mr. Plowden
C. J. Weston. ...
'<31st. — . . . this evening Midway, the residence of
Chancellor Dunkin . . . (now, in 1921, in the possession of
the Nesbit family).
"April 1st (Sunday).— Morning service m the Parish
Church. . . . In the afternoon we visited the plantation of
the late Mr. F. M. Weston, Laurel Hill. . . .
' ' 2d. — Having spent the night at Laurel Hill . . . between
11 and 12 o'clock we proceeded nearly two miles beyond Laurel
116
GEORGETOWN AND VICINITY
Hill to Wachesaw, one of the few bluffs upon the river. . . .
From Wachesaw . . . proceeded about five miles up the
Parish to Longwood, a plantation belonging to the estate of
the late Col. Ward. Here ... a boat conveyed us three
miles up the river to Woodbourne, the residence of Mr. J.
Motte Alston. This plantation is on the West side of the
Waccamaw, and hes between it and Bull Creek . . ., the
principal channel of the Great Peedee. We were now in
Horry District. . . .
' ' 3d. — . . . returned by boat to Longwood, and thence
in a carriage to the All-Saints ' Parsonage.
"4th. — Wednesday in Passion Week: rode down the
Parish six miles for morning services at the Southern Church
. . . rode on nearly two miles to Fairfield, the residence of
Mr. Charles Alston, sen. . . . From this plantation crossed
Winyah Bay to Georgetown. . . . "
Oak Hill was the place of the LaBruce family, and was
opposite the Oaks, an Alston home. Esther LaBruce married
William Alston, and Ehzabeth Alston married Joseph La-
Bruce (April 6, 1821). In the Register of St. Thomas and St.
Denis the name is given as Joseph Marbeut ; the correct name
seems to have been La Bruce de Marbeuf, the first part being
the family name and the latter the place name, which was soon
dropped. Waccamaw neck, according to Mrs. Flora La
Bruce, was granted to Joseph La Bruce in the reign of George
the second. He married into the Ward family and into the
Alston family. The grant was at the head of Waccamaw
River on Broutons Creek.
Joshua John Ward, of Waccamaw, was said by Dr. John-
son to have been probably the most successful rice planter in
South Carohna. In 1845 he erected a monument to the mem-
ory of his relative, Colonel Hezekiah Maham, bearing the in-
scription, "Within this Cemetery /and in the bosom of the
Homestead,/which he cultivated and embellislied,/while on
Earth,/he the mortal remains of/Colonel Hezekiah Maham./
He was born in the parish of St. Stephens,/and died, A.D.,
1789,/aged 50 years." Maham was a captain in the first rifle
regiment, a commander of horse in Marion's Brigade, and
Lieutenant-Colonel of an independent corps of cavalry raised
117
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
by the authority of General Greene. The Ward place was at
Brook Green, and is so mentioned on inscriptions.
THE OAKS
Mr. William Allston owned several plantations; Clifton,
where it is claimed George Washington was entertained by
Mr. Allston at breakfast, was selected as the heritage of his
son, Washington Allston.
About fifteen miles from Georgetown, on the Waccamaw,
and, like Brook Green, in All-Saints Parish, was The Oaks, one
of the many plantations on this river owned by the Allston
family. Here, in the year 1801, Joseph Alston, later Governor
of South Carolina, brought his lovely bride, Theodosia Burr,
daughter of Aaron Burr. Joseph Alston is buried in the old
family burying ground at The Oaks, where there is a stone
placed also to the memory of Theodosia Burr Alston, who was
lost at sea. (There was another Allston burying ground at
Turkey Hill plantation, near Waccamaw.) She is thought to
have been captured by "Bankers" or pirates at the time of the
war with England in 1812. The life of this poor woman was
one of many sorrows, and through it all her love and adoration
of her father was beautiful and unceasing. The monument to
her memory tells briefly her pathetic story ; it is also inscribed
Avith the history of her distinguished husband :
"Sacred to the Memory /of /Joseph & Theodosia Burr
Alston/and of their Son/Aaron Burr Alston/The last died in
June 1812, at the age of 10 years/and his remains are interred
here./The disconsolate Mother perished a few/Months after
at Sea./And on the lO'" Sep'- 1816 died the Father/when but
little over 37 years of age whose remains rest here with the
Son's./The life of this Citizen was no common one to/the
States, To its service he devoted himself from/his early
years./On the floors of its Legislature, he was distinguished
for his extensive information &/his transcendent eloquence in
the chair of the/House of Representatives, for his impar-
tial/correct decisions & every where he was/distinguished for
his zealous attachments to his/republican principles./In the
capacity of Chief Magistrate of the/State when bothe the
honour and the responsibility/of the Office were heightened
by the/difficulties and dangers of the War of 1812/he by his
118
GEORGETOWN AND VICINITY
indomitable activity & his Salutaiy/measures earned new
titles to the respect &/gratitiide of his fellow citizens./Tliis
great man was also a good one./He met Death with that forti-
tude with which/his Ancestor did from whom he received/his
name & this estate & which is to be found only /in the good
hoping to rejoin those whose loss had left in his heart an
'aching void,' that/Nothing on earth could fill."
An interesting contemporary account of the Burr episode
is had in a letter from Henry M. Rutledge to Henry Izard,
which gives a closer view of the alleged conspiracy of Aaron
Burr. It was obtained from the collection of letters and other
manuscripts left by the late Dr. Gabriel E. Manigault and his
brother, Louis Manigault, of Charleston, and was pubUshed
in the South Carolina Historical and Genealogical Magazine.
In part it reads :
Addressed: "Henry Izard Esqu.
Charleston
South Carolina.
Nashville March 25th— 1807
Dear Izard,
I arrived at this place, four days ago — after the most dis-
agreeable journey, that I ever performed — The moment I
passed the blue ridge, I perceived that I had plunged again
into the depth of winter, & indeed I have scarcely experienced
a fair day since. ... I pushed my way however thro' the
wind & water to Anderson's house, which is 25 miles from
this — "We set out the next day for this place, & called on our
way at Genl: Jackson's where we spent an agreeable evening,
in the course of which he made many enquiries respecting you.
I found as you may presume, that Colonel Burr, furnished the
most common topic in this quarter. I have not seen a single
person, who believes that Burr ever intended to attempt a
separation of the Western from the Atlantic States, or to
possess himself of N : Orleans. They are all however per-
suaded that Wilkinson & himself, were connected in a scheme
to attack the Floridas & other Spanish possessions, & that with
the knowledge of the Executive, who expected every moment,
a declaration of war on the part of Spain. And indeed, except
Eaton's affidavit, who is supposed to have blended, what was
said in jest & earnest I do not recollect any other evidence
which might not be reconciled with this statement. Very little,
not to say, no credit is here attached to Wilkinson's assertions
119
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
■ — Indeed there does not appear the slightest sentiment of hos-
tility of the Atlantic States or to the Government of the Union
in this quarter. . . . "
To return to The Oaks, the dwelling on this, one of the
first places settled on the Waccamaw, has long since been de-
stroyed, and the property has passed from the hands of the
Alston family; but the site of the house is well defined and
marked by a single brick chimney, all that remains of its
former elegance.
OATLAND
A daughter of Mr. Benjamin AUston, grandmother of Mr.
John S. Pyatt, of Georgetown, S. C, owned a plantation house
on the AVaccamaw called Oatland. She did not, however, make
her home there, but once or twice a year remained for a short
time at the plantation to look after her affairs, take stock of
her business, and give out clothing to the negroes.
Her town house was on the southeast corner of Meeting and
Charlotte Streets in Charleston. It was a handsome structure,
a tall brick building placed at right angles to the street, with a
Greek portico to the side, looking out upon formal gardens
enclosed with high walls. There was about it an atmosphere
reminiscent of an Italian villa. Up to a year or so ago it re-
mained as originally designed, having passed from the Pyatt
family to the Ancrum's, and then to the Edwards', who re-
cently sold it to the Salvation Army.
LITCHFIELD
The Tuckers were a well-known family who owned many
estates near Georgetown; a Miss Tucker married into the
Weston family, thus forming a close connection between the
two. The house most prominently associated with the Tucker
family is the handsome old residence at Litchfield, which is
still standing, although it has passed into other hands and
been altered slightly during the intervening years.
A Miss Allston married Mr. John Tucker, and one of their
two daughters married Mr. Frances Weston. After his wife 's
death Mr. Tucker remarried, and had six sons, all of whom
were physicians and completed their studies in Paris. There
120
GEORGETOWN AND VICINITY
were three Dr. Tuckers on the Pee Dee, and two on the Wac-
camaw, and they practiced only on the plantations.
A Tribute of Eespect adopted by the vestry of St. Paul's
Church, Eadchffeborough, says of John H. Tucker :
"Although the larger portion of each year was passed in
attending to his planting interests on the Waccamaw and Pee
Dee rivers, yet when he was with us, he ever manifested a deep
and heartfelt interest in everything connected with the spir-
itual and temporal welfare of our Church, contributing always
liberally, in every way, to its advancement."
The will of this gentleman, who died about 1859, mentions
as his property the plantations of Will Brook and Litchfield
on the Waccamaw; Glenmore, Holly Grove and Moreland, or
Bates Hill, all three situated on both sides of the Pee Dee
River ; and land on Sandy Island.
PROSPECT HILL
The plantation home at Prospect Hill on the Waccamaw
has been said to be the most interesting house on the river. It
was formerly owned by three distinguished families of this
section, the Wards, Hugers and AUstons, and is now the prop-
erty of the Avell-known "Bromo-Seltzer King," Mr. Emerson.
The old house is still standing at Prospect Hill, and has had
within its venerable walls many makers of history and cele-
brated personages.
The building itself is a wooden structure, with a double
flight of stone steps leading from the large veranda. The ar-
rangement of the iron balustrade is most unique ; there is an
inner raiUng which, from an opening in the center, runs right
and left along the front of the piazza, then branches downward
at either end, forming the outer railing of each flight of steps ;
the inner raiUng of the steps extends unbroken from the curve
at the foot of one set of steps, across the front of the veranda
parallel wdth the other railing, enclosing a small passageway
a httle below the level of the veranda, and down again as the
inner raihng of the other flight, all of which is made clearer
by the illustration. The brick chimneys of the house are un-
usually tall.
121
HISTOEIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Colonel and Mrs. Benjamin Huger (the latter was previ-
ously Mrs. Thomas AUston) entertained LaFayette at this ele-
gant mansion during his celebrated visit to America. An
account of his reception has been given by a Miss Allston, a
relative of Mrs. Huger 's, who was present at the occasion.
The terrace was illuminated down to the river where he landed,
and a great ball given in his honor at which the gloves worn
were stamped with the head of LaFayette. The Hugers are
also said to have entertained Washington at this historic home.
Colonel Benjamin Huger was a senator from South Caro-
lina during Madison's administration, and was the brother of
the Colonel or Major Huger, who attempted to rescue the
Marquis de LaFayette from the dungeon of St. Olmutz. A
tablet to the memory of Colonel Huger was destroyed by fire a
few years ago when the Waceamaw Church, All-Saints,
was burned.
Again Prospect Hill was the scene of much brilliancy when
it was visited by President Monroe in 1825. He was conveyed
from there to Georgetown in "one of the plantation barges,
profusely decorated and adorned for the occasion with the
United States colors proudly floating at its head. Eight negro
oarsmen dressed in hvery propelled the barge. The party was
met at Georgetown by her most distinguished citizens ; carpet
was laid from the landing up to the place of reception. ' '
The surroundings at Prospect Hill were in accordance with
the magnificence of the dwelling. There are evidences of a
richly cultivated garden, and the walls are hung with ivy, as
are the raihngs of the old stone stairs. As the property of
Mr. Emerson the place retains its original charm and distinc-
tion, and is considered of inestimable value as a true type of
the colonial southern home.
The illustrations accompanying are made from descriptive
drawings, it having been found impossible to secure permission
from Mr. Emerson to proceed to his property, no reply having
been received from several letters. This circumstance is un-
fortunate as it is understood Mr. Emerson has taken great
delight in his historic home.
122
5 -^
— >
GEORGETOWN AND VICINITY
FRIBNDFIELD AND SOME ALLSTON PLACES
Friendfield, a plantation about six or eight miles from
Georgetown, was the old Withers' homestead, once the resi-
dence of Daniel G. Wayne, grandfather on the maternal side
of George F. von Kolnitz, of Charleston. It is on the Sampit
Eiver, and the house, apparently having had many additions
built on, is most interesting, particularly the interior, a por-
tion of which is shown in the illustration. At Friendfield is
found the landscape wall-papering similar to that in the house
at Hampton.
In old deeds we find this place frequently mentioned, and
it seems to have been the scene of many marriages, as the
following notice, one of several similar announcements,
would indicate :
"James Landels of this parish. Bachelor, and Damaris
Murrall of this parish. Spinster, were married in the Dwelling
house of Capt. Eichard Withers of this parish by License this
23rd day of February, in the Year of our Lord 1780 by me
S. F. Warren of this parish, Clerk."
One of the Withers family, Frank, o^vned land up and down
the coast. He seemed to have a passion for trading, and made
a million dollars when cotton was three cents a pound. An
interesting anecdote is related of how he rode to to'wn on an
Indian pony worth twenty dollars, and upon being offered
eighty dollars for it by some merchant, took off the saddle
and bridle, sold the pony, and walked home.
Friendfield was formerly a portion of 1515 acres, sold to
Benj. Trapier, transferred to William Burnet, and divided in
1784 into two sections, Friendfield, the upper portion of 7461/^
acres was transferred by Burnet to Edward Martin, and the
remainder subsequently known as Strawberry Hill, to
Peter Foisseu.
Benj. Trapier acquired this 1515 acres by various law
processes from the division of Hobcaw Barony, which took its
name from the Indian name applied to the point of land op-
posite the 'town of Georgetown on Winyah Bay, and is not to
be confused with the Hobcaw on the south bank of the Wando
123
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Eiver opposite Charleston neck, now called Remley's Point.
Hobcaw Barony was one of the ten baronies aggregating
119,000 acres ; laid out as early as 1711 and divided among the
Proprietors by lot on November 21, 1718. From John, Lord
Cateret, afterwards Earl Granville, "one of the first orators,
purest patriots, brightest classic scholars and most ardent
convivialists of his time," Hobcaw Barony passed to John
Roberts, who purchased it for 500 pounds sterling, thence to
Sir Wm. Baker, Nicholas Linwood, and Brice Baker, who ap-
pointed Paul Trapier as their attorney.
Paul Trapier was son or grandson of the ancestor of the
family of that name, and at the time was apparently a mer-
chant in Georgetown. It would be interesting to trace the
different hands into which the Barony passed when divided.
The Alstons acquired many portions of it, outside of that sold
to Benj. Trapier. John Alston' (also spelled AUston) was the
founder of this disting-uished' family of South Carolina, and
was the son of William Alston, gentleman, of Hammersmith
(a part of London), Middlesex. He came to South Carolina
in 1682 with James Jones, a merchant of Charles Town, as
may be seen on page 123 of a book of miscellaneous records
of the governor of South Carolina, covering the years between
1672 and 1692.
Mr. H. A. M. Smith says that the lower plantations, Mari-
etta, Friendfield, Strawberry Hill, Fraser's Point, or Calais,
and Michaux, were in 1860 all owned by the late William Alger-
non Alston ; and that at one date or another the entire barony,
with the single exception of Alderly, was owned by an Alston.
"Fairnfield" (Friendfield) in 1872, belonging to the late
Joseph Alston, Esq., was advertised as consisting of the fol-
lowing tracts of land, containing rice, pine, marsh and swamp
lands; Marietta, Strawberry Hill, Fairnfield, Marsh Island,
Michaux 's Point, Calais, and Clegg's Point; all lying contigu-
ous to each other, forming a peninsula with the Waccamaw
River on the west, and the Atlantic Ocean or its water on the
east. "A single fence from 2 to 3 miles across the peninsula
will enclose the entire tract."
124
GEORGETOWN AND VICINITY
Cherokee, another AUstoii place, was the plantation of Gov-
ernor R. F. W. Allston, and was inherited from his grand-
father, Benj. Allston. The former was Governor of South
Carolina in 1857 and 1858. The plantation contains nearly 900
acres, and there stands on it a house in perfect order after all
the intervening years from the time of its construction, on a
very beautiful point overlooking the Pee Dee River, the front
piazza commanding a view of " a beautiful bend, the glimmer-
ing waters framed by dark oak branches." Cherokee is two
miles from a white neighbor, and eight from Casa Bianca, the
Poinsette-Pringle place. It was afterwards bought by the
daughter of Governor Allston, who says, "with my horses, my
dogs, my book and piano my life has been a very full one."
She speaks of going to church in "our little pineland village,"
dining in the summer house, and then "driving in" to Hasty
Point, which is named from Marion's hasty escape during the
Revolution from the British officers.
Mention must be made, in writing, of the Allston family, of
that distinguished artist, Washington Allston, one of the great-
est of the pupils of Benjamin West, whose painting, "A Span-
ish Girl," is one of the intagho-gravure pictures illustrating
"Makers of American Art." Several years of his active life
were spent in England, but he was a native American, having
been born in the Waceamaw region of South Carolina in 1779.
His father died when the artist was two years old, and when
he was seven his mother married Dr. Henry C. Flagg, of New-
port, chief of the medical staff of General Greene's army dur-
ing the Revolution.
After graduating at Harvard in 1800 he studied art for a
time in Charles Town with Malbone, the particular friend of
Allston during his entire life, who in after years became known
as Edward G. Malbone, a noted miniature painter. They went
to London together, and Allston entered the Royal Academy,
where he became a pupil of West's. He developed greatly in
poetic and rehgious fields as well as in art, and the most cele-
brated of his paintings are of a religious nature. After spend-
ing many years abroad he returned to America about 1818
and spent the remainder of his life, until 1843, in Boston and
125
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Cambridge. In prominent galleries of both England and
America his paintings are hung.
CASA BIANCA OR WHITE HOUSE
Casa Bianca, the home of the famous Joel Poinsett, stood
on the point of land between the Pee Dee and Black Rivers,
eight miles south of Chicora. This was acquired by Mr. Poin-
sett through marriage with the widow of John Julius Pringle,
formerly a Miss Izard, who spent her summers in Newport and
her winters in Washington. She was a woman of charm and
originaUty, and is said to have introduced in New York the
fashion of wearing smaU, hve snakes as bracelets at the opera.
That the Izard women were always remarkable is shown by
the celebrated witticism passed in Washington on one of them
by a lady who declared, in speaking of the Bee and Izard fam-
ihes that they were "a proud lot from B to Z."
In connection with these aristocratic people, it is of in-
terest that Mary Pringle, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Juhus
Izard Pringle, whose mother was a Miss Lynch, and whose
home was Greenfield, on Black River, several miles southwest
of Chicora Wood, married into nobiUty, her husband being
Count Yvan des Francs. Another family place was Wey-
mouth, on Pee Dee River, six miles south of Chicora, the
residence of Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Izard, the latter having been
a Miss Pinckney.
A complete history of Casa Bianca is found in "A Woman
Rice Planter," by " Patience Pennington." The life of the
South Santee region is given in detail, and she describes in her
own inimitable way the life on the rice plantations ; telling of
the negroes, their loves, hates, works and plays; of teach-
ing the httle children, and of the birds, beasts and flowers of
Casa Bianca, where she spent her short married life. The
tract consisted of 200 acres, which she afterwards bought.
Joel Poinsett was a Charlestonian of national, or even in-
ternational reputation. His home had always been in the city
of Charleston until his retirement from public life. A local
notice in a Charleston paper in 1732 mentions his father in an
account of the celebration of St. George's Day by the "Fort
126
GEORGETOWN AND VICINITY
Jolly Volunteers" at the "House of Trooper Pointsett, their
usual House of Eendezvous." The son's residence was situ-
ated upon what is now Eutledge Avenue, a few squares above
Calhoun Street on the east side. The house was a plain wooden
one with columns in front, having somewhat the exterior ap-
pearance of a small church. It was recessed some distance
from the street, and stood in the midst of a grove of live oaks ;
it was generally known as "Poinsett's Grove," and had prob-
ably been a farm before the city limits extended so far.
Mr. Poinsett had traveled much, and had observed in the
cities of Europe the great usefulness of galleries of paintings
and statues, their improvement and elevation of the tastes
of the people, and with the hope of starting such an institution
in Charleston he obtained land on Broad Street west of Logan,
from the Methodist Church as the site of his proposed "Acad-
emy of Fine Arts." This was done in 1833, and he also got
pictures and statues. If Mr. Poinsett's plan was not per-
manently successful it was at least a great step forward,
and is now realized in the Gibbes Memorial Art Gallery on
Meeting Street.
He married, as has been said, Mrs. John Julius Pringle,
who owned a valuable rice plantation near Georgetown, and
there, for the rest of his days, he passed the mnters, some of
his summers being spent in Greenville, S. C, where they also
owned a farm, and for the fall months they sometimes
went North.
Mr. Poinsett was rewarded for his great interest in science
by having a beautiful flower named for him. It was described
by two botanists, Wildenow and Graham, without its being
known exactly which one had priority. The first called
Euphorbia pulcherrima, and the second Poinsettea pulcher-
rima. It belongs to the family of Euphorbiacse ; is a native of
Mexico, and was discovered there about the year 1828. It is
commonly known, however, as the poinsettia.
The house at Casa Bianca stood on the bank of Black River ;
a picture of the front porch shows a two and a half story house
with a piazza downstairs broken by a wing, and on the right a
set-in gable roof over the steps leading out-of-doors. The pitch
127
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
of the roof on the attic is also broken by a gable end fronting
directly in the middle of the house. Sturdy chimneys give an
air of English rusticity to the whole, which impression is car-
ried out by the secluded look given the house by the surround-
ing trees. Patience Pennington speaks of it herself as a
rambling old house; "even the garret mth its ghostly old oil
portrait of a whole family in a row and a broken bust of another
member." In another place she says: "My predecessor at
Casa Bianca was a woman of immense ability and cleverness.
She spent much time abroad and was a good friend of the
Grand Duke of "Weimar to whom she sent an African as a
present, he having expressed a desire to have one in his suite ;
in spite of war and turmoil, Tom, son of the gardener, was
sent. The Grand Duke was delighted with him and treated him
with great favor. Tom married the daughter of an ' honorable
Councillor' lived happily and died from over exertion made
in his efforts to render help when a fire broke out in
the palace."
The garden at Casa Bianca Avas planted by Mr. Poinsett
somewhere between 1830 and 1835. He brought many rare
plants from Mexico, among others the gorgeous "Flor-de la
Noche Buena" which in this country bears the name Poinsettia
in his honor. There is very little left of the original garden,
only the camelia bushes, the olia fragrans. Magnolia purpuria
and Pyrus Japonica. The cloth of gold, Lamarque, and other
roses grew rampantly, but visitors here have almost destroyed
them, as they have the hedge of azaleas.
NORTH ISLAND AND THE HUGERS
An account of the Huger family has been given in connec-
tion with Limerick plantation on the Cooper River ; a quaint
old entry in the records of the State says :
"PM
August th 12''' This Day Came Daniell Huger of Sante
1697 Planter & record his mark of Cattell & hoggs &c :
followeth, the left yeare Cropt the other w* an
under & upper Keele, his brand mark as (here
the device is drawn) margent. "
128
GEORGETOWN AND VICINITY
Jolinsoia 's ' ' Traditions and Eeminiscences of the American
Revolution" relate a most interesting event which transpired
in 1777 while Major Huger was residing on his plantation near
Georgetown. He was visited by two strangers, neither of
whom could speak English, and having spoken French from his
childhood, Major Huger invited them into his family circle.
They appeared to be men of distinction, and told him that they
had left France to visit America and had been put ashore near
Georgeto"\vn, on North Island, wishing to proceed northwardly.
One of them announced himself as the Marquis de LaFayette,
the other as Baron von Steuben. They were hospitably enter-
tained by Major Huger, introduced to his neighbors and
friends, and then conveyed, in his own equipage, to Charleston,
where they were well taken care of by the Governor and
Council, and provision made for their journey to Philadelphia.
At the time of Provost's invasion, Major Huger and his
family "lived in the enjoyment of ease, health and honor,
in an elegant estabhshment, with all the enjoyments of do-
mestic and social happiness. When he accepted the commis-
sion in the newly raised regiment, he had no earthly motive for
thus devoting himself to the pubhc service, but love of country,
and his sense of duty to defend her dearest rights." He fell
in executing his duty, having been Major of the second regi-
ment of riflemen, in the Provincial service, his commission
dated the 17th day of June, 1775.
This Major Benjamin Huger was the fifth son of Daniel
Huger, a direct descendant of the Huguenot, Daniel Huger.
In the cultivation of rice his father had prospered, and gave
his numerous family all the advantages of education that
America' afforded, sending his sons in succession to Europe
for the tour which was then considered indispensable to a com-
plete education. They all profited by their opportunities,
returning courteous and poHshed gentlemen, who at the com-
mencement of the Revolution united with great cordiality in
support of the American rights. John Huger was elected,
by the Provincial Congress, a member of the council of safety,
associated with Miles Brewton, Thomas Heyward, Arthur
Middleton, and others, Henry Laurens being the President.
129
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
John Huger was afterwards Secretary of State. Isaac Huger
was elected Lieutenant-Colonel of the first regiment; Daniel
Huger was for several years a member of the Continental Con-
gress ; Francis Huger was elected quartermaster-general, and
Benjamin Huger Major of the second regiment.
Major Huger 's widow, a sister of Francis and Cleland
Kinloch, lived to see her children well educated, married and
honored. Her daughter married the Hon. Hugh Rutledge,
chancellor of South Carohna; her oldest son, Benjamin, mar-
ried the widow of Thomas Allston, and was many years a
delegate to Congress from his own district, Georgetown; and
her youngest son, after his daring enterprise to rescue
LaFayette from the prison of Olmutz, was commissioned col-
onel of artillery, married a daughter of General Thomas
Pinckney, and held the commission of adjutant general in
his division of the Southern army in the War of 1812, against
Great Britain.
At North Island, in Georgeto^vn County, is erected a stone
to mark the spot where LaFayette landed when he first came
to this country to offer Ms service to the Continental Army.
This enthusiastic young Frenchman who gave his services to
the United States in their arduous struggle for independence,
is now named in the history of South Carolina.
Farther up Winyah Bay from North Island is a plantation
now owned by Mr. Bernard Baruch, a distinguished financier,
whose father is a noted physician of New York, who originally
came from Camden, S. C. Mr. Baruch 's property is believed
to have been one of the old Huger or Alston places, and indeed
thought to be the place where LaFayette made his first landing
at North Island.
CHAPTER VII
UPPER, LOWER AND MIDDLE ST.
JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
ST. JOHN'S BERKELEY
(HIS parish was incorporated; by the
Church Act of 1706, but previously had
many residents. The French settlers
removed hither from French San tee and
Orange Quarter, and it appears that as
early as 1707 these people banded them-
selves together into a small congrega-
tion and in 1710 built themselves a
church and called a minister.
"It is known from tradition," says Huguenot Transac-
tions No. 7, "that this church was a small wooden building
that stood a httle east of the place now known as Simpson's
Basin on the Santee Canal, about Midway between the present
Biggin and Black Oak churches." The use of the church by
the French was not continued. From Mr. Chastaigner's will
we learn that after discontinuing the use of the church they
held worship at Pooshee, a plantation owned by the Emigrant
Eene Ravenel.
Concerning the plate owned by this church, Dr.
Dalcho says:
' ' The Sacramental Plate, with the exception of the French
ChaHce, Avas, probably, purchased by the Parish. It has the
following inscription on each piece: 8t. John's Parish, South-
Carolina in America.
"A Chalice of Silver, gilt, was presented to the Parish. It
had been used by the Protestants in France before the revoca-
tion of the Edict of Nantz, and was brought to Carolina by
the Rev. Mr. Lessou, formerly Minister of a French congre-
gation in this Province. ' '
When the Parish of St. Stephen's became the resort of the
descendants of the French, chiefly from French Santee, be-
131
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
eause of the freshets on that river, Upper, and Middle St.
John's Berkeley became settled by some of the same people
for the same reason. It is a strange thing to note that there
are three very arbitrary divisions of St. John's, not easy for
an outsider to understand. These divisions are known as
Upper, Middle and Lower St. John's.
No more puzzling occupation can be devised than to cor-
rectly place the different famiUes of the same name in their
correct places. Suffice it to say, that the settlement in Upper
St. John's was called Eutawville, where several houses are
still found, and which wiU be discussed later; Middle St.
John's settlement is called Pinopolis, here is found a Cain
house, Somerset, a fair type of a St. John's plantation home in
the nineteenth century. The roof of the house is slate. In
Lower St. John's were the summer settlements of The Barrows
and Cordesville.
The Cordes were another well-known family connected
with this inland section of South Carolina. About the year
1665 Anthony Cordes, un medecin, arrived in the colony and
resided on the French Santee, afterwards St. John's Berkeley,
where he died in 1712. He came with the French emigrants,
and is supposed to have accompanied them as their physician.
His home was Cordesville. There was another Cordes place
called Upton, but the homestead of this family was Yaughan,
the residence of an ardent patriot who contrived during the
Eevolution to vastly annoy the British. Curriboo was the
home of Thomas C. Cordes, who married Rebecca Jamieson.
One of their daughters married Jonathan Lucas, Jr., and went
to live in England. Milf ord, north of Blufort, was formerly
the residence of Isaac DuBose, who sold it to Samuel Cordes ;
the latter also owned The Lane plantation.
What is said concerning the type of house in St. Stephen's
Parish applies also to the houses in the three St. John's. Per-
haps, however, the furnishings of the houses in St. John's were
a little more elaborate than those in St. Stephen's, and in order
to give a general idea of what was found in the old-time houses
a few distinctive items will be mentioned.
132
"SOMERSET," THE CAIN HOUSE, FINOPOLIS
ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
For illumination candles and lamps were used, the former
being made on the plantations from the wax of the bay or
myrtleberry plants. The lamps had bases of pressed glass,
and bowls of cut glass. The wick attached to a double jet
shows that a very volatile oil was used, probably spirit oil or
alcohol. They were originally used with whale oil, and in
many places the people burnt hog-lard. The crystal candle-
sticks of the period were made with marble bases, the sticks
being of bronze, and glistening crystal pendants surrounded
each individual candle-holder. On the hall table of every old
estabUshment were kept the brightly polished brass candle-
sticks for the guests to take upstairs upon retiring.
The rooms in olden days, in these historic dwellings, were
bright and cheerful and colorful. The artistically woven
"carpets" were coverings for tables and bureaus, as well as
for the floors. In summer the floor coverings were painted
rugs, somewhat resembling our modern linoleum, and some
were highly decorative. The owners took great pride in these.
The comer cupboards which came into fashion about 1710 were
considered as much a part of the house as the windows or the
mantels. Many of the old houses with commonplace ex-
teriors contained handsome marble mantelpieces, and rare
old pieces of EngHsh and French furniture.
Persons familiar with the history of furniture in America
would find in these old houses a perfect wealth of such belong-
ings. There were sofas and settees, sometimes with cane
seats ; chairs decorated in French imitation of Chinese flower
sprays ; figures on fans from France ; "what-nots" holding in-
teresting bits collected by travelers ; and many convex mirrors,
with candlesticks attached. Among the most interesting things
about these old houses are the enormous locks and large keys
which were part of the defence.
Such furnishings were made possible by the wealth of the
inhabitants, one of whom was Peter, an ancestor of the present
Sinkler family. He died in Charleston, a prisoner of the Brit-
ish. Before he was carried from his plantation near Eutaw-
ville he witnessed the destruction of the following property;
"twenty thousand pounds of indigo, one hundred and thirty
133
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
head of cattle, one hundred and fifty-four head of sheep, two
hundred head of hogs, three thousand bushels of grain, twenty
thousand rails, and household furniture valued at £2500"; in
addition to which the British carried off 55 negroes, 16 blood
horses and 28 mares and colts.
Referring to personal belongings, the writer's mother,
Susan DeSaussure, remembers when the ladies of this neigh-
borhood wore the old-fashioned Caleche, or "ugly," silk
shirred, and worn around the front of poke bonnets to protect
the face from the sun. They were fashioned in the Fifties, and
somewhat resembled little buggy tops. Each different costume
had a corresponding caleche. The ladies of that day carefully
cherished their complexions.
Besides the Sinklers, the Mazycks, Porchers, Palmers,
Eavenels, Cordes, Marions, Dwights, Gailliards and Gourdins
were foimd as original Huguenot settlers of St. John's. It is
almost impossible to untangle these families, and anyone who
is interested may read "Olden Times of Carolina," "Ram-
sey's Sketch of St. Stephen's Parish," Mr. Isaac Porcher's
article on this section, or Samuel DuBose's "Reminiscences
of St. Stephen's Parish." For instance, Mr. Mazyck Porcher,
Carolina's Bourbon, lived at Mexico plantation, his grand-
father, Peter Porcher, owned plantations called Peru, Ophir
and Mexico. He lived at Peru and would often leave Ms home
in the morning, ride to Ophir, a distance of 15 miles, thence to
Mexico 12 miles, and back to Peru 10 miles, all in the same day.
All of these men were fond of manly sports and in the Revolu-
tion Marion and Moultrie depended on them. In the struggle
for American independence these men made fine cavalrymen.
A few of the plantations upon which houses are still standing
will be briefly discussed.
Old Field plantation was owned by Philip Porcher, who
died in 1800. He paid taxes on over one-half million dollars
worth of property, and had 464 slaves ; among other real estate
was a house in Archdale Street in Charleston, then a fashion-
able thoroughfare. Another Porcher residence was Indian-
field, at which the semi-annual meeting of the St. John's Hunt-
134
ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
ing Club is sometimes held even now. Massive moss-draped
trees and beautiful lawns mark this romantic spot.
Dr. Isaac Porcher, the Huguenot emigrant, came to this
country from the Province of Sainte Severe, France. He is
described (Burke's Peerage) as being Isaac Porcher de Richel-
bourg, doctor of medicine of the University of Paris, who
married a Cherigny, of the Province of Touraine. Burke's
account is incorrect, as has been proved by Mrs. Julia Porcher
Wickham, a hneal descendant of Isaac Porcher. Mrs. Wick-
ham made a pilgrimage to France to estabhsh certain facts
in connection with the Porcher family. Dr. Eobert Wilson,
President of the Huguenot Society in 1910, has also written
much concerning Isaac Porcher. He states his ability to give
with positiveness the origin of Dr. Porcher, from an old manu-
script found years ago at Ophir plantation in St. John's
Berkeley, which runs as follows :
"Isaac Porcher, ne a St'e-Severe en Beny, fils de Isaac
Porcher et de Susanne Ferre. Isaac, Pierre, Ehzabeth, Made-
leine, et Claude, leurs enf ants. ' '
The emigrant's bible, which is still owned by his descend-
ants of the pure Huguenot blood in St. John's, at Indianfield,
contains on the flyleaf the notice of his wife's death written
and signed by the emigrant himself; the date of this bible
being 1707.
The refugee and his wife hved for some time in London,
as records of the baptism of two of his children there prove,
but he soon emigrated, and we find from an old document that
he was in Charleston in the year 1687. He settled on land not
far from Goose Creek where, in the old Huguenot cemetery
there, his body is supposed to have been laid.
Further enumeration of the history of the family in France
would reveal much of the internal history of that country, as
the French branch of the Porchers was concerned with all the
great affairs of that time. The history of Abbe Porcher de
Lissaunay is closely connected with the Chateau of Cote Per-
drix, near Sainte-Severe, the only Porcher home in the old
world of which we have any description. Mrs. Wickham wrote
155
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
an account of this place which has been published in the
"Transactions of the Huguenot Society."
The last historic owner of "Peru" was Peter Porcher,
whose fourth child, Major Samuel Porcher, had his plantation
at Mexico, and married Harriot, daughter of Phihp Porcher.
At the time of the Civil War Mexico was owned by Mazyck
Porcher, whom Mr. Yates Snowden has immortalized as "The
CaroUna Bourbon" in his poem of that name. A Missionai-y
Tour to Upper St. John's and St. Stephen's says:
"We drove towards Mexico, an old family place now the
residence of Mr. M. P. The ground about the house is much
more broken than usual, its slopes being studded with fine
trees, oaks and cedars ; while the Santee Canal with its hedges
and locks gives variety to the scene."
During the days of the stage-coach Hugh Legare often
visited at the home of Philip Porcher, who had been liis great
chum at college. The house, which still stands, was built in
1812 by slave labor, and is of black cypress, the timber having
been cut on the place. Its roof is of air-dried cypress or long-
leaf pine shingles. It is called a double-story house, and
stands on a nine-foot brick foundation the pillars of which are
about six by three feet. The bricks were had from a brick kiln
on the plantation; the hole where the clay was dug can still
be seen on the edge of the woods. The interior decorations
were done by a slave called Black Washington.
A most amusing story is told concerning an occurrence
taking place at one of these houses during the courtship of
Catherine Porcher (sister of Charles and daughter of Philip)
by a Mr. Huger. He came a courting the lady, but evidently
his manner of addressing her did not indicate that he would
go mateless to the grave if she refused him, intimating that
he would seek elsewhere. Thereupon she furled her fan and
bid him begone to seek the other maid — a very proper display
of spirit upon her part.
While in Charleston the Porchers occupied the house on
Pitt Street now owned by Mr. Wm. Cogswell, which is nearly
opposite to Bethel Methodist Church.
136
ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
On the road between Mexico and Pineville, a distance of five
or six miles, lies Belle Isle plantation, where are deposited the
remains of General Marion. The tomb is in a neat enclosure
which formed a family burying ground ; it is a plain marble
slab, shghtly elevated upon a brick foundation, and bears a
simple and most appropriate inscription. The house at Belle
Isle is still standing, but is not in very good repair, nor is it
inhabited. To Shirley Carter Hughson, now Superior of the
Order of the Holy Cross, belongs the credit of properly mark-
ing Marion's grave.
Among the most honored and beloved names connected with
the history of St. John's is that of the Dwight family. Sam-
uel Dwight, the son of the Rev. Daniel Dwight and his wife,
who was Christiana Broughton, married Eebecca Marion.
He was generous enough to allow his son Francis to change his
name to that of Marion, as General Francis Marion had no
children and the name would otherwise have been lost
to posterity.
Robert Marion, Esq., son of Gabriel Marion, resided at
Belle Isle, and a part of this plantation was Burnt Savannah,
where General Marion had his residence. Belle Isle also em-
braced the homes of Peter Couturier and Dr. James Lynah.
The Palmers were also connected mth this old parish.
Webdo was the residence of Joseph Palmer. He had one
daughter, who married Peter Sinkler. Johnsrun plantation,
the first settler of which is unknown, but which was once owned
by a Wilhams, was purchased after 1793 by Capt. John
Palmer, and in 1858 was the residence of S. Warren Pahner.
Pollbridge, three miles to the south of Clay Bank, was settled
by Peter Palmer after 1790. Gravel Hill was the home of
John Palmer, Gentleman, whose successful enterprise in the
collection of naval stores earned for him the name of "Tur-
pentine John." It was his son John who lived at Richmond,
and Peter who lived at Pollbridge. Ballsdam plantation, near
the old Santee settlement of St. James, was the property of
Dr. John Saunders Pahner.
Charlotte Rebecca, fourth daughter of John Palmer and
Catherine Marion Palmer, of Cherry Grove plantation, St.
137
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
John 's Berkeley, married Ellison Capers, who had a brilliant
war record, and afterwards, in 1893, was unanimously elected
Bishop of the Diocese of South Carolina.
"The Fair Forest Swamp is one of the principal features
of the western branch of the Cooper River, into which it flows
through Watboo Creek. It rises in the bays, within a few
miles of Santee Swamp," and there it is, that a close connec-
tion between St. James, St. Stephens, Eutawville, and the
headwaters of the western branch of the Cooper River
is formed.
BUTAW SPRINGS AND VICINITY
The road to the "Congarees," on the old map called the
"Charichy" path, ran directly to Nelson's ferry, over which
the trade to the interior northwest passed. During the war
of the Revolution it was the highway for the passage of the
armed forces of both sides, and it was at Eutaw Springs, near
this road, that the battle of Eutaw Springs was fought in 1781,
which practically ended all British occupation of South Caro-
lina outside of the City of Charleston and its environs, even
though tactically General Greene and the American Army were
repulsed. General Greene, in his letters to the Secretary of
War, says :
"We have 300 men without arms, and more than 1000 so
naked that they can be put on duty only in cases of a desperate
nature. . . . Our difficulties are so numerous, and our wants
so pressing, that I have not a moment 's relief from the most
painful anxieties. I have more embarrassments than it is
proper to disclose to the world. Let it suffice to say that this
part of the United States has had a narrow escape. 'I have
been seven months in the field without taking off my
clothes.' ...
". . . . The brave men who carried death into the
enemy's ranks at the Eutaw, were galled by their cartridge
boxes, while a folded rag or a tuft of moss protected the
shoulders from sustaining the same injury from the muskets.
Men of other times will inquire, by what magic was the army
kept together? By what supernatural power was it made
to fight?"
138
ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
A monument to these brave men has been placed on the
Battlefield of Eutaw Springs, which was on the Sinkler tract
about a mile and a half from the house.
It is hard to make a distinction between Eutaw place and
its sister plantation, BeMdere, to which it lies adjacent. Mrs.
Harriette P. Gourdin, of Eutawville, a lady well over 80 years
of age and a life-long resident of that section, writes in 1920,
that "Henry Sinkler 's home is on Eutaw plantation, and the
house is built near the bank of a portion of Eutaw Creek which
divides the place from Belvidere, another Sinkler homestead.
Over this creek stands a narrow foot-bridge for the use of the
two places. The house at Eutaw place was built by Henry's
great-grandfather. ' '
In Lossing's Field Book of the Revolution we find the fol-
lowing entry speaking of the action around Eutawville in 1781 :
"While the British fell back a little, Greene quickly pre-
pared for battle, and pressing for^vard the action commenced
with spirit in the road and fields, very near to the present en-
trance gates to the seat of residence of Mr. Sinkler. . . ."
Of this place Lossing again speaks in describing his trip to
the Southern battlefield :
"At 8 o'clock (Jan. 26, 1849) I arrived at the elegant man-
sion of WilHam Sinkler, Esq., upon whose plantation are the
celebrated Eutaw Springs. It stands in the midst of noble
shade trees one-half mile from the highway. These springs
are in Charleston district near Orangeburg line, about 60 miles
north of Charleston."
The largest spring is at the foot of a hill 20 or 30 feet in
height, from which it emerges after traversing a subterranean
passage under the hill for 30 rods, and reappears on the other
side. There is a tradition that an Indian made the successful
attempt to follow the spring through the hill. The Santee
River is reached about two miles below.
Eamsay says, relating to the battle of Eutaw Springs, that :
"the British were vigorously pursued, and upward of 500 of
them were taken prisoners. On their retreat they took post in
a strong brick house, and in a picquetted garden. ' '
139
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Mr. DuBose Seabrook, who is now living, tells of walking
near the springs with his mother and being told by her that a
pile of bricks adjacent to the spring which they found there
were the remains of this house.
Charles Sinkler resided at Belvidere plantation in Upper
St. John 's Berkeley. His home life eminently represented that
splendid type of Southern manhood — the flower of the patri-
archal slave-holding civilization — which is but a memory to a
few, and a tradition to the people at large. Mr. Sinkler was
the grandson of Capt. James Sinkler, of the Revolutionary
War, whose brother Peter Sinkler, of Marion's Brigade, died
of typhus fever in the cellar of the Charleston Postofifice, a
prisoner in the hands of the British. Charles Sinkler was
bom on Eutaw plantation, which partly covers the sight of the
battlefield, and he inherited from his ancestors that intense
love for the State which was the preeminent characteristic of
the South CaroUnian of the old regime. In March, 1836, he
entered the United States Navy as a midshipman, was pro-
moted, and soon after married Miss Emily, daughter of Judge
Thomas Wharton, an eminent jurist of Philadelphia. While
serving as sailing master of the United States brig Perry,
which had just returned from the seige of Vera Cruz, he was
wrecked on Sombrero Reef, about thirty miles from Key West,
Florida, on a voyage from Havana to Charleston, and a
graphic description has been written by a brother officer, Lieut,
(later Rev.) R. S. Trapier, of the cyclone through which they
barely escaped with their lives.
In February, 1847, Mr. Sinkler resigned and came with
his wife, a lovely young girl, to his estates in South Carolina.
Here he lived the Ufe of the ideal Southern planter, and for-
tunately for him and for the many beneficiaries of his bounty,
the war and its more direful results made no essential change
in him or his belongings. Belvidere, his beautiful home, was
the scene of the graceful and bountiful hospitality which had
characterized the homes of his friends in better days. At his
death it passed to his son, Charles St. George Sinkler, and his
wife, Anne W. Porcher. Dr. Wharton Sinkler, of Philadelphia,
who married a Miss Brock, of that city, was a brother of Mr.
140
ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
Charles Sinkler, and his sisters were CaroUne Sinkler and
Mrs. Charles Brown Coxe, of Philadelphia, and Mrs. Charles
Stevens, of Charleston.
Mr. Sinkler and his wife, Anne Wickham Porcher, have
three daughters, all of whom have married and moved away,
but the ancestral home is still the residence of Mr. Sinkler.
His daughters are Mrs. Dr. Kershaw Fishburne, of PinopoHs,
Mrs. Nicholas Eoosevelt, of Philadelphia, and Mrs. Dunbar
Lockwood, of Boston, Mass. Pictures are given of both of
the Sinkler houses, much alike in construction and detail.
HANOVER HOUSE
A primitive wooden house of a type still to be seen in rural
districts of South Carolina is pictured and described in "Rav-
enel Records" (intended for private distribution), issued in
1898 by Henry E. Ravenel, of Spartansburg, S. C, "Attorney
at law ; Master of Arts ; Alumnus of the College of Charleston ;
one of the authors of 'Ravenel and McHugh's Digest,' etc.," so
we may rely upon his work being good. The photograph and
cut are both very defective, says Mr. Ravenel, but the house is
very interesting in appearance and stands in a characteristic
clearing of pine and oak trees, draped with moss. It is still
in use after two hundred and five years.
Hanover House was completed about 1716 by Paul de St.
JuHen. As it is "roomy though small," one is not surprised
at the fact that difficulty was found in supplying the brick for
it when the extravagant manner of their use is seen. "The
basement walls and cross walls are thick enough to hold a
small Eiffel tower, ' ' and the basement itself is large enough to
be used as a kitchen and pantry.
The chimneys to this house are most curiously constructed,
being really two chimneys at each end of the building, one
constructed outside of the other from the ground to the top.
' ' The inside section must be about eight feet wide ; the overlap-
ping flue somewhat narrower." The legend "Pen a Peu"
on the north chimney near the top remains perfectly distinct.
It is deeply cut in the cement, and shows its excellent quality.
There is, however, no date given.
141
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Hanover was settled by Peter de St. Julien, third son of
the Huguenot emigrant, Paul, who died there in 1741. He
married Mary Amy Ravenel, youngest child of Rene Ravenel,
the emigrant. Curiously enough there are still Eavenels liv-
ing near Charleston possessing the characteristic looks, color-
ing, bearing, manners and achievements of their French
forbears, and among them is found a Rene.
It is said that at Hanover "Peter de St. Julien designed to
build a half story brick house, ' ' on the plan of the North Hamp-
ton House, so the builder made a kiln of brick to start with.
When the foundation was completed to its present state, Peter
discovered that he would not have bricks enough to carry out
his designs of a brick house, but thought he would have enough
for chimneys. In this he was again disappointed, owing to the
curious construction of the chimney wthin the chimney, and
the building ended by being made of wood, on a brick base-
ment, three kilns having to be made to supply the bricks for
even this much, so that "Peu a Peu," or "Little by Little"
(said to have been put there in 1716) is literally true.
Hanover descended by inheritance to Mary St. Julien, the
eldest daughter of Paul, who married Henry Ravenel, son of
Rene Louis. A small book bound in calf is said to be the diary
of this latter, and is in the possession of Mr. Thomas P. Rav-
enel. The following entry is taken from this old record :
"Henry Ravenel marryed to Mary De St. Julien the 13 of
September, 1750. We came to live at home, called Hanover,
the 13 of April, 1751, and went back to Pooshee the 9th of June,
and my wife was dehvered of a son on the 26th of said June.
Then we came back home again the second time the 1st of
October 1751."
The diary continues until about 1785, in which year Henry
Ravenel died and was buried at Hanover, at the age of fifty-five
years. The orchard became the family burying ground, and
we find from the records that only six out of the sixteen chil-
dren of Mary St. Juhen and Henry Ravenel lived to maturity.
Many of the children who died were buried at Hanover in
the "orchard."
142
ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
Another Henry Ravenel died at Hanover in 1823, aged
seventy-two years and eight months. His age would indicate
that he was born in 1751 and was probably the first son of
Mary De St. Julien and Henry Eavenel, spoken of in the diary
as having been born on the 26th of June, 1751. He too was
buried in the family burying ground at Hanover.
In Ravenel Records it is stated that Stephen Ravenel, of
Hanover (son of Henry and Mary), was married December 11,
1800, to Catherine Mazyck, daughter of William and Mary
Mazyck, at the residence of Mr. Mazyck in Archdale Street.
This residence still stands, as fine a house as one would wish
to see. Stephen Ravenel was Secretary of State, but did not
long continue in public office. Although he Uved in Charleston,
he spent much of his time hunting at the plantation, being
devoted to the sport, and is said to have killed many deer.
Later he hved at Hanover, Avhere he and his wife are both
buried, and as they had no children, the plantation was left
to Stephen's brother, Daniel, better known in local circles as
"Uncle Daniel."
"Uncle Daniel" was for many years Secretary of the
famous "St. John's Hunting Club," whose Club House stood
nearly opposite the Black Oak Church on the north side of the
road. This Club House was built in 1800 by "Coll Senf,
Engineer and Superintendent of the Santee Canal which runs
through Wantoot plantation," and was pulled down by the
negroes very soon after the first raid of the Yankee Army.
Rene Ravenel 's Book says : "The original rules of the St.
Stephen's Club are fair specimens of the rules of such societies
of that day (1825) and section." These rules gave the name
of the organization, time and place of meetings, and
other regulations. Rule 3 specified that "Each member shall
find a dinner in the order in which he shall become a member,"
and Rule 4 stated that "dinner shall be on table at half -past
one o'clock." Rule 7 said, "The member finding the dinner
shall be President of the day." It is to be noted that no sale,
negro trial or card-playing was permitted at the club house
on club days.
143
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Dinner was the great event and as they used spits in those
days, roasted meat meant that the meat was really roasted.
The list of edibles suitable for club dinners specified :
"Eoasted Turkey, Two Ducks, Two fowls or a dish equiva-
lent to two fowls, one half of a shoat or sheep dressed accord-
ing to the option of the finder, one ham or piece of salted beef,
one peck of Eice, Two loaves of Bread, Mustard, Pepper, Salt,
Vinegar, Eight bottles of Madeira Wine, Two bottles of
Brandy, one of Gin, one of Whiskey, Twenty -five Spanish and
Twenty-five American Segars (Cigars), Two dozen each of
Plates, Tumblers, Wine Glasses, Knives and forks. ' '
These club meetings were a prominent feature of the social
life of the planters, and some lively anecdotes are told in con-
nection with them. It is said that on one occasion a horse was
ridden upstairs to the second story of a house, and difficulty
was experienced in getting him down again. But passing by
the excesses of those days, the clubs were undoubtedly effec-
tive in keeping afive the fraternal feeling, and contributed to
the public spirit of the district.
Daniel James Ravenel ("Uncle") died at Hanover in 1836,
leaving Brunswick and about sixty negroes to his nephew,
Benj. Pierce Eavenel (son of Paul de St. Julien Eavenel and
his second wife, Abigail Pierce, of Newport, E. I.). He left
Hanover and about seventy negroes to his grandnephew,
Henry LeNoble Stevens, a son of Charles Stevens and Susan
Mazyck Eavenel (daughter of Eene, the son of Henry of Han-
over). During the Civil War Henry was aide to Col. P. T.
Stevens (late Bishop of the Eeformed Episcopal Church) and
was shot at the second battle of Manassas, August 30th, 1862,
dying seven days later in a field hospital at Warrenton, Va.
His body was subsequently brought on and interred at Black
Oak churchyard. This Henry Le Noble Stevens had married
Henrietta S. Gailliard in 1849 and their children are still large
landholders in that section.
The Eavenels have built and occupied many beautiful and
historic places both in country and town, and the history of
Hanover has been given in full, because it is closely connected
with the history of "St. John's," divided so quaintly by the in-
habitants thereof into Upper, Lower and Middle St. John's.
144
ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
These romantic houses of the past can never be created.
To own one of them is to be not only the possessor of an his-
torical house, but also of something entirely unique. In having
a home of historical associations one is endowed not only with
a thing of beauty, but mth a possession which has a precious
quality of its own wrapped up with its glorious history.
Architecturally speaking, these old houses display sym-
metry and real dignity; albeit it they are very simply con-
structed, they have a look of intrinsic power and strength
which has come to them with the passing of the years. Mellow-
ness is not to be bought with money. It is the gift of age.
WANTOOT
Among the numerous Ravenel properties was a plantation,
Wantoot, once the home of Daniel Ravenel, who married
Catherine Prioleau. Their son, Daniel Ravenel (1789-1873),
was of Huguenot hneage not only through the Prioleaus, but
through the emigrant, Rene Ravenel, of Bretagne.
Many of the Ravenels have been men of scientific achieve-
ment, including Dr. Henry Ravenel, to whom botany was sub-
ordinate to nothing. It was the constant all-absorbing passion
of his life, the more so that serious deafness shut him off from
the academic professions which would otherwise have appro-
priated him. A biographical sketch and somewhat incomplete
bibliography of Dr. Ravenel in Professor Wilson Gee's
"South Carolina Botanists," seem to be all the accessible
pubhshed information in regard to him. The Charleston
Museum is endeavoring to get together an interesting collec-
tion of letters written by him, which it purposes to publish
from time to time as a contribution towards an ultimate
biography. The most important are the generous gifts of the
Misses Gibbes, daughters of Lewis R. Gibbes.
The Ravenel mycological herbarium, now owned by the
Museum, was collected before 1853 during Dr. Ravenel 's resi-
dence at Pooshee and Northampton plantations near the
Santee Canal. From similarity of labeling, the specimens
given by Miss Heyward, of Wappaoolah (or Wappahoola),
seem to belong to the same period, or the Georgia ones possibly
10 1*5
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
after removal to Aiken, S. C. Dr. Eavenel's later, larger, and
more valuable collection of fungi was sold to the British
Museum. Correspondence shoAvs his desire to have it depos-
ited in the Charleston Museum, but circumstances prevented.
The Ravenel herbarium of flowering plants from the Santee
Canal region was rescued and remounted, and with the Stephen
Elliott herbarium forms the classic basis for botanical work in
this vicinity.
On July 5th, 1920, the St. John's Hunting Club, organized
over a century ago, held one of its semi-annual meetings at
Wampee plantation, with Mr. Thomas P. Ravenel, of Savan-
nah, Georgia, in the chair. The semi-annual dinners of the
club are events at which it is a privilege to be present; the
delicious dishes, hvely and entertaining table talk, and the de-
lightful trysts beneath the ancestral oaks are golden Unks in
the chain of hfe's enjoyments.
In the South we find a very distinctive style of house ; high
pitched, with dormer windows set in the roof. The chimneys
are built at the gable ends of the house, but constructed entirely
on the exterior of the building, and greatly resemble English
chimneys in the way they widen at the bottom. Quaint little
entrance porches are often found in these houses, and the
materials used vary from native wood to imported brick. The
gambrel roof is seldom if ever met with in this section.
Many old wooden houses are found in South Carolina up
along the eastern branch of the Cooper River and into St.
John's and St. Stephen's Parish, which all conform to the same
simple lines of architecture found suitable for our southern
type of life, and while the possibilities for decoration are never
great these houses are entirely delightful, plain buildings.
Generally they are of two and a half stories set on basements,
and having wide piazzas for use during the long, hot summers.
The halls are broad, with wide, low windows, lofty ceilings,
and painted and paneled walls. Having once given a descrip-
tion of one, you have virtually described all of this particular
type of Carolina colonial, which in its way is equally as per-
fect as any Colonial design of other sections.
146
ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
Some one has used the happy expression "The Casual
Artistry" of the past, and this apphes with peculiar force to
the old wooden buildings in St. Stephen's and St. John's,
where time has mellowed their old walls, and the years have
thrown an air of mystery and enchantment over these dear,
plain old places, bestowing on them that gift of age and mellow-
ness ever present in these quaint, old-fashioned homes, with
their adzed beams, their regular and irregular windows, and
their "off-center" chimneys.
But the houses are far from being frowsy or slatternly.
They are fine and natural and dignified, so well expressing, in
their old age, the builders ' instinct for what was appropriate
and fitting.
Mills' Statistics tell us that the upper and lower parts of
St. Stephen's Parish were originally distinguished by the
names of French and English Santee. The latter (what is now
St. Stephen's) was situated about fifty miles to the northwest
of Charleston; it was bounded on the northeast by the Santee
River, on the southwest by St. John 's Parish, and on the south-
east by St. James Santee, thus St. Stephen's originally was a
part of St. James Santee, and was divided from it about the
year 1740.
The village of Pineville is in this parish. It began to be
settled in 1794 as a retreat for health in summer and autumn
by the families of the planters who lived on nearby planta-
tions bordering on the rivers. In the beginning of 1784 St.
Stephen's was one of the most thriving parishes in the State,
and in proportion to its size one of the richest. It was provided
with an educational institution called Pineville Academy.
Robert Marion, representative of Charleston district in the
U. S. Congress, and Theodore Gailliard, formerly speaker of
the House of Representatives of South Carohna and in 1826
one of the judges of the circuit court of law, both belong to
this parish. But John Gailliard was perhaps the best known
public man. Mr. Lawson speaks of Mons Galliare's (Gail-
liard) the Elder:
"who lives in a very curious contrived house, built of brick and
stone which is gotten near the place. Near here, comes in the
147
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Eoad from Charleston and the rest of the Enghsh settlements,
it being a very good way by land, and not above 36 miles, al-
though more than 100 by water. . . . "
On a piece of high land about a mile from Pineville there
is a quarry of hard, brown stone, which is very heavy and has
the appearance of iron ore. Some of this stone was used by
Col. Senf, the engineer who constructed the Santee Canal.
They were great on canals in these days. There was one
projected from the Edisto to Ashley River, and one constructed
from the Santee to the headwaters of the western branch of
the Cooper River.
At the expiration of the first term of President Monroe and
Vice-President Tompkins in 1821 John Gailliard of South
Carohna was president pro-tempore of the sixteenth Congress
and was duly quahfied to have been acting President of the
United States from noon on March 4th (the expiration of
President Monroe's first term) until 1 o'clock the next day
when Mr. Monroe commenced his second term. Gailliard 's
term did not expire with the end of the sixteenth Congress, and
at that time the office of President pro-tempore was not con-
strued as extending within "the pleasure of the Senate." The
records of Congress show that Gailliard 's formal reelection
as President pro-tempore did not take place until February 20,
1822, thus giving proof of his legal ability to serve as Presi-
dent for a day.
Thomas H. Benton, distinguished Senator from Missouri,
says of John Gailliard, in a book pubhshed in 1856, that this
gentleman from St. Stephen's Parish in South Carolina (born
in 1769) had from the year 1804 been continually elected to the
Senate, the first time for an unexpired term, followed by four-
teen reelections, in the course of the last of which he died.
The years for which he had been elected numbered nearly
thirty; and during this period of service he was elected Presi-
dent (pro-tempore) of the Senate nine times, and presided for
fourteen years over the deliberations of that body, the death
of two Vice-Presidents, and frequent absence of a third making
long, continued vacancies of the presidential chair which Gail-
liard was called upon to fill.
148
ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
He is described as being "urbane in manner, amiable in
temper, and scrupulously impartial ; delicate in manner when
setting young senators right, facilitating transaction of busi-
ness while preserving decorum of that body. There was not
an instance of disorder or a disagreeable scene in the chamber
during his long-continued presidency. He classed democrati-
cally in politics, but was as much a favorite of one side of the
house as the other, and that in the high party times of the war
with Great Britain, which so much exasperated party spirit."
Mr. Theodore G. Fitzsimons has in his possession at Wil-
town a rapier worn with full dress by Mr. Gailliard; it was
given by John Gailliard to his nephew, Samuel Gailliard Bar-
ker, who in turn gave it to his nephew, the present owner. The
name of John Gailliard 's plantation was Hayden Hill, on which
the dwelling has been burnt. This plantation comprised sev-
eral tracts, one of which was conveyed by the King to Thomas
Farr. A list of all the Gailliard places, and there were many
of them, includes Brush Pond, still used ; the Wilson tract ; the
St. Julien tract; Newman and Godfrey tracts; the Rhett or
Thompson tract, and the Oaks, near Eutaw Springs. Wind-
sor was another Gailliard place, having been the residence of
John Gailliard 's father.
Perhaps the best known house in this family was that which
belonged to Peter Gailliard, which goes by the name of "The
Eocks. ' ' The register of St. James Santee carries this entry,
probably in reference to the owner of the first plantation, and
to The Eocks :
"David Gailliard of the Parish of St. Stephens, Bachelor,
and Joanna Dubose of the Parish of St. Stephens, Spinster,
were married at the plantation of Theodore Gailliard Sen' of
this Parish, by License, this Twenty-Third Day of September
in the Year of our Lord 1773.
This marriage was
Solemnized between us
In the Presence of
David Gailliard
Joanna Dubose
James Eivers
Isaac Dubose."
149
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
The timber for The Rocks was selected during a freshet by
Mr. Peter Gailliard, who took a canoe and went as far as
Santee River, marking which trees he wanted ; these were cut
by slaves after the freshet, and the cypress allowed to season.
The house was put up by his own carpenters, near Eutawville.
It is likely that bricks for the foundation and chimneys, each
of which give warmth to four rooms, being placed opposite the
doors, were made on his own plantation. In some of the houses
in this vicinity there was a queer little closet-like room at the
rear, entered from the back steps. At The Rocks it was used
as a store-room for cut glass and such things, and at Walnut
Grove was used and furnished as a library.
Ruins of the Chateau Gailliard are in Normandy, placed on
the summit of a projecting cliff, the castle rises up grandly,
commanding a view of the River Seine for miles. According to
tradition it was once the home of Richard Coeur-de-Lion, who
is supposed to have been his own architect, and the skill shown
in the construction of this fortress is considered masterly.
The central donjon tower is of immense strength. It is the
most perfect remaining part of the castle ; the walls are from
fourteen to fifteen feet thick. It may be that in some occult
manner this spirit of engineering passed to Gailliard, the
engineer who worked so faithfully for the benefit of America in
making Culebra Cut in the Panama Canal, but whose name has
been withdrawn and that of Culebra substituted.
There are several other houses in the vicinity of The Rocks,
not yet mentioned, which are still standing, and which all con-
form to the same general plan of construction. Among them
are Walworth, Belmont, Walnut Grove, and Springfield.
One of the Gailliards who served in the Revolutionary War
had under his command a man by the name of Francis Salva-
dor, who resided at Ninety-Six, and whose remains are interred
in the old DeCosta burying ground in Hanover Street, Charles-
ton. Mr. Salvador was a young Englishman who had come
to Carolina about 1773; the Mesne Conveyance records show
that he bought lands in this Province in 1774. His home was
at Corn-acre Creek twenty-eight miles from Major Andrew
Williamson 's home. He was a member of the Provincial Con-
150
ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
gresses of 1775-1776, being one of the few Up Country repre-
sentatives who had taken an active part in its proceedings. It
was Francis Salvador who first brought word of the Indian
uprisings at the time of the Revolution to Major Williamson.
He was shot down by Williamson's side while attacking the
savages, who unfortunately discovered him immediately and
scalped him alive before he could be found by his friends in
the dark.
To return to St. Stephen's and the settlement at Pine-
ville, Mr. F. A. Porcher gives the following delightful account
of a Pineville ball.
"Nothing can be imagined more simple or more fascinat-
ing than those Pineville balls. No love of display, no vain
attempt to outshine a competitor in the world of fashion, gov-
erned the preparations. Refreshments of the simplest char-
acter were provided ; such only as the unusual exercise would
fairly warrant, nothing to tempt a pampered appetite. Cards
were furnished to keep the old men quiet, and the music was
such only as the gentlemen's servants could give.
"The company assembled early — no one ever thought of
waiting until bedtime to go to the ball — and the dancing al-
ways began with a country-dance. The lady who stood at the
head of the column called for the figures, and the old airs of
Ca ira, Money-Musk, Haste to Wedding, and La Belle
Catherine were popular and familiar in Pineville, even long
after they had been forgotten in the city. . . .
"The evening's entertainment was always concluded with
the Boulanger, a dance whose quiet movement came in appro-
priately to cool off the revellers before exposure to the chilly
air. It was a matter of no small importance to secure a proper
partner for this dance, for, by old custom, whoever danced last
with a lady had the prescriptive right to see her home. No car-
riages ever rolled in the village streets after night ; a servant
with a lantern marshalled the way, and the lady, escorted by
her last partner, was conducted to her home. And as the
season drew towards a close, how interesting became those
walks ! how many words of love were spoken ! ' '
ST. STEPHEN'S
Concerning St. Stephen's Parish, formerly known as
Craven County, Dalcho's Church History gives the follow-
ing information :
151
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
"This Parish was taken from St. James, Santee, and was
usually called English Santee. It was established by Act of
the Assembly May 11, 1754. The Chapel of Ease of St. James'
Church fell within the limits of the new Parish, and was de-
clared to be the Parish Church by St. Stephen's.
"The Rev* Alex" Keith, A. M., Assistant Minister of St.
Philip 's, Charleston, was the first Eector of this Parish. The
Church had been the Chapel of Ease to St. James', was old and
unfit for use from its ruinous condition, and became too small.
The inhabitants petitioned for a new Parish Church. An Act
was passed 19 May, 1762, appointing James Pamor, Charles
Cantey, Philip Porcher, Joseph Pamor, Peter Sinkler, Peter
Porcher, Thomas Cooper, Eene Peyre, and Samuel Cordes
Commissioners to receive subscriptions, and to build the
church on any part of the land of St. Stephen's then used for
a church-yard. The Church is one of the handsomest Country
Churches in South Carolina, and would be no mean ornament
to Charleston. It is of brick and neatly finished. It is on the
main river road and about twelve miles from the Santee
Canal. Upon a brick on the south side is inscribed 'A.
Howard, Ser. 1767,' and on another 'F. Villeponteux, Ser. 7,
1767, ' the names of the architects.
"The Church was incorporated February 29, 1788. The
family of the Gailliards lie here interred, as do the other old
families of the neighborhood."
Connecting the settlers of English and French Santee
was the fact that the Echaw, a branch of the Santee River,
was settled by famiUes of both, Louis Gourdin established
himself there after his flight from his native place in the
Province of Artois in France. He was a Huguenot, and like
many others refugeed to the Province of Carolina in 1685.
He died in 1716 and a mural tablet is found in the Hugue-
not church dedicated to him in 1860 by the fourth and fifth
generations of his descendants.
Some of the Gourdin family moved over to what was
afterwards Williamsburg district, among them Peter Gourdin,
who married a Miss Singleton. Their daughter, Martha
Gourdin, before her marriage to Wilmot G. DeSaussure, was
152 . ^
ST. JOHN'S AND ST. STEPHEN'S
kjiowii as "Martha, the Gazelle of the Saiitees." She inher-
ited one-fifth of her father's estate under Act of the General
Assembly passed 1791 for the distribution of Intestate Estates ;
and many interesting deeds bearing on this section of the
country are now in possession of the family of the writer, a
granddaughter of Martha Gourdin DeSaussure.
In investigating Pen Branch plantation, Williamsburg
County, owned by Eobert E. Eraser, of Georgetown; J. W.
Hinson and J. D. Cummings, of New York, about to be pur-
chased by N. T. Pittman, it is interesting to note, in further
connecting Santee and Wilhamsburg, that this was an original
grant to a John Gailhard, in three tracts, in 1768, and he trans-
ferred it to Philip Porcher in 1778. In the examination of
titles it is stated that this was commonly called Porcher 's Old
Field h'ing on Pen Branch. Philip Porcher 's father was
Peter Porcher, of St. Peter's Parish, and the Porchers were
described as owning land in St. Stephen's Parish in 1808.
Peter Porcher had two plantations in St. John's Berkeley,
Oakfield and Laban, and a tract of land in Prince Frederick
Parish (Craven County), containing 1000 acres, bounded by
lands of Theodore Gourdin on the northwest and east, and
by the Santee River on the south. Peter Porcher 's daughter
Mary married John Corbett.
Samuel Dubose, Esq., in his Reminiscences of St. Stephen's
Parish, written in 1858, says :
"A feature characteristic of this country, and one that
deserves notice, is the family burying grounds. After the erec-
tion of St. Stephen's Church, the ground about it was the
common cemetery, but many persons to this day continue to
bury their dead in the old homestead, and chose to lie in death
within the precincts of their ancestor's domain; even though
perhaps they may have been strangers to it in hf e. The grave
yard was near the house, usually behind the garden. As a
precaution against the depredation of wolves, a large hole was
dug to the depth of about five feet ; a grave was then dug at
the bottom of this hole, large enough to hold the coflSn— after
the coffin was deposited in this receptacle, it was covered with
boards, and the whole then filled up. This practice continues
to this day. I can hardly enumerate the several grave yards ;
those which have been latest used are that at Belle Isle for the
153
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Marion's and their descendants; at Maham's for the descen-
dants of Col. Maham ; at the Old Field for the family of Philip
Porcher; at Gravel Hill for the Palmers; at Hanover in St.
John's for the descendants of the St. Julien's; and those at
Pooshee and Somerton for the families of the Eavenels and
Mazycks. It is not unUkely that there are graves on almost
every old homestead in the country. . . .
". . . Some distance beyond the St. Stephen's Une, and
just below the Eutaw Springs, was another settlement, chiefly
of Huguenot families, viz: the Couturier's, Marion's, Gignil-
lat's, Chouvenau's, Gourdin's, &c., besides others of EngUsh
descent, the McKelvey's, Ervine's, Oliver's, Kirk's, &c. All
of these in the course of time were connected by intermarriage.
The land was well adapted to the growth of provisions and
Indigo, and in consequence of the fertility of the high lands,
they escaped the full measure of the calamities with which their
neighbors of Stephen's were visited, when the river became
unsafe. The same picture of a prosperous and happy condi-
tion with which I have introduced this sketch, may be applied
to this neighborhood also, and the happiness which is there
described, continued to be the portion of the people, until in the
course of the Eevolutionary War, the British got possession
of the State, and established their military posts over every
portion of the country."
According to letters of John Rutledge, published in
Russell's Magazine for June, 1858, Murray's Ferry was in St.
Stephen's Parish.
CHAPTER VIII
ST. MARK'S PARISH
T. MARK'S Parish originally in-
cluded all the northwestern portion
of the State of South Carolina. A
list of delegates to Provincial Con-
gress, 1775, "For District East-
ward of the Wateree River ' ' named
Col. Richard Richardson, Joseph
and Ely Kershaw, Matthew Single-
ton, Thomas Sumter, Robert Pat-
ton, William Richardson,Robert Carter and William Wilson. St.
Mark's Parish was taken off from the western portion of
Prince Fredericks by Act of Assembly 1757. Richard Rich-
ardson gave the lands for the church and glebe lands for a
parsonage. This church was destroyed by the British soldiers.
It was situated about ten miles from the place now known as
Wrights Bluff, on the north side of the Santee River.
Camden, StateSburg and Columbia were in the original
Parish of St. Mark. The Parish was again divided into Upper
and Lower St. Mark's. Lower St. Mark's comprises much of
the land in Clarendon County. One of the oldest homes in the
Parish is the Col. Warren Nelson house, of which the chimneys
have the date 1762 cut in them. The house is situated near
Doughty Lake, a few miles below Nelson's Ferry and was the
residence of WilHam Doughty, lay reader in Lower St. Mark's.
The grounds are set with many beautiful trees and the attitude
of this old home is one of culture and hospitality. An extract
from a letter of Brig. Gen. Sumter makes a mention of action
of the armies in St. Mark's Parish.
". . . before I Return to the Congaree I think to move
towards Santee — and endeavor to alarm Lord Rawdon to
prevent his Crossing the River, or Removing the post from
Nelson 's ferry. ' '
155
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
THE SAND HILLS OF SAINT MARK'S
MILFORD
The country house of John L. Manning, Governor of South
CaroHna from 1852 to 1853, was Milford, situated in Clarendon
County, near Fulton, S. C, in what is called the Sand Hill
region of old St. Mark 's Parish. The place is sometimes called
Manning's Folly, because of such magnificence being placed
in such an out-of-the-way spot. To any one familiar with the
history of this old settlement, however, the name is not at
all applicable.
Laurence Manning, an Irish lad, came to this country with
his widowed mother before the Eevolution and settled in Vir-
ginia. He came to South Carolina as a lieutenant in Lee's
Legion, and was distinguished in many battles and by many
acts of personal bravery. His exploit of using a British officer
as a shield for himself at the battle of Eutaw is the subject of
a painting in the State House at Columbia. The South Caro-
lina history of the Mannings starts when Susannah Eichard-
son, daughter of General Richard Richardson and Mary
Cantey, married this gallant young officer. After the Revolu-
tion, on the organization of the State mihtia, Laurence Man-
ning was appointed Adjutant General, and held the office until
his death in 1804. He also served the State in its legislature.
The gallant Irishman and his aristocratic bride founded a
family which has given many public-spirited men and women
to South Carolina.
John Laurence Manning, the grandson of the founder of
the family, and builder of Milford, was twice married, first to
Susannah Hampton, and then to Sarah Bland Clark, of Vir-
ginia. The handsome home stands on a commanding slope and
bluff overlooking a dense swamp, the tops of the trees in the
swamp below are on a level with the lower sweep of the hill
which Milford crowns with its massive structure of classic
proportions and conception.
Inside, the beautiful woodwork of solid mahogany, and the
very high ceilings, carry out the idea of elegance and space
156
- o
ST. MARK'S PARISH
evidenced in the exterior, and an additional architectural fea-
ture is the handsome circular staircase ascending from the
front hall. The house is built mth two long wings at the rear
projecting on each side, so that the house forms a semi-circle,
in the center of which, behind the main building, is a bell tower.
A most interesting entrance to the grounds is furnished by
the porter's lodge from which a broad carriage road sweeps
in a curve to the door of the mansion. Each outbuilding, in-
cluding the lodge and spring house, is a miniature, minus
the wings, of the large estabUshment, and the whole effect of
Milford and its grounds is one of rare unity.
In his day Governor Manning was said to be the handsom-
est man in South Carolina, and he was a man of genial nature.
His home reflected his taste, several massive statures retain-
ing their proportion and beauty by reason of the excellent
arrangement of the house. Entrance is gained directly from
the portico with its broad columns into a beautifully propor-
tioned hall, from which the circular stairway ascends, while
folding doors lead to rooms on either side, giving an air of
sumptuous spaciousness. On the left is the hbrary, on the right
the drawing-room, and in the rear the dining-room. In Gov-
ernor Manning's time great alabaster vases of dazzUng white
stood in the front hall ; indeed, the whole house enshrined many
art objects of rarity and beauty.
Until after the Civil War the settlement around Milford
comprised the families of Richardson, Brailsford, Manning,
Nelson, and Cantey, all connected by marriage. Where there
was once a flourishing community, and a great deal of poHti-
cal and social activity, there is now nothing but a few shut-up
houses in the charge of caretakers. This condition has come
about through the decay of the old slave-holding system, and
the fact that the farms had to be abandoned for lack of labor,
and although some of the men have retained their ancestral
homes and acres, they make their residences in the adjacent
towns and cities.
No better illustration can be found of the political sig-
nificance of this now abandoned section than the history of
Elizabeth Pierre Eichardson. She married one of the Man-
157
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
nings, was a niece of Gov. James B. Richardson, an aunt of
John Peter Richardson, Jr., wife of Governor Richard Irving
Manning, Sr., mother of Governor John Laurence Manning, of
Milford, and grandmother of Richard Irving Manning, the
Governor of South Carohna during the world war.
Leslie's Weekly, March 16, 1918, in "Our Roll of Honor,"
says :
"Has any State in the Union more of a 'War Governor'
than Governor Richard I. Manning, of South Carolina? Not
only has he contributed in every way possible, officially and
personally, to the winning of the war, but also every male
member of his family wears the country's uniform (with the
exception of his youngest son, a boy of fifteen) " . . . (six
sons being in service) . . . " Capt. William Sinkler Manning
is regimental adjutant of the 316 Infantry; Capt. Bernard
Manning is in the 316 Regimental Field Artillery; Major
Wyndham Manning is Major of Field Artillery, 156 Brigade ;
Burrel Deas Manning and John Adger Manning are in the
Field Artillery, as is Vivian Manning. ' '
Major William Sinkler Manning was one of the sons of
Carolina who "paid the price" that Freedom's flag should
remain unfurled. Mrs. William Sinkler Manning, who was a
Miss Brodie, a granddaughter of Alexander Shepherd (former
Governor of the District of Columbia), who now resides in the
National Capital, received an official communication from the
adjutant general of the American Expeditionary Forces say-
ing that a distinguished service cross had been awarded
posthumously to her husband. Major Manning, for "extraor-
dinary heroism in action" near Verdun, France, November
6, 1918. Thus died gloriously, and for God, a noble son of a
noble race.
ON THE CAMDEN ROAD IN ST. MARK'S PARISH
THE SINGLETONS AND THEIR HOMES IN ST. MARK'S
PARISH
The Singletons were an old and honorable family in the
low-country and were first found in the Scotch-Irish settle-
ment in the Williamsburg District. They intermarried with
158
h
K
-5^ >
>1
2
ST. MARK'S PARISH
the old families, including the Richardsons, Canteys and
Gourdins, and have been written up many times. "The
State" for September 24th, 1916, carries a full and de-
tailed history of them, and one of the most interesting things
pubUshed in connection with the article is an account of the
possessions of the family. These include Matthew Singleton's
Commission issued under the crown, dated May 5th, 1770, his
commission from the Council of Safety, dated October, 1775,
his oath of allegiance, June 7th, 1778, and tax receipts reading
— "1773 rec'd The sum of Four Pounds three shillings and
lOd, Proclamation money ; being for one years Quitrent due to
the crown for two thousand and 94 acres of land held by him
and situated in Craven County. ' '
Mrs. Leroy Halsey, who was Decca Singleton, daughter of
Richard Singleton of "Home Place," has in her possession a
photograph of a part of a grant of land given to Matthew
Singleton in 1756. This picture and other family relics are
among Mrs. Halsey 's most treasured possessions in her
Charleston home.
MELROSE
"Melrose" is the oldest of the Singleton homesteads still
standing. It is situated just off the public road, known in
colonial days as the "Great Road from Charleston to Cam-
den." This road led past the present town of Wedgefield
through Manchester to settlements beyond. Mr. Thos. E.
Richardson, Judge of Probate for Sumter County, says : "Man-
chester was a thriving Uttle town, before the Revolution and
was the head of navigation on Beech Creek for boats that plied
between that place and Charleston after 1800. There were no
places on the northeast side of the Santee and Wateree Rivers
south of Camden where the river approached the high land
except at Sumter's Landing near Hagood, and Wrights Bluff.
Beech Creek unites with Shank's Creek near Manchester and
this enlarged stream used to be navigable for canal boats ; so
Manchester was a sea port for this section of the country
until the Rail Roads broke it up." The Singletons ac-
quired their vast wealth by shipping indigo and later cotton
by boat from Manchester.
159
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
"Melrose" is a small house but exceedingly quaint. A
small one-story piazza extending across the entire front of the
house shields two large rooms from the sun. At both gable ends
are large cliimneys, which are flanked on either side by long
narrow windows. Through one of these windows James Sin-
gleton was fed by a faithful slave when the British were in this
vicinity, he being ill with small-pox. Behind the large front
rooms are found two smaller apartments with a hall dividing
them and furnishing access to the rear. The hall contains
a stairway leading to the rooms above. At the rear end of
this hall a large arched doorway leads, by way of a " stoop, ' '
directly to the yard.
MIDWAY
The house on the "Midway" estate was a large one and was
built by Captain John Singleton, who received the house as a
wedding gift from his father, Matthew Singleton. It was
named Midway because it lay midway between Melrose and
Home Place, two other of the Singleton plantations. On either
end of the house a large room was added the width of the house,
the two being connected by a passageway. Tradition has it
that Captain Singleton took great pleasure in entertaining
members of the Legislature, who passed the house on horse-
back during Christmas hohdays.
John Singleton married Rebecca Richardson, daughter of
General Richardson. She was the widow of a Mr. Cooper, a
man whom she had married at the age of sixteen, against the
wishes of her father. Mary Singleton, daughter of John and
Rebecca Singleton, married George McDuffie in 1829. Mc-
Duffie was left a widower with one child a year later. This
child became the wife of "Wade Hampton, Governor of South
Carolina. Although George McDuffie died at the Singleton
home, he owned a house called "Cherry Hill" in Abbeville
District. McDuffie was one of the most brilliant orators of
South Carolina. He was Governor of the State in 1834 and
was a member of the United States Senate in 1842. Mr. Mc-
Duffie was never strong after his duel with Colonel Cunning-
ham in 1820, but he did not die until 1851.
160
ST. MARK'S PARISH
SINGLETON HALL
Irving, in his "History of the Turf in South Carolina,"
says that "Home Place" or "Singleton Hall" is situated on
the line of the Charleston and Camden turnpike, which is
skirted for many miles in front of the estate by a beautiful
hawthorn hedge, the growth of many years. Fronting the
house is a park of nearly fifty acres, with fine forest trees laid
out in hues radiating from it to the public road. Nothing can
surpass the picturesque beauty and effect of the partial views
obtained through the vista of the trees of the massive columns
which support the entablature of this splendid mansion, as seen
from a distance. The approach to it is up through a broad
avenue shielded on either side by "brave old oaks." Within
this park the training course is laid out, an exact mile in cir-
cuit, so that the horses may be seen taking their exercise. One
straight side of the course running parallel with the house is
so near that orders can be given the trainers or jockies from
the piazza.
"The racing stables are situated immediately in the rear
of the house, with the paddocks on either side. Everything is
substantially built and in perfect order, and there is no want
of room, or convenience of any kind, manifest in the details.
"The elegant and refined hospitahty of Singleton Hall, a
noble mansion, as eminent for its beauty and the taste with
which the extensive grounds are laid out, as for the courtesy
and considerate kindness which characterizes the proprietor.
Aside from the interest with which we regard this princely
estate from its great extent, its high state of cultivation, the
perfect order and good taste so apparent in its minutest de-
tails, and the associations connected with it as the time-honored
seat of the distinguished family of its present owner, it had
a pecuUar charm as being the nearest approach to an American
idea of the residence of
" 'The fine old English Gentleman
All of the olden time. ' "
The house at "Home Place" (or as it was later called
Singleton Hall), was built by Eichard Singleton, son of John
11 161
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
and grandson of Matthew Singleton. He was a man of ample
means and entertained royally. It is said that it took him two
hours to dress in the morning, and that while he was adjusting
his cravat and combing his hair, a la pompador, his wife read
the Bible and newspapers to him. Upon being twitted by his
neighbors for being late to business, he replied, "It did not
matter when you started, but what you did after starting."
He was evidently a man of strong personahty and was loved
by all who knew him.
Richard Singleton owned several other plantations in addi-
tion to Home Place, among them were Gihnan's ; Headquarters
or Kensington, near the Acton station; The Fork; Scott;
Gadsen; and True Blue, the name of the latter having been
derived from the fact that this was once an indigo plantation.
"Home Place" was the scene of the marriage of Angelica
Singleton, daughter of Richard, to Col. Abram Van Buren, son
of President Van Buren. At this wedding the rare and beauti-
ful Singleton silver was used, as was also the glass and china.
It is said that Richard Singleton was the first to introduce
silver forks in the family, and that the children always spoke
of them as "Uncle Singleton's Split Spoons."
The following interesting story is told of how Angelica
Singleton met her husband ; " To complete her education, as
was fitting her station, she was sent to school to Mme. Ire-
land's in Philadelphia. In 1827 she spent a portion of her
holiday in Washington with her kinswoman, Mrs. Dolly
Madison, who took pleasure in introducing her to President
Van Buren. As she was a girl of rare beauty and charm, she
at once became a reigning belle and one year later was married
from her home 'Home Place,' to Major Abram Van Buren,
eldest son of the President, a graduate of West Point, an officer
in the army, and who at the time was acting as his father's
private secretary. Mrs. Van Buren made her appearance as
mistress of the White House on New Year's Day, shortly after
her marriage (1838). The newspapers of the day spoke of her
as bearing the fatigue of the three house levee with patience
and pleasantry which must have been inexhaustible." Mrs.
Van Buren was a very beautiful woman, a portrait of her shows
162
ST. MARK'S PARISH
her with her hair piled high, bunches of curls clustered on each
side of her face, and a number of ostrich feathers towering
above all this. Her descendant, Mrs. Helen Coles Singleton
Green, of Columbia, possesses many interesting relics of her
distinguished ancestress.
' ' Kensington " or " Headquarters, ' ' was willed by Richard
Singleton to his son Matthew, who built a home there, which
is now one of the handsomest places in Richland County. It
was saved during the Civil War by the intrepid and courage-
ous appeal of Mrs. Singleton's mother to a young northern
soldier who had been sent to fire the building. She saved the
home and possibly the life of the youth, ag Hampton's Scouts
heard of the proposed burning and came riding hard upon the
heels of the would-be incendiary. The house is built in the
shape of a cross, with wings on either end and the wing in
the rear being balanced by a porte cochere extending from the
roof of the front porch.
Matthew Singleton is described as being "a spirited and
accomplished young gentleman, who inherits a large portion
of his father's taste for fine horses, and who, we trust, will one
day succeed him on the Turf. " As Halsey children will in-
herit Singleton trophies, brief extracts concerning their
paternal ancestry are given.
Thomas Olney, the ancestor of the Olneys in America,
had his birthplace in Hertford, Hertfordshire, England.
He received a permit to emigrate to New England April
2nd, 1635, and came to Salem, Mass., by the ship Planter.
In January, 1636, he was appointed a surveyor, and granted
40 acres of land at Jeffrey Creek, now known as Manchester,
near Salem. He was made a freeman the same year and
early associated with those who accepted the pecuhar
views of Roger Williams. With a number of others he was
excluded from the colony March 12th, 1638, and with Roger
Williams and eleven others formed a new settlement at the
head of Narragansett Bay which they named Providence, in
grateful remembrance of their deliverance from their enemies.
They thus became the "Original Thirteen Proprietors of
Providence," having purchased their rights from the Indians.
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
George W. Ohiey, son of Captain Olney (named for George
Washington, under whom his father had served), passed his
childhood and early manliood on his father's farm at Provi-
dence. After the war of 1812 he made several business ven-
tures to Southern ports, which led him to think so favorably
of Charleston, S. C, that he made it his permanent home. His
wife was OUve Bartlett, of Williamstown, Mass., and their
daughter, Maria, married Capt. E. L. Halsey in 1870.
Concerning Captain Halsey 's ancestors we find among the
records of the town of Lynn, Mass., which have survived a fire,
that in 1638 Thomas Halsey was allotted one hundred acres
of land. His coming to America was apparently connected
with the colonization enterprizes of which John Winthrop
became leader. In the history of New England from 1630 to
1649 Halsey 's name is mentioned frequently in connection
with the religious upheaval in the colony at the time.
Captain and Mrs. Halsey had a large family, members of
which are now identified with Charleston's social and business
life. One of the sons, Leroy Halsey, married Decca Coles
Singleton, who has in her possession a decanter which was
used at Melrose plantation, Sumter County, in 1760, and later
was in use at Midway, then at Home Place and Black Woods,
all of which were plantations of the Singleton family.
ON THE ROAD TO STATEBURG AFTER LEAVING THE
SINGLETON ESTATES
After leaving Wedgefield, on the road to Stateburg, the
following houses are found : The first is Argyle, recently the
home of Miss Mary McLaurin, where General Greene had his
headquarters just before the battle of Eutawville. Number
two is found on the same side of the road, the right, and is
known by the name of The Oaks. It is a tall wooden house
set on a hill quite a distance back from the public road, which
forms a fine approach to the structure and sets off the colonial
portico that adorns the fagade of this building. The house has
fine woodwork inside, although very plain.
The situation of this home is particularly interesting, as it
is built on the crest of a hill on the watershed of the Santee and
164
ST. MARK'S PARISH
Black Elvers, the waters from the front flowing west to the
Santee, and those from the back draining east to the Black
River. Mr. Screven Moore now owns this property, the house
having been built either by a Bracey or a James, probably the
latter, as the place was once known as James Hill, but has
since been changed to The Oaks.
The next house above The Oaks is built in the same style,
set on a high brick foundation with two stories above, and
belongs to Mr. Wilham Flood. In the vicinity of these three
houses already mentioned, and on the other side of the road,
was the old Richardson house, at which Dictator Rutledge
stayed when he made his quarters in the high hills of Santee.
This place is called Bloomhill, and is now in the possession of
Mr. Thomas Richardson, Judge of the Probate Court, Sum-
ter, S. C. ; Mrs. Mary Ellen Alexander, and Mrs. H. Pinckney.
Continuing the journey from Wedgefield north, there is a
very interesting house north of the Flood place which was, for
many years, the home of the Reese family. It is a mellow old
house, placed close to the ground, the lower rooms being used
by the family as living-rooms.
A httle above the Reese house comes in the road from
Sumter. Upon this road about sis miles distant are found the
residences of the Nelsons, Andersons and Friersons, a portion
of the Frierson place being a very old house. The place is
known by the name of Cherry Dale. The Frierson family
came to South Carohna about 1730 and formed a part of the
Scotch-Irish settlement in Wilhamsburg Township. One of
the locks of the Santee Canal bears the name of John Frier-
son. Mr. James Nelson Frierson, recently elected dean of
the University of South Carolina Law School, is a grandson
of the builder of Cherry Dale.
Leaving Cherry Dale and returning toward Stateburg, on
the right-hand side of the road is found the Reynolds house,
for many years the home of Mr. Mark Reynolds, of Sumter
Bar. The parsonage intervenes here, a bleak old wooden house
set on a bare hillside, while to the west of the place stands the
home which goes by the name of The Ruins, which place very
much resembles Hopseewee in general appearance. It is the
165
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
home of the Pinckney family, Mrs. Marion DeVeaux Pinckney
being the present owner. Mr. Harry Pinckney, a member of
this family, was also the owner of a handsome old house in
Stateburg neighborhood, which he left to his godson, loor
Tupper. This house was built by Colonel John Russell Spann,
who married the widow Broun (originally Harriet Richardson
Singleton). Mr. Pinckney inherited the property through the
Spann connection.
This brings us again to the Camden road, and at this junc-
ture the Church of the Holy Cross is found, opposite which is
Hill Crest, the home of the Anderson family. Beyond Hill
Crest and the church are the following plantations, none of the
buildings on which, however, possess any historical interest.
They are as follows: Marshton, belonging to William Saun-
ders ; Acton, a Ravenel place ; the house already mentioned as
belonging to Mr. Pinckney ; and the plantation of Mr. DeSaus-
sure Bull, adjacent to which is found the Bradley house.
Just where the road turns eastwardly from the Bull place
going to the Bradley house is the Sebastian Sumter house.
Here is to be found a monument erected to General Sumter
bearing the following inscription :
West Side
This stone marks the grave of one of South
CaroUna's most distinguished citizens,
THOMAS SUMTER.
One of the founders of the Republic.
Born in Va., Aug. 14, 1734.
Died June 1, 1832.
South Side
Erected by the General Assembly of S. C.
1907.
East Side
He came to South Carolina about 1760
and was in the Indian Service on the
Frontier for several years before settling
as a planter in this vicinity.
Commandant of 6th Regt., S. C. Line,
Continental Estab., 1776-1778.
166
ST. MARK'S PARISH
Brig. Gen. S. C. Militia, 1780-1782.
Member of Continental Congress, 1783-1784.
Member U. S. Congress, 1789-1793, 1797-1801.
U. S. Senator, 1801-1810.
North Side
Tanto Nomini Nullimn
Par Elogium.
Beyond the Sebastian Sumter house are a few other old
plantations, among which is The Terraces, a Boykin residence,
but the house is of no special note. Eembert Hall, in Sumter
district, is still standing, and there are also some old, if not
antique, houses found in the vicinity of Bradford Springs.
St. Phihp's Church, at Bradford Springs, St. Mark's Parish,
was built in 1843 through the efforts of Mrs. Esther Holbrook,
daughter of Theodore Gourdin. Among the contributors were
John A. Colcolough, William Burrows, John Bossard, James
Gailliard, Porcher Gailliard, Thomas W. Porcher and Charles
Sinkler, whose summer homes were in this neighborhood.
HILLCREST
"Hillcrest" is at Stateburg, S. C, and is on the old mail
coach road from Charlotte, N. C, to Charleston, S. C, just
fifteen miles below Camden. The house is built on the crest
of a majestic hill amid a bower of trees and is still in a good
state of preservation and replete with associations, relics and
legends pertaining to colonial days, the Revolutionary War,
the War of 1812, the Mexican War, the war between the States
and now sadly connected with the World War, as it was the
home of Captain WilUam Harrison Saunders, who was killed
in an airplane accident in the fall of 1919. Captain Saunders
was an honor graduate of West Point of the class of April,
1917, and went to France in July of that year in the aviation
service. He was the first American in observation aviation
to go over the German lines on a mission and the first man
from our army to be both a pilot and an observer. That he
survived this dangerous service is almost a miracle, for the
Boches nearly had him twice. It was while he was at Fort Sill,
after his return from France, that he met his tragic death.
167
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
The beautiful sweet-scented gardens at "Hillcrest" are a
tangle of shrubs and groups of pyramidal cypress. There one
may rest in the portico of the old library, which is a separate
building in this garden, or Unger beside the old sun dial. There
is a large oak on the sloping lawn known as the "Spy Oak"
with the girth of two centuries or more and the gnarled
"bumps of knowledge" holding fast the secrets of the Tory
spies who were hanged from its branches, lending a sinister
air to the place. Here Comwallis established himself, making
"HiUcrest" his headquarters while in this vicinity, harassing
that gallant and determined band, which, led by the intrepid
Sumter (a resident of the high hills of the Santee), carried on
their guerilla warfare with such telling effect.
At another period of the Eevolutionary War, the American
patriot. General Greene was so favorably impressed with the
charm and healthfulness of these high hills that he selected this
neighborhood in which to encamp his army when rest became
necessary, bringing his men here several times to recruit. He
made his headquarters on one occasion in this same house
which, a short period before, his enemy had appropriated.
General Greene left a lasting memorial of his visit by having
one of his men brand the opposite doors of the large entrance
hall with the letters "C. A." (Continental Army). One of
these doors already bore a mark which still remains, which was
caused by a blow with the butt end of a musket in the hands
of a British soldier during the occupancy of Lord Cornwallis.
It was when General Sumter 's home in this neighborhood was
burned by Tarleton's men that Mrs. Sumter took refuge under
the roof of HiUcrest.
Although HiUcrest was for many years the home of the
Anderson family and is now in the possession of Mrs. William
Saunders (who was before her marriage Katie Anderson), the
Eevolutionary owners of this historic home were Thomas
Hooper, Esq., brother of Wm. Hooper, signer of the Declara-
tion of Independence, and Mary Heron Hooper, his wife.
Thomas Hooper died in the year 1795 and his wife in 1820.
Their niece and adpoted daughter, Mary Jane Mackenzie, was
the daughter of Elizabeth Heron and John Mackenzie, of
168
?^
ST. MARK'S PARISH
Scotland. Her maternal grandfather, Benj. Heron, was for
twenty years an oflQcer in the royal navy. His fine portfoHo
of maps bearing the date of 1720 is well preserved among the
relics in the Anderson family. At the time of his death,
which occurred in 1770, he was one of his majesty's councilors
of North Carohna.
Mary Jane Mackenzie was married January 30, 1818, to
Dr. Wm. "Wallace Anderson, who was from Montgomery
County, Md. He was the son of Col. Eichard Anderson of
Revolutionary fame and Ann Wallace, whose descent traces
back to a brother of the heroic Scotch commander. Sir
William Wallace.
Dr. William Wallace Anderson settled at Hillcrest, prac-
ticing his profession during a long and honored life. Here was
born his sons and his daughters, among whom were General
Eichard Heron Anderson and Dr. Wilham Wallace Anderson,
respectively the ranking officer and the ranking surgeon from
South Carolina in the war between the States. Capt. Edward
Mackenzie Anderson, another son, was killed in the bloody
battle near Williamsburg, May 5th, 1862, while serving as an
aid to his brother. General E. H. Anderson.
General Eichard Heron Anderson, called "Fighting Dick
Anderson," graduated from the United States Military Acad-
emy at West Point, July 1st, 1842. He was then sent to the
cavalry school for practice at Carlisle, Pa., where he remained
until 1843. In 1850 he married Sarah Gibson, daughter of
John B. G. Gibson, Chief Justice of Pennsylvania.
Dr. William Wallace Anderson graduated from the South
Carolina College in the class of 1846, and later from the Uni-
versity of Pennsylvania in 1849. In 1855 he married Virginia
Childs, daughter of Brig. Gen. Thomas Childs, a distinguished
officer from Massachusetts.
At Hillcrest died that eminent statesman, diplomat, scien-
tist and botanist, the Hon. Joel E. Poinsett, LL.D., while on a
visit (1851) to Dr. Anderson, who was his devoted friend.
Though LaFayette never visited here, one of the most cher-
ished possessions of this home is the LaFayette bed, with its
eagles and flags and stars. It is a quaint old bed in which
169
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Marquis de LaFayette reposed when he visited Charleston. It
was afterwards brought to "Hillcrest" where it remained for
many years, being called by the servants "The King's Bed."
Speaking of other relics, Mrs. Saunders (writing of her an-
cestral home) says : "Each child in the family has sipped from
General Washington's spoon, and viewed the candles, yellow
with age, taken from the stores of Lord Cornwallis after his
surrender at Yorktown. The small Bible lost by General
Childs during the seige of Fort Erie in 1814 and found at Fort
Niagara in 1816, the gaily embroidered priest's robe (the
gift of grateful nuns for protection during the Mexican
War) and the swords and sashes are all valued by us as
family heirlooms. ' '
The fine library contains gems of rare and ancient books,
which it has been possible to collect, as this home has been for
years owned by a family of scholars. One of the Dr. Ander-
sons, who lived at Hillcrest, was the first person on record who
successfully removed the jaw bone for cancer, his patient living
for many years in the enjoyment of health and strength. Sur-
geon WilUam Anderson (son of Dr. Anderson) inherited his
father's tastes for natural history and science. While sta-
tioned at posts in Texas and New Mexico he became interested
in making a collection of rare plants and birds ; his finest speci-
mens of the latter were sent to the Smithsonian Institute at
Washington, D. C, where his contributions were appreciated
as of unusual interest and value. He also discovered and for-
warded to Washington an entirely new species of bird, and in
the grounds of the old home in South Carolina still bloom
fragrant shrubs which he sent there from the West so many
years ago. As a voluntary observer for many years, his
meteorological records were of great value and service to the
Weather Bureau at Washington in its research work.
"Hillcrest" is a large brick building so constructed that
the ground floor is nearly level with the outside, and follows
the colonial plan of placing a building, situated on an eleva-
tion, low to the ground in order that the view should be unob-
structed. This house is true to this tradition and the observer
may stand in the rear door of the living room and on a clear
170
B O
ST. MARK'S PARISH
day gaze out over the intervening miles, and behold the smoke
rising from the factory chimneys in the city of Columbia,
thirty miles away.
Primitive flagstones still form the flooring to the lower
piazza of Hillcrest and to several quaint old passages which
serve to connect the different parts of this delightfully ram-
bling place, the fitting shrine of so many reUcs of colonial his-
tory. The adjective of mellowness is one that apphes with
peculiar fitness to "Hillcrest" and "exclusive," carries with it
the identical atmosphere produced by this fine old home.
THE CORNWALLIS HOUSE
On an elevation south of the town of Camden, South Caro-
lina, stood a handsome old residence, which was highly prized
as an interesting relic of the Revolutionary War. The house
was built with materials imported from England, by Colonel
Joseph Kershaw, an enterprising pioneer of central South
Carohna, several years before the Revolution. It was his
elegant and comfortable residence until shortly after the fall
of Charleston, in 1780, when the British troops overran the
State. Lord Cornwallis, upon his arrival in Camden, took pos-
session of this house for his headquarters.
Col. Kershaw was at this time a prisoner in the Island of
Bermuda, and Mrs. Kershaw was subject to the many trials
and indignities inseparable from the circumstances. Each
fresh arrival of British officers in Camden, among them the
merciless Lord Rawdon, brought a repetition of the same in-
dignities. Mrs. Kershaw, unable to endure these any
longer, sought refuge in a small house, called "The
Hermitage, ' ' owned by the family and built in the swamp of the
"VVateree River.
The mansion fronted to the west, and immediately south
of it, only a few hundred yards distant, in the thick pine grove,
stretched the long fine of American fortifications, the remains
of which are still to be seen. Tradition says that an American
sharpshooter, hidden in the thicket aimed at a party of British
ofiicers, who were playing cards in the southeastern room of
the second story and killed one. A spot of blood on the floor
171
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
(said to have been the Englishman's) always remained an
object of interest to visitors.
After the evacuation of Camden by the British, the old man-
sion house was again occupied by its owners. General Greene 's
wife, who was then passing through the country on horseback,
protected by a detachment of cavalry, became an inmate of its
hospitable walls for several days. Upon the slope in front of
the house General LaFayette was received on his visit to Cam-
den, in 1825, by a large concourse of citizens ; and upon this
lawn were held the military reviews on the 4th of July and
other public gatherings.
The name of the old residence, ' ' Cornwallis House, ' ' and its
history, together with the remains of the old Revolutionary
cannon, which had been planted in front of the house, were ever
a source of interest to strangers visiting Camden. The Corn-
wallis House was burned to escape Howard's corps of Sher-
man's army when these vandals passed through Camden in
1865 ; it having been fired by John Devereaux, C. S. A.
To revert to the early history of the house ; it stood on a
tract of one hundred and fifty acres, which was surveyed for
William Ancrum on June 12th, 1758. An oil painting in the
possession of Rev. John Kershaw, rector of St. Michael's
Church, Charleston, S. C, only son of General Joseph Brevard
Kershaw, shows the house as commanding a view of the parade
grounds, while a muster is in progress. Mrs. Royal in her
"Southern Tours" writing of the place in 1830 says, "One of
the trees, planted as a stake to direct their center march"
(reviews of the red coat troops were held in front of the man-
sion) "is now green and flourishing." Another writer of the
same time, says, "The very hawthorn trees by which Lord
Rawdon and Col. Balfours ranged their scarlet lines of war
are yet among us. ' ' In the dining-room of this old home Corn-
wallis, Rawdon and Tarleton discussed over their grog their
wicked schemes and their bloody fingers signed orders for
needless executions in the nearby prison pens. Many ghostly
stories gather around this house. It is said that American
prisoners were hung from the second story windows in the
northwest room. The tragic tale of the love of Agnes of Glas-
172
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LAND S,
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F A p. M S
A N D ^- ' ,
PLANTA" IONS,
SITUATED in the diftrias of C^Wr;/,
Pinchiey and Ninety-Jix, belonoir.g to
the Eftate of the late Col. yofcph Kcrflowjo :
Alfo, feveral Houfn and Zo/J in the Tov.'fi
of Camilcn. ^ ' '''' ".'
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and may be known ty applying; to.
JOHN KEKSHJir.
Camden, Jlpri/ 20, I7y4-
WUil fi-- PuBTto lir YorMr. /.nJ FAI'-,T. Cm.' - ^^
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HANDBILL ISSUED IN 1794, ADVERTISING SALE OF KERSHAW LANDS
ST. MARK'S PARISH
gow, a Scotch maiden, is as shadowy as it is haunting. It, too,
figures in the story of the house that was the headquarters of
Cornwallis, whom it is said she loved and followed to America
only to find the grave she now occupies near Camden.
The furniture in the house at the time of its confiscation
by the British was pitched out of the windows and broken to
pieces. The few articles saved had been previously buried,
among them a grandfather clock, now in the possession of one
of the members of the Kershaw family. The Kershaws have
intermarried with the Langs, Shannons, deLoachs and deSaus-
sures and are descended from the Canteys, Douglas and De-
bose families. Rev. John Kershaw, of Charleston, and his
son. Dr. T. G. Kershaw, of North Augusta, South CaroUna,
and several grandsons are the only descendants of General
Joseph Brevard Kershaw now bearing the name.
LAUSANNE
Lausanne, the old Chancellor DeSaussure homestead, is
described as being on the Wateree River, near "Camden-
town," the site of the famous battle of the Revolution where
Lords Cornwallis and Rawdon led the English forces and the
gallant De Kalb stuck to his guns until outnumbered and killed.
Those were stirring times for Camden, and years after, when
the country was becoming prosperous, the town elected to put
up a monument to the fallen hero. When the unveiling of the
monument took place, LaFayette, who was in the country at
the time, was invited to attend the ceremonies. Lausanne was
then the show place of the neighborhood; moreover, it had
sheltered the most distinguished chancellor, and was famous
for its hospitality as well as for its beautiful rose gardens and
stately magnolia trees. LaFayette was entertained at Lau-
sanne mansion, and a certain yellow-thumbed manuscript once
in the possession of the De Saussure family stated that the
aide-de-camp was so struck by a famous portrait of Wash-
ington that hung on the wall, that he exclaimed in French:
' ' My friend, God guard you ! ' '
The history of this portrait concerns Lausanne, the home
of the DeSaussure, whom Washington appointed director of
173
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
the mint at Philadelphia, and who afterwards became chan-
cellor. Under his direction and jurisdiction the first gold
coins used in the United States were minted. The very first
gold coin ever issued used to be treasured at Lausanne, and
was kept in the male line of the family until one day a young
lady of the family got possession of it and decided to change
its form. She thought it would be much nicer to have a ring
than a coin to keep, so the old souvenir was merged into a
circlet just as the girl's name was afterwards merged into
another family name than DeSaussure.
President Washington and Mr. DeSaussure were warm
personal friends, and when the latter in 1795 resigned his
directorship and prepared to return to the practice of his pro-
fession in his native State, he desired a likeness of Washing-
ton to take with him. He therefore persuaded the great
general to sit to Eembrandt Peale for a picture, which he
subsequently carried with him to his South Carolina home. He
took with him also the younger Peale, who was himself an
artist, that he might find new patrons in Charleston, the then
fashionable and prosperous city of the South. This portrait,
painted but four years before the death of Washington, hung
upon the walls of Lausanne from that time on, narrowly
escaping a bayonet stab during the Civil War. Among the
yellow documents which are laid to its account is Peale 's de-
scription of the sitter at the time it was painted, as told by him
in a series of lectures which he delivered in various cities of the
country in the winter of 1857 and 1858.
"Washington sat to my father and me together," he says,
"for the portrait desired by Mr. DeSaussure. He gave us three
sittings from 7 to 10 in the morning, and by that means I had
the opportunity of seeing him with his hair arranged in a more
natural manner than after the barber had arranged it in fash-
ion later in the day. Washington shaved himself before com-
ing to me, and when the powder was washed from his whiskers
and the front of his ears the dark brown showed beneath. ' '
The younger Peale goes on to say that there was something
in the upper part of the original face painted by his father that
he preferred as a likeness, and an expression about the lower
174
2. -^
ST. MARK'S PARISH
part, the mouth and chin, as expressed in his own work, that
he judged better. Some years afterward he took the two and
worked out a blended likeness with the conception he had kept
for years in his own mind as something to aspire to, he having
always felt that the first likeness which he painted was not as
perfect as he could make.
During the war between the states evil days fell upon old
Lausanne. A company of impetuous and war-hardened sol-
diers, in no very good humor, tramped over the place and stuck
their bayonets through such articles of furniture or ornaments
as could be stuck through without too much inconvenience.
There were a number of good pictures on the walls, some ideal
paintings, some portraits, among which was an old gentleman
with a benign face. A soldier who was idly lunging at every-
thing on his side of the house, and had let through two or three
portraits broad streaks of dayUght, felt his arm arrested as he
was about to let fly at the dignified old man with the powdered
head and the ruffled shirt front.
"Hold on there, you fool; don't you see who that is?" ex-
claimed a comrade. The vandal looked up at the portrait and
his arm dropped to his side.
"By jove," he said, "if I wasn't going to slash old George.
I beg your pardon, mister, ' ' and making a feigned obeisance he
passed on. Thus was saved the portrait, which was later sold.
Although the Civil War was over, terrible times prevailed
in Camden and thereabouts. Eleven years after the war the
descendants of the old chancellor De Saussure were in sore
straits. Lausanne was about to be sold; the cherished acres
and associations aUke had to be parted with. The plantation
further out in Kershaw County was retained to be planted,
but the old homestead was given up, and has become a part of
what is now known as "Court Inn," in the town of Camden.
MULBERRY
Mulberry, one of the handsomest homes in South Caro-
lina, was the home of the Chestnut fajnily, who located
near Camden.
175
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Jasper Sutton, who was a member of a company of frontier
rangers, after Braddock's defeat in 1755 moved to South Caro-
lina. The Indians devastated Virginia to such an extent that
many families moved south, and with his wife and family, in-
cluding the Chestnut stepchildren, Jasper Sutton traveled
southward. They halted a year in North Carolina, but finally
landed in South Carohna on "Granny's Quarter Creek," in
what is now known as Kershaw County. John Chestnut was
then a lad of thirteen years. About two years later he entered
upon an apprenticeship under Joseph Kershaw. The year
1767 found John Chestnut possessed of a considerable amount
of land, having risen rapidly to an independent merchant and
land holder. The end of the Revolution found him in posses-
sion of much property.
In the Revolutionary War, John Chestnut served as a pay-
master with the rank of captain, but resigned as unfitted for
service, suffering from rheumatism after the battle of Purrys-
burg. Upon his recovery he entered the miUtia and served in
the Georgia campaign. He commanded the Camden militia in
Charleston when that city was besieged, and when the British
occupied Camden, John Chestnut was taken prisoner and put
in the Camden prison. He was, it is said, chained closely to
the floor and to the day of his death bore the marks of iron on
his ankles.
James Chestnut, brother of John, owned the property on
which Mulberry now stands. James died unmarried and with-
out a will, but had intended that the land go to James Chest-
nut, 2nd, son of John. John Chestnut, thus inheriting it, left it
at the time of his death to his son James.
Through purchase and inheritance James Chestnut, at the
time of his death, was the owner of a vast amount of land,
an area of about five miles square, extending from the southern
edge of Camden down to Daniels' Branch and bounding on the
river all the way. His slaves numbered several hundred. Mr.
Chestnut not only managed his estates, but he was active in
public affairs, being for many years a member of the House of
Representatives, and holding various other public offices.
176
ST. MARK'S PARISH
In 1820 Mr. Chestnut built "Mulberry," two miles south
of Camden. He used it as a winter residence, the river swamps
being so near that it was not considered healthy during the
summer months. He would therefore move his family in sum-
mer to his Sandy Hill place, three miles east on the uplands.
Sandy Hill was burned about 1885. The roads between Sandy
Hill and Mulberry were a bee line and were kept in excellent
condition, and it is said in order that Mr. Chestnut might ride
at a swift pace — his coach was always attended with outriders.
Mulberry, the old manorial hall, is a four-story brick and
stone mansion. It is approached by an avenue of oaks and is
surrounded by beautiful laurel trees. The exterior of the house
is simple, but the interior is quite out of the ordinary, the
woodwork being particularly interesting. The state and style
of life proceeding in the South can have no better illustration
than this old home and the manner in which it was conducted.
It is said that Mary Cox, the wife of James Chestnut, although
the mother of thirteen children, found time each day to teach
her retinue of slaves. The school is supposed to have been
held in one of the brick outbuildings.
Mulberry is now the home of Mr. and Mrs. David E. Wil-
liams, descendants of the Chestnut family.
CHAPTER IX
FROM DOVER TO CALAIS VIA THE
PARISHES OF CHRIST CHURCH AND
ST. THOMAS
CHRIST CHURCH PARISH
SN Christ Church Parish many large
plantations and interesting places
are found. On one of these stands a
brick pillar, one of two, that marked
the northern boundary of WilUam
Hort's plantation. Northeast of this
the corresponding pillar stands and
is found deep in the woods. In olden
times there was also a town called
Tarleton nearby Mr. WilUam Lucas' plantation, which was
called "Barrack's Old Field," because at one time this place
contained the remains of some old cavalry barracks built of
lime and shell such as constitute the remains of the Green-
wich Village Mills seen in that locahty.
Out from the town the larger plantation houses are located
at or near the waters that make this body of land into a penin-
sula. A few houses have been mentioned in connection with
the upper reaches of the Wando River as being situated in the
Parish of St. Thomas. The planters nearer the sea coast de-
sired and had a parish of their own, with a church building
erected thereon conveniently placed for the use of themselves
and famihes. This was called Christ Church Parish and the
church is about six miles out from Mt. Pleasant village. There
is nothing very remarkable about it except its age. It is a small
square brick edifice surmounted by a cupola. It is surrounded
by graves that are older than the church itself. Miss Mabel
Webber has published in the South Carolina Historical Maga-
zine interesting extracts from the Parish Register. The inside
of the church is in no way remarkable, the chief feature being
the simplicity of its furnishings. Jacob Motte, Esquire, in
178
FROM DOVER TO CALAIS
1763 gave the comnmnion plate, a chalice and a paten, stiU in
use at Christ Church.
This parish was established by Act of Assembly November
30, 1706 ; and its boundaries defined by an Act of December 18,
1708, as follows : "to the North east by a large creek or river,
commonly called Amndaw Creek or Seawee Eiver, being the
bounds of Craven county, to the South-East by the sea, to the
"West by Wando River, and to the North-West partly by the
said River, and partly by a hne drawn from the Cowpen of
Capt. Robert Daniel, or the Swamp at the head of the Wando
River exclusive, to the Cowpen of Joseph Wigfal, on the head
of the said Awindaw Creek or Seawee River inclusive. ' '
The first church was begun in 1707, but was not completed
for some years. This church was accidently burned in Febru-
arj^ 1724/5, but was almost immediately rebuilt, and was again
burned by the British in 1782, the present church was built
after 1800. The following advertisement fixes an approximate
date for the rebuilding of the church. It is headed: Christ
Church Parish April 21, 1787, and says, " Whereas the
Vestry and Church wardens of the Episcopal Church in the
parish of Christ Church, have resolved to rebuild the church
and vestry house, as speedily as possible; therefore public
notice is hereby given to any person or persons that are in-
cUned to undertake the rebuilding of the same." Signed by
the Church wardens.
Near the Church on Wando River side, reached by an ave-
nue of fine old oak trees, stands Boone Hall plantation which
contains a quaint old house built in the early eighteenth cen-
tury. It has been considerably altered during the lapse of
years, the chief architectural feature, however, being foimd in
its unusually well constructed slave quarters. The place gets
its name from the Boone family, and in the family burying
ground adjacent to the house a Daniel Boone lies buried.
This plantation passed into the hands of the Horlbeck
family and Miss Marie Horlbeck (whose father was a nephew
of Major Horlbeck) is authority for the statement that Boone
Hall was bought by the Horlbecks on account of the great
number of slaves the Horlbecks possessed and the capacity
179
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
tMs plantation had for accommodating them. Color is given
to the theory by the fact that a description of this place men-
tions "miles of pasture upon which fine stock is raised, brick
and tile works on Horlbeck Creek, the gin houses, stables,
barns and dozens of little cottages where the several hundred
slaves have their home — not in a negro quarter but dotted
about over the country, each with its little patch of land for
the tenant. ' '
This description bears out a statement published in The
New York Sun, concerning negro education, which says :
"It will perhaps astonish a great many complacent and
unsuspecting persons in this part of the country to hear it said
that a very considerable number, if not a majority, of the
old-time great Southern slave-holders were heartily opposed to
the 'institution.' Such is the truth, nevertheless, as every one
familiar with the inner history of that section knows full well
... To put it briefly, we may say that before 'Uncle Tom's
Cabin' saw the light, and while as yet the great slave-holding
magnates of the south regarded slavery as an establishment
beyond the reach of social agitation or political vicissitude,
wise and kindly members of the ruling class had conceived and
set in operation a system whereby slavery could be robbed of
all its most repulsive aspects and transformed into an agency
of exaltation. Thus it came about that schools were estab-
lished on hundreds of plantations; nothing like our modern
schools, of course, but just plain simple agencies of experiment
and observation. The idea was to disclose the special gifts
and tendencies of the pupils and having ascertained them,
perfect and develop. So it followed that thousands of slaves
became bricklayers, carpenters, blacksmiths, tailors, engineers,
sugar boilers, artisans of every kind, even musicians, and were
permitted to pursue their vocation in perfect freedom, merely
paying to their masters a small percentage on the assessed
value of the individual earnings after graduation. ' '
Miss Horlbeck stated that there were thirteen Horlbeck
brothers; that the persons who bought Boone Hall were the
generation following John and Peter Horlbeck, identified in
local history as the men in charge of altering the post-office.
Interesting history is given concerning this family in an
account of the Fusilliers by John A. Moroso. "Mr. John Horl-
beck, one of the privates in the original Fusilliers, who did such
valiant service for America and Charleston during the Revo-
180
FROM DOVER TO CALAIS
lutionary "War, particularly at the siege of Savannah, when
the corp after heroic action reached home (under the command
of Lieuts. Strobel aixd Sass) sadly diminished." Soon after
these events, 1780, Charleston fell into the hands of the British.
The Continental Fusilhers were compelled to disband and re-
linquish one hundred superior muskets which had been pre-
sented to them by the British officers in control. Mr. Horlbeck
had carried his gun in the seige of Savannah and did not relish
giving it up, so he hid it by dropping it between the wains-
coting of his home and the wall. He then surrendered another
gun and this historic fussee has been in possession of the Horl-
beck family ever since. As an instance of logevity given in
Mills statistics is found the name of Mr. John Horlbeck, "born
in Saxony, lived in Charleston 44 years and never took a dose
of medicine in his life, died at the age of 80. ' '
The last owner of Boone Hall was the late Major Horlbeck,
whose grandfather had planted a few pecan trees around
Boone Hall. Finding these to have flourished they were left
when other trees were cut down. From this small beginning
and a great expenditure of time, trouble and money, Major
Horlbeck developed a large industry and had the satisfaction
of seeing his experiments succeed. In 1904 he was credited
with owning the largest pecan grove in the world.
OAKLAND
Oakland Plantation, in Christ Church Parish, Charlestown
County, is eight miles out from the village of Mt. Pleasant, on
the Georgetown road, and was granted in a tract of one thou-
sand three hundred acres, by the Lord Proprietors in 1696 to
Captain George Dearsley but was settled by John Abraham
Motte as agent for John Perrie (a later owner) then of Antigua,
formerly of Youghal, Ireland. It was named Youghal in honor
of Perrie 's birthplace and this name was retained through the
successive ownerships of Cleland, Benison and Barksdale, only
to be later renamed Oakland.
As Thomas Barksdale in his will dated July 2nd, 1850,
refers to "my plantation called Youghal, my residence," the
name must have been changed to Oakland by his son-in-law,
181
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
James Macbeth, next owner. This was done in recognition
of the magnificent avenue of live oaks, which was either planted
or extended by one of the Mrs. Barksdales, perhaps Mary, wife
of Thomas the First. An old slave named Cain Bryan, who
was living on the place when it passed from James MacBeth
to Philip Porcher, said that in his boyhood he remembered
going into the woods with his mistress to select the trees to
transplant from the forest to the avenue.
At the time that Mr. Porcher came into possession, Oak-
land was a thoroughly equipped plantation and country estate,
comprising in its grounds extensive gardens and an orchard.
The outside buildings included the regulation plantation
kitchen with brick oven in the side of the chimney, a brick
smoke-house and a brick dairy (which flanked the house at the
head of the avenue), a carriage house, a barn and gin house,
poultry houses, extensive negro quarters, and last but not
least a day nursery for the Kttle slave children, who were
left there during the work hours of their mothers in the care
of an old "Maumer."
The dwelling house at Oakland is an unpretentious but fine
example of an eighteenth century plantation home, with quaint
Dutch roof and large living-rooms, with chimneys in the comer
of each room, and odd seats in the upstairs dormer windows.
The timbers of this building are hand-hewn black cypress and
the woodAvork indicates that it was done by skilled carpenters
among the slaves. The low foundation on which the residence
stands is of brick made from oyster-shell lime. The age of the
house can only be surmised, but it is apparently the oldest in
the parish and was probably built by George Benison or his
successor, Thomas Barksdale, about the year 1750, although
the exact date cannot be announced. The gable end of this
house, with its Dutch roof, is similar to another Motte place,
near Monks Corner, which is significant in connection with the
fact that a Motte settled Oakland for John Perrie.
The ghost at this fascinating old place is described as a
gentle wraith who comes to pray at the bedside of those who
sleep in the "Ghost Eoom," but it is said that she comes very
rarely and no one knows who she is or was.
182
Oakland plantation, mt. pleasant, front and rear views
A C'jlorjial house now owned \>y A. K. Gret,'nrie
FROM DOVER TO CALAIS
An interesting story told of the Eevolutionary days is that
just as the Barksdales were about to dine, a British soldier
spurred his horse into the dining-room and carried off from the
table, on his sword point, a roasted fowl. Another tradition
connected with this historic house is that General Sherman
while stationed at Fort Sumter prior to the War of the Con-
federacy was a welcomed visitor as he was in other homes in
and around Charleston. The cause of the general's feeling
against South Carohna is said to have had its origin in an
affair of the heart. He fell in love with a beautiful Charles-
ton girl, who did not, however, reciprocate his affections
but coquetted with liim in an obvious manner. This attitude
on her part so offended him that he revenged his feelings on
the entire South.
The window panes of the dining-room have long been used
as a guest 's register. Among many other is the signature " I "
or " S, " Wilham Bull. The oldest inscription is ascribed to
Thomas Barksdale and is dated December 21, 1802, but the
most interesting pane of glass is no longer in its place. Joseph
Pilbnoor, one of John Wesley's Missionaries says in his jour-
nal that on March 9, 1773, he was at Mrs. Barksdale 's where he
was kindly received and spent the evening worshipping
God and rested in peace. Before leaving he wrote on
one of the window panes at Oakland in very clear and well-
formed characters :
"Jos. Pilhnoor, March 10, 1773.
Exalt Jehovah our God." Followed by the quotation
repeated in Hebrew.
This frail memorial went through the perils of two wars
and survived in its place more than a hundred years. In
October, 1877, it was presented by Mr. Porcher to Wofford
College, where it is now framed and hangs in the hbrary.
During the troublous days of the Confederacy while Mr.
Porcher was with the army, his young wife and children took
refuge with her parents and the plantation, being abandoned,
fell on evil days and the house stripped of its belongings. The
large waU mirrors were set out on the roadside and used as
183
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
targets by Union soldiers, while books and book cases were
carried away with other furniture. Fences around the place
were used as firewood, and goats and cattle destroyed
the shrubbery.
At the close of the war during the Federal occupation of
the country, Oakland had a narrow escape. Col. Beecher of
the Union Army and his wife visited the adjoining plantation.
Laurel Hill, then owned by Dr. Peter Porcher Bonneau, one
of the signers of the Ordinance of Secession. The house was
the handsomest in the parish, but they burned it to the ground,
and it is said that Mrs. Beecher set fire to the place with her
own hands. Not content with this it is said that they came
on to Oakland and Mrs. Beecher had lighted her torch to
serve it in like fashion, when some of the slaves on the place
begged her to give the house to them to live in instead of burn-
ing it. Thus she graciously bestowed it on them, and when
Mr. Porcher returned after the war he found each room occu-
pied by a negro family. A "meeting" was in progress in the
dining-room, ' where the sideboard served as a pulpit. The
negroes refused to give him possession, saying the house was
theirs and he had to appeal to Gen. Sickles, the Union Com-
mander in Charleston, then hving in the house on Charlotte
Street now occupied by Mr. Sottile, who sent soldiers to clear
the house and restore it to the rightful owner.
The dwelling survived the poverty-stricken days that fol-
lowed the war and though building after building subsequently
went down in ruin until of all the buildings, only the smoke-
house, dairy and kitchen were left, this dwelling withstood two
wars, storms and earthquakes.
In 1917 Mr. Porcher sold Oakland to his daughter Anne,
Mrs. Ferdinand Gregorie, and it is now, in the possession of her
family, emerging from ruin, and taking again its rightful place
as a typical southern home.
The Porchers of Christ Church Parish are descended from
Phihp E. Porcher, who came to the parish from St. Stephen
Parish in 1859, and all of the Porchers are descended from the
emigrant, Isaac Porcher.
184
FROM DOVER TO CALAIS
St. Thomas' Parish lies above Christ Church Parish and
adjacent to many of the plantations on the headwaters of the
eastern branch of Cooper River. The principal settlement in
the Parish of St. Thomas is Cainhoy. Between Oakland and
Cainhoy, however, are found several interesting places which
are briefly mentioned in the following pages.
ST. THOMAS' PARISH
At Cainhoy is a large old wooden house, one room of which
has been converted into a chapel as the few remaining members
of the old church find it too difficult to reach the ' ' Old Brick
Church, ' ' which is three miles away in a southeasterly direc-
tion on the Clement's ferry road that leads from the Cooper
River to the Santee settlements. Next to the brick church was
a place owned by the Sanders family. This place, with several
others, is mentioned in a poem written in 1804 by Edward
Othmel Gale Brale, describing a trip up the Cooper River,
via Wando. He says that where :
" Cainhoy 's stream its silvery waters roll
Arrive at Williams wharf, with setting day,
Then to the village soon we bend our way
*****
Six Buildings stand that grace this silent place
And dignify its banks with rural grace ;
The dwelling first as sailing up the stream
Is shut now constant to Sol's golden beam ;
The next just as the other clos'd up fast,
The Door too fasten 'd likely so to last ;
The third now open to Sol 's cheering beam
And near the door a Willow hangs all green ; ' .
Oft have I seen the master of this house
Walk near this tree in converse with his Spouse ;
They seem 'd to live in lonesome, silent love
With all the fondness of the turtle dove ;
'Twas he that gave this little Village birth
And tryd to make it rise to real worth ;
*****
The fourth a Mansion Mrs. Pinckney owns,
'Twas there I first did rest my languid bones ;
The fifth the house of Mr. L. Wigfall
Lays open to the Goats and comers all ;
The Six the property of Miss Gailard
185
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Out buildings numerous with a spacious yard ;
(To me this Mansion did she freely lend,
To her my heart felt gratitude I send
Accept the loan and thank my unknown friend) ;"
The poet remained at Cainhoy for four months, when leav-
ing he waved farewell and,
' ' Old Saunders quick return 'd it with his cap ;
His House stands near to Cainhoy Cooling Stream. ' '
The Wando River has no prettier spot upon its banks than
the httle green gem of a peninsula upon which stands the
buildings of the Beresford Bounty, over which seems to brood
the very spirit of quietude and calm loveliness, typical of the
charity which has existed here for nearly two hundred
years. On March 17, 1721, died Eichard Beresford, Esq., who
bequeathed the net profits of his estate to the vestry of St.
Thomas ' Parish in trust until his son, then eight years, should
reach his majority. One-third of the interest was to be paid
to schoolmasters and the rest to support and educate the poor
children of the parish. The sum amounted to £5200. In 1739
the school was built. In 1763 the Eev. Alex Garden, as rector
and schoolmaster, reports the school as flourishing. This con-
tinued until the Eevolution, when the fund had accumulated
to £12,800, but was reduced by the general bankruptcy that fol-
lowed. By careful management it had increased to $70,000 in
1861, when it was again dissipated by the disastrous ending of
the war. The population of the parish is now much reduced,
the Legislature has relieved the vestry from the necessity of
boarding, housing and clothing the children, but instruction
is still given in the school house, the rector of the parish being
the principal. The public schools have superseded this
fine charity.
Near where School House Creek makes into Cooper Eiver
stood a two-story house made of cypress cut out of the nearby
swamps by the slaves. This old mansion was set on a high
brick foundation arched underneath. The negro quarters and
outhouses are built of brick, nearby on the Grove plantation is
the part of an old wine house.
186
FROM DOVER TO CALAIS
There is on the Waiido River only one old house of any
importance which is still habitable. Most of these plantation
houses were burned during the Civil War, or have been de-
stroyed since by fire. Charleywood Plantation, seven miles
out from Christ Church Parish, immediately adjoins Chantilly.
The Charleywood property belonged during a period ante-
dating the Civil War to the Wigf alls, but very little of its early
history is known.
Lachicotte's place is foimd near Gruerins Bridge, in
Berkley County, which bridge crosses a branch of the Wando
River. This place was near Charleywood and Chantilly,
nearer in towards Mt. Pleasant. Right back of Daniels Island
on the mainland in the Parish of St. Thomas on Mt. Pleasant
side is a Shingler place. On this place used to reside Mr. Elfe,
who married a Miss Lucas. One of his daughters still lives
in Charleston. Very little can be ascertained of the history
of this old home.
Another old house used as a refuge for soldiers during the
Revolution stands on the mainland in Berkley County, behind
Daniels Island, on a plantation called Hartford, owned by W.
L. Venning, Jr., who resides in the Court House Square in
Charleston. The house at Hartford has an avenue of oaks
leading to it that is especially beautiful. A double row was
set out about one hundred and fifty years ago, says Mr. Ven-
ning, with spikes driven into the heads to make the trees spread
out. The limbs now touch the ground. The house is fully as
old as the avenue. The bricks of which it is built came
from England.
Several fine old houses used to be found on Daniels Island,
a part of the Parish of St. Thomas lying west of the Wando
River. One place in particular was said to have been built
by Robert Hazelhurst, (whose town house on Lower Meeting
Street has recently been remodeled by Dr. A. E. Baker). It
contained mahogany floors as well as doors, mahogany beams
and closets and paneling, which dated from the days when
Robert Hazelhurst traded with the West Indies. Another old
place found on this islajid is "YeUow House," its name being
taken from a nearby creek of that name.
CHAPTER X
ON THE ASHLEY RIVER AND IN SAINT
ANDREW'S PARISH
THE GIBBES HOUSE ON CHARLESTON NECK
£> COLONIAL place commonly known
as the Gibbes house on Charleston
Neck is the house still standing on
the bank of the Ashley River. Ac-
cording to Judge H. A. M. Smith, on
March 2nd, 1701, a grant was made
to Patrick Scott for one hundred and
ninety acres on Charleston Neck,
Tc)the boundaries showing that it in-
cluded all of the Joseph Dalton grant lying to the west of
the part held by Joseph Blake. Scott must have there-
fore acquired from the transferees of Jane Lawson all this
remainder and taken out a new grant to himself. In addition
to other legal matters connected with this and other adjoining
lands in a deed from Patrick Seott to Richard Cartwright
dated 31st of October, 1710, it is recited that this one hundred
and ninety acres was a parcel of a greater quantity of land
formerly granted to Joseph Dalton.
Some time later, under the will of Richard Cartwright, who
had acquired a great deal of that land, much of the property
passed to his three sons, Daniel, Richard and Hugh. A greater
part of the one hundred and ninety acres, with additional land
to the north fell to the portion given to Daniel Cartwright,
who conveyed it in 1738 to John Braithwaite. It then passed to
John Gibbes, but from whom John Gibbes acquired it has not
been ascertained. It was certainly in his possession in 1769
when he obtained a grant of the marsh land fronting on the
river. Gibbes' property has been generally known as the
"Grove" farm or plantation and embraces the area between
Congress Street and the Creek north of the farm lately owned
by Captain F. W. Wagner and which was long known as
188
ON THE ASHLEY RIVER
Lowndes' Gi'ove and The Rose Farm. Lowndes Grove was
famous as a field of honor and many famous duels took place
there, the most noted being a duel with swords between General
Christopher Gadsden and General Howe.
Some of the most noted duels of the nineteenth century were
between Wilson and Simons, Hunt and Ramsey, Craft and
Boy, Reynolds and Brawley, Robertson and Waring, Cohen
and Moise, and other encoujiters of a later date well known to
the old inhabitants of the community. The last duel in the
State occurred in 1880, but did not take place in Charleston.
A famous book written by John Lyde Wilson and published in
Charleston in 1858 was an acknowledged authority in matters
of honor in the State as long as the practice continued. The
book is an interesting contribution to the ante-bellum htera-
ture of the South.
According to popular tradition a favorite meeting place
was upon that rise of land now included in Hampton Park just
to the rear of the new citadel. The Washington race course
was upon a. portion of this tract and after 1794 the old course
at " New Market " was abandoned and ,the Jockey Club held
its races on the new course. The present Hampton Park which
included the race course is on the ' ' Grove ' ' plantation. At the
entrance to the old race course stood some interesting brick
pillars which were taken down in 1902. Replicas of these are
to be found marking the entrance to Hampton Park Terrace,
and all of this tract was held by John Gibbes in 1769.
The John Gibbes who owned the Grove tract was not the
first man of that name, for it is found on a. highly colored
memorial tablet on the wall of Goose Creek Church " Under
this Lyes the late Col John Gibbes/Who deceased on the 7th of
August 1711/ Aged 40/"
Col. John Laurens reported that his battalion had been
posted near this old place during the Revolution to "watch the
enemy and prevent too sudden an approach. As soon as I
received notice of their advance I went forward with Major
(Hyrne) to reconnoitre them. We went rather too near, for
single' horsemen, to the yagers, who fired from behind trees
on each side of the road. The Major was unfortunately
189
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
wounded in the cheek. . . , The violence of the blow dis-
mounted him, and I had barely time to cover his retreat and
drive off his horse. A Hessian seized the Major's hat, but did
not enjoy the trophy long, being killed in the skirmish which
ensued, and the trophy was recovered. ' ' Other extracts estab-
lish the fact of a ferry being opposite the house and that
this place was the scene of several sharp encounters during
the Eevolutionary War.
Peter Timothy, who was posted in St. Michael's steeple as
a lookout for the Americans and who made daily reports of
what he saw through his spy glasses, had given as his report
on March 24th that tents had been taken from T. Horry's house
and carried beyond E. Horry's, and he had kept a pretty strict
watch for he says that ' ' the redout begun at the latter 's landing
last night (March 23rd) and was completed by 10 this morning
and at half-past ten Lord Cornwallis and a Hessian general,
with the usual attendants, with spy glasses, etc., viewed the
several works and seemed to pay particular attention to
Gibbes' place." Later on Gibbes' place is described as being
"Up the Path," an idiom meaning the main path from the
city through the forest precincts.
John Gibbes at the outbreak of the American Revolution
had extensive gardens and greenhouses and a pinery on the
Grove, but when the British under Prevost advanced and
threatened Charleston in May, 1779, they crossed the Ashley
River at Ashley Ferry and advanced down the Neck to Gibbes '
settlement at the Grove, and during the occupation the ter-
races and greenhouses werei destroyed.
Mrs. E. H. Pringle, Chairman of the Colonial Exhibits held
in this building in 1902 at the time of the West Indian Exposi-
tion, in a contemporary account of exhibits of the ColonieJ
Dames of America is an authority for the statement that this
house was built by Mr. Gibbes.
' ' They have an appropriate background or setting for this
exhibit in the old colonial house, which will form a part of the
woman 's building. This house was built before the Revolution
by Mr. Gibbes and the grounds were beautiful with many rare
flowers and imported plants. The British soldiers wilfully
190
THE GIBBES HOUSE, CHARLESTON NECK, SOMETIMES CALLED THE LOWNDES HOUSE
ON THE ASHLEY RIVER
laid waste this lovely garden, and this so affected and dis-
tressed Mr. Gibbes that he died in consequence. There is no
trace now of the fine garden, but some old oaks remain near
the house. . . . Three rooms and a large hall have been
devoted to the colonial exhibit. These rooms remain as origin-
ally built, with wainscoting and the old high mantels. A col-
onial dining-room and bedroom will be represented, with the
fine old furniture of that date. ... A large committee has
been formed and Mrs. Drayton-Grimke, with the assistance of
twelve ladies, will have charge of the furnishing of the draw-
ing-room. Mrs. Langdon Cheves, with twelve others, will pre-
sent a picture of the dining-room of our forefathers. Mrs.
Arnoldus Vander Horst, with a score of helpers, will furnish
forth the great wide hall. ' '
An account of the exhibit given by the Daughters of the
American Revolution furnishes interesting data concerning
this place and from it we learn that at the southeast corner of
the house is one of the handsomest rooms, that the walls are
beautifully wainscoted with black cypress and that it is in as
sound a state of preservation as the day it was placed in
position. The house itself is built entirely of black cypress and
cedar put together with old-fashioned hand-made nails. The
paneling in aU the rooms is very beautiful and the house itself
is built on the square colonial style, having an inclosed loggia
in the brick basement which forms the first story of the house.
Big fireplaces with finely carved mantels are found through
the house. At the time of the Exposition a fine portrait of
Washington and a portrait of his kinsman. Col. Wilham Wash-
ington, and one of Col. Joseph Habersham, the first Postmas-
ter General of the United States, hung over the colonial
mantels. Among other pictures gathered together at this time
was a curious engraving showing General Marion inviting the
British officers to share his dinner of sweet potatoes, and
another of the General crossing the Pee Dee River with his
men in flat boats. There was also a copy of the General
Proclamation of Peace (1783), and one rare engraving showed
Washington being blessed by his mother before departing
for battle.
191
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
In this old house at the time of the Exposition there were
numerous pieces of historic furniture, duplicates of which will
only be found in the collection at Mt. Vernon.
The house is now in the possession of Mr. and Mrs. James
Sottile, and Mrs. Sottile in restoring this place, which had
fallen into disrepair, has treated the Gibbes house with the
respect that its history demands. She has sought to preserve
in every way the simplicity of the original lines both inside
and outside the house. Wherever possible, she has left the
original work, notably in the instance of the rooms on the
second floor and the beautifid circular stairway and skylight
above. The massive front door still presents the appearance
of being able to fulfill its fimction of withstanding attacks
that it had seen many times in Indian days, as do also the heavy
wooden shutters to the windows of the lower floor. In the in-
side lintels of the front door are still to be found the iron rests
on either side used to hold in place the stout oaken rods
that barricaded the door. The interior decorations are
aU of the Adam period, and "The Grove" has been restored
very carefully, and as far as was possible in exact duplicate
of its original woodwork and carvings.
DORCHESTER AND BEYOND
"About twenty-six miles from the city of Charleston, on
the north bank of the Ashley River, and about six miles in a
southwestwardly direction from the railroad depot in the pres-
ent town of Summerville can be seen an old church tower with
an overgrown disused graveyard around it, and some two
hundred paces farther on — on the edge of the river — are the
walls of an old fort, constructed of that mixture of shells in
lime mortar formerly called 'tapia' or 'tabby.' These two
conspicuous objects, with some scattered and shapeless masses
of brick at irregular intervals, marking the sites of former
houses, are all that remain of the town of Dorchester, once a
comparatively flourishing hamlet in the Low-Country of South
Carolina, but which with the lesser hamlets of Jamestown,
New London or Willtown, Jacksonborough, Purrysburgh and
Somerton, and the still lesser, or only projected, villages of
192
ON THE ASHLEY RIVER
Radnor, Ashley Ferry, Childsbury and Chatham, has so long
been deserted that its story has been nearly forgotten, and its
very site nearly obUterated." So says an extract from "A
Sketch of the History of Dorchester," which was published in
the South Carolina Historical Magazine.
St. George's Church was built about the close of the Pro-
prietary Government and commencement of Eoyal Govern-
ment, 1719. The tower or steeple of this church is built after a
design by Sir Christopher Wren, "that httle bird who was
fond of putting up large nests," and on April 9, 1734, an act
was passed for "repairing and enlarging and pewing the
Parochial Church of St. George 's Parish in Dorchester, ' '
THE VICINITY OF DORCHESTER
Above and beyond Dorchester, near the road to Bacon's
Bridge, was Fair Spring, another Izard residence, situated on
the old grant to Wilham Norman, and sometimes called "Bur-
tons. ' ' Above this again was the site of the original grant to
Benjamin Waring, the ancestor of the Waring family and
during the Revolutionary War was owned by Dr. David
Oliphant, a member of the Council of Safety and Surgeon-
General of the Continental forces in South Carolina. Con-
tiguous to this lay the old grant made to Col. Andrew
Percival and known as "The Ponds" (the chief pond now
being "Shulz's Lake").
Of all the places in this vicinity, however, that containing
the best outbuildings, and most pretentious mansion house
was at "Newington," the old Axtell settlement, which
descended through Lady Axtell 's daughter. Lady Elizabeth
Blake, to Col. Joseph Blake. The Newington house was said
to have been one of the largest brick houses built in lower
Carolina at that period, and with its double avenue of hve
oaks and wide gardens was at the time of the Revolutionary
War one of the "show places" of the countryside. Ralph
Izard, who married a daughter of Col. Blake, settled, after his
marriage, about a mile and a half from Newington, and a
straight avenue led from one house to the other.
West of Newington, across the swamp and within a few
13 '''
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
yards of the public road (now called the Orangeburg road)
was the brick mansion of "Mount Boone," said to have been
devised by Lady Axtell to another daughter, Mrs. Joseph
Boone. By his will in 1733, Mr. Boone directed himself to be
buried at Mount Boone, and his broken gravestone is still
there adjacent to the foundations of the house, with inscription
dated 1733.
The ruins of " Archdale " axe below Dorchester, but
" Pinckney Plains " and " Pine Hill " are marked by old
graves with characteristic cherub face, or else the substantial
marble slab on a brick foundation. These places were for-
merly homes of the Waring family of Tranquill Hill, another
Waring plantation near Dorchester.
Some land which seems to have been granted originally to
Peter Slan, from whom Slan's Bridge takes its name, passed
to Richard Waring in whose family it continued for many
years. Four hundred acres of that land was sold in 1818 (as
the property of Thomas Waring, of Pine Hill) to Dr. Fabricius
Perry and was then known by the name of ' ' Clay Hill. ' '
From about 1790, little by little one planter after another
made a summer settlement and built homes in what is now
knoAvn as the town of Summerville. They abandoned the
decaying houses of Dorchester (from which material, and
especially brick, were removed) forming the basis and furnish-
ing the foundation of the new town, until nothing but crum-
bling piles of broken fragments of brick were left to mark the
site of the old town. But before parting company with this
charming and once flourishing place, let us copy an advertise-
ment appearing in the South Carolina Gazette of November
2nd, 1738, which gives us an idea of the dress of the women
of that day :
"Lost on the 17th of last March, between Dorchester and
Charlestown, a Linnen Bagg with sundry Things therein, viz.,
one Womans Suit of Cloaths of Sattin strip 'd with red, green
and white, one Suit of all white Sattin, one Yellow Night Gown
faced with red Tatfety, one yellow Suit of yellow Peihng, and
one blue Night Gown faced with white, a red Callimanco Night
Gown faced with Brocade, one child's stiffen 'd Coat of an Ash
Colour 'd Damask, and sundry other Womans wearing Apparel,
194
"ARCHDALE HALL, ' LAMBS. NEAR DORCHESTER
The Baker homestead, 200 years old
ON THE ASHLEY RIVER
with Head Dresses and shifting Linen, one Sampler with the
Child's Name and Age and Date and Place of her abode, a
piece of work embroider 'd for a Top of a Table, and two Paper
Gloves, and a Hatt Band from a Funeral, directed for Wm. and
Mrs. Mary Baker, and sundry other Things. Any one that
can give any Inf onnation to me in Dorchester or to Wm. Linth-
waite in Charleston, or to the Printer so that they may be had
again shall have from either £10 reward paid on sight."
There are the remaias of a number of old houses in Dor-
chester County, particularly in the vicinity of Summerville.
There is an antebellum residence near Bacon's Bridge and
two very old houses in Stallsville. It was in the country in and
around Dorchester, that the legion of "Light Horse Harry"
during the Revolutionary War was posted when Greneral
Greene and the American Army occupied the territory around
Charleston after the battle of Eutaw Springs.
Lee's legion was for a long time stationed at the "Villa"
plantation, a portion of the Ketelby grant then owned by the
Izard family. Lee says that "the first day's march brought
his detachments to the country settled by the original emi-
grants into Carohna. The scene was both new and dehghtful.
Vestiges, though clouded by war, everywhere appeared of the
wealth and taste of the inhabitants. Spacious edifices, rich
and elegant gardens, with luxuriant and extensive rice planta-
tions, were to be seen on every side." He continued later,
"during our continued marches and counter-marches, never
before had we been solaced with the prospect of so much com-
fort. Here we were not confined to one solitary mansion,
where a few, and a few only, might enjoy the charm of taste
and the luxury of opulence."
Long before Lee 's occupany, as far back as the year 1722,
Susannah Baker, the then owner of the "Villa" tract, filed her
memorial stating that it was composed of a part of a grant to
John Cooper, dated 29 September, 1710, and part of a grant
to Charles Craven dated 9 April, 1714, and had been conveyed
to her by Thomas Cutliffe in 1722 and then was described as
being bounded northwest "on lands laid out to Major Edward
Jukes." But the land on this boundary had been granted to
195
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Landgrave Ketelby and was included in a vast tract of land
lying adjacent to Dorchester to the west and called "Ketelby
Barony." The probable inference is that Landgrave Jukes
came out to the Province in 1709 ; had lands surveyed out pre-
paratory to a grant, died in 1710 before any grant was issued
and his lands were then granted to others. Ketelby Barony
is now of no particular historic value, except that in this
vicinity the Wragg family once occupied a homestead and
owned vast areas of land. The mansion house of this family
was destroyed in 1865, but the remains of the graveyard are
still to be found situated on high land between the site of the
old dwelling and the river. There a broken monument is seen,
which when pieced together says :
"Under this Marble
lieth the Body of Samuel Wragg Esquire
who
Having in 1717 purchased the Tract of Land
called Ashley Barony
and
dying day of November 1750 ' '
Later the Signiory of St. GrUes was split up into many tracts
and plantations among which we find Wragg 's, Uxbridge (the
residence of Hon. John Matthews, Governor of South Caro-
lina in 1783), Salt Hill, Haggatt Hall, The Laurels, Wampee
and the Gadsden lands. These plantations remained prac-
tically intact as estates until the close of the Civil War, that
cataclysm which completely broke up the landed and labor
system as well as the feudal form of society previously found
in the low-country of South Carolina.
To the north of the Ketelby grant lay the "Westo" planta-
tion on Westo Savannah near the head of the Ashley River,
for which a grant (1697) of 1000 acres was made to John
Stevens, of Dorchester. Under the will of John Stevens the
lands at Westo Savannah went to his son, Samuel Stevens,
who with his brother John were directed by the will to be
brought up "at the Colledge in New England to good learn-
ing." At the death of Samuel Stevens in 1760 the Westo
plantation was by his executors in 1762 sold to Henry Smith,.
196
~'^:'lii
ST. GEORGE'S CHURCH, DORCHESTER
Designed by Sir Christopher Wren
ON THE ASHLEY RIVER
a son of the second Landgrave Thomas Smith and by Henry
Smith was devised to his son Thomas Smith in the hands of
whose descendants it continued until the war of 1861-1865.
TONGUEWELL
The Perr)^ house, called "Tonguewell," after its builder,
is located at the settlement of Tongueville between the Ashley
and Edisto rivers, thirteen miles out from the town of Sum-
merville. According to information obtained from Mrs. Jen-
nings Wariag Perry, mother of Mrs. J. H. Haskell, and a
water color owned by Mrs. Hampton Perry of Charleston,
this old mansion was built m 1789 by Edward Tongue,
it is said, of pine, cypress and brick, the latter of which
was imported. The other materials were native and pre-
pared by the slaves, who buUt the house. The present
piazza and steps are not the original ones, but were added
later. The house is square in shape and has a "hipped" roof
covered by shingles. The building is elevated from the ground
by a brick basement, which allows space for a cellar beneath
di^dded into four rooms with cement floors, and there were
stored in the good old days all the wines, provisions, etc., for
a plantation home, as well as affording protection in time of
attack. From the front and back of the house steps lead to
the grounds ; one set of steps fronts the avenue of oaks, lead-
ing to a bridge which crosses a creek and an old sun dial that
stood near the bridge. The steps from the rear lead to a gar-
den and to the big kitchen and outbuildings, part of the equip-
ment of a well-constructed place in those days.
The house at Tongueville was not the only estabhshment
possessed by the Perry family, for Edward Perry had bought
from WilUam Wragg a portion of the Ketelby Barony known
as "Poplar Hill" plantation and he also purchased 620 acres
from William Bull and another 147 acres which had been
granted to Bull in 1716. From his three purchases he formed
the three plantations known as "Mansion House," "Old
House " and " Poplar Hill, ' ' which places continued in the pos-
session of himself and family until late in the nineteenth cen-
tury. It is not certain at which of these places Dr. Benjamin
197
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Lucas Perry resided, who died in 1792. At the outbreak of the
Revolutionary War Dorchester, although still a mere village,
was, next to Charles Town and George Town, the largest village
in South Carolina.
INGLESIDE OR THE HAZE
Ingieside Hall on Goose Creek, not far from Dorchester,
was formerly the residence of Hon. John Parker, a member of
the old Congress (1774-1789) who was born in 1749, married
Miss Susannah Middleton and died in 1822. It was bought
afterwards by Professor Francis S. Holmes, a descendant of
Landgrave Smith, and developer of the phosphate deposits of
Carolina, and an existing picture presents the interior of the
house and shows Prof. Holmes in his study.
Francis Simmons Holmes (1815-) was the son of John
Holmes and his wife, Anna Glover. While a youth of about
fourteen years of age he visited England with a maternal
uncle by marriage, a Mr. Lee, of England. Returning to
America he engaged for a number of years in mercantile pur-
suits, in which, however, he was not successful, so removed
to St. Andrew's Parish and devoted his attention to agricul-
ture. Experience taught him that a knowledge of the science
of geology was essential to an intelligent planter. In the pur-
suit of this study he obtained the friendship of the leading
geologist of the country, Professor Agassiz, a letter from whom
is found in the scrap book of F. S. Hohnes, a great-nephew of
Prof. Holmes. A similar friendship was also formed with
Count Pourtales, an engineer, who came to this country about
the same time that Agassiz and Dr. Holmes became intimates.
He became connected with and was assistant to Prof. Price,
U. S. Coast Survey, and visited Prof. Holmes for six weeks
with Agassiz at Ingieside.
Prof. Holmes is best known in connection with the discov-
ery of the commercial value of South Carolina phosphate rock
for fertilizing purposes, and that he was no ordinary man is
manifested by the fact that the boy who left school at the age
of fourteen, by his own application, energy and perseverance
fitted himself for a professor's chair in Charleston College
198
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ON THE ASHLEY RIVER
which he held until the Confederate War, when he was ap-
pointed to office in connection with coast defenses and became
cliief of the Nitre and Mining Bureau in South Carohna and
Georgia. Upon his mthdrawal from the professorship at the
College of Charleston he generously left in the museum his
entire collection of fossils, said to be among the largest and
most valuable in the country. The commercial prosperity of
Charleston in the field of fertihzer industry rests largely upon
the scientific achievements of Professor Holmes, whose knowl-
edge was ungrudgingly given to his fellow-citizens, and who
received from abroad and at home many marks of appreciation
of his genius and position.
Ingleside, a colonial country house, is described by Mrs.
Deas as being "situated on the crest of a gentle elevation;
a square, hip-roofed brick dwelhng having two stories and an
attic ; and sufficiently high from the ground to admit of rooms
beneath." These rooms, however, did not form a basement,
as the floor was some steps below the level of the ground and
really constituted a crude fort.
The front door opened directly from the porch into a large
room, and from this a door gave entrance into the other and
smaller front room. The back rooms were separated from
each other by a narrow hall, in which the staircase with its
heavy balusters were placed. Under the stairway was a flight
of steps leading down to the basement.
There were four rooms on a floor, those on the first floor
being connected in pairs by the "Thoroughfare closets" so
common in old houses. The rooms were wainscoted halfway
up, and had deep, low mndow-seats ; the window sashes were
broad and heavy, and the shutters of paneled wood. The back
door was unusually thick and heavy, being built, so tradition
says, to resist Indian attacks in the early colonial days.
The view from the front windows was over a level field
stretching off to the woods. Near the end of the field a clump
of trees marked the family cemetery where stands the Parker
shaft. Ingleside was for many years the property of the
Parker family, its original name being "The Hays."
199
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
At the time of the Revolution, when the plantation was
owned by Mr. John Parker (whose wife was a Miss Middleton),
the British were marauding near Ingleside one day, and while
Mrs. Parker was sitting near a window sewing a party of these
marauders came up the avenue and fired at her. Fortunately
the ball missed Mrs. Parker, but struck the wall, and the hole
it made could be seen for many years.
A gentle slope leads from the back of the house to the
"lake," where a double row of towering cypresses makes a
romantic walk on the very edge of the water. The lake was
used as a reservoir for irrigating the rice field. Following the
causeway along its banks and crossing a field brings a traveler
to a giant five oak known in tradition as "Marion's Oak," but
someone has facetiously remarked that if Marion dined under
all the oaks under which he was supposed to have given his
famous sweet potato dinner he would have had no time for
fighting, but would have spent his time as uselessly as popular
tradition would have us beUeve George Washington did, viz.,
in sitting in the numberless "Washington Pews" and sleeping
in the numberless "Washington Beds. "
The birthplace of General Marion has been disputed by
many people, but, according to General Irvine Walker, Mr.
Philip E. Porcher, aged 88 years, of Christ Church Parish,
was told by his granduncle, Francis Cordes, that Marion was
born at Goatfield plantation opposite "Chacan gate," not far
from Cordesville. The remains of Marion repose at Belle
Isle, a plantation near Ingleside. His grave was for many
years neglected, but was later cared for through the efforts of
Shirley Carter Hughson, of Sumter, S. C, uow better known
as "Father Hughson."
Another fine old house formerly in this neighborhood was
Woodstock, a spacious dwelling, with lofty columns support-
ing the roof of the portico. Still another ' ' low-country ' ' home
was Fontainebleau, the residence of the late Alonzo J. White.
This house like most of the others has disappeared. An old
brick wall encloses two tombs, those of Joseph Hanscom and
his daughter. And last, but not least. Mount Pleasant on
200
'INGLESIDE" OR "THE HAZE." GOOSE CREEK
INTERIOR AT "INGLESIDE," GOOSE CREEK
Professor Francis S. Holmes in his library
ON THE ASHLEY RIVER
Goose Creek was once the hospitable mansion of Mr. Wm.
Withers, who died there in 1778.
BELLINGER'S FERRY OR BEE'S PERRY
The River Road wliich crosses the Ashley River at Bel-
linger's Ferry follows the stream along its western bank, just
west of the plantations lying between the river and the road
only to recross the Ashley many miles above and enter "Dor-
chester"; thus there were in those days two ways to get to this
old town (a river road on either side of the Ashley). It is of
more than passing interest to note the type of vehicles which
passed over the ferry and the rates charged in those old days.
According to the acts published in Grimke's collections there
were several persons exempted from paying passage money.
The Public Laws of South Carolina, A. D. 1754, No. 848, tells
us that the several sums following were to be paid "in proc-
lamation money, or the value thereof in other money current
in this Province.
For every coach, charriot, landau, berlin, chaise, chair,
calash, or other vehicle drawn by 6 or more horses, the sum of
3s. proclamation money.
For every coach, charriot, landau, berlin, chaise, chair,
calash, or other vehicle drawn by 4 horses, the sum of 2s. 6d.
like money.
For every coach, charriot, landau, berlin, chaise, chair,
calash, or other vehicle vidth 4 wheels, draAvn by less than four
horses and more than 1 the sum of 2s. like money.
For every chaise or chair drawn by 2 horses and not having
4 wheels, the sum of Is. 6d. hke money.
For every chair or chaise and single horse, Is. like money.
For every wagon drawn by 4 horses or oxen, the sum of 2s.
like money.
For every cart. Is. like money.
For every horse, mule or ass, laden or unladen, and not
drawing, 3d. like money.
For every foot-passenger whatsoever, 2d. like money.
For every man and horse, 4d. like money.
For every drove of oxen or neat cattle, the sum of 3d. per
head, like money.
For every drove of calves, hogs, sheep or lambs, the sum
of iy?d. per head, like money. ' '
201
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
MAG WOOD'S GARDENS
Just below St. Andrew's Church is found the Old Magwood
Gardens which contains nineteen acres of japonicas, azaleas,
holly, mistletoe, ivy and hundreds of other trees of Japan and
native to South Carohna. The gardens have passed from the
possession of the Magwood family, but Bishop Moreland, of
California, whose grandmother was a Magwood, writes from
England, while at the Lambeth Conference as a guest of the
Archbishop of Canterbury, that Simon Magwood built as a
to^vn house the place (now owned by Mr. Henry C. Williams)
at the southwest corner of King Street and South Battery.
It was built as a wedding present to his daughter, Susan C.
Alagwood, upon her marriage to Andrew Moreland, grand-
father of Bishop Moreland. Simon Magwood was a rich
Charleston merchant who owned a cotton plantation in St.
Andrew's Parish as well as the gardens.
DRAYTON HALL
Of all the beautiful manor houses which formerly stood on
the estates lying in St. Andrew's Parish, contingent to Ashley
River, "Drayton Hall" alone is left. The first site of Charles-
ton was over in that vicinity and the settlements along the
Ashley River were made by wealthy cultivated English gentle-
men and their families. Among them were the Draytons, al-
though not holding lands originally granted their family, but
early acquired from former grantees. Like the Bulls they
acquired valuable properties to the southward in Granville
County, but continued to make their homes on their estates on
the Ashley River. Thomas Drayton, son of the Honorable John
Drayton, toward the end of the eighteenth century largely in-
creased his holdings on the river, which were again disposed
of "by his grandson, the late Reverend John G. Drayton, so
that their present holdings are restricted to the Drayton Hall
property and a portion of Magnolia.
The letters of Ehza Lucas abound in reference to festal
days at Drayton Hall and other mansions on the Ashley, and
202
SIDE VIEW OE "DRAYTON HALL'
ON THE ASHLEY RIVER
it is said that it was at Drayton Hall that she tirst met the man
who later became her husband, Chief Justice Pinckney.
Perhaps the most distinguished of the family of Draytons
was William Henry Drayton, who was born at Drayton Hall,
and who became first Chief Justice from the Independent State
of South Carolina. He went to England when he was a boy,
in company with Charles Cotesworth Pinckney and Thomas
Pinckney. These three lads attended "Westminster School in
London, and afterwards went to Oxford University. Then
they returned to South Carolina to work and fight side by side
against that unjust ruler. King George the Third. Concern-
ing Chief Justice Drayton, a most amusing incident is narrated
in a letter of Honorable Richard Hutson :
". . . . New Battery, which General Lee has entirely
demolished excepting three guns. His first question upon see-
ing it was, what d d fool planned this Battery? A by-
stander replied that it had been planned by Mr. Drayton, our
present Chief Justice. Says he, he may be a very good Chief
Justice, but he is a d d bad engineer, for if the enemy had
had the planning of it, they could not have fixed it in a better
place for the reduction of Fort Johnson. ' '
Drayton Hall was built in 1740 by Thomas Drayton, father
of "WilHam and Henry, and named after the family residence
at North Hamptonshire, England. This home is built of brick,
with large columns of Portland marble and is said to have
cost ninety thousand dollars, much of the fine material having
been imported from England. The wainscoting, which at a
later date was repainted, extends from the floor to the ceiling.
Over the large, massive mantles are frames set in the wainscot
for pictures or coats of arms. The fireplaces are adorned with
colored tiles. In one of the cellars there were at one time a
number of marble columns lying on the ground, this giving rise
to the story that the old mansion was never completed.
It is said that Chief Justice Drayton designed one side of
the great seal of South Carolina, the other side having been
contributed by Arthur Middleton, his neighbor, signer of the
Declaration of Independence. Drayton died at the early
203
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
age of thirty-seven, while attending Congress in Phila-
delphia in 1779.
A visitor to South Carolina gives the following account of
Drayton Hall :
"We stopped to dine with Dr. Drayton, at Drayton Hall.
The house is an ancient huilding, but convenient and good ; and
the garden is better laid out, better cultivated and stocked with
good trees, than any I have hitherto seen. In order to have
a fine garden you have nothing to do but to let the trees remain
standing here and there, or in clumps, to plant bushes in front
of them, and arrange the trees according to their height. Dr.
Drayton's father, who was also a physician, began to lay out
the garden on this principle ; and his son, who is passionately
fond of a country life, has pursued the same plan. The pros-
pect from the garden is like all other views in this part of
the country."
At the death of this last Charles Drayton in 1820 he de-
vised to his son Charles — another Charles Drayton, M. D. —
"his place called Drayton Hall situate on the Ashley River,"
and the property still remains in, and is occupied by the
descendants of the name, viz., the heirs of the late Charles
H. Drayton.
MAGNOLIA GARDENS
At one period Magnolia Gardens and Drayton Hall com-
prised a single estate, but this property later was divided into
two tracts, when one of the Drayton brothers acquired Drayton
Hall and the other Magnolia Gardens.
Below Ave quote from a description concerning Magnolia
Gardens on the Ashley, written by Miss Constance Fenimore
Woolson in Harper's Magazine for December, 1875 :
"Next above Drayton Hall is beautiful Magnolia. In the
spring the steamer carries tourists to this enchanting garden,
where they wander through glowing aisles of azaleas, and
forget the lapse of time, recalled from the trance of enjoyment
only by the whistle of the boat which carries them back to the
city. The old mansion at Magnolia was burned by a detach-
ment of Sherman's army, as were nearly all the homesteads
in the parish of St. Andrew's, but a pretty modern cottage has
been erected on its site. ' '
204
TOWN HOUSE OF THE BULL FAMILY, WHOSE COUNTRY ESTATE, "ASHLEY HALL,"
LAY IN ST. ANDREW'S PARISH
Now owned and occupied by Mr. H. Ficken
ON THE ASHLEY RIVER
Speaking of the gardens, she says :
"Seven persons touching fingertips can just encircle the
sylphide rose-tree seventeen feet in height by twenty feet wide.
There are also many rare trees and shrubs, among them the
sacred tree of the Grand Lama, Cupressus lusitanica. But the
glory of the garden is the gorgeous coloring of the azaleas,
some of the bushes sixteen and seventeen feet through by
twelve feet high, others nineteen and twenty feet through by
thirteen feet high, solid masses of blossoms in all the shades of
red, from palest pink to deepest crimson, and now and then
a pure white bush, like a bride in her snowy lace. It is almost
impossible to give a Northerner an idea of the affluence of color
in this garden when its flowers are in bloom.
"Imagine a long walk with the moss-draped hve oaks over-
head, fairy lakes and bridges in the distance, and on each side
the great fluffy masses of rose and pink and crimson reaching
far above your head, thousands upon tens of thousands of
blossoms packed close together, with no green to mar the
intensity of their color, rounding out in swelhng curves of
bloom down to the turf below, not pausing a few inches above
it and shomng bare stems or trunks, but spreading over the
velvet and trailing out like the Arabian Nights. Eyes that
have never had color enough find here a full feast, and go
away satisfied at last. And with all their gorgeousness, the
hues are delicately mingled ; the magic effect is produced not
by unbroken banks of crude red, but by blended shades, like
the rich Oriental patterns of India shawls, which the European
designers, with all their efforts, can never imitate. ' '
Thomas Nelson Page pays the following tribute to this
magnificent garden of which every South Carohnian should
be proud:
"It was the most magnificent display that I have ever seen.
It cannot be described. It is beyond expression. I have seen
a great many celebrated gardens, including those at Cintra,
near Lisbon, and the Kew Gardens in England, and while the
natural conditions at Cintra, where the gardens placed up a
mountain, are better and more favorable, there can be no doubt
at all that the floral display at Magnolia is the more beautiful. ' '
Magnoha on the Ashley is now in the possession of Mr.
Norwood Hastie, whose mother was a Miss Drayton. The
Hastie family are particularly generous in that they open, for
a short period in the springtime, these gardens to visitors.
205
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
RUNNYMBDE
One of the most beautiful old places on the Ashley
Eiver is "Eunnymede," which adjoins and is just above
Magnolia Gardens.
It was settled before the Revolution, but no incidents of
historic or romantic interest are, during this period, connected
therewith. Soon after the Eevolution, it was the home of Hon.
John JuUus Pringle, who was Speaker of the House of
Assembly in 1787, and Attorney General of the State for many
years from 1792. The Duke de la Eochefoucault Liancourt
spent some time with him as a guest at his home in Charleston,
and it was with Mr. Pringle he made his trip up the Ashley.
In his account of this trip he makes the following reference
to Eunnymede.
"Hence" (i.e., from Ashley Ferry) "we crossed the river,
and stopped at a plantation lately purchased by Mr. Pringle,
the former name of which was Greenville, but which he has
named Susan's Place, in honour of his lovely wife. This
plantation is likewise without a house, that of the former
occupier having been consumed by fire; on the foundation of
this building, which remains unhurt, the new mansion is to be
erected, which will be finished this summer. . . . The situ-
ation is much the same as that of Fitterasso, except that the
morasses, covered with reeds, lie on the other side. The
river flows close to the garden, and the ships, which con-
tinually sail up and down the river may anchor here with
great convenience. ' '
The new mansion was completed in due time and the plan-
tation was by Mr. Pringle ultimately named "Eunnymede"
by which name it has ever since continued to be known.
Thomas Fuller conveyed to John Julius Pringle 637 acres off
the adjoining plantation which was added to Eunnymede.
Under the will of John Juhus Pringle who died in 1841, the
Eunnymede property passed to his son, William Bull Pringle,
who added an adjoining tract of 450 acres. The entire tract
was thereafter acquired by the late C. C. Pinckney who for
years mined off the phosphate deposits. The mansion house
built by Mr. John Julius Pringle was destroyed by the enemy
206
ON THE ASHLEY RIVER
in 1865. The present residence was built by the late Mr.
C. C. Pinckney.
MIDDLETON GARDENS
Above Runnymede stands the old Pinckney place, which is
noted for its beautiful formal gardens and velvety lawns. A
house is found upon this property, said to have been con-
structed around the remains of the old brick kitchen.
MILLBROOK
The name "Millbrook" appears to have been given to the
place above Eunnymede, now owned by J. Ross Hannahan,
during the ownership of John AUeyne Walter. By Abraham
Ladson, to whom a deed for the property had been executed in
1786, it was conveyed to Honorable Thomas Middleton in 1786.
The deed does not appear on record but the boundaries in
deeds of the line of adjoining places show that Thomas Middle-
ton owned it, and for some reason, probably to fortify his title,
Thomas Middleton on 17 September, 1786, took out a warrant
for a new grant which appears to have been issued. He also
purchased the Vaucluse property lower down the river and
does not appear to have ever made Millbrook his residence.
Possibly the residence house had been burned. He died in
1795 and the property remained in his estate until 1838 when
it was conveyed by his heirs and representatives to J. Pinckney
Clements as Millbrook plantation containing 338 acres.
CHAPTER XI
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND,
THE PLACES AND THE PEOPLE
ST. ANDREW'S PARISH AND ST. PAUL'S
N Stono River are found many his-
toric spots, some of which will be
subsequently discussed in connection
with John's Island. On the main-
land, however, adjacent to Charles-
ton, was the Eliza Lucas plantation
conrmonly known as the Bluff, on old
Wappoo Creek before Elliott's cut
was made. It was on the trucking
place lately in the possession of John N. Voorhees. Here Eliza
Lucas sat in her "little study," and planned such wonderful
things for South Carolina.
On the Stono also Lived Martha Ferguson Blake, who mar-
ried William Washington, and both are buried in the old
ElUott private cemetery on "Live Oak," St. Paul's Parish,
not far from Rantowles bridge. There in the sadly neglected
graveyard are also buried Colonel WilUam Washington and
his wife, Jane Riley Elliott, and the only inscription on the
stone which covers them both is "My parents Dear Lie Here."
This is on the mainland, and is a little above John's Island
Ferry, which has long been in operation.
JOHN'S ISLAND HOUSES
During the Revolutionary War many stirring scenes were
transacted in the neighborhood of John's Island, and Mrs.
EUet's Domestic History of the Revolution tells many of the
most interesting of these, including the incident of a Fenwick
child being rescued by a Miss Gibbes. A miniature of the
latter is owned by Miss Anna Gibbes, the subject being Mrs.
Alexander Garden, nee Mary Anna Gibbes (The Heroine of
the Stono), who saved the life of an infant cousin during the
208
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
Eevolution when the British were firing upon the house. The
infant afterwards became Major Fenwick, of the War of 1812.
This story is often erroneously ascribed to the house called
Fenwick Castle, but Mrs. Ellet says that "Fenwick Place,"
still called "Headquarters," was three miles from "Peaceful
Retreat," the Gibbes home. From the fact that the graves
of Robert Gibbes and Sarah, his wife, are found in a graveyard
about three miles beyond Headquarters, it would seem that
Peaceful Retreat was adjacent to that cemetery.
Near the Ferry stood the Laurels, built by Mr. TurnbuU,
on a high bluff now called Simmons Bluff. The house was con-
structed of black cypress, held together by hand- wrought nails.
It stood on a high brick foundation, and was three and a half
stories high, containing 32 rooms. In the old burying ground
adjacent to the home site are found the names of Mrs. Edith
Matthews and several of the Simmons family, while another
graveyard about two miles distant on the roadside contains
tombstones bearing the names of Barnard Smith ElUott, Bar-
nard Elliott, Robert Gibbes (died July 4, 1794, aged 64 years)
and his wife, Sarah Gibbes (died 1825, aged 79 years).
Letters from Kinsey Burden to Micah Jenkins (of Wood-
land and Capes plantations), about roads on John's Island,
speak of the "Old Ridge Road" as a "man and horse way —
' a foot way for my people to and from Church, ' ' ' and describe
the east end of the Old Ridge Road, from "your middle gate
on said road where it enters the pine barren through to the
lower or River Road. ' ' Kinsey Burden also says that Micah
Jenkins had attempted to move the public landing from the
place of Mr. Jenkin's son-in-law, Mr. Gervais. John Louis
Gervais was an intimate friend and companion of Henry
Laurens, and his descendants are still extant.
FENWICK CASTLE
At what date the first Fenwick came to South Carolina is
not known, but it was about the beginning of the eighteenth
century. During the French Invasion in 1706 he commanded
a company of militia. In South Carohna we find Edward
Fenwick, sometimes called Honorable, as a member of His
14 209
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Majesty's Council in 1747. He was married twice, his first
wife being Martha Izard, daughter of Honorable Ralph Izard.
Their only child, Ehzabeth, married John Barnwell, but she
died within a year and left no issue.
In 1753 Edward Fenwick married Mary Drayton, daugh-
ter of Thomas Drayton, and by her had many children. After
her husband 's death Mrs. Fenwick married William Gerard de
Brahm, an engineer ofiScer in the service of the colonies of
South Carolina, and removed to Philadelphia. Her will
is dated 1805.
Edward Fenwick 's children were as follows : Edward Fen-
wick, John Fenwick, Sarah Fenwick, who was twice married,
first to John MacCartan Campbell, ,of Charleston, 1777. Mr.
Campbell bought from his brother-in-law (the Hon. Edward
Fenwick) a residence on Lower Meeting Street in Charleston,
now known as the Calhoun Mansion. After her husband's
death Sarah married Dr. George Jones, of Savannah. An-
other daughter of Edward Fenwick, Mary, married "Walter
Izard, son of Ralph Izard, but died shortly after her marriage,
and in 1758 was bom her brother Thomas, of whom very little
is known, which is true also of Robert, bom 1761.
Martha Fenwick, another child of Edward, married in 1778
Thomas Gadsden, a captain in the first regiment South Caro-
lina Continentals, a son of General Christopher txadsden.
The daughters seemed to have contracted brilliant marriages ;
one of them, Charlotte Elizabeth, was twice married, her first
husband being William Leigh Pierce, of Virginia, a captain in
the Continental Army, who was voted a sword by Congress
for his good conduct at the battle of Eutaw Springs. William
Pierce and his wife settled after the war in Georgia and wje
find him as a delegate from that State to the Constitutional
Convention. After his death his widow, Charlotte, married
Ebenezer Jackson, of Massachusetts, a lieutenant in the
third Continental artillery. Their daughter, Harriett Jack-
son, married her first cousin. Commodore Tattnall.
Of the next two Fenwick children, Selina and Matilda, little
is known, except that Selina was appointed sole executrix of
her mother's will and Matilda married Robert Giles. Edward
210
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
Fenwick seems to have been fond of repeating names in his
family, or to have followed the fashion of naming a living
child for one that had died, as we find a Robert WilUam Fen-
■\vick, born in 1765, as we also find a John Eoger Femvick, born
in 1773. This John became a second Ueutenant in the Marine
Corps, rising from that to a captaincy. From this sei-vice he
resigned to enter another branch of military hfe and died in
1842 as brevet brigadier general. He is the last child, gene-
alogically speaking, but his sister Harriett, who was younger
than himself by four years is more interesting to us. She mar-
ried Josiah Tattnall, Jr. (second son of Josiah Tattnall and
Miss Mullrayne), who was born at his grandfather's place,
Bonaventure, in Georgia. Harriett's husband became Gov-
ernor of Georgia, and her son, who married his cousin, Miss
Jackson, became Commodore Josiah Tattnall.
There was one other son, George Fenwick, of whom we
learn very little, suffice it to say that when the Hon. Edward
Fenwick, a member of the King's Council in South Carolina
died in New York on 7th of July, 1775, his mdow and sons char-
tered the sloop Commerce for the voyage to Charles Town,
whither they carried his remains for interment.
When Edward Fenwick 's will was read Robert Gibbes and
John Gibbes were found to be quaUfied executors, although
Robert alone served. There was a close kinship between
the Gibbes and Fenwick families, the Hon. John Fenwick,
of South Carolina, who died about 1747, having mar-
ried Elizabeth Gibbes, a daughter of Gov. Robert Gibbes, of
South Carohna. Although the Fenwicks elected to drop their
titles of nobility, the records in England clearly show them to
have been of noble origin, and it is doubtless due to this fact
that Fenwick goes by the name of Lord Ripon. A partition in
the Court of Chancery, the original being in a collection of
Prof. Yates Snowden, of the University of South Carohna,
shows that they were a family of immense belongings, and
much other information is set forth. It is with interest that we
read in Rice's Digested Index that "in 1796 Miss Fenwick was
allowed to bring certain negroes into the State."
211
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
The Fenwick mansion is a beautiful home built of brick
and erected in a substantial and dignified way. The f agade of
this building reveals a two-story structure erected over a deep
brick basement employed as a fort in primitive times.
Within the basement is found an old well used to supply
the garrison with water in case of seige, and an underground
passage which extends about a hundred yards to a little gully
at the rear of the house. It is a brick passage large enough
to permit a man to crawl through on hands and knees, make
his escape, and give the alarm of Indian attacks. In addition
to these measures for protection the note of defense is again
struck in the substantial inside shutters of the windows. The
house has a hipped-roof upon the top of which is erected a
small observation platform which commanded a view of the
country for miles around.
The interior decorations of the building are unusually
beautiful, the panehng of the up and down stairs rooms being
of cedar, and the wainscoting of pine. The mantels are very
highly decorated, the pattern of the wall of Troy occurring
frequently. The railings of the staircase are of mahogany,
and the style in which the entire house is finished can be real-
ized from the fact that the latches of the windows are all of
solid silver. The rooms measure sixteen by eighteen feet, with
unusually high ceilings. The carving around the mantel in
the largest sitting-room is extraordinarily beautiful, being
a combination of the St. Andrew's Cross with the Greek Key
and Acanthus leaf.
Fenwick Castle has many romantic stories connected with
it, perhaps the most interesting being that concerning the love
affair of a daughter of the house with one of her father's
grooms. Fenwick was sometimes called Lord Ripon, and was
noted for the fact that he had a private race course laid out
in front of his house. It is doubtless true that one of the girls
did fall in love with some handsome young Englishman who
came to bring some thoroughbred racers to her father's estate.
However, the father would have none of the marriage, and
we can picture the unhappy scene which transpired in this old
house with its magnificent furnishings when the girl pleaded
212
"BRICK HOUSE"
The old Roper-Stanyarne Home oo John's Island, near Charleston
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
in vain to be alloAved to marry her lover. Consent being re-
fused, it is said that the couple ran away and were married,
whereupon the father pursued them, with very tragic conse-
quences. He is said to have hung the young man while the
latter was seated on liis horse, causing the girl to lash the
horse from under him, resulting in her lover's death and her
broken heart.
The same sternness of character was exhibited by Edward
Fenwick, as he was among the Loyalists in South Carolina, and
his estates were confiscated. Nothing is known of the life of
the Fenwick family after the Revolution except what informa-
tion was found in legal papers pertaining to the estate. Their
genealogy is given in full in the South Carolina Historical and
Genealogical Magazine.
The only other really old place on John's Island is the old
Eoper place down near Legareville, known as Brick House.
Although deserted, it is still standing, and is closely connected
with the history of the Hext and Roper families, while graves
of Stanyames and Freers are found in the little overgrown
burying ground not far distant from the house. The place now
belongs to the wife of Bishop Knight, who came into posses-
sion of it through her first husband, the gallant Captain
William Yates. On Kiawah Island stands a handsome house
belonging to the Vanderhorst estate.
EDISTO ISLAND AND ITS HOMES
The first mention concerning Edisto Island is found in a
history of the baronies of South Carolina when "On the 18th
March, 1675, a formal grant for 12,000 acres on Ashley River
was issued to Anthony, Earl of Shaftsbury, but for some
reason the Earl of Shaftsbury did not seem at first to have
taken very kindly to his signiory on Ashley River and incUned
to estabUsh himself elsewhere." On the 23rd of May, 1674,
the Earl wrote to Maurice Matthews: "My thoughts were to
have planted on Ashley River, but the people tooke soe little
care to allow or provide for me any accomodacon neare them
having taken up for themselves all the best conveniences on
that river and left me not a tolerable Place to plant on nearer
213
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
than two Miles from the Water that I am forced to seeke out in
another place and resolve to take me a Signiory at Edisto
Eiver. ' ' The place selected by him was on Edisto Island (then,
called Locke Island), and the person selected to take it up was
Mr. Andrew Percivall. Percivall seems to have been some sort
of connection of the Earl of Shaftsbury as in the letter to
Matthews the Earl describes Percivall as one "Who hath a
Eelacon to my Family. ' '
Percivall was not only to take up a signiory for the Earl,
but was to make a settlement there for the Lord Proprietors,
and to be independent of the Government at the settle-
ment on Ashley Eiver. Mr. Henry Woodward was directed
to treat with the Indians of Edisto and buy it of them,,
but this projected settlement of Edisto Island seems to have
been abandoned.
In South Carolina until 1716 the Indian trade was con-
ducted solely under the auspices of individual enterprise.
Next to the traders were the burden bearers, who frequently
consisted of boys, under the direction of an experienced
"voyageur." The place of Peter St. Julien, near Dorchester
(a town near the head of the Ashley Eiver) was a great camp-
ing ground for these traders, as from this place the trails to
the Congaree and Chickasaw diverged. A caravan, for in-
stance, on the latter route leaving Charleston would stop first
at St. Julien 's, thence proceed to Wasmasaw, thence to "The
Ponds" and on to Edisto, thence to Fort Moore, or Savannah
Town, a short distance below Hamberg, opposite Augusta,
Ga. Nearly the entire railway system which had been con-
structed up to 1859 followed almost precisely on the routes of
the old Indian trails of her infant commerce.
An Act dated June, 1714, is entitled "An act for continuing
the road to Edisto Island and making a bridge over Dawhoo
Creek, and finishing the road to Port Eoyal, and making a
bridge over the South Edisto Eiver. ' ' Some of the names of
the inhabitants of Edisto Island are found in an Act dated
1751 in which commissioners were appointed for "cutting,
clearing and cleaning 'Watt's Cutt' " and all the male inhab-
itants, from the ages of 16 to 60 years, living and residing from
214
VANDERHORST HOUSE, CHAPEL STREET, CHARLESTON
immsmaiif t
VANDERHORST HOUSE ON KIAWAH ISLAND
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
the plantation of Captain William Eddings, to the plantations
of William Adams and Joshia Grimball, inclusive, and Je-
hossey Island ' ' shall work on the said Cutt. ' '
During the Eevolutionary War Edisto Inlet was particu-
larly infested by privateers, "refugees' boats," and Eow-
G-alleys, coming up from St. Augustine, seeking cattle for the
garrison there, plunder of indigo and rice, and revenge. These
"refugee boats" were long, low, uncovered pettiaugers, car-
ried from 40 to 50 men, armed with muskets and boarding
pikes, and mamied each -with 24 oars, 12 sweeps to the side,
and carried each a six-pounder in the bow and a four-pounder
in the stern ; they were rigged with sliding gunter masts and
latteen sails, very hke the pirate galleys of the Mediterranean,
and were usually manned by refugee royalists who had fled
from the State, and by Mediterranean sailors from the Greeks
at New Smyrna.
Edisto Island is bounded, roughly speaking, on the north
by the North Edisto River, spoken of as Edisto Inlet ; on the
south by the South Edisto River; west by Dawhoo River,
which connects these two large rivers ; and on the east by the
Atlantic Ocean. This island has been facetiously called "The
Independent Republic of Edisto," because, at the time pre-
ceding the Civil War, she threatened to secede from the State
of South CaroUna, unless the State seceded from the Union.
Although the main industry of the island was the planting
of Sea Island cotton, many of the planters were college gradu-
ates, and not a few could shoAV university degrees from famous
European universities, for example, Theodore Gaillard
Thomas, M. D., who was born on Edisto Island, S. C, 1831, and
was the son of Rev. Edward Thomas and Jane Marshall Gail-
lard, daughter of Judge Theodore Gaillard. He received his
early education at the College of Charleston and was a gradu-
ate of the Medical College of the State of South Carolina, sub-
sequently went to Europe and studied medicine in the great
scientific centres of the world. After serving as interne at
Belleview Hospital he became professor of obstetrics and dis-
eases of women in the College of Physicians and Surgeons in
New York, and consulting physician to the Nursery and
215
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Child's Hospital at St. Mary's Hospital, Brooklyn. He was
also surgeon and one of the founders of the Woman's Hospital
in New York. He was president of the American Gynaeco-
logical Society, and an honorary member of the Obstetrical
Society of Berhn. Dr. Thomas was twice married, his first
wife being his cousin, Mary Gaillard, and his second wife, a
Miss Willard, of Willard's Academy, N. Y., one of the noted
sisters of that name. He was the author of numerous books
and pamphlets touching subjects connected with his profession,
of which some have been translated into French, German,
Italian and Chinese.
Edisto lands being ill adapted to rice cultivation, the
islanders early turned their attention to the indigo plant.
Their product was in great demand and sold for a higher price
than any other grown and manufactured in the State, but the
culture of indigo ceased to be remunerative and in 1796 experi-
ments were made with the cotton plant.
From a register kept by Mr. Murray, some years previous
to 1826, it appears that in the course of sixteen years, there
were among the white inhabitants sixty-six marriages, two
hundred and twelve births and one hundred and seventy-seven
deaths. The following are mentioned as owning plantations :
Rev. McLeod, Ephraim Mikell, James Clark, William
Eddings, Daniel Townsend, William Seabrook, William C.
Meggott (Meggett), Dr. Chisolm, Gabriel Seabrook, and
Norman McLeod.
Mr. Mills, in his Statistics, says that "It does not appear
that any establishment similar to that of a tavern was ever
attempted on the island ; strangers and visitors are hospitably
entertained in private families and are sent about on horse-
back, or in carriages as their cimcumstances or exigencies may
require." Mr. Mills speaks with authority, as many of his
boyhood days were spent on the island. He goes on to say
that "two ferries were early established but such was the in-
frequency of the intercourse that these ferries have been
discontinued." Contracts were, however, made in Mr. Mills'
time (1826), for the construction of a causeway and ferry from
this island to the mainland, which has ever since been in use.
216
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
Several old homes are found in the interior of the island situ-
ated near the old public roads, but the ferries were for many
years abandoned and passage was made only by boat, thus
most of the old settlements are to be found on the rivers or on
the three bold creeks that cut deep into the island. The one
known as Steamboat Creek comes in from the North Edisto
River. There is a similar large creek sweeping in from the
South Edisto River, called Pierre's Creek, which divides into
two branches known as Fishing Creek and Big Bay Creek.
THE WILLIAM SEABROOK HOUSES
The Wilham Seabrook House on Edisto, according to
Judge Smith, the present owner, was built about 1808 by Mr.
Wilham Seabrook, of Edisto Island, who was a very wealthy
planter and acquired a great deal of property. He died about
1837, and the property continued to be occupied by his Avidow
until after her death, about 1854 or 1855 ; when it was sold, and
purchased by Mr. J. Evans Eddings, then a very wealthy
planter, by whom it was sold some time near the year 1875.
This is a very handsome house. The foundations are of
brick, and the outside weather-boarding is of cypress, of which
the greater portion of the house is built. It is a substantial
three-story dwelling, the eliief architectural feature of which
is the interior stairway in the rear hall which ascends to the
second story by a double flight, broken half way up by a landing
on which a beautiful colonial window with a double arch occurs.
The only other similar set of steps is in the Brown residence in
Charleston, on Ashley Avenue. Unhke the majority of
houses on the island this place does not display the usual
double piazzas on the front, but has a double portico, up
and down stairs.
When the house was bought by Judge Smith there was no
furniture in it of any value; nothing but a few old broken
pieces. The tradition is that a raiding party of Northern sol-
diers, during the Civil War, entered the house, threw nearly
all of the furniture then inside out of the windows and from the
upper piazzas, wrecking most of it, and destroyed a great
many of the banisters and railings of the front stairs
and piazza.
217
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Prior to the acquisition of the property by the elder Mr.
William Seabrook, the land was owned by the Townsend fam-
ily for many years, which family is fully discussed in connec-
tion with Bleak Hall, one of the few "dead houses" on
Edisto Island.
William Seabrook was, as has been said, a man of large
means, and the Seabrook family has spread to the surrounding
islands and to the mainland. Mr. Seabrook was formerly the
owner of Sea Side plantation on Edisto, part of which, lying on
the west side of the middle road, joins lands of Mr. Eddings
the elder. His first will was made in 1836, in which the Charles-
ton house of the Seabrooks is described as being on the south
side of Broad Street, and the east side of Logan. In 1837
Mary Ann and Sarah Seabrook (who married James Legare)
conveyed this property to Andrew Dibble.
In this Seabrook home on Edisto, not far from the steam-
boat landing, LaFayette was entertained at a great ball. Just
before the affair a female infant three weeks old was brought
in and christened. LaFayette took her in his arms and named
her Carolina for the State, and LaFayette for himself. This
was the lady who subsequently lived in the Hopkinson house,
having married a Mr. Hopkinson, and it is curious to note
that she was bom on Washington's Birthday, February the
twenty-second. The old home of the Seabrook family is at
present unoccupied, being in the care of E. T. La Roche, who
married Ruth Seabrook.
OAK ISLAND
An interesting old wooden house is found at Oak Island,
now owned by Mr. E. Mitchell Seabrook, grandson of William
Seabrook the younger. Judge Smith says that the elder Mr.
William Seabrook (whose place is now the property of Judge
Smith, the house on it having been built about 1808), also had
a son, William Seabrook, who owned a plantation about two
miles away called Oak Island. There are some very pretty
photographs of this place and the garden, which were taken,
it is believed, by some Northerner during the war. Concern-
ing these pictures Mrs. George E. Hazlehurst, who was Miss
218
THE WILLIAM SEABROOK HOUSE, EDISTO ISLAND
Now owned by Judge H. A. M. Smith
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
Jennie Mikell, of Edisto, relates that upon one occasion a Miss
Whaley, who was attending a function in Washington, met
during the evening an officer who had been stationed on Edisto
Island when it was occupied by the Federal troops. Finding
that she was from Edisto he went on to describe to her the
gardens at Oak Island as being the most beautiful he had ever
seen. He may well have said so then, as the place boasted of
the finest natural features with which the imported English
landscape-gardener could wish to work.
This gardener had been brought over to this country for the
purpose of laying out the gardens at Oak Island. He utilized
the lakes and little islands much in the style of a Japanese
garden of to-day, and connected these charming little retreats
with rustic bridges. Formal fish ponds were placed at either
end of the garden, and on several of the islets aviaries were
estabhshed, while sacred hlies of India were planted in the
waters of the little lakes.
Oak Island went to John Edward Seabrook, who married
Elizabeth Baynard Whaley, and years after the Civil War it
passed to Mitchell Seabrook, in whose possession is found also
Seaside, one of the largest plantations on Edisto Island, which
is situated near Big Bay Creek, and is adjacent to McConkie's
Beach and Eddingsville Beach. Near this latter place, on
Frampton's Inlet, an old settlement formerly existed, which
has now been swept into the sea.
William Eddings was one of the most prominent men of
this section, and one of the founders of the Presbyterian
church on Edisto. The Register of the Circular Church in
Charleston contains the following entry :
"William Eddings and Theodora Law, Widow, were Sol-
emnly Married together Septemb' : 1733, by me, I being well
assured by a Testimonial to me produced, from under the hand
of the Rev^ : M'' : Moore, Min"' : of a Congregation at Edisto
in this Province (where both parties are well known) that the
purpose of the said Marriage was duly pubHshed in the Meet-
ing-House, and in the Hearing of that Congregation, on three
several Sabbath-days, immediately before Divine Service ; and
no Obiection being made . . ."
219
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Below Eddingsville Beach, to the south, is McConkie's
Beach, the last beach on the island. Between McConkie's
Beach, Big Bay Creek, Fishing Creek (a branch of St. Pierre's
Creek) and the road which leads around the creeks lies a large
body of arable land which contains several plantations, Seaside
being one, and Crawford's (on Store Creek) another. In this
vicinity is found a splendid old house of the island type, built
by an Eddings, inhabited by a Whaley, and now occupied by
Mr. James Whaley. Beyond Big Bay Creek lies Bailey Island,
the Baileys being a family closely connected by marriage to all
the Edisto people. Adjacent to Crawford lies a place called
Freedman's Village, a residence of the freed negroes of
the island.
TOM SBABROOK HOUSE
The Tom Seabrook house is up in the "Burrough," as it is
called in local parlance, being a name applied by "Ediston-
ians" to a certain portion of the islaud lying in its center, to
distinguish it from portions contingent to the North Edisto
River. The house is now in the possession of Mr. Arthur
Whaley, a son of William B. Whaley, and grandson of Edward
Whaley; into whose possession it came by inheritance, the
house having been built about the year 1780. It was bought
later (1840) by Edward Whaley for his son William.
This house is a quaint old-fashioned wooden structure,
built, like the majority of island houses, rather high up from
the ground, on a brick foundation. There is a piazza around
it on three sides, and a hall running through the center with
rooms on either side, and sleeping rooms in the second story.
It was at this place, during the Civil War in 1864, that eight
Confederate soldiers were captured by the Federal forces and
the house bears marks of the bullets fired at that time by the
invaders. There are several branches of the Seabrook family
(to which this dwelling belonged probably at one time, as it has
always gone by the name of the Tom Seabrook house), all of
which are connected and presumably descended from one an-
cestor. As anciently written, the name was Seabrooke ; the
family at present is widely scattered.
220
THE HOPKINSON HOUSE, EDISTO ISLAND
iW^
BRICK HOUSE, EDISTO ISLAND
Built by the Hamiltons but identified with the Jenkins family
Used as a fort in olden limes
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
THE HOPKINSON HOUSE
Of this place Mrs. Julia H. LaRoclie, who was a Miss Hop-
kinson, says that the Hopkinson house is not over 72 years old,
and was built by her father, James Hopkinson. He married
his neighbor, Carolina LaFayette Seabrook, whose christen-
ing has been described in connection with the history of her
father, Mr. William Seabrook. On their extensive wedding
trip, which included a journey to Europe, Mr. and Mrs. Hop-
kinson were entertained while in Paris by the family of Gen-
eral LaFayette, the general himself being dead.
This visit later resulted in an "affaire du coeur," as a
sister of Mrs. Hopkinson, a Miss Seabrook, met (through the
acquaintance Mrs. Hopkinson formed on her wedding trip)
and later married the Count de Lastaigne, thereafter making
her home in Paris. This connection, and the fact that Mrs.
Hopkinson was named Carolina LaFayette, seems to have
exercised a deal of influence over the destiny of herself and
family, as George LaFayette visited America afterwards and
stayed at the Hopkinson house on Edisto Island. What excited
his greatest interest at the time was said to be the existence of
slavery, and he would say wonderingly to Mrs. Hopkinson,
who continued to point out to him the advantages these people
enjoyed, "But, my aunt, they have not hberty."
The house is described as a wooden building conforming
to the square colonial type, and set upon a high brick founda-
tion. Its wide veranda, festooned with rose vines, is reached
by a hospitable looking set of steps ascending from a circular
drive cut into the front lawn.
The term "livable" is one that fairly fits this place, and
gives in a word the whole atmosphere of the Hopkinson family
residence. As so much has been told concerning LaFayette
and his family in connection with this house, it may not be
amiss to conclude this brief account of the charming place with
an account of the departure of LaFayette from America upon
passing Mount Vernon, General LaFayette having expressed
a desire to see this sacred spot where reposed the remains of
his foster-father, George Washington.
221
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
A correspondent of The National Intelligence says that
when the boat, bearing LaPayette down the Potomac, came
abreast of Momit Vernon the General went on deck with his
son, and while the band played Pleyel 's hymn he stood viewing
the home of Washington, tears coursing down his bronzed
cheek. With one arm around the neck of his son, and the other
on the shoulder of Trench Ringgold (then Marshall of the Dis-
trict of Columbia) he took farewell of Washington's home.
Concerning the Hopkinson family, little is known in this
section of the country, but it is eminent in Philadelphia, One
of this name was a celebrated writer, and his son was the com-
poser of "Hail Columbia." The former, Francis Hopkinson,
was born in Philadelphia in 1738. His father, Thomas, was
an Englishman who emigrated to that city, having secured, it
is said, government patronage through his marriage with the
niece of the Bishop of Worchester. Francis Hopkinson mar-
ried Anne Borden of New Jersey; represented that state in
the General Congress of 1776, and signed the Declaration of
Independence. His son, Joseph Hopkinson, who wrote the
song, "Hail Columbia," was also associated with the City
of Philadelphia.
BLEAK HALL
John Townsend was bom at "Bleak Hall" on Edisto
Island, the home where generations of his ancestors had lived
and died. Bleak Hall was so named from the fact that it is
exposed to the gales and breezes of the Atlantic Ocean. John
Townsend was the son of Daniel Townsend (styled in the old
legal family documents "gentleman and planter") and Hepsi-
bah Jenkins his wife. These ancestors were of Anglo, Norman
and Welsh descent, the American progenitor being a younger
son of the Norfolk family of England, of whom the Marquis
To-^vnsend is the head.
The boyhood days of John Townsend were spent in the
regulation plantation life of the South, which gave him a vig-
orous physique and training, enabling him "to ride and shoot
and speak the truth. ' ' When fifteen he was sent to the South
CaroUna College, with "Daddy Sam," the body servant who
t-
5 >
3 W
« H
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
delighted to enlarge upon his use and importance and would
say, "I keep all his money and look after tings." In death
these two were not long parted for in old age they passed away
near together.
While at the College of South Carolina, John Townsend had
a severe illness. After his recovery he entered Princeton Col-
lege where he graduated in a class said to be of note for the
brilHant gifts of some of its member. Among them was R. I.
Breckinridge, of Virginia, his ardent and Ufe-long friend. It
is said that at a dinner party given to the parties marking the
line between Canada and the United States, when Breckinridge
was asked by the English envoy what was his family coat of
arms, replied, "A gallows erectant, a rope pendant and a man
at the endant," which showed that American rebels were still
"persona non grata" in England. Breckinridge is also cred-
ited with the witty remark, "That stars might fall, moons fail
to give their hght, ere Townsend ceased to be polite. ' '
When Townsend returned home, after his college days were
over, he studied law in Charleston, but left this to take charge
of his father's planting interests on Edisto and Wadmalaw
Islands. He was elected to the State Legislature before at-
taining his majority and his father had to await the son's
twenty -tirst birthday to give him the land on which to qualify
for the office. He represented the Parish of St. John's Colleton
for many years in the House and Senate, took great interest in
educational problems, and was trustee for the pubUc schools,
doing much for their promotion.
At the age of thirty-five John Townsend married Mary
Carohne, daughter of Richard and Phoebe Waight Jenkins, of
Wadmalaw Island. About this wooing it is told that he crossed
five miles on the North Edisto River and rode eleven miles on
land through all weathers to visit his "Lady Love," who called
him the "Knight of the Golden Crest. ' ' She became the guid-
ing spirit in their home at Bleak Hall. Wlien he would make
weekly business trips a lamp was placed in the cupola of his
home by which his boat might find a beacon star on its return.
During the Civil War Bleak Hall was confiscated and the
cupola was used as a signal station for the Federal fleet.
223
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Finally the home was burned and the lands divided among the
negroes. It is to be noted that the attitude of the negroes on
Edisto Island toward their masters was remarkable. They
were content with the "forty acres and a mule" which was
given them and did not pillage their master's homes as did
many of the negroes of the other sections of the country. They
regarded themselves as guardians of their master 's property.
Bleak Hall became the victim of the flames of the Federal Army
during the reconstruction days. The house has been rebuilt,
and is very much like the first one. The picture presented is
taken by a pastel sketch done by Miss Phoebe Townsend,
daughter of John Townsend, and by whom the above informa-
tion was given.
In the vicinity of Bleak Hall are to be found, on the North
Edisto, the plantation known as Swallow Bluff, now owned by
Mr. Julian Mitchell, and "Grimball's Point of Pines," often
mentioned in the Acts for establishing roads and ferries, the
GrimbaUs being an old and distinguished family.
Adjacent to the Townsend plantation, separating it from
the sea, is found Botany Bay Island, and further south, behind
Eddingsville Beach, are Shell House plantation. Seaside, and
several other large places. Sea Cloud is also situated not very
far distant from this neighborhood ; a quaint old house named
"Sea" for Seabrook, and "Cloud" for McLeod, when a man
of the first name wedded a maiden of the last.
PROSPECT HILL— EDISTO ISLAND
Prospect Hill house on the South Edisto River is only about
eighty years old, and was abandoned for many years as a
wreck, but the present owner now intends to restore it to its
proper condition. The chief historical interest connected with
the place is found in the title deeds, which are very old, and
have been kept in a bank vault in Columbia for a long period
of time.
Mr. Mikell Whaley, who moved from Edisto Island to Col-
umbia, becoming a distinguished physician of that place, was
the son of Mikell Whaley, of Edisto, and his mother was Miss
224
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
Baynard, of Prospect Hill. Closely connected with this family
also is Judge Marcellus Whaley, of Columbia.
The present owner of this dwelling, P. H. Whaley, a son of
the late Reverend Percival Whaley, plans many and extensive
improvements at Prospect Hill. The house is beautifully
situated on, a little bluff overlooking the waters of the South
Edisto, and is a three-story structure of fine proportions. An
entrance on the ground floor leads to a basement, floored with
flagstones, which contains several beautiful rooms constantly
used in earlier days by the residents of the establishment. The
floor of the piazza on the second story is reached by a broad
flight of steps (in the center) with iron railings, and this
floor forms an agreeable veranda to the basement. Although
the house is not a hundred years old, its air of antiquity, com-
bined with its dignity of construction make it a beautiful
place in spite of its disrepair.
Inside the house the ceilings are very high, and the cornices
very simple. The doors are large, and the wainscoting, and
the woodwork around the mantelpiece, and above the windows
are fine examples of the period immediately following that
known as the Adam period.
Mr. Whaley, now connected with the "^^Mialey-Eaton Service,
Washington, D. C, is a brilhant writer, and was for many
years on the editorial staff of the Philadelphia Ledger. He
will find no more fitting setting for his reconstructive abilities
than the renovating and restoration of the spacious and
gracious house at Prospect Hill on the Edisto.
There are three houses which bear this name — the present
house, the house near Georgetown, and Mr. Bissell Jenkins'
house (formerly Manigault-Barnwell) near Wiltown on Pon
Pon River.
LITTLE EDISTO
Little Edisto Island is owned almost exclusively by Mr. J.
Swinton Whaley, and his home there is called "Little Edisto."
Some of the land on the island is owned by Julian Mitchell, but
it is only a very small portion. The house on Little Edisto
was built by Mr. J. Swinton Whaley 's father, Mikell Whaley,
15 225
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
and is a magnificent frame house built on a high brick founda-
tion. Mr. Whaley is one of the progressive men of the State
and is a representative of the well-known Whaley family,
whose genealogy can be traced in the South Carolina Historical
Magazine files.
At a recent exhibition in the Charleston Museum, showing
the life on the plantations, Mr. J. Swinton Whaley, who is one
of the trustees of the museum, brought from his plantation
"Little Edisto," the old hand com mill, the log rice mortars,
and the fanner baskets, which were put into use for what might
be the last time. A negro over eighty years of age, expert in
the by-gone industry, demonstrated the work. Corn was
ground in the mill and separated with the fanner basket into
the meal, the fine and coarse "grits" or hominy, and the husks.
South Carolina golden rough rice was pounded in the old log
mortar and again the fanner basket was used to separate the
finished rice, the hulls and the rice from flour. These opera-
tions were a part of the daily routine of the old South Carolina
plantations in preparing both the food of the master's family
and that of the hands. There was a corn mill for the use of the
master's house and another in the plantation street where the
negroes ground the corn that was issued to them as rations.
The use of the fanner basket is rapidly becoming a lost art.
Rice has almost ceased to be planted in South Carolina and
examples of the old plantation implements are becoming rare.
The corn mill consists of two very fine French buhr stones that
have been in the family of Mr. Whaley for many generations
and that were presented by him to the museum several
years ago.
Across Russell's Creek, opposite Mr. J. Swinton Whaley 's
place, lies the Ephraim Baynard place, now owned by Charles
Whaley Seabrook (son of E. Barnard Seabrook). The house
is one of the old landmarks of the island, although it is of no
particular significance, architecturally speaking.
Little Edisto and the C. W. Seabrook house, as well as Old
Dominion are found near a place known to the Edistonians as
the Borough, the origin of the name being entirely unknown.
226
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
It is in the interior of the island between St. Pierre's Creek
and the Dawhoo River.
FROGMORE
The Edward C. Whaley house, Frogmore, is exactly oppo-
site the Edisto school house, on the public road. It is an old
wooden building on a brick foundation, and was built by Dr.
Edward Mitchell, of Waccamaw when he married Miss
Elizabeth Baynard.
Another nearby place was Brookhnes, the Ephraim Sea-
brook plantation, which lay inland in the immediate vicinity
of Frogmore, between it and Laurel Hill. This latter has on it
a substantial old dwelling which belonged to one of the Edward
Seabrooks, but the place is now partitioned between Edward
Bailey and Charles Seabrook by right of purchase.
PETER'S POINT
On St. Pierre's Creek there is a fine peninsula formerly
known as Peter's Point, which for years belonged to the heirs
of John J. Mikell, and is now owned by Mr. J. Townsend MikeU.
There is also an old house called Pierre Point House, con-
structed in 1840. The front piazzas are found on both floors,
but in the rear these extend only on the lower story. The
timbers for this place were specially cut, being unusually long,
to resist the strain and swing caused by storms. The rooms
are large (18 by 20), there being two on each side of the hall,
and two smaller ones in the rear. Almost the entire second
story is enclosed in glass, and resembles a conservatory. There
is a most interesting double stairway in the rear hall, which
affords an ascent to the second story and shelters a descent
into the basement.
It is a remarkable fact that with but few exceptions the
old houses on Edisto (and there are many of them) are nearly
all still standing.
POPE HOUSE
Above St. Pierre's Creek, in the same neighborhood as
Prospect Hill and Laurel Hill, is found a quaint house which
mav perhaps be considered in some ways the most interesting
" 227
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
place on Edisto Island. It is called the Pope House, better
known in history as the Old Middleton Place, it having been
the home for many years of Ohver H. Middleton. Although
the house is known in history as the Old Middleton Place, the
names of John and Joseph Pope are to be found signed as
"commissioners" in the records of the Episcopal church after
the year 1792 along with the names Jenkins, Fickhng, Bailey,
Wilson, Seabrook, Simmons, Grimball, Murray, Hannahan,
Crawford, Eddings and Beckett. The distinguished jurist,
Daniel Pope, is of this family. The name of 0. H. Middleton
does not appear until about 1841, according to Mr. Seabrook 's
sketch of the Episcopal church on Edisto.
Ohver Hering Middleton was the third son of Governor
Henry Middleton. His first venture in hf e was as a midship-
man in the United States Navy, but presently he resigned this
office and returned to his estates in South Carohna, where he
later shared with unbroken spirit the ruin that overwhelmed
his class during the Civil War. He married Susan Matilda
Harriet, only daughter and heiress of Robert Frail Chisohn,
M. D., of Edisto Island, and by her had a son, Oliver Hering
Middleton, who was killed in the Confederate service at Mata-
dequin Creek. His second child was Mary JuUa, who married
Benjamin H. Read, of Rice Hope, on the Cooper River, and his
third child, Susan Middleton, died unmarried at St. Cathe-
rines, Canada. His daughter Eleanor married Benjamin
Huger Rutledge, Esq., colonel of the 4th S. C. Cavalry, C. S. A.,
and his other daughter was Olivia, who married Mr. Frederick
Rutledge Blake, late captain of the C. S. A.
It is through this branch of the Middleton family that we
are interested in this house, although it is of significance also,
because of the Hamilton holdings on Edisto, that Governor
Arthur Middleton 's eldest son married Elizabeth Hamilton,
a daughter of the Honorable James Hamilton. It is of note
concerning the Chisohn family that Mr. Alexander Chisohn, a
merchant of Charleston, married a Mrs. Sarali Maxwell, of
Charleston, who was the widow of WiUiam Maxwell, Esq.,
of Edisto.
228
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
The building itself is a handsome affair, rather more elab-
orate than the usual island houses. The rooms are particularly-
spacious and airy, and the ceihngs unusually high, the col-
onial idea of square rooms being everywhere evident. The
lower story of the house displays elaborate haaid-carved cor-
nices and woodwork over the door and windows. In many
respects the place differs from the general run of the island
houses, one strange feature being a circular stairway. In
some of the rooms the mantels are of Itahan marble, and the
chimneys are constructed with five flues. The brick basement
is arched, and the foundation timbers very large and heavy.
A ghost story concerning the Middleton place is connected
with the Chisohn owners, and it is said that Mrs. Chisolm's
spirit is often seen at twiUght down by the big gate ; she stands
in the shadow of one of the brick posts that separate this old
domain from the public road. Mrs. John Andell, of John's
Island, who was a Miss Seabrook and lived in this old house
for many years, says that the negro tenants refuse to pass the
place after dark for fear of meeting this "Haunt."
BRICK HOUSE
The "Brick House" property was granted to Paul Hamil-
ton by the Lord Proprietors about the time of the first settlers
in and around Charleston and vicinity. Mr. Edward J.
Jenkins has in his possession papers dating back to 1703, which
prove that Brick House and its outhouses were built before this
date, though the exact year has not been established. It is
thought that the house was ereceted some time between the
years 1670 and 1680. Four hundred and thirty acres of land
and one hundred and eighty-one acres of marsh were granted
to Paul Hamilton. The property was bounded on the north
by Russel Creek, on the south by lands of Capt. William
Bower, on the east by lands of Thomas Sachwerell, and on the
west by lands of Lewis Price. With the exception of Paul
Hamilton, these names are not remembered on the island, there
being no descendants.
Concerning the Hamilton family Mr. A. S. Sally, Jr.,
writes : "In the oflSce of the Historical Commission in Colum-
229
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
bia there is a small manuscript volume, 'A Booke for Record-
ing of Cattle Markes & others Given by Hono. Thomas Smith
Esq. Landgrave & Govern 'r in Sept 1694.' " Previous to this
time a few marks had been recorded at random in other vol-
imies. Some of the first record of Cattle Markes & others refer
to "Mr. John Hamilton of Edestoh Island in Colleton County
& Recorded his marke of Cattle Hoggs. &c : being as f olloweth,
In each Eare two Half Moones. The Topps of both Eares
Cropt & Soe Shtt down to bottom of each Eare this Brand
Marke as per Margent. This day came Mr. John Hamilton of
Edestoh Island in Colleton County and Recorded ; His daugh-
ter, Mary Hamilton,. . . his Sonn Paul Hamilton . . .
and his daughter Anna Hamilton."
Mr. Edward J. Jenkins, the present owner of "Brick
House" says, "The property reverted to James and Harriett
Maxwell and was purchased from them by Joseph Jenkins, my
great-grandfather, who willed it to his son. Col. Joseph Evans
Jenkins (my grandfather) from whom the property passed to
my father, John Micah Jenkins, and from him it came to me.
As I am the father of four boys and four girls, it probably will
remain in our possession until the house crumbles into dust."
The brick from which the house is built came from Holland.
The house is Dutch colonial, the walls are two feet tliick and the
facings on the corners and under the windows are of concrete.
The panelings of the rooms are cypress and some are painted
in oil by a master hand. All the lumber used was the best and
was seasoned for years. The work was done by carpenters
brought from England.
THE MORTONS AND THE WILKINSONS
The present Ed. Wilkinson house on Edisto Island was said
to have been built by one of the Jenkins family. It is a con-
ventional wooden structure rising upon a high brick founda-
tion, suitable for the climate of the Sea Islands. Its chief
architectural feature is its front piazza which has unusually
large and beautiful columns. The house is adjacent to the
Murray homestead and has near it the family burial ground.
230
JOHN'S ISLAND AND EDISTO ISLAND
The family of Wilkinsons is a very old and honorable one
in the State. Landgrave Joseph Morton came to the colony
about 1681 and is said to have married a Miss Blake. His son
Joseph Morton married Sarah Wilkinson, who, becoming a
widow in 1721, married two years later. Honorable Arthur
Middleton and died in 1765, leaving a long and interesting will,
the first bequests of which relate to her own kindred. She
gave Christopher Wilkinson, son of her "Cousin" Francis
Wilkinson, deceased, a plantation on Wadmalaw Island,
"Commonly Called Bear-Bluff Ladinwah and Morton Town";
gave Edward Wilkinson, son of said ' ' Cousin Francis, ' ' a plan-
tation or island opposite to Willtown (there are several Wil-
kinson graves in the burying ground at Willtown on the Bluff)
and the lots in Willtown which she had bought of her ' ' Cousin ' '
Joseph Wilkinson and Robert Yonge, deceased, and the build-
ings thereon and a tract of land in the upper part of Beech
Hill, St. Paul's Parish; gave Morton Wilkinson, son of said
"Cousin Francis" two plantations called Tooboodoo (Too-
goodoo) and Juniper's in St. Paul's providing that if said
Morton Wilkinson should die without male issue that the said
plantation should go to her grandson, John Middleton.
The Wilkinson family is connected by marriage with the
Jerveys and with many of the other old low-country families.
The Morton connection has, however, vanished and we look
into the records of the past for further facts of interest. One
of the earliest bits of information concerning Landgrave Mor-
ton is found in a letter of Edward Randolph to the Board of
Trade (1698-1699) "In year 1686, one hundred Spaniards,
with negroes and Indians landed at Edistor (50 miles to the
Southward of Charles Town) and broke open the house of Mr.
Joseph Moreton, then Governor of the Province, and carried
away Mr. Bowell, his brother-in-law, prisoner, who was found
murdered two or three days after ; They carried away all his
money and plate, and 13 slaves, to the value of £1500 sterling,
and their plunder to St. Augustine. ' '
An inventory of the estate of Mr. John Morton in 1752
reveals some choice belongings for these early days, among
them being ' ' eleven mahogany chairs, two elbow chairs and a
231
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
couch, a mahogany book case, two long sconce Glasses, card
table, a round Tea lavee, pictures of the twelve months in
proper dress and the Bakes and Harlots progress, also a
harpsi-cord and a pair of Red and Green enameld china bowls ;
showing culture and good taste. ' ' The inventory included the
names of many books and carried also a goodly number of
grms and swords.
The direct descendants of the Wilkinsons are lineal descen-
dants of Landgrave Morton. Representatives of the family
are not only found on Edisto Island but on other adjacent Sea
Islands. The old homestead is situated on the high road that
crossed Edisto in a diagonal direction.
CHAPTER XII
BEAUFORT-INCLUDING COMBAHEE
AND CHEE-HA DISTRICTS-WITH TWO
PICTURES OF WILLTOWN HOUSES
AND ONE AT BARNWELL
BETWEEN CHARLESTON AND BEAUFORT
^ JOURNEY from Charleston to Beau-
fort in 1785 or 1786 is most delight-
fully described in the diary of
Timothy Ford; who begins the
account thus :
"Friday 4th Ap. This day set
out in a chair with Mr. De Saussure
for Beaufort about 70 miles where
the circuit court is to be held. We
rode through very heavy sandy roads with fatigue and diffi-
culty until we reached Ashley ferry (Bee's ferry), and after
crossing it had very good roads causways only excepted which
are frequent in this country & generally bad. As our rout was
for some distance on the side of the river we were often enter-
tained with the prospect of country seats of which there is a
number and some of them fraught with taste and magnificence.
In the evening we reached the plantation of Mr. Waring.
... We stay all night at this mansion & are most hospitably
entertained. In the morning we set off at 8 o 'Clock upon our
journey. . . . We ride Eleven miles to Pompon ferry. . . ."
(at Jacksonboro settlement).
The old places on the Combahee deserve notice, even if
fragmentary ; there are three men now living who can supply
probably better than anyone else the history of this once pros-
perous and now deserted region. One of these is Capt. William
Elliott, over eighty years of age, who served in the war be-
tween the States, now of Yemassee, S. C. He Uved many years
at Ball's, on Chee-Ha, upper Chee-Ha neck, and is famiUar
with the local history. Another authority on the subject of
Combahee matters is Mr. Daniel J. Chaplin, now living at
233
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Walterboro, whose mother owned Fields' Point, the last plan-
tation on Combahee, next to the sound. Mr. Ambrose E. Gon-
zales, of Columbia, S. C, also knows a great deal of the history ;
he used to live on Chee-Ha, his father having been General
Gonzales of the "Bluff" plantation, who married Mary ElUott,
daughter of the Hon. William EUiott of this locaUty.
Mr. James Henry Rice, Jr., tells us that the only houses
left below Bonnie Hall are those of Oaklands (Col. Lowndes),
Rose Hill (Mr. Theodore D. Ravenel), and negro streets at
Cypress (Col. William C. Heyward), with overseers' houses
at Paul and Dalton. Combahee had no mansions on it at any
time, so far as is known, only frame structures ; this was gen-
erally true of Chee-Ha as well, whose history is infinitely more
interesting and valuable than Combahee. More has been heard
of the latter merely because rice continued to be planted on it
after the war, and still is planted, whereas Chee-Ha was
allowed to go down.
Brick House, the present home of James Henry Rice, is on
Chee-Ha, and belonged at one time to Colonel B. F. Hunt, a
friend of Petigru, Webster, and other celebrities. It is said
to have been the first place settled, and to have on it the first
house built in that part of South Carolina.
To quote Mr. Rice, "Combahee flows roughly southward;
to the west are marshes and low islands, dividing it from
Wimbree Creek and lower down still comes Willimon Creek,
back of Wilhmon Island; settlements on Combahee, after
leaving Combahee Ferry (situated on Nieuport plantation —
Henry Cheves) with the exception of two, one of which belongs
to Cheves and the other to Dr. Wilson, of Savannah, are on the
east side. Facing the ferry on the east are Cypress plantation
(Col. W. C. Heyward before the war) and Oakland, Colonel
Lowndes; then comes Hickory Hill, Rose Hill (Ravenel),
Longbrow (F. Q. O'Neill), Paul and Dalton, Magwood, Old
Combahee (properly Woodbum plantation) Middleton . . .
Tar Bluff (Fripp family), and Fields' Point, composed of
two small plantations. Walnut Point, facing Chee-Ha and
Fields ' Point, facing Combahee.
234
BEAUFORT
"Former Governor Heyward, the irridescent and cloud-
massing Clinch, occupies with his associates, the Du Fonts,
the upper stretch of Combahee, where it is formed by the junc-
tion of Cuckold Creek with Saltkehatchie. . . .
"The scenery along the river is picturesque, with a haunt-
ing appeal, such as far countries make when first beheld, much
as AustraUa and Fatagonia, for example. There is nothing on
the coast exactly like it. The bold bluff, from Fields ' Point to
Old Combahee is without parallel in the entire South.
"It is crowned with magnolias, palmettoes, giant live oaks,
and with a few large pines that the vandals have not cut yet.
At intervals sharp and deep ravines cut through it, just as they
do in the mountains, the sides of which would keep a botanist,
a mycologist and musicologist busy for months. Far away to
the southeast the smoke of the Beaufort factories may be seen,
and, in the immediate foreground, lines of palmettoes look so
much hke date palms that one fancies the Nile just above Cairo
when looking toward Ghizeh. ' '
In 1768 the third Landgrave BelUnger sold 977 acres he
had inherited from his sister Elizabeth to Barnard Elliott, in
whose hands it became known as Bellevue. It was on this
plantation that Colonel Barnard Elliott erected, before the
Revolutionary War, the "Temple" of which Mr. William
ElUott in his Carolina Sports gives an account in the chapter
"ADayatChee-Ha."
"The traveller in South Carohna, who passes along the
road between the Ashepoo and Combahee rivers will be struck
by the appearance of two lofty white columns, rising among the
pines that skirt the road. They are the only survivors of eight,
which supported in times anterior to our Eevolutionary War,
a sylvan temple, erected by a gentleman, who to the higher
quahties of a devoted patriot, united the taste and liberaUty
of the sportsman. The spot was admirably chosen, being on
the brow of a piney ridge, which slopes away at a long gun-
shot's length into a thick swamp; and many a deer has, we
doubt not, in time past, been shot from the temple when it
stood in its pride— as we ourselves have struck them from
its ruins."
235
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
It was at the headwaters of the historic Chee-Ha Eiver,
which is second only to the Ashley and Cooper, that Colonel
Barnard Elliott erected the Temple. The next place is put
do-\vn in Mills' atlas as Marchland, and just below it was
Hutchinson, named for a noble family. Mr. Hutchinson hired
a tutor from the North named March, who made the most of his
opportunities and married Miss Sallie Hutchinson, who had
long been classed as an old maid (they were considered old
maids when youthful in those days). On the first visit of the
newly wedded couple to Beaufort in a rowboat the negroes
improvised a chorus, thus "Miss Sallie, she got husbon' ; shum
dar, shum dar." All the way down and back this "epithala-
mium ' ' resounded. One of their daughters married a physician
of Philadelphia, but they were later separated, and she after-
wards married in Paris Count Tedini, an Italian, cousin of the
King of Italy. For many years she and the Count Uved at
March plantation, by which name Hutchinson was then known.
The house there has fallen down, but the grove is one of the
noblest on the coast, and still remains.
Stock plantation, which adjoins March plantation, has a
noble house site, overlooking miles of marsh down Chee-Ha,
with enough large live oaks left to add all needed picturesque-
ness. The old house is gone, but it was here that John Laurens
spent the last night of his hf e. He was buried the next day in
the graveyard at Stock, but his body was later removed by his
father, Henry Laurens, to the plantation of Mepkin. The next
place below, and on the west side of the Chee-Ha, was bought
by Shaffer, for some time sheriff of Colleton County, and it is
held by his son, E. T. H. Shaffer, of Walterboro. The adjoin-
ing plantation is the Baring place, later known as the Farmer
place, when acquired about the time of the war by a member
of Judge Farmer's family. Both of these last two places, how-
ever, were cut from the original Minott tract. The next plan-
tation on the same side is Whaley, owned formerly by the
Whaleys of Edisto Island. Then comes Brick House, and
lastly Riverside, on which there was a frame house, near which
was the cemetery. Over this cemetery the Savannah Biver
Lumber Company has erected its saw mill plant.
236
BEAUFORT
On the east side of the Chee-Ha the first place belonged
originally to Colonel Barnard Elliott and was later bought by
Mr. Eobert Chisohn. It is at present cut into two places owned
by a Mr. Boynton and a Mr. Savage. Below this, on both
rivers (the Chee-Ha and Ashepoo are here close together)
everything was owned by Thomas Rhett Smith (born 1800)
whose ancestors had owned it from earliest times. His daugh-
ter married WilHam Elhott (author of "Carohna Sports"),
and from her brother, Thomas Rhett Smith, Jr., she inherited
an additional twenty thousand acres, all of which passed to the
Elliott descendants. The greater portion was acquired by
Ambrose Elliott Gonzales, whose mother was Mary Elhott,
and whose father was General Ambrose Jose Gonzales, one
of the Confederate and Cuban Annies.
Thomas Rhett Smith, Jr., was a man of culture and travel.
He had many visitors from different parts of the world, espe-
cially from England and France, as did Wilham Elliott, who
enjoyed a wide acquaintance in those countries. One of the
most conspicuous names was William Makepeace Thackeray,
who spent a month at the Bluff, on Social Hall, with Mr. Elliott.
The lower place was known as Airy Hall, and there was a Con-
cert Hall above, the exact location of which cannot be deter-
mined. Mr. Thomas Rhett Smith, Jr., kept a French gardener
to look after his flower garden and his rosary, the latter con-
taining ten acres. He had an Enghsh gardener for his vege-
tables. Mr. Smith had a large library, and a nearby hill where
he used to retire to study is known as ' ' Study Hill. ' ' Chee-Ha
neck shows signs of Confederate fortifications from end to
end, these having been designed by General Pemberton and
Captain Wilham Elhott, of Yemassee, who has been previ-
ously mentioned.
Timothy Ford writes : "The planters all fis (five) at a dis-
tance from the road with avenues cut through the woods lead-
ing up to their houses. The negro houses are laid out like a
camp & sometimes resemble one. ' '
Edwin De Leon, writing in The Southern Magazine on
"Ruin and Reconstruction," says:
237
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
"One of the most curious and attractive sights on a South-
ern plantation used to be this negro quarter, with its regular
rows of small cabins grouped together, with narrow streets
between, and as fresh and smart-looking as whitewash could
make them externally, and compulsory scrubbing and sanded
floors could make them within. Generally remote from the
planter's mansion and outhouses, contiguous to the fields
under cultivation, these cabins had allotted to each a small
patch of land, on which the negroes could raise their own vege-
tables, poultry and pigs, which were their private property,
and from which, when industrious, they could earn pocket-
money by selUng the surplus to the master, or to outsiders, at
will. Their regular supplies of food, or rations, were regu-
larly supplied, irrespective of the products of these small
patches — which were considered and treated as their private
property — so that the chance even of accumulation was given
them, of which, however, they seldom availed themselves. At-
tached to these cabins was always a large hospital or infirmary,
with a regular physician visiting it at stated intervals ; so that
the infirm or sick were promptly and properly cared for and
cured— an advantage shared by no other class of laborers
anywhere. . . . Disabled or aged slaves were, until death,
the pensioners of the slaveholders, who could not, if they
would, shirk the charge. .
"The negro quarter was the little world wherein the slave
lived and moved in his hours of leisure. . . . From the
cabins from nightfall until midnight might be heard the sound
of banjo, 'bones,' or viohn, the loud laugh or the peculiar
sounds of negro minstrelsy, and the dance was as frequent
as the song. With a quick air for music, and sweet, clear,
though uncultivated voices, the negro race everywhere enjoys
melody, and used to indulge freely in it, both of a rehgious
and secular character. The voice of prayer and praise used
to ascend from those cabins, for the negro women were great
psalm-singers and the men great exhorters ; and their masters
encouraged religious exercises among them. ' '
But "over master and man the tide has swept," and in the
great rice planting regions, near Beaufort particularly,
< ' the eye of the visitor roves over great tracts of
cultivation, ' semi-tropical in outward aspect, where the
planter's lordly mansion stands (in some few instances), em-
bowered among evergreen five-oaks, magnolias and cedars
whose hedges of Cherokee rose and jessamine fill the air with
238
BEAUFORT
perfume, and the fig, banana and orange are flourishing in the
open air, laden with their luscious fruits. Long reaches of
marshlands, as flat and as fertile as those of the Egyptian
delta, which they strikingly resemble, stretch out as far as the
eye can reach ; and the great rice-grinding buildings, crammed
with their costly machinery, tower aloft and give a fictitiously
busy air to the deserted plantations."
Concerning Combahee Mr. Langdon Cheves writes briefly.
"There must have been a good house at Sheldon from early
times, as the Bulls were one of the leading famiUes of the
Province and kept some state in their domestic affairs. The
Yemassee Indians delayed development in this section and
such plantations as were owned there were held by non-resi-
dents. It was not until after the Revolution when tide water
cultivation of rice came in, that large plantations were devel-
oped by resident owners on both sides of the river and good
houses built. There were large houses at Bonny Hall, Tomot-
ley and many other places, down to Clay Hall in later times.
Although most of these places were burned during the Civil
War their history is worthy of preservation." Mr. Timothy
Ford 's diary (1785) tells of his arrival late in the evening at the
"widow DeSaussure's, where we are regaled with a dish of tea
and spend the night. This is a very pleasant place but very
soHtary, no neighbors in less than 4 or 5 miles w*" in-
duced me to recommend to Miss DeSaussure to get married
in self defense."
Daniel DeSaussure, the oldest son of Henry, was born at
Pocataligo in 1735. His father, of an old French family of
Lorraine, which left France on account of religion in 1551 and
moved to Switzerland, came to Carolina in 1731 from Lausanne
and settled near Coosahatchie. Daniel moved to the town of
Beaufort and took an early and active part in the Revolution.
In 1778 in command of a company, he captured, near St.
Helena, a British transport with troops and two captains.
During the seige of Charleston, he bore arms and was sent
a prisoner to St. Augustine and was liberated in 1781. He was
appointed president of a branch Bank of the United States at
Charleston, and was president of the Senate of South Caro-
239
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
lina in 1798, when he died. He lost two brothers in the Eevolu-
tion and his only surviving son was the distinguished
Chancellor, Henry Wilham DeSaussure.
After the visit at the DeSaussure 's, Timothy rides into
' ' the little village of Beaufort. It consists of about 30 houses —
stands on an arm of the sea very pleasantly & is stiled a very
healthy place. The inhabitants are almost all connected by
marriage." He proceeds to give his impressions of the town,
which differ but slightly, with the exception of the number of
houses, from what would be said about it to-day. Beaufort
has always been famed for the beauty of its women and the
culture and bravery of its men.
The earliest mention of the name "Beaufort" in connection
with the town is found in the minutes of a meeting of the Lords
Proprietors of the Province held December 20, 1710, where it
was agreed that a seaport town should be erected at Port
Eoyal in Granville County to be called Beaufort Town. An
order was passed on June 6, 1717, by the Council of the Prov-
ince, that any person taking up any of the front lots in the town
should be obliged to erect thereon, within two years, a house
fifteen feet wide and thirty feet long ; those taking up any of
the back lots were to build houses of similar dimension within
three years from the date of their grants.
A map supposed to be either the original or a copy of the
first map of Beaufort is in the Historical Commission at Col-
umbia. The street or space along the water front is not desig-
nated by any name on the plan. In the grants and in some
deeds giving the boundaries of the front lots this street is
called Bay Street, or The Bay, and as such it is known to-day.
In 1785 the commissioners (John Joyner, William Haz-
zard and Robert BamweU) are directed by an Act passed
March 24, of that year, "to expose to sale in whole or in lots
the land commonly known, to be common adjoining the town of
Beaufort. ' ' The funds secured from the sale were to be used
for rebuilding the parsonage house on the glebe lands.
The house which v/as sold to St. Helena's Church as a rec-
tory is in front of the east gate of St. Helena's Church, and is
240
ST. HELENA'S CHURCH. BEAUFORT. ESTABLISHED 17H
From a hand-colored print
THE RECTiJRY. ST. HELENA'S, FROM THE CHURCHYARD
Built long before the Revuliitionary War
BEAUFORT
one of the oldest houses in Beaufort. It was the home of John
Barnwell, who was called "Tuscarora Jack" from having
driven that powerful tribe of Indians out of Carolina. He
came to this part of the country in 1701.
BARNWELL HOUSES IN BEAUFORT
At the corner of Washington and Cartaret Streets, on the
Point, stand the ruins of the "old tabby house," once owned by
John Barnwell, grandson of "Tuscarora Jack." John
Barnwell married Sarah Bull, the daughter of General
Stephen BuU.
Stephen Bull and John Barnwell were the two most promi-
nent names in the first permanent settlement in the neighbor-
hood of Port Royal, which, having the finest natural harbor
in the State, was naturally first selected for settlement. It
was so difficult to defend, however, that the first two attempts
failed. The annals of Beaufort County during its first century
may be said to consist of accounts of these two gentlemen.
The son and grandson of Stephen Bull were both named
Wilham, and both were Eoyal Governors of South CaroUna.
Stephen Bull had unusually large land grants, and was very
wealthy; he endowed and built Sheldon Church, twice laid in
ruins (during the Revolution, and again during the Confeder-
ate War) , and he is buried in a vault under this church.
Colonel John Barnwell founded the town of Beaufort, which
at the commencement of the Confederate War was chiefly in-
habited by his descendants, in families of Elhott, Stuart,
Rhett, Fuller, etc., and he seems to have been the founder of
Beaufort Church, near the east end of which he is buried in
a vault, only a few bricks of which are visible above
the ground.
Up to the time of the Confederate War the old tabby house
of the Barnwells occupied two squares ; that in front was kept
as an open lawn, on which the boys of the town played ball,
and the Beaufort artillery drilled. Large oaks festooned with
moss were on the side. Directly in front of, and on the sides of
the house was a pretty flower garden, and separating it from
the yard on the east side of the house was a row of orange
16 241
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
trees. In this yard was a two-story servant house, constructed
of the same primitive material as the main dwelling, a com-
pound of oyster shell and lime called tabby, as was the
two-story carriage house. To the rear of these was the
vegetable garden.
The oldest house in the town was built in 1690 at the north-
east corner of Mrs. Waterhouse's lot, and it is said that Sen-
ator John BarnweU, who fought in the Revolutionary War (a
grandson of "Tuscarora Jack"), was born there in 1748. As
Mr. Edward Barnwell, a nephew of "General Jack," and
father of Mr. Osborne Barnwell, was also bom in this house in
1785, and it is probable that the place belonged to the Barnwell
family for many years during the early period of the settling
of Beaufort. It is so constructed with long piercings in the
foundations, that muskets can be aimed in either direction, and
underneath them a ledge runs along, on which munitions may
be stored. This structure was erected when the Temassee and
Cherokee Indians used to make war on the whites. In those
days warning signifying uprisings was sent from island to
island by the waving of a red flag.
Mr. FickUng bought the house for a school, but it was after-
wards used as a Masonic HaU, when it received its present
name of the "Temple of the Sun," the porch with four large
columns facing the east. Later the house was bought by Mr.
Zealy, whose family occupied it until 1861. It is now the resi-
dence of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Van Bray, Jr.
Beaufort district was for many years known as "Indian
Land." A discovery was made on Little Island, Beaufort
County, of a communal dwelling that could have been built and
used only by a people kindred to the Aztecs, to the tribes who
owned the stem sway of Powhattan, and to the fierce Iroquois
and Hurons — the "Mingos" of Cooper's tales, who differed
racially, and probably radically, from the nations of Algonquin
stock who inhabited the entire eastern coast from Florida to
Canada. There are certain Aboriginal mounds on the coast
of South Carolina.
On the Bay in Beaufort is an attractive two-story wooden
house with a hipped roof and large chimneys, which was once
242
BEAUFORT
known as the Calhoun residence, and is now occupied by Mrs.
O'Dell, mother of Maude O'Dell, the noted actress. It is
perhaps best known as the home of Edward Barnwell ; and the
fact that he was married three times, and was the father of
sixteen children, may account for the substantial wings built
to the east and west of the house, and the very large piazza
adorning the entire front of this estabhshment. "With such
sizeable famihes it is natural that many other quaint and de-
lightful houses in Beaufort, in addition to the three already
mentioned, should have been connected with the historic
Barnwell name.
HOMES ON THE POINT
The Paul Hamilton house is rightfully considered one of
the handsomest places in Beaufort. It occupies a beautiful
situation on "The Point," to distinguish this section from
"The Bay," which is noted for its magnificent live-oaks. The
house overlooks a shghtly terraced garden leading down to
the water's edge, with a quaint sea-wall on three sides to pre-
vent the tide from overflowing the flower beds. The building
is of the usual square style common to the Sea Island dwell-
ings, which are designed for coolness and airiness. The princi-
pal features of this low-country architecture are the wide halls,
rooms with high ceiUngs, and large verandas, all of which make
for comfort in these southern latitudes.
The Hamiltons are a distinguished family in South Caro-
lina history. Paul Hamilton, Comptroller of the State from
1799 to 1804, showed that, in time of stress and danger South
Carolina had, during the Eevolution, contributed more than
five million dollars for the general defense. He also possessed
a clear and systematic head, and made the first reports on the
resources, debits and credits of the State ever compiled. His
reports astonished the legislature, as they then for the first
time knew their real fiscal condition, and were enabled to deal
intelligently with the resources of the State.
From 1804 to 1806 Paul Hamilton was Governor of South
Carolina, and became Secretary of the Navy in 1809, which
position he occupied until 1813. Another Hamilton, James,
243
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
occupied the gubernatorial chair from 1830 to 1832, one
of the most exciting terms in history, because of the Nullifica-
tion Movement.
Miss Mary S. Hamilton, a noted educator of Beaufort, and
daughter of Colonel Paul Hamilton, now occupies the Ham-
ilton house, and gives the following account of it: "Colonel
Hamilton 's house on the point was built in 1856, and planned
by his wife and himself. We lived there for five years, and
when the fleet entered the harbor in November, 1861, left the
house until September, 1866. The story of its recovery may
be of interest. The United States Government refused to rent
any property to a former owner. They sold the homes in
Beaufort for taxes and even when they paid the war tax back
to the owners they only gave one-half the tax value and five
dollars an acre for the land. Our home had been retained by
the government for a hospital. I proposed that my uncle (Dr.
Gibbes) who was living with us should write and offer to rent
it, as the war was over and hospitals no longer required. He
did so, and it was rented at once to him, so that in September,
1866, we returned in a wagon drawn by mules, and lying on
mattresses, a happy crowd as we reached our old home after
an absence of nearly five years.
"In November the house was put up at auction for sale.
My father stated to the crowd gathered that it was his wife's
and her children's and he would bid it to a million against
another bidder who wanted it as a normal school for negroes.
It was, however, knocked down to him at fifteen hundred and
fifty dollars, a fortune in those days. He asked the court to
allow him three days to visit Charleston and sell several lots
my mother owned there from her English ancestors. We had
no railroads to Beaufort then, only steamers, and it required
three days for the round trip. They consented and he went
to make the necessary arrangements. On the second day near
sunset my brother of ten years came running in to tell us that
at sunset the house was going to be sold. I went downtown to
see if the Mayor, Colonel William Elliott, could stop the sale.
While waiting at his home my uncle came in to announce the
good news that Mr. Simpson, the express agent, and Mr.
244
BEAUFORT
Holmes, a merchant, had heard of the proposed sale, raised the
money among the business men and just before sunset paid for
the home in the name of Colonel Hamilton. I had said that I
would never shake hands with a Yankee, but that night across
the counter I offered mine in thanks to Mr. Hohnes. My father
was successful and they were repaid on his return the follow-
ing day. A Frenchman paid for the Edgar Fripp house back
of ours, and would not allow the money to be returned, going
away and leaving no address. ' '
The house on the Point now occupied by the Crofuts was
built by Dr. Barnwell Sams in the latter part of the fifties, and
was taken during the Confederate War for a hospital. The
Sams family bought it at the U. S. Tax sale, and sold it to Mr.
Wilson the sheriff. It passed through many hands and was
bought finally by the Crofuts.
This residence has been selected as a good type of the ante-
bellum residence of Beaufort. Its heavy brick column, sup-
porting the flat roof to the galleries, give a rather massive
effect to the establishment.
Near the Point also is the Christensen residence, a beauti-
ful type of the conventional house, set upon a high, gracefully
arched brick basement. Both up and down stairs the house has
large fine piazzas which extend around the building on three
sides. The front piazza on the lower story is broken to admit
of a flight of steps leading into the garden, which is adorned
with many fine trees and shrubs. The house is supposed to
have been built by a Mr. Ledbetter, a Methodist minister. It
was bought by Stephen Elliott, sold to Dr. Louis DeSaussure
(who married for his second wife Miss Jane Hutson) and the
house was later acquired by the Christensen family.
HOMES ON THE BAY
Beaufort is a place of many historic memories, one of her
proudest being that she had the honor of entertaining General
LaFayette on his visit to this country in the early part of the
nineteenth century. The town extended to him an invitation
which he accepted, and extensive preparations were made for
his reception. Upon his arrival, on the evening of March 2,
245
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
1805, he was conducted through a bower of roses, attended by
the Beaufort Guards. From the balcony of the John Mark
Verdier house on Bay Street just opposite the wharf he spoke
to the crowd gathered to welcome him. This is one of the
oldest houses now left in the town.
A great ball was arranged in his honor to be given in the
"Barnwell Castle," which house was used as a Court House
after 1866 and accidentally burned about 1879. An authentic
account taken from an old letter written by a member of the
Barnwell family, who entertained him, reads :
"We went into Beaufort last Thursday evening expecting
LaFayette would come there on Friday. We had lent our
house to give the ball in. The ball committee requested us to
dress the rooms, as he was expected at two o'clock. We were
obliged to leave the rooms half dressed, to go down to the bay
to see the procession. We had a very good position as we went
to McNeston's Balcony where the arch was erected, but all our
trouble was in vain, for after waiting there about an hour we
returned to our home. We were afraid that he would not come
at all. However, at about twelve notice was given that he had
come. We were, of course, deserted by the Guards, who went
to conduct him to the house. The procession was then so
handsome that I scarcely regretted his not coming in the day.
All the boys in the town had lights in their hands, which had
a beautiful effect, shining on the long, white plumes of the
Guards. He stayed just long enough to shake hands all around
and eat supper. As it was the first time that LaFayette had
entered any place at night at least it had the effect
of novelty ! ' '
After the Civil War every house in Beaufort was sold, and
the ElUott house on the Bay passed into the possession of
Admiral Beardsley, who was stationed near there, and who
gave the place the name of the Anchorage. This house was
built by one of the Elliotts, Ealph E. Elliott, a brother of Wil-
liam, who married Phoebe Waight. Phoebe and her husband
lived at what is now the Anchorage in their younger days, and
the two magnolias on each side of the house were planted by
the former, Mrs. William Elliott. An obituary notice pub-
lished in 1855 follows :
246
BEAUFORT
Died in Beaufort (S. C.) on the 1st of June, 1855, Mrs.
Phoebe Elliott, in the 84th year of her age.
This venerable lady, the oldest inhabitant, save one, of her
native town, has passed the boundary of "four score years":
yet her strength was not "labor and sorrow." Her eye was
hardly dim, nor her brow wrinkled. She enjoyed life to its
close, actively discharging its relative duties. Her spirit was
bouyant ; her affections ardent ; and her heart filled with kind-
ness towards her feUow-creatures. She walked before God
humbly, thankfully, devoutly. She loved His house, and fre-
quented His courts, and not many days before her death,
occupied her place at the table of the Lord. A Uberal steward
of the property God assigned her, she was ready "for every
good work, ' ' and did her full share in the Missionary efforts of
the zealous congregation to which she belonged.
A long line of descendants encircled her with filial love,
and three generations gathered around her dying bed. Her
body was borne to the tomb by six of her grandsons, and sur-
viving friends rejoice, in their sorrow, that God hath granted
her "long life and good days," and grace to "glorify His
name," and adorn her Christian profession.
One son, one grandson, and three nephews (including the
Bishop of Georgia) are preachers of the everlasting gospel.
Charleston, June, 1855.
One of the Mr. Elliotts abandoned law for the gospel. The
history of the law office which he used is remarkable. Its first
occupant was the Rev. Dr. Fuller, a distinguished minister of
Baltimore, who abandoned a lucrative practice in Beaufort
to devote himself to the ministry. Rev. W. Johnson, late rector
of a church on Edisto Island, was in this same office, leaving it,
with Stephen Elliott, to enter the Theological Seminary in
Virginia ; and C. C. Pinckney, another law practitioner in that
office abandoned law for the gospel. James Elliott, who finally
became an Episcopal bishop, was at one time rector of St.
Michael's Church in Charleston.
In the year 1790, by William Elliot, Sea Island cotton was
said to have been first raised — on the exact spot where Jean
Ribault landed the first colonists. In connection with the El-
liott family is another place of scientific interest — on Devils
Elbow barony. Upon this is found the village or summer set-
247
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
tlement of Bluffton, situated on a bluff fronting the Eiver May.
It was the scene of much of the botanical work of Stephen
ElUott, who frequently refers to it in his "Sketch of the
Botany of South CaroUna and Georgia," and in later years
it was the field for the botanical observations of Dr. James
H. Mellichamp.
Stephen Elliott, the botanist, married Miss Habersham, of
Georgia, and their child was Stephen Elliott, who afterwards
became Bishop of Georgia. This Bishop Elliott had a very
distinguished daughter, Sarah Barnwell Elliott, a leader of
the suffrage movement in Tennessee, and a well-known writer
of to-day, some of her best-known works, among other novels,
being "Jerry," "The Durket Sperret," "The Fehners," and
"The House on the Marsh. " There have been five bishops in
the Elliott family, and there have been warriors also, Elliott's
torpedoes being a notable contribution to the science of
naval warfare.
There is as much discussion about the spelUng of the Elliott
name as there is about the Simons and the Hazzards. One of
the number, at a recent family reunion, dropped into poetry
anent the orthography of the name :
' ' They have doubled the ' 1' '
To make it swell ;
They have added the 't'
To be odd, you see.
Some have put a 'y'
In the place of an ' i, '
But still it spells
E-1-i-o-t."
Opposite the Anchorage is the building known for years as
the Sea Island Hotel, which was built by Dr. Stoney and
occupied for some time by Nathaniel Barnwell Heyward. Im-
mediately behind the hotel, on Craven Street, was the Thomas
Rhett house, and immediately behind the Anchorage, on
Craven Street, were two other Rhett houses, the one now used
as a rectory, and the Edmund Rhett house, which was the old
Maxey house, and came into the possession of the Rhett fam-
ily when Edmund Rhett married the daughter of Mrs. Tom
248
«r
JiT^
HOUSE IX BEAUFORT, S. C, FROM THE PIAZZA OF WHICH LAFAYETTE SPOKE
KITCHEN AND WALL MADE OF "TAIilSY"
The Sam^' Home, Beiiufurt, now the CrofuL Huude
BEAUFORT
Stuart, whose home lay across the street. Mrs. Stuart was a
Miss Williamson, and was twice married, first to a Mr. Cuth-
bert, and then to Dr. Tom Stuart. The grounds on which
the Stuart home stood were extremely spacious, extending to
the Bay.
The Onthauk residence, also on the Bay, is an interesting
brick building with a small square portico. Before the Con-
federate War it was the home of Mr. H. M. Fuller, and was
later the dwelling place of the Onthaiik family. While an
interesting structure, it is by no means historic, except as
having been connected with the Fuller family.
The history of this family is associated with lands in St.
Andrew's Parish, as well as with Beaufort, and the Fullers
have married among all the old families of the town, Dr.
Thomas Fuller, a weU-beloved physician of this community,
being the last to reside there. A distinguished Baptist
divine of national reputation was also a member of this
Fuller family.
At the time of the Civil War the houses in Beaufort were
deserted; furniture, silver, priceless paintings and valuables
of all descriptions were left to the mercy of the victor. In one
case a dinner was left smoking on the table, and was devoured
by the incoming aiTny. The old homes were not burned, but
the treasures in them were stolen by the negroes and soldiers,
and passed into alien hands. During the rest of the struggle
the Union forces occupied Beaufort and Port Royal.
At Barnwell, below Beaufort, stands the home of William
Gilhnore Simms, the noted writer.
CHAPTER XIII
ON THE ROAD TO COLUMBIA AND
COLUMBIA AND ITS HOMES
THE WILLSON HOUSE
N the road from Charleston to Colum-
bia about fifteen miles above Cames
Cross Eoads, stands a fine old resi-
dence of the farm house type. The
material used was of cypress and the
house has two large brick chimneys
at either gable end. It was built by
Dr. John Willson, who came to this
country from Monaghan, Ireland.
He resigned as ship surgeon because he opposed the brutality
of the captain toward his men. He landed at Georgetown,
went to Indian Town, in WilHamsburg District, married there,
moved to St. Mark's Parish, Clarendon; and after a few years
crossed the river and located at this place and built his home.
Dr. John Willson, 2nd, was born there and so was John 0.
Willson. The building was constructed by slave labor.
Dr. John Willson died in 1856, but was well-known as a
Union man. The Northern troops, spared the house from
four raids during the Civil War. It seems a little singular that
these Union troops should have known his opinion when he
had been dead nine years. Dr. John Willson, the 2nd, was
distinguished for his remarkable kindness to his slaves and
the needy around him and for his pubUc spirit. His son, John
O. Willson D. D., says : "The only times I ever saw my father
angry were when a patrol punished one of his negroes, and
when a school-master severely chided his oldest daughter."
This farm property is still in the Willson family and is now
owned by John 0. Willson D.D., president of Lander College.
John 0. Willson Donaldson, a descendant of Dr. John Will-
son the 2nd, and a grandson of John O. Willson D.D., during
his service in France in the World War, seems to have upheld
250
HOUSE ON THE ROAD TO COLUMBIA
Biiilt just after the Revolutioaby the gramltather of Rfv. John O.WillaoQ
'FORT GHANBY," NEAR COLUMBIA
From an old print
COLUMBIA
the record of his progenitors. In Harper's Magazine for July,
1919, is found an account of Mr. Donaldson's capture by the
Germans, his escape from prison, his recapture and second
escape, constituting one of those extraordinary narratives in
which luck, misfortune and persistent daring have been so art-
fully ordered by Fate as to seem almost incredible. "John O.
Willson Donaldson is the son of Brigadier G-eneral T. Q. Don-
aldson of the Inspector General's Department at Tours,
France. He received his iustruction in flying at the ground
school, Cornell University, then with the Royal Flying Corp
at Thanto, with subsequent gunnery practice in Texas. In
June, 1918, as a member of the 32nd Royal Flying Corp, Don-
aldson, Jr., was sent to France, and during the following two
months he brought down nine German planes, of which he was
oflBcially credited with five (i.e., witnessed by four observers).
Lt. Donaldson was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross by
Field Marshal Haig and has received two citations by General
Pershing. He has also been recommended for the Distin-
guished Service Cross."
GRANBY
Granby, a settlement about two miles below Columbia, was
a point of departure from the wilderness and into the Cherokee
country. In the immediate vicinity of Fort Granby is found a
primitive wooden house.
The Reverend Mr. Guignard, whose grandfather surveyed
the city of Columbia and who is famihar with this section of
the State, having spent many happy days at Granby, declares
that the description given of it in Lossing's Field Book of the
Revolution and the names of the owners are perfectly correct.
Mr. Guignard says that it is safe to use the description of the
house as given in Lossing and adds some interesting data,
which is included in the following account.
The house of James Cacey, Esq. (pronounced Kazie), the
Fort Granby of the Revolutionary War, is two miles below
Columbia on the Congaree River. It is a strong frame build-
ing, two stories in height and stands upon an eminence near the
Charleston Road, within three-fourths of a mile of Friday's
251
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Ferry upon the Congaree. It overlooks ancient Granby, one
of the forgotten settlements of the State, and the country
round about.
The house itself is of the prevailing type in the up-country,
very similar to the Willson place found on the road between
Charleston and Columbia and repeated, with sKght variations,
all over the upper part of the State. It consists of a two-story
building with a tall pitched roof and has large chimneys on
either gable end, the peculiarity of the chimneys being the
enormous flues. The entrance into this establishment is
directly from the piazza and a hall running through from front
to rear, but upstairs the arrangement is slightly diiferent, the
hall being traverse, extending from gable to gable.
Some gentlemen of Pine Tree of Camden constructed this
dwelling as a storehouse for cotton and other products of the
up-country, which they wished to send down the river upon flat
boats to the domestic and foreign market situated at the sea-
port towns. When the chain of military posts from Camden
to Charleston was established, this building, strategically lo-
cated for defence, was fortified and called Fort Granby. There
a ditch was dug, a strong parapet was raised, bastions were
formed, batteries were arranged and an abatis was con-
structed, all of which transformed the place from a trading
station into a military post, first occupied during the Revolu-
tionary War by a garrison of three hundred and fifty men,
chiefly Loyalists and a few mounted Hessians, under the com-
mand of Major Maxwell.
Such was the importance of this place that Sumter made
a demonstration against Fort Granby, but finding it too strong
for his small arms, retired. Later Lee arrived in the vicinity
on the evening of May 14th, 1781, the day on which Sumter
took possession of Orangeburg, and on the edge of a wood
within six hundred yards of Fort Granby he began the erection
of a battery and a dense fog next morning enabled him not
only to complete it but to mount a six-pounder brought by
Captain Finley from Fort Motte, before being discovered.
Wlien the fog rolled away Captain Finley discharged his
cannon, and, at the same moment, the legion of infantry ad-
252
COLUMBIA
vanced, took an advantageous position, and opened fire upon
the enemy's pickets. This sudden announcement of the pres-
ence of an enemy and this imposing display alarmed Maxwell
excessively so that he consented to receive an American, Cap-
tain Eggleston (the ancestor of the Winnsboro Eggles-
tons), who was sent with a flag to demand the surrender of
Fort Granby.
After a brief consultation with his officers. Major Maxwell
agreed to surrender the Fort, on condition that private prop-
erty of every sort, without investigation of title, should be left
within the hands of its possessors. This pecuHar condition is
ascribed by Lee in his Memoirs to Maxwells' desire to fill
his purse rather than to gather military laurels. With various
other conditions and after waiving of some of the exceptions
by Lee (the American commander), capitulation took place.
Maxwell surrendered and vacated, and Captain Rudolph raised
the American flag on one of the bastions before noon while the
captive garrison with its escort marched away.
The house yet bears "honorable scars" made by the bul-
lets of Lee's infantry, for in the gable which points toward the
river, between the chimney and a window, is an orifice formed
by the passage of a six-pound ball from Finley's fieldpiece,
and Mr. Guignard says that, as a little boy during his frequent
visits to Granby, the first thing he did was to investigate the
cannon-ball hole to make sure that it was still there. Not only
is this hole still evident, but in one of the rooms are numer-
ous marks made by an axe, used in cutting up meat for
the garrison.
The house is still in the possession of the family of Caceys,
whose ancestors, with those of his father-in-law, Mr. Friday,
were the only Whigs of that name in the State, and they often
suffered insults from their Tory kinsmen. Mr. Friday owned
mills at Granby, and the Ferry (Friday's) still bears his name.
The British garrison that occupied Fort Granby paid Mm for
the flour, poultiy, cattle and other things which it took, so
that it is evident that Major Maxwell dealt fairly with him in
this matter at least.
253
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Among the interesting possessions of Granby is a picture
of Emily Geiger, a kinswoman of the Caceys, and one of the
heroines of the Revolution. She lived with her father, John
Geiger, at his home at the forks of the Enoree and Broad
Rivers. Although her father was a patriot, he was an invalid
and unable to bear arms for his country. His daughter who
served her country well was as ardent a patriot as himself.
General Greene wished a letter to be carried to General Sum-
ter. That no man could be found to volunteer for this duty is
due to the fact that Rawdon was approaching the Congaree.
Emily Geiger undertook the service, during the execution of
which she nearly lost her life. General Greene was delighted
by the boldness of this young girl, not over eighteen years old.
He accepted her offer of service, but with his usual caution he
made her memorize the message, so that if she should be com-
pelled to destroy it, she could repeat it verbally to Sumter.
Mounted upon a strong and fleet horse Emily then took
her departure, her aim being to cross the Saluda at Kennely's
Ferry, the Congaree at Friday's Ferry and to proceed as di-
rectly as possible to General Sumter, who was then on the
Wateree River. Nothing of moment happened to her during
the first day's journey, but on the evening of the second day,
when more than two-thirds of the distance had been safely
passed, three men in the British uniform appeared suddenly
before her in the road. Being unable to escape she was then
arrested by them and carried before Lord Rawdon, whose camp
was about a mile distant. His lordship questioned her closely
as to where she was from and where she was going. Her
answers not being direct, but evasive, did not satisfy his lord-
ship, who ordered that she should be locked up in one of the
upper rooms of the guard house. It was fortunate that she was
left here alone for a short while, as she had the opportunity,
which she embraced, to destroy the dispatch. She tore it into
small bits, chewed and swallowed them. The last morsel was
scarcely gone when a woman, prepared to search her and her
clothing, appeared. But as nothing of a suspicious character
was found upon her, Lord Rawdon, as he was in honor bound,
permitted her to pursue her journey unmolested.
254
COLUMBIA
Not only did Rawdoa release her, but f urnislied an escort to
the home of one of her friends a few miles distant, where she
partook of some refreshments and rested a few hours. Fear-
ful of further delay she set out with a fresh horse and a guide
who showed her a shorter and safer way than the one she had
intended taking. By riding all night Emily found herself far
from the neighborhood of Lord Rawdon and at sunrise the
guide left her to pursue her journey alone. On and on she rode
steadily, hot as it was, until about three o'clock in the after-
noon of the third day when she suddenly came upon a file of
soldiers, who from their dress she knew to be her friends.
By them she was conducted to General Sumter, to whom she
delivered her message.
It may be of interest to know that Emily Geiger afterwards
became the wife of Mr. Thurmits, and is very properly re-
garded for her service as courier to the Continental Army as
one of South Carohna's heroines. The picture is justly a
source of pride to her relatives who reside at Granby. An-
other interesting relic of this house is a card table said to have
been used by Lord Cornwallis at his camp.
There are several old burying grounds in that neighbor-
hood, but most of them have gone to decay. In the iron gate
of one is plainly discernible the name of "Hayne. " Upon one
of the old graves the inscription gravely rebukes the beholder
in the following quaint words :
"Stranger, what is this to Thee,
Ask not my name, but as I am
So shall you be. ' '
The old wooden house at Granby has not only successfully
withstood for over one hundred and fifty years the assaults of
its natural enemies, time and weather, but has survived the
Revolutionary War and escaped in some miraculous way the
fate of so many houses in the path of Sherman's army.
COLUMBIA
Columbia is now the capital of the State of South Carolina.
Before the Revolutionary War, when the lower part of the
State was the most important portion, Charleston occupied
255
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
that position. Just after the Revolutionary War, by an Act
of General Assembly, commissioners were authorized and re-
quired "to lay off a tract of land of two miles square, near
Friday's Ferry, on the Congaree River, including the plane
of the hill whereon Thomas and James Taylor, Esquires, now
reside, into lots of half an acre, each." The streets were not
to be less than sixty feet wide, with two principal streets run-
ning through the center of the town. The old compass used
by J. S. Guignard, the surveyor, in laying off the town is now
in the possession of Mr. Guignard 's great-grandson, Mr.
James G. Gibbes.
"Thomas Taylor," writes Mr. Sally, "has been called the
'Father of Columbia, ' because of the fact that the greater part
of the city was built upon his former plantation. He was bom
in Ameha County, Virginia, September 10th, 1743, and came
with his parents to South Carohna, a few years later; married
Ann Wyche. He was a member of the Provincial Congress of
South Carohna in 1775, and was a captain of militia until 1780,
when he was promoted to colonel ; was wounded at the battle
of Fishing Creek ; was sometime State Senator for the district
between the Broad and Catawba Rivers ; was a member of the
State Convention which adopted the Constitution of the United
States ; and was one of the Commissioners who laid out Col-
imabia for the capital of the State ; died November 16, 1833, in
his 91st year."
The modern Thomas Taylor house is found at 1112 BuU
Street. It is an exceedingly handsome and luxuriant modern
home. This house is Georgian and is constructed of brick.
Set in the walls of the western porch is an interesting panel
built of the brick and mortar from the original Thomas Taylor
home, which was the first house built in Columbia, when the
city was a great plantation owned by the Taylor family.
SEIBBLS HOUSE
One of the oldest, if not the oldest, house in Columbia,
which was built before Columbia's streets were laid out, is the
J. J. Seibels house on Richland Street. This home is built
entirely of hand-hewn timber and was erected by A. M. Hale,
256
COLUMBIA
and bought some years later by Captain Benjamin Elmore and
later purchased by the grandfather of the present owner. In
the cellar of this house was found a beam, hand-hewn, and on
it the date, 1796, carved, the evident date of the erection of
this mansion. Concerning this place, The State says, in an
article written by Miss AHce E. Wilson, a brilliant Columbia
writer: "The house is largely colonial and reminds one
strongly of Mount Vernon in its general outline, with its wide
rambhng spaciousness, and its succession of slender white
columns. Around three sides of the house, these columns
support a low, outstanding roof above a quaint paving of Old
Enghsh tile laid on a level with the street.
"When Columbia was laid out in streets, it was found that
the piazza trespassed on the sidewalk, but Capt. Elmore ap-
plied to the town for permission to lower the floors of the
piazza to the street level and leave them open. A pavement
and colonade connect the quaint little brick kitchen with the
house. The porch on the front is of the very wide old-fash-
ioned type and is broken at both ends by steps leading to the
tile pavement from the rooms which are slightly elevated.
' ' The rooms are built on the old square plan, twc)_on.£iihfir- — —
end of the hall, 12 by 15. The front rooms, Avith very high
corniced ceilings are about 24 feet square. Upstairs the
plan is about the same. The colonial note is adhered to in
its furnishings."
The attic of tliis delightful house has lived up to attic
expectations. Three quaint little dormer windows serve to
break the Une of its "barn roof. ' ' In this attic, among various
other curios, was hidden for years a sword of G-eneral Beaure-
gard's presented to an aunt of Mr. Seibels, who was a per-
sonal friend of the general. A still more ancient treasure
found there was a yellowed docmnent, dated 1786, which was a
land deed to Mr. Seibels from Richmond and Wade Hampton,
for the sum of four hundred pounds sterling.
The Seibels house, in its perfect state of preservation
stands as a landmark in Columbia. It is a wonderfully artistic
and beautiful house and one that does credit to both its builder
and owner.
j7 257
HISTORIC HOUSES OP SOUTH CAROLINA
BOYLESTON HOUSE
Another old and interesting house in Columbia is that of
S. S. Boyleston, at 829 Richland Street. The date of the build-
ing of this home is unknown, but its style indicates that it was
built some time in the early eighteen hundreds. Its first owner
and builder was Jack Caldwell, a merchant prince of old days,
and the father of the well-known Caldwell of Hampton's Cav-
alry. The house was bought during the Ku Klux days by the
Misses Hampton, and was later acquired by Mrs. Cotton
Smith, from whom it was conveyed to the present owner, Mr.
S. S. Boyleston.
The house has three floors, including the basement, in
which are to be found the biUiard and breakfast rooms. The
drawing-rooms, a dining-room and a guest-room are found on
the second floor, which in common with many other Columbia
houses, constitutes the entrance floor. The hall runs the entire
length of the house, and is broken at the rear by a rather un-
usual stairway, which reverses the stairs found in some houses
of its period; these generally start in a double flight and
coalesce on the half-way landing and finally reach the floor
above in one fliight, but the stairway in this house reverses this
order; starting in the center of the hall, it branches at the
landing and reaches the floor above in two flights.
The cornicings in this house are conventional dentil design,
which originated with the Greeks. The chandeKers swing
from good specimens of bas-relief moulding on the ceilings.
One chandelier worthy of particular mention is in the dining-
room, which is finished in white and red velvet and forms a
fitting setting for the handsome crystal chandelier and its
countless irridescent pendants.
This handsome old home is one of the finest specimens of
Greek Eenaissance architecture in Columbia, the columns
being especially notable.
CRAWFORD HOUSE
Many curious legends and interesting family stories cluster
around the Crawford house, which is situated on Blanding
268
COLUMBIA
Street and was saved by f aithfid guards of soldiers during the
burning of Columbia. It was built by John A. Crawford,
eighty-three years ago, who was then president of the Cona-
mercial Bank. The premises formerly occupied a full half
square with its gardens and greenhouse famous for rare and
foreign plants, of which two South American jujube trees
stiU stand.
The house has a high brick basement and is square. It is
famous for its closets, which are built in most unexpected
places ; the most interesting one is high in the wall over the
steps. This is accounted for by the fact that there is no attic
to this house, the roof being flat and covered with copper. The
house is built of hand-hewn "heart" timber and is reached
from the street by a flight of wooden steps. A small entrance
is formed by a portico with square columns, the lower half of
which are of glass, used for displaying plants.
The hall is a veritable ballroom, 12 by 60, which runs the
length of the house, broken only by the ascending stairway to
the upper floor. Flanking this hall on the outside and opening
from it by large French windows is a piazza running the length
of the house and decorated by iron raihngs with brass knobs.
Above are two attractive balconies with similar decorations.
On the left side of the house is a succession of three rooms
leading one into the other. All are twenty feet square, and
have beautiful corniced work and elaborate hand carving above
the massive mahogany doors which join these rooms. The
original hand- stenciled wall-paper can still be seen on the
walls of these large rooms and the bronze chandeliers hang
from moisaic decorations in delicate shades. At one end of
the center room are tall mirrors, which are so arranged as to
give the effect of open windows with panes of glass.
The quaint old-fashioned style of furnishing and decoration
is artistically carried out by heavy, richly colored draperies
suspended from elaborately carved gilt cornices. Brass and-
irons and old-fashioned bellows are found in the fireplaces;
these with their handsome black marble mantels carrying out
the scheme of dignity and repose. Colonial furniture and
china and other possessions are still in the house, over all of
259
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
which look down from the walls portraits of dead and gone
Crawf ords, among them the original owner, John A. Crawford.
MARSHALL HOUSE
A two-story brick building constructed about 1820 by Jesse
DeBruhl, now the Marshall house, was designed, it is beheved,
by Robert Mills, the architect who is responsible for many
handsome buildings in South Carohna. This house was for
many years the home of the late Col. J. Q. Marshall, and is now
in the hands of his daughter, Mrs. James Hammond. It is
situated on the northeast corner of Laurel and Marion Streets
and is one of the most imposing residences in the City
of Columbia. (See frontispiece).
The wide spacious piazza does not extend the entire length
of the house, as it did in many of the houses of that date, but
its massive columns that reach to the gabled roof lend an air
of dignity to this old brick mansion. An artistic fan-shaped
transom above the large front doorway furnishes ample hght
for the wide hall running the entire length of the house. Un-
Uke the houses of that period, the staircase was hidden from
view, being concealed in a small back room, known as the stair-
case room, but of late years this staircase has been removed
and one is now to be seen in the rear end of the hall. The halls,
both upstairs and down, are flanked on either side by two big
square rooms, with high ceihngs and deeply recessed windows.
It was in this home that the Confederate general,
James A. Johnstone, made his headquarters in 1865. When it
was vacated by Johnstone, it seemed good to General
Sherman's soldiers as fuel for their extensive conflagration and
was about to be set in flames when Mrs. Wiley, who was a very
young and beautiful woman, appeared on the scene and begged
that her home be spared. The soldier's heart softened and
he ordered that guards be placed around the house. Thus we
have left to-day one of the most artistic productions of the
nineteenth century.
MOORE HOUSE
Closely related to the Marshall house because of its sim-
ilarity of architecture and because of the date of its con-
260
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5- 33
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2. r
p CI
o t-
COLUMBIA
struction, is the Moore house at 1409 Gervais Street. There
have been some modem improvements made on the house in
the past few years. The large ell at the back was added for
sleeping porches. Charm is given to this old home by its large
piazzas, both upstairs and down, in the rear and in front.
It was here that LaFayette was entertained and a large ball
was given in his honor.
In later years the house was used as Colonel Stone 's head-
quarters, and because of this fact it was spared from the
treacherous flames of General Sherman's army. Prof. Yates
Snowden, says that it was from the porches of this house, that
he as a little boy watched the progress of Sherman 's aimy as
it marched down Gervais Street in February, 1865.
The place has passed through many hands, having at one
time been the home of Dr. Leland of the Presbyterian Theo-
logical Seminary, and after various other owners was acquired
by Governor John Lide Wilson, and is now in possession of
E. L. Moore, of Columbia.
DESAUSSURE HOUSE
The residence, 1421 Gervais Street, now owned by W. J.
Powers was built over a hundred years ago by Chancellor
DeSaussure and was his home for some years. The house
has passed through many hands. From Mr. DeSaussure it
went to Judge Wilham Martin, who built the little brick house
in the yard and used it for his laAV office. Col. Robert Hart
Goodwin then acquired it and later sold it to the Bauskette
family, by whom many brilliant balls and other entertainments
were given. During the Reconstruction period it was bought
by Judge Willard, a Northern lawyer, who lived there for some
time in great style. It then passed through the hands of Cap-
tain Stamley, the Condit family, and Mr. M. C. Heath, of Col-
umbia, and is now occupied by Mr. W. J. Powers.
This home, though simple in style and appearance, has
many stories of interest and bits of tradition connected with
it. The house stands in the midst of a garden filled with rare
plants and shrubs. The little brick structure at the rear is
famous in spring for the clambering wisteria that completely
261
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
covers it. The house itself is a typical square colonial build-
ing with its long, wide halls from which two rooms open on
either side. The lower hall is divided by an arch, behind which
a massive square stairway leads to the floor above.
The double verandas are supported by large, square col-
umns. These verandas stretch the length of the house and lend
an air of hospitality so characteristic of the Southern homes
of that period. The massive front doorway is an especially
fine piece of architecture.
The most interesting bit of history connected with this
home is that when LaFayette made his memorable visit to
Columbia and was entertained at the Moore house next door,
it is said that the house was not large enough to accommodate
his entire suite, so the latter were entertained elaborately at
the DeSaussure residence. The fences were taken down be-
tween the two premises so as to give convenient access to the
two homes.
PRESTON HOUSE
The land upon which Chicora College for Women is now
located passed from the commissioners to Judge Thomas
Waites, and by him was sold to Ainsley Hall, a prominent
Columbia merchant, who came to America from England in
1800, settled in South Carolina and married a Miss Hopkins.
Mr. Hall, with the assistance of Robert Mills, the architect,
built a handsome home upon his newly purchased property.
The exquisite white marble mantel in the east drawing-room
and the weather-beaten fountain in the old gardens reflect
the talent of one of the greatest sculptors of that day,
Hiram Powers.
The house is mostly colonial in style, set on a high brick
basement, with a broad marble-tiled porch flanking its entire
front. The corniced roof is supported by beautiful Doric col-
umns. At either end, as well as in the middle of the porch,
steps are found leading into the garden. The entrance faces
the middle steps and leads into a walk which enters from the
street between massive iron gates.
262
COLUMBIA
The hall within is divided by a beautiful arch, beneath
which a fine circular staircase leads to the floor above. On
either side of the front hall are the east and west drawing-
rooms which are reached by wide swinging doors. These
doors, with the large French windows, high ceilings and good
floor space, produce an air of spaciousness that characterizes
the old Southern homes. The entire front could be thrown
into one room, and such a house lends itself readily to mag-
nificent entertainments.
In the year 1826 or 1828 the property was bought by Gen-
eral Wade Hampton, of Revolutionary fame. General Hamp-
ton was the father of Colonel Wade Hampton, who served as
aide to General Jackson in the battle of New Orleans, and
grandfather of Governor Wade Hampton, who has endeared
himself to the hearts of every South Carohnian. General
Hampton's wife (his third mfe), who was, before her mar-
riage, Miss Mary Cantey, devoted the remainder of her life
to the maintenance of the property. The beautiful English
walks were laid out under her direction, and a landscape gar-
dener was employed to beautify the grounds. She imported
and planted rare trees of every description ; a greenhouse was
built and filled with the choicest plants; hedges of boxwood
bordered the walks and flowers bloomed at every turn. It was
an earthly paradise.
Upon General Hampton's death the property was inherited
by Mrs. Sally Hampton Preston, the wife of John S. Preston.
In these days the place was a scene of splendid Southern hos-
pitality. Fashionable ladies and courtly gentlemen danced in
the big parlors, promenaded up and down the broad portico
and sipped tea in the garden under the trees. "A Diary from
Dixie," telling of one of the balls held at this mansion, gives
the following description of the mistress of the house: "Mrs.
Preston was resplendent in diamonds, point lace and velvet.
There is a gentle dignity about her that is very attractive. Her
voice is low and sweet, and her will is iron, quiet, retiring and
reserved. She has chiseled regularity of features, a majestic
figure, perfectly moulded. ' ' Some of those entertained in the
263
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Preston home were Winfield Scott, Daniel "Webster, Henry
Clay, Millard Filmore and Franklin Pierce.
During the Federal occupation of Columbia General John
A. Logan and his troops used the house for headquarters. In
February, 1865, when Sherman was giving orders for the de-
struction of the Hampton home, the interview was overheard
by a nun, who reported the news to her Mother Superior. In
the meantime the convent had been destroyed and the nuns
were promised instead any building left standing in the city.
As the Hamptons and Prestons had been true friends of the
Mother Superior, she immediately resolved to occupy the man-
sion. She notified Sherman of her plans, and regardless of
the fact that it was Logan's headquarters, moved over imme-
diately and took possession. The house owes its preservation
to its beauty. When the troops came to set fire to it, one of
the Sisters who longed to save the establishment from the
merciless flames, caught sight of a face in the crowd, which
gave her inspiration. The expression on it provided new
courage and urged her to ask: "Is there no lover of beau-
tiful architecture, no admirer of Southern furnishings
among you?"
The owner of the face, finely cultured and sweet, set on
very young shoulders, slipped beside the Sister. He was a
mere boy, perhaps a bugler. The Sister never knew. To the
guard she said : "Let this boy come with me and see the lovely
rooms. He shall tell you if there is anything worth saving.
Then you may burn the place. ' '
For some unheard-of reason the men agreed to this sug-
gestion, laughing and jeering all the while. They desired to
humor the boy. No harm could possibly be done. It was only
a matter of time when they should consign the house to flames.
Why not let him go in 1
Silently the big door closed. And quite as the Sister ex-
pected the boy was entranced. He had never seen so wonder-
ful a mantel, as broad a staircase, nor such lofty ceiUngs.
' ' My, it is shameful to burn this house. But there 's no stop-
ping those men ; they are determined, ' ' he said.
264
COLUMBIA
"If I could only do something," sighed the desperate Sis-
ter; "get word to General Ewing."
A generous impulse filled the boy. Perhaps 'twas pity.
Fate guided him. "I'll go," he cried, and shortly afterwards
the Sister bolted back the doors again. He was gone. Just
how long it took the boy to find General Ewing no one ever
guessed. It seemed an eternity.
Then after an age made interminable by shouts and screams
and glaring flashes of firelight, a heavy knock was distin-
guished above the din. Hesitatingly the Sister reopened the
door, and to her surprise there stood General Ewing. To the
drunken soldiers who were bent on burning the house he simply
said, "General Sherman orders those fires out!" Then
he went.
Quietly the men slunk away and shortly the streets were
dark again. The gardens grew greyly mysterious once more.
But for the golden ghmmer of the hall candle, Preston Manse
was wrapped in total darkness. The Sister, kneeUng, told her
beads ; and the boy somewhere in his tent compared a veil of
darkness to a scarf of flames. ' ' So Preston Manse was saved. ' '
In 1889 the building was sold to Rev. W. R. Atkinson for a
Presbyterian College for Women. Afterwards it flourished
under the presidency of Dr. Atkinson, Dr. Pell and Miss
McCHntock, and in 1914 it passed into the hands of the Pres-
byterian Synod and was consolidated with Chicora College,
Dr. S. C. Byrd becoming president. The building is used as
the administration building and is being kept in perfect preser-
vation by the authorities of the institution.
KINARD HOUSE
The Kinard house at 1400 Lady Street was the wooden
court-house erected about 1716 in Saxe-Gotha, a settlement on
the opposite side of the Congaree River from the present city
of Columbia. Later this building was taken down, brought
to Columbia and erected as a Presbyterian Church. Subse-
quently it was moved across the street to the present site, and
used as a Theological School.
265
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
When Mr. Niersee came to Columbia, about 1830, to build
the State Capitol, he bought and remodeled the old school into
a home and lived in this house during the construction of the
Capitol. It was then purchased by Captain John "Waites, who
in turn sold it to John Kinard, in whose family it has since
remained. The exterior of the house is not unusual in appear-
ance, being rectangular in shape, with old-type piazzas. The
chief characteristic of the interior is its wide, airy hall with
square stairway at the rear. This front hall is intersected at
its center by a small lengthwise haU, which divides the front
and back rooms on one side of the house and opens on the side
into a narrow balcony. At the intersection of these halls is
a high, very beautiful arch, which with the lofty ceilings, elab-
orate and dehcate cornice work, give the house an imposing
and dignified atmosphere. This inside work is said to have
been done by old negro slaves. The hall chandelier is of
wrought iron, with a plaster decoration above, in the design
of an inverted Uly. In olden time many slaves were expert
workmen in interior decoration and the cornicing in the two
drawing-rooms on either side of the haU is quite heavy. In
one room they are in the old Greek design of the oak leaf, but
the opposite room contains beautiful bas-reliefs on walls and
ceiling, in a garland rose design, bordered with mouldings of
gold. Long, old-fashioned, gilt-bordered mirrors and antique
furniture complete the harmonious interior of this house.
BLANTON DUNCAN HOUSE
Another Columbia house that escaped the general con-
flagration of the Federal Army was the Blanton Duncan house.
Information taken from an official deposition of Wm. Tecum-
seh Sherman says, ' ' I assisted Mr. Simons, who married a Miss
Wragg of my acquaintance, to move his family and effects from
the threatened house up to my own, which was the house of
Blanton Duncan, then contractor for the manufacture of Con-
federate money." Many claim for the DeBruhl house this
doubtful honor of having been Mr. Sherman's Headquarters.
Mrs. Chestnut in her book, "A Diary from Dixie," calls Blan-
266
COLUMBIA
ton Duncan ' ' A thoroughly free and easy Western man, hand-
some and clever, more audacious than either, perhaps."
General Wood's Headquarters were Mrs. Lucy P. Green's
house, while General Howard's Headquarters were Mrs.
Louisa S. McCord's house opposite South Carolina Col-
lege grounds.
The Federal Army was encamped on the south side of
Gervais Street in the fields belonging at that time to Col.
Theodore Stark, just opposite to Mrs. Walker's residence, and
where "Shandon" is now. The Walkers lived on Gervais
Street, just east of the bridge on the Charlotte Railroad that
crosses that street, which bridge was popularly known as the
"tin bridge."
General Logan's Headquarters, as has already been stated,
were estabhshed at the Preston house, from which he removed
when the Sisters took possession.
CHAPTER XIV
THE OLD CHERAWS, LAURENS,
LANCASTER, AND NEWBERRY
PRINCIPAL STAGE ROUTES THROUGH SOUTH
CAROLINA
(Adcording to " The Geography of South Carolina," by
William Gihnore Simms, dated 1843.)
From Columbia by Camden to Cheraw, 88 miles, daily.
From Columbia by Lexington C. H. to Augusta, Ga., 76 miles,
daily.
From Marion C. H. by LeesviUe to Fayetteville, N. C, 77 miles,
daily.
From Marion C. H. by China Grove to Georgetown, 60 miles,
daily.
From Georgetown to Charleston, 60 miles, daily.
From Charleston by Jacksonboro to Savannah, 111 miles,
daily.
From Cheraw by MontpeUer to Fayetteville, 66 miles, daily.
From Charleston by the South Carolina Railroad to Augusta,
135 miles, daily.
From Charleston to Columbia by Railroad, via Branchville &
Orangeburg, 124 miles, daily.
From Yorkville by Laurensville to Abbeville, 104 miles, three
times a week.
From Abbeville by Petersburg, Ga., to Milledgeville, 115 miles,
three times a week.
From Charleston by Pineville to Camden, 141 miles, twice a
week.
From Columbia by Laurensville to Greenville, 115 miles, twice
a week.
From Greenville by Merrittsville to Ashville, N. C, 62 miles,
tmce a week.
From Greenville by Abbeville to Augusta, Ga., 150 miles, twice
a week.
From Columbia by Winnsboro to Yorkville, 79 miles, twice
a week.
From Cheraw by Wadesboro, N. C, to Salisbury, 84 miles,
twice a week.
From Abbeville to Edgefield C. H. to Cooker's Spring, 63
miles, twice a week.
From Pendleton by Carnesville, Ga., Bushville and Gillsville,
78 miles, once a week.
268
THE OLD CHERAWS
THE CRAIG HOUSE
HE Craig house in Chesterfield District
is a valuable contribution from the little
known section of our State.
In Gregg's " History of the Old
Cheraws," the statement is made that
many of the records of Chesterfield
County remain in a good state of preser-
vation, but few are to be found in the
public offices of Marlboro. Unfortunately for the history of
justice as administered in the Cheraws District, all the Circuit
Court records, with those of Darlington County, were de-
stroyed -with the burning of the Court House about 1804.
The Court House of Marlboro was first located near Gard-
ner's Bluff, afterwards removed lower down on the main river
road above Crooked Creek, and there continued until the ex-
treme unhealthiness of the locahty rendered a change neces-
sary, when finally Marlboro Court House was located at the
present seat, Bennettsville. For Chesterfield the site of the
present Court House was chosen, and for Darlington also, after
a great deal of discussion, the present site was selected.
The District of Cheraws was divided by the celebrated
County Court Act of 1785 and the Cheraws District became
the three counties enumerated, which three counties are sup-
posed to have been named in honor of the Duke of Marlboro,
Colonel Darhngton, who distinguished himself in the War of
the Revolution, and the Earl of Chesterfield.
So sparse were the settlements in the neighborhood that
a few years before nothing but an old Indian trail led from this
point to Camden. It has been an interesting task to locate an
authentic house connected with the history of these primitive
days and sparse settlements, and this has been successfully
accompHshed through the kindness of W. D. Craig, of
Chesterfield, S. C. Further search in history but confirms
his statements.
^69
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
In the history of the old Cheraws, the name of Alexander
Craig appears in the records of Chesterfield during the Eevo-
lutionaiy War. He was elected County Judge for Chester-
field in 1793 and we find him as late as 1798 appearing in
connection with the establishing of the boundary line, accord-
ing to Gregg.
The Craig House in Chesterfield was built in 1798 by John
Craig, a Eevolutionary soldier and the younger of three
brothers. Gregg's History states that he was still a young
man at the time of the Revolutionary War and was long after
known as a worthy man and a useful citizen, having been con-
nected for many years with the Court of Common Pleas and
Ordinary for that district.
The history of the family so far as ascertainable is that
three brothers, James, Alexander and John, came from the
TJpsher part of Ireland about 1770. They settled in Chester-
field County, Virginia, between Richmond and Petersburg.
John and Alexander moved from there to Cheraws District;
they lost connection with James, supposing that he either died
or was killed during the Revolutionary War. John and Alex-
ander Craig, with others, organized Chesterfield County, S. C,
as has been previously stated.
In 1795 John Craig married Sarah Chapman, whose people
had emigrated from Westmoreland, Va., and whose brother,
Captain John Chapman, of Revolutionary fame, lived in this
old home until his death. They reared a large family and their
descendants yet reside in Chesterfield.
It was this John Craig who built the old Craig homestead,
which still stands, a fourteen-room house with a basement
under the whole foundation. This house was one of a half
dozen family residences that made up the village of Chester-
field and is the only one left standing to-day. There were no
hotels in this little village in those days and this Craig house
entertained all the great men who visited there. Chesterfield
being the county seat, many of the most distinguishd men of
the state stayed under the roof of this house.
Under the old regime a review was held once a year, called
the Governor's Review, at which the Governor or one of his
270
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E
>
2
Z
THE OLD CHERAWS
staff inspected the military organizations at the county-seat.
The great folk were entertained at the Craig place. This gen-
eral muster far exceeded Christmas or the Fourth of July in
excitement, for the house was filled from attic to cellar and
everyone on the plantation, white or colored, was worked to the
utmost to get ready for this great day.
In the kitchen, the old Dutch oven, which held half of a
beef and half a dozen turkeys at one time, was cleaned out and
filled to the full with good things to eat. The cattle and horses
were taken away to make room for the equipments of the
military aides.
Court time was hardly less exciting and one room in this
old house is still known as ' ' The Judge 's room, ' ' because it was
reserved for the chancellors and judges. The room across from
this room possesses peculiar interest, it is known as "McDuf-
fie 's room. ' ' A tradition that does not accord with the general
accepted story of George McDuffie's life has it that McDuffie
was not born but came up one morning like "Topsy" on the
old Camden Road near Sugar Loaf Mountain in this county,
at a spot that is still pointed out by the older citizens as the
place where McDuflfie was discovered by a philanthropic gentle-
man going from Cheraw to Camden in his carriage.
The story goes that he saw McDuffie sitting by the road
crying and finding out that McDuffie had an aspiration to be
' ' somebody, ' ' questioned him. He found that McDuffie 's tears
were caused because he was hedged about by so many obstacles.
The gentleman decided that he had found a good instrument
for some of his surplus dollars, so he decided to interest him-
self in this young man and he started George McDuffie on his
way to an education. McDuffie's struggles for means with
which to finish his education at the South Carolina College
brought him to this old house and here he stopped and occupied
a room while he taught school in Chesterfield.
There are many things to support this tradition, among
them being the fact that James McDuffie who was raised in this
same section, claimed and was acknowledged to be George
McDuffie 's nephew. He (James) belonged to the Eighth South
Carolina Regiment and was killed in the battles around Rich-
271
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
mond. His widow was on the Confederate pension roll until
her death a few years ago.
From this old house have gone soldiers for every war since
the Revolution and they seem to have adopted the Spartan
Mother's Motto, either "To bring back the shield or to be
brought back on it. ' '
After the death of John Craig and of his wife, Sarah Chap-
man, this house came into the possession of their youngest son,
W. E. Craig. We learn that W. E. Craig married a Miss
Parke, whose brother. Dr. James Parke, having just finished
his education as a surgeon in Ireland, went from this house
to the Mexican War in 1846-48 and was killed. Later on in the
Civil War another brother of Mrs. Craig, R. D. Parke, having
had small-pox while studying medicine in Dublin, was put in
charge of the small-pox hospital in Charlotte, N. C.
Another warrior connected with this house was General
Blakeney, a nephew of John Craig and also of his wife. He
had spent a good part of his boyhood days in this house. He
was a captain in the Mexican War. The name Blakeney is
still found in Kershaw County.
To continue the war record — the morning of April 13th,
1861, was a memorable time for this household. The news came
that Fort Sumter had been fired upon. M. J. and J. M. Hough
(who had been boarding at this house for a considerable time)
and T. P. Craig (oldest son of the household) proceeded at once
to Charleston where J. A. Craig (another son) was a student
at the Citadel Academy. This cadet corps was soon to engage
in action.
In 1864 J. A. Craig and W. D. Craig (sons of W. E. Craig)
after being in service on the Carolina coast, went to Virginia
not knowing where they would be assigned. This led to a
peculiar gathering together of the threads of family ties. Upon
getting off the train at Walthall Junction, the two brothers
went immediately into a hot skirmish in which W. D. Craig
received a flesh wound, the scar of which he still bears and
strangely enough this happened almost on the threshold of the
old Craig home in Virginia from whence his grandparents had
departed about a century before. This old Virginia house was
272
THE OLD CHERAWS
then occupied by a Craig family, supposed to be descendanta
of James Craig, the missing brother. Hagood in Memoirs
of the War of Secession, mentions this old Craig house
in Virginia.
The two Craig brothers did their part and on May 16th,
1864, J. A. Craig was killed and W. D. Craig received a wound
inflicted by three minnie balls, again this fatality occurred on
home ground, happening almost on the Craig farm in Chester-
field County, Va.
The war record continues, for James Craig, who was born
and reared in this house, was captain of one of the companies
in the Fourth South Carolina Cavalry.
A curious detail of life connected with the Craig homestead
concerns London, a colored boy about five years old. Discov-
ered in a huckleberry patch and brought to the village to be
taken care of, he was bound to W. E. Craig and Uved there as
houseboy until he was old enough to join the United States
Army. He is supposed to be the first colored man from this
section to join the United States Army.
The final history of the house is that the only daughter of
W. E. Craig married W. J. Hanna, and came into possession
after the death of her mother. Her two sons, W. J., Jr., and
J. W. Hanna, volunteered and served through the Spanish-
American War. W. J. Hanna did service during the
World War.
The picture of the Craig house shows in thei foreground an
old tree, quite the most ancient and historic in the county. The
dwelling is an interesting type of a. two-story house, evidently
built of primitive materials, the wood being cut upon the hold-
ings of the builder. No doubt in its day this place constituted
a mansion. It is evident that the planters evolved their own
style of architecture for all over the up-country is found the
same general type of home. Evidently the two-story house
with hall running through it, and piazzas in front, with kitchen
in the ell at the rear, was found best adapted for the living
needs of the family, slaves not being so ordinary to the up-
country people as to the big rice planters in the low-country.
18 273
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
LAURENS— TOWN AND COUNTY
It was in the village of Laurens, S. C, that at one time
Andrew Johnson worked at the tailor's trade. His residence
and tailor's shop with signboard have been pointed out with
much interest to curious visitors. He came to Laurens in 1827,
from Ealeigh, N. C, where he was born, and remained there as
a journeyman tailor for two years. During that time he be-
came engaged to a young lady in the neighborhood, but told one
of his friends that he saw by her mother's manner that he was
not favorably looked upon, the mother having told Johnson
that her daughter should not marry a tailor. He was so mor-
tified by the rebuff that he left Laurens the next day.
His father (town constable in Raleigh, messenger of the
bank, and gexton of the church) died when the son Andrew
was two years old. The boy never went to school a day in his
life, and after his marriage he was taught by his wife to read
and cipher. He continued as a tailor, going from Laurens to
Greenville, S. C, and thence to Greenville, Tennessee, where he
married Miss McCarthy of that town.
Step by step he ascended the political ladder ; first elected
to town council, then as mayor, in a few years he was elected
to Legislature. State Senator, Congressman and Governor
of the State he became in turn, then rose to United States Sen-
ator, Mihtary Governor of Tennessee by President Lincoln,
and Vice-President under the same, at whose death he as-
sumed the Presidency of the country, the highest office in
the land.
MTJSGROVE 'S MILL
Laurens County, so called for Henry Laurens, is rich in
history. On the Enoree River, near the town of Laurens,
stands Musgrove 's Mill, now owned by the Thornwell Orphan-
age. This was the scene, during the Revolution, of a spirited
action, "one of the hardest fought with small arms." Mc-
Crady, in his "South Carolina in the Revolution" says: "It
is remarkable that few American historians have at all noticed
this important and hard-fought battle. Hill in his narrative
(Sumter MSS) complains that none of the historians who have
274
LAURENS
written of the Revolution in the State have mentioned it."
Captain Hammond's account appears in Johnson's "Tradi-
tions of the Revolution, ' ' and it is briefly described by McCall
in his "History of Georgia"; Draper gives a full and particu-
lar account of it in "King's Mountain and Its Heroes." In
none of the accounts, however, is " Dicey 's Ride" mentioned,
yet Dicey was as great a heroine as our country produced, and
her deed deserves recognition.
An old mill once stood at Milton, in the long ago ; a most
important spot during stage-coach days, and we might say
especially interesting as it was just off this old stage road that
the little band of patriots was massacred by "Bloody Bill"
(Cunningham). This spot is recorded as Hay's Station, but is
near Milton. The old stone or rock building still stands.
"Another old mill over one hundred years old, and still at
work, is near Chnton. In that time it has not passed out of
the same family." This description probably refers to Mus-
grove's Mill, already mentioned; it is given by a resident
of Clinton.
McCrady says :
"In 1780 . . . after the battle at the Old Iron Works, or
second battle of Cedar Springs, on the 8th of April, Colonel
Ferguson sent his wounded to Musgrove's Mills on the south
side of the Enoree River, in what is now Laurens County.
. . . Ferguson set out (after receiving an express from Col-
onel TumbuU) . . . pushed on, and marched to Colonel
Winn's plantation about eight miles west of Winnsboro, where
he halted and lay, awaiting news from Camden. ' '
On the American side, McDowell, having been kept well
informed of Ferguson's movements, and having learned that
a party of loyahsts were stationed at Musgrove's Mills, he
conceived the idea that, as the road was open, the post vul-
nerable, and the term of enlistment of Col. Shelby's men about
to expire, a pressing motive presented itself to embrace this
opportunity of striking the British another blow.
Colonels Shelby and Clark were appointed to lead, and with
them were Captains James McCall and Samuel Hammond.
The day before the expedition started these men were joined
27S
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
by a Virginian, Colonel James WilKams, who was rough, rash
and fearless, whose ambition for glory led him to the use of
means not overscrupulous in the accomplishment of his ends,
but whose fearlessness led him into the thick of the fight, and
who here freely poured out his blood and yielded up his hfe
for his country. Colonel Brandon, Colonel James Stein and
Major McJunkin joined the party, and recruited the strength
of the mountain men with a few followers. Shelby attributed
the valor and persistency of the battle to the great number of
officers who were with him as volunteers.
Colonel Innes and Major Eraser, the British officers, had
their headquarters at Edward Musgrove's residence. The
Americans, by a clever ruse, drew the British from their post
of vantage to a rude breastwork they had erected, and although
the battle was hard fought the British lost 63 killed, 90
wounded, and 70 prisoners, while the Americans made good
their escape. During an advance of forty, and a retreat of
fifty miles, the Americans never stopped to eat, but made use
of peaches and green corn for their support. In less than three
days this party of two hundred marched 100 miles, fought a
battle and brought off with them 70 prisoners.
ROSEMONT
In Laurens County there are possibly three or four old
houses of sufficient note to warrant consideration. The first is
"Rosemont," the ancestral home of the Cunninghams, a singu-
lar feature being that though the family were Tories during
the Eevolution, a later member of the family, Miss Ann
Pamela Cunningham, was the originator of the idea to buy
Mt. Vernon and was made the first regent of the Mt.
Vernon Association.
The ignorance in regard to Mt. Vernon, the home of Wash-
ington, is deplorable. It is not generally known that the
women of America bought Mt. Vernon in 1858, and have re-
stored and maintained it ever since without a penny from the
276
LAURENS COUNTY
United States or from any State. This great accomplishment
is strong evidence of woman's administrative and executive
ability, and the men of America should give recognition and
acknowledgement to the great fact.
George Washington died December 14, 1799, and for half
a century Mount Vernon seemed neglected and forgotten. In
1854 John Augustine Washington, owner of the estate, made
repeated efforts to sell the property to the United States and
to the State of Virginia. Every effort failed.
At last a noble and patriotic spirited woman of South
CaroUna, Miss Ann Pamela Cunningham, seeing the adver-
tisements in a newspaper, was seized with the desire to stimu-
late the women of America into acquiring and restoring
Mount Vernon.
Miss Cunningham was a daughter of Captain Eobert Cun-
ningham, of Laurens District, a distinguished soldier of the
War of 1812, and was educated at Brahamville Academy near
Columbia by Julia Pierpont, of Vermont (then Mrs. Marks),
at the celebrated school founded by her husband and herself
at this place, where so many Southern Avomen of culture and
refinement received their early education, among others the
mother of President Roosevelt. Miss Cunningham carried her
ideas concerning Washington's Home into effect after the most
Herculean efforts. She finally founded "The Mount Vernon
Ladies' Association of the Union" and became the first regent.
She appointed as vice-regents one lady from each State.
The immediate object of this first woman's society was to
raise funds for the purchase of two hundred acres of the Mount
Vernon estate, including the mansion and the tomb wherein
repose the mortal remains of General Washington. The ulti-
mate design was to teach the people of the United States to
remember Washington and his great achievements.
The association appealed to the country for $200,000, the
price demanded for this portion of Mount Vernon. The pledge
given was the preservation and restoration of the home of
Washington. The money was raised by the women of that
time, their greatest help being the orator of that day, Edward
Everett, who by his lectures on Washington raised $70,000.
277
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Miss Cunningham lost her health so completely in her great
effort of going from place to place, interviewing Senators and
men of pubUc affairs that she finally was carried about upon an
invalid's air-bed from which she used only to address influen-
tial gatherings which might assist in her patriotic enterprise.
It is needless here to recount the disasters and discourage-
ments which attended the initiative efforts of this small band
of devoted women. One formidable cause of opposition, scarce
credible in our day, was the prejudice then prevaihng against
women as workers in any public affairs. But inspired by the
enthusiasm of Miss Cunningham the feat was finally accom-
plished, and although the Civil War halted the work of the
association, no vandal hand was raised against this shrine of a
nation. After the Civil War friends arose on every side,
material aid flowed in, not only in money, building materials,
fertilizers, food for the stock, but assistance came in all shapes.
The press throughout the land stood by the association. The
Masonic lodges responded to the call to save the great Mason's
home from destruction. Wall Street's brokers' board sent
money, while httle children clubbed together to rebuild a gate.
Others to rebuild the colonnades. The work progressed
steadily year by year.
The necessary repairs accomplished, then came the task of
restoration. In the mansion the replacement of such furniture
as was owned by Washington has been accomplished where
possible; when this was not obtainable, furniture of historic
value and of the past century style has been placed in the
rooms. The bedstead on which General Washington died
stands in his room, mirrors are restored to their former posi-
tions. NelHe Custis' piano stands in the music room again
and Washington's flute hes upon it. Clocks are returned to
their mantels, chairs, tables and a sideboard have resumed
their places. The large silver-mounted plateau, used at Wash-
ington's state dinners, is now returned to Mount Vernon, a
recent gift from a vice regent, herself a great-granddaughter
of Martha Washington.
There are also many other historic and valuable relics of
Washington and his time. The garden is as he left it, with
278
LAURENS C OUNTY
the quaint box-wood hedges and borders. The old-time roses,
pinks, Ulies, mignonette, sweet William, lilacs, magnolia trees,
and acacias, and even the greenhouses and servants' quarters
are restored and are as Washington saw them. The lawns he
loved, the trees he planted, all are there, silent but eloquent.
The dream of the enthusiastic founder of the Mount Vernon
Association is reaUzed. The home of Washington is restored,
and has become the shrine of hberty-loving pilgrims from home
and foreign lands, and left as a heritage to Americans as is
shown in this extract from the farewell address of the founder
of the association to her women associates, given after twenty
years of service, on June 1, 1874 :
"Ladies, the home of Washington is in your charge ; see to
it that you keep it the home of Washington. Let no irreverent
hand change it ; no vandal hands desecrate it with the fingers
of progress !
' ' Those who go to the home in which he Hved and died, wish
to see in what he lived and died !
"Let one spot in this grand country of ours be saved
from change.
' ' Upon you rests this duty. ' '
Miss Cunningham's own home, "Rosemont," is located in
the western part of Laurens County, S. C, five miles south-
west of Cross Hill, on the east bank of the Saluda River. It is
the best-known residence in upper South Carohna, and was the
home of the Cunningham family. It has been said that the
brick was brought from England, and the inside woodwork was
of EngUsh oak, also brought over from the old country, but
this is an error, as Mr. A. S. Salley shows in quoting from a
journal kept by an old school teacher in the "Up Country,"
Reuben Pyhs, who says that about the year 1790, while a school
boy in his teens, "I went to a Stephen Herd, who taught on
Saluda River. Boarded at Patrick Cunningham's, where my
father was working on a fine new house. ' '
This "fine new house" had decorated fireplaces. Much of
the old furniture is still there, including a handsome secretary
and large mahogany table, while rare paintings adorn the
walls of the living-room. In the state drawing-room mirrors
279
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
are let into panels between the deep-set windows, and these dim
old looking-glasses give the low-ceilinged room a curious air of
mystery and enchantment hard to describe — an eerie sense of
forgotten presences hard to convey in words. A brother of
Miss Pamela's, Clarence Cunningham, a classmate of Presi-
dent Wilson at Princeton, lives there alone in this shadowy old
home of long ago, hidden away in Laurens County, but worthy
to become a South Carolina shrine in memory of Miss Pamela
Cunningham and her great work at Mount Vernon.
STONBT POINT
Although Eosemont is in Laurens County it is nearer
Greenwood, S. C, than to the town of Laurens, and not many
miles from Eosemont, in Greenwood County, so Mr. H. L.
Watson, the editor of The Index-Journal, of Greenwood, says,
"is Stoney Point, home of the Smiths, into which family for-
mer Congressman Aiken married, and I think also former
Governor Aiken, 1844-1846."
EDEN HALL
Mr. Watson is also authority for the interesting informa-
tion that "in the lower section of the county is a fine old man-
sion, Eden Hall, built by the late Dr. Wm. Hearst. He was a
very wealthy man and benefactor of Erskine College. W. E.
Hearst, the newspaper pubhsher, belongs to this family ; his
great-grandfather moved from that section to Missouri and
his father from there to California."
TUMBLING SHOALS
Another interesting place is the Tumbling Shoals residence
in Laurens County, 13 miles east of the town. According to
the account of Captain William D. SulUvan, Sr., of Gray Court,
John and WiUiam Arnold built a house for themselves and a
primitive mill, which they erected at Tumbling Shoals about
1800. This house is still standing in a good state of preserva-
tion, and is used as a dwelhng place for an operator in the
280
LAURENS COUNTY
modem power plant which has superseded the mill. The hand-
hewn shingles and weather-boards were "home-made," no
doubt cut out with a wliip saw operated by the Arnolds in true
pioneer style, while the nails with which the shingles and
weather boards were attached to the frame were made of
wrought iron by the neighboring blacksmith.
In 1820 Joseph Sullivan, father of Wm. D. SulHvan, moved
from Greenville district to Tumbhng Shoals. He bought the
mill and water power from Henry Barrow, 45 acres of land for
$1200, and another tract of land containing 1000 acres for $500.
In 1837 he built a large flour and grist mill, also a saw mill
and cotton gin, which were operated until sold to the Eeedy
Eiver power plant about ten years ago. The following year
(1838) he constructed a two-story dwelhng house on the east
side of Reedy River, in which house Wm. D. Sullivan was born,
who has hved there for 82 years.
Within two miles of Mr. Sullivan's house is the Friend-
ship Presbyterian Church, which is situated on a high, dry
ridge between the waters of Reedy River and South Rabun
Creek, ten miles east of Laurens Court House. It was organ-
ized by Colonel Samuel Levers in 1820 as a Presbyterian Con-
gregation, calhng itself Friendship Presbyterian Church.
James Dorroh (who died in 1820) donated the land on which to
build the church. This was first a Union Church, having been
organized in 1809 by the Baptists and Presbyterians jointly,
and being used by both denominations for eleven years, during
which time it was known as Rabun Church. In 1820 the Bap-
tists sold their interests and withdrew, organizing Rabun
Church a few miles further north. In 1859 the Presbyterians
replaced this first structure with the church that is now stand-
ing, and which was used for a centennial celebration in 1920.
Prominent Scotch-Irish family names are found on the church
rolls, among them Dorrohs, Simpsons, Averys, McKnights,
Morgans, SuUivans and Cunningham, who built the church.
BELFAST
Another house of some historic interest in this section is
on the Laurens side of the road that separates Newberry from
281
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Ijaurens. It was built in the early years of the nineteenth
century, and is of brick, two stories and a half high, with ex-
ceptionally large rooms. Tradition has it that the brick, Uke
the builder, came from Ireland. Colonel John W. Simpson
came over to this country from Ireland near Belfast, and
named his home Belfast in memory of that place. He was the
father of William D. Simpson, who was elected Lieutenant-
Governor when Wade Hampton was elected Governor in 1878 ;
became Governor when Hampton went to the Senate ; and was
later made Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
The house passed into other hands, and in 1851 or 1852 was
bought by John Wallace from a Mr. Eichelberger ; it belongs
now to Robert G. Wallace. The building contains four large
rooms, about 22 by 28, two small ones, and, in the half-story,
a long ' ' garret ' ' which seems to be intended for ' ' old plunder. ' '
The present owner has added a wooden dining-room and
kitchen. The plastering on walls and ceihngs is what is known
as "hard finish" and is without crack, despite the earthquake
of 1866; the mantels are high and their facings quite orna-
mental. In the large rooms an elaborate cornice follows a
curved pattern in several layers on the ceilings ; the side walls
are exceptionally thick. No nails are used in the flooring
boards, but round pegs very similar to those used in decking a
ship, which leads to the belief that Col. John W. Simpson may
have been a sea-faring man.
For so large a house the piazza is quite small, but the
grounds are extensive, including the Wallace family burying
ground with monuments and tablets. Nearby is Hay's Moun-
tain, where a massacre of the Whigs by the Tories took place
during the Revolutionary War, and in olden times when mail
was carried by postillions on horseback this house was the
only post-office between Laurens and Newberry. A famous
Rock Spring is found on the grounds.
The present owners are of a distinguished up-country fam-
ily, one of which is W. H. Wallace, father of Professor Wallace,
of Wafford University, and the well-known editor of the
Newberry Observer. Although the original builders, the
Simpson family, no longer reside at Belfast, yet it is repre-
282
LANCASTER
sented in the State by Henry Y. Simpson, of the Laurens bar,
grandson of the first o^\^ler, and son of the late Chief Justice
Simpson, who Avas born at Belfast.
THE SIMS HOUSE, LANCASTER
James Marion Sims, according to Joseph Wardlaw's
"Genealogy of the Witherspoon Family," was the son of Col.
John Sims and Mahala Mackey. He was born in January,
3813, graduated at South Carohna College in 1832, at Jefferson
Medical College, Philadelphia, 1835, and in 1836 married Ehza
Theresa Jones, daughter of Dr. Bartlett Jones, a skilful physi-
cian and a man of renown, decided intelligence and great popu-
larity. This marriage influenced his hf e greatly. A few facts
about Dr. Jones are not amiss.
Dr. Bartlett Jones was born in Prince William County,
Virginia, in 1787, graduated as M. D. in Philadelphia in 1806,
and settled at Lancaster, S. C, in 1808. Here, in 1810, he mar-
ried Eliza Jane Dunlap, a daughter of Dr. Samuel F. Dunlap
and Mary Crawford (daughter of Major Robert Crawford).
After his marriage he built a house at the southeast corner of
Main, or Brown and Arch Streets. The house itself was typi-
cal of the "up country," being a square two-story building
with its main entrance opening directly from the piazza into
the hallway which bisected the establishment. There is noth-
ing architecturally great to render this house worthy of notice
in a volume of Historic Houses, but the fact that there the
great physician, Marion Sims, first received his inspiration
and love for medicine from his father-in-law, and there first
engaged in that practice of medicine destined to revolutionize
modem surgery.
Many authorities give illuminating glimpses of the early
struggle of Sims which can be read at leisure, but after moving
around from "pillar to post" his love of healing prevailed,
and he set himself to map out new fields of endeavor in his
chosen profession.
Gen. B. McCrady, in an address dealing with the history of
the South Carolina Medical College says :
283
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
' ' It happened there was sitting on the benches of this first
class under the new organization of the college a youth from
the Waxsaws, the native place of Andrew Jackson, who was
to do more good in his generation than his great compatriot,
and to surpass even the great French physician and biologist,
Ravenel, as well in his fame as in his kindness and beneficence
to the poor and suffering. This was Dr. J. Marion Sims,
whose name you will find on the roll of the class of 1834. It
was my fortune to know Dr. Sims, and to know him somewhat
intimately, and I can bear testimony that amidst all his pro-
fessional triumphs, in the full tide of his fame, having the
decorations of the governments of France, Italy, Germany,
Spain, Portugal and Belgium as a great benefactor of man-
kind, he looked back with pleasure and affection, and loved to
talk of the old days when he studied medicine in the college
with his friend Sparkman, and 'dear old Dick Baker' as he
used to speak of that excellent physician. Dr. C. R. F. Baker,
of Clarendon, who died just before him. Let me speak a word
of Dr. Sims to you, young gentlemen, and before this Charles-
ton audience, for the applause of strangers, and the honors
bestowed by Royalty and Courts were not so dear to him as the
fact that he was a Southerner and a South Carolinian.
"He was a bold pioneer, opening new pathways; original
and mth creative genius, he discovered for himself, and made
his discoveries a gift to the profession. Truly he did so. As
his writings have been translated into every modern European
language, so the instruments of inventions of which it would
require much space to give even a list are found in the con-
sulting rooms of every surgeon in the civilized world; but no
royalty or tribute did he ever ask for them. He took no toll
upon his inventions for the relief of suffering. He took out
no patent upon the instruments he invented for the benefit
of humanity.
"Eventually Dr. Sims' search led him to Montgomery,
Alabama, where he established a small private hospital for
negro women ; the protot3^pe of the great Woman's Hospital in
New York. That grand institution is a monument to a South
Carolinian on the Atlantic. On the Pacific another Carolina
physician has left his monument in the Toland Institute.
"In 1853 Dr. Sims removed from Montgomery, Ala., to
New York where during the following year he founded the
Woman's Hospital, the first institution of the kind on this
continent; as it has been well said: 'If Sims had done nothing
else, the energy and determination displayed in placing this
institution in a proper working condition would be sufficient
284
LANCASTER
to entitle him to the gratitude of the public, and to establish
his claim as a wise philanthropist. '
"Dr. Toner, in his biographical sketch of Dr. Sims, recalls
the account given by the New York newspapers of a 'Lecture,'
as Dr. Sims called it, in which he first presented to the pubhc
Ms scheme for a Woman's Hospital in 1854, and cites the
Tribune as saying:
" 'He aimed, by the history of a Southern institution with
which he had been connected, and its results, to show how much
might be done in this city, and how great was our need. '
' ' The story of Sims is the story of a Man Who Triumphed.
Many men whose minds have carried them as near to great
things have failed because unable to cUmb the path they saw
so well ! The flesh will not always do the work the mind con-
ceives. Fortunately for humanity it was not so with Dr.
Sims. When he saw that suffering could be relieved it lay on
him as a call from God. He had a mission, a calling to fulfill,
which neither weariness, nor sickness, nor poverty could pre-
vent. In reading the story you will admire the genius, but you
mil love the man who devoted himself to the task.
"Failure followed failure, but Sims did not doubt the
result. Money, labor, health, all he poured into his work,
while friends and relations pressed him to desist, and appealed
to him to remember his wife and children, if he cared nothing
for himself. But in vain, till they began to do as the boys of
old did to Columbus as he walked the streets filled with the
vision of the New World, touching their heads significantly as
they passed him. At last, however, success came. As he was
walking home one evening, dejected, not because he doubted
his discovery, but fearing his health and means would all go
before he could demonstrate it, a little piece of wire on the
ground struck his eye ; and he took it up scarcely thinking of
what he was doing. That little piece of wire solved the
problem, and Sims is famous to-day because he found the
use of a silver suture and modern methods of surgery were
made possible.
' ' The death of Dr. J. Marion Sims carried profound gnef
to the American profession. Not only in this country, but
abroad, in whatever land true medicine fives, his departure
was mourned. Surely South Carolina may well be proud of
this son who not only became a great pubUc benefactor, but
is among the rare instances of those who have given dis-
coveries and inventions of immense value to the world without
price or reward ." ^^
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
NEWBERRY
" COATESWOOD "
Newberry is one of the old settlements in the upper part of
the State, but the history of these counties has never been
written in detail and few records are obtainable, although
South Carolina is as proud of her sons of the hills as she is of
her sons of the sea and the dwellers along the rivers.
One of the oldest public buildings in Newberry is a beauti-
ful piece of architecture, marred only by a flight of steps which
breaks the harmony and destroys the unity of this gem carved
and set in the early days of Newberry. A bas-relief on the
fagade of the old court house has an interesting story says Mr.
W. H. Wallace, editor of the Newberry Observer. In 1876,
just after the redemption of the State, Mr. 0. Wells was given
the contract to make repairs on the building, which had become
shabby under radical regimes. In finishing the fagade he con-
ceived the idea of making an allegory of the State 's downfall
and its redemption, so that he who ran might read, in the fallen
palmetto tree with a game-cock standing on its roots crowing
defiantly, and the American eagle with extended wings grasp-
ing the top of the tree in the attempt to lift it upright, the story
of a "prostrate State."
The most historic house in Newberry is that of the late
Chancellor Johnstone, who died some fifty years ago. The
house is still in the family, and is occupied by his daughters,
Mrs. Clara McCrary and Miss Fannie Johnstone. Senator
Alan Johnstone is a son of the late Chancellor. Sketches of
Chancellor Johnstone are found in the "Annals of Newberiy,"
O'Neall and Chapman, second part; in Carwile's "Remini-
scences of Newberry," and in N. R.Brooks' "Bench and Bar."
In quoting from a sketch of the house written by Mrs. McCrary,
a great many of the facts of which were taken from the above-
named sources, it is stated that
"Coateswood, the home of Chancellor Job Johnstone at
Newberry, S. C, was built by him about the year 1835. The
plan of the building is that of an English basement house. It
contains twelve rooms and two additional garret rooms, mak-
ing four stories. The first story is of brick finished with stucco,
286
NEWBERRY
the two upper stories and attic are of frame. The brick wall
of the first story is solid and is twenty inches thick. The in-
terior woodwork (mouldings, framings of doors and windows,
mantels, etc.) is exceedingly tasteful. The carving was all
done by hand and was the work of the contractor and builder,
Phillip Schoppert, a citizen of Newberry. His handiwork is to
be seen in many of the older homes of Newberry.
' ' The brick in the house was all made upon the place and the
lumber used was made from timber grown in Newberry
County. The lime for mortar and plastering was imported
and brought by wagon from Charleston. In the rear of the
house and separated from it is the long brick kitchen, having
a large open fireplace with crane. Another feature which
dates far back is the Sun Dial between the house and kitchen.
The house is located on the crest of the hill, which situation
shows to advantage the good points of the establishment."
Chancellor Job Johnstone was of Scotch-Irish descent, his
parents, John Johnstone and Mary Caldwell, emigrating to
this country and settling in Fairfield District, South Carolina,
about three miles below Winn's Bridge on Little River. He
was named for his maternal grandfather. Job Caldwell, of
Londonderry, Ireland, who was in his day a distinguished
physician. His early life was spent in Fairfield, Chester and
Newberry Districts. Graduating at a very early age from the
South Carohna College in 1810 he studied and practiced medi-
cine for a short time, reading with Dr. Davis, of Columbia, and
graduating at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, New
York, in 1815. Finding that profession unsuited to his tastes
he turned to the law, for which he had always a leaning and to
which he had previously given some study in the law offices
of Mr. John Hooker at York and Mr. Clark at Winnsboro. In
1817 he entered the office of John Belton O'NeaU at Newberry,
and in the winter of 1818 was admitted to the Courts of Law
and Equity, and formed a partnership with Mr. 0 'Neall. This
partnership existed until 1828. He had in the meantime, in
November, 1826, been elected Clerk of the Senate, serving until
November 3, 1830, when he was elected Chancellor. In 1847
he was made presiding Judge of the Equity Court of Appeals.
This office he filled through all the changes in the Judiciary
until 1859 when he was elected Associate Judge of the Court of
287
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
Appeals. This last position lie accepted, and discharged most
ahly its duties until his death in 1862. Mr. 0 'Neall, his partner
at law and life-long friend, his senior by less than two months
was closely connected \vith him again when each was elevated to
the Supreme Bench as Chief Justice and Associate Justice. It
may not be amiss in this connection to say that Chief Justice
0 'Neall survived him by little more than a year, his death
occurring on December 27th, 1863.
In the War of 1812 Job Johnstone was appointed and com-
missioned Quartennaster to the 36th Regiment, Eastern Divi-
sion, May 26th, 1812, aged nineteen years.
In 1832 he was a member of the celebrated Nullification Con-
vention, and it is said that he assisted in drawing up the ordi-
nance of nullification adopted by that body. He took an active
part in organizing Aveleigh (Presbyterian) Church at New-
berry and was made one of its elders. In compliment to him
the name Aveleigh was given to the church, as that had been
the name of the church of his forefathers in England. He was
Commissioner to the first General Assembly of the Southern
Presbyterian Church which met in Augusta, 6a., December 4th,
1861, at which time the Southern Church formally withdrew
from the Northern.
In closing this sketch of the life of Chancellor Job John-
stone and the description of his home, it is well to conclude with
the tribute paid to him by his alma mater in a brief resume of
his life, "It has been said that during twenty-one years of his
administration no one lost his right or his estate through the
maladministration of Job Johnston."
CHAPTER XV
JOSEPH McCULLOUGH HOUSE, FORT
HILL, LOWTHER HALL, TOMASSEE
AND THE BURT HOUSE IN ABBEVILLE
THE JOSEPH McCULLOUGH HOUSE
I HE Joseph McCullough house was built
nearly a hundred years ago, on the old
stage-coach road running from Green-
ville, in the northwestern part of the
state, to Augusta, Ga. The house,
which is of brick, is set on a slight ter-
race formed by a stone coping, the build-
ing itself being placed about twenty feet
back from the road, and privacy being insured by a row of fine
old cedar trees. Although the material from which the house
is constructed is brick, there is a most curious use of plaster to
simulate a vari-colored stone. The plaster is applied to the
bricks in blocks about two by three feet square, giving a beauti-
ful, mellow effect, as the colors used are soft blue, pink, and
granite, while the blocks are outlined with a narrow
white edging.
Originally the house had a shed room at the rear, as well
as an upstairs piazza on the front. Each end of this piazza
was enclosed to form a small room. These details are given
in order to show how it was possible for this establishment to
house so many people.
In the days when there were no railroads in upper South
Carolina all freight was handled on wagons, and all travel was
by private conveyance, thus this homestead, which stands in
the extreme lower corner of Greenville County, was used not
only as a family residence, but as a public inn, by Joseph Mc-
Cullough, who was a large landholder, a merchant, and a
shrewd trader in all kinds of stock. The two latter avocations
he was able to pursue to advantage by reason of the strategic
position he had selected for his home. In those days of heavy
19 289
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
travel from the seacoast to the mountains there was great
necessity for accommodations for man and beast, including the
hogs, mules, horses and other cattle that were driven on foot
from Tennessee and Kentucky to the markets of Carohna.
These creatures, as well as the traders and drovers accompany-
ing them, had to be furnished with food and lodgings, and
Joseph McCuUough prospered by providing them for all con-
cerned. Thus the old house was, at one time, very much in
demand as a public inn.
Upon approaching the house from the road a traveler
ascends the weather-beaten stone steps leading from the road
to the terrace, and traverses the remains of an interesting look-
ing formal garden to the piazza, which is reached by one gran-
ite step, and from which immediate entrance is had to the
house. At each gable end of the old place a massive chim-
ney is found, and at the left side is a long wing, while just a
few feet from the side steps of this wing is an old-fashioned
well with the sweep and bucket.
J. W. McCuUough, a grandson of the original owner, was
raised at the old home, but had, he said, like most children,
paid little attention to its history; all that he remembered
was that the house was built by contract, of brick plastered
over, and when finished the keys were handed over to
his grandfather.
Another relative, Mrs. T. S. McKittrick, of Toney Creek
neighborhood, whose grandmother was a niece of the original
o^vner, Joseph McCuUough, writes of the relationship, stating
that the elder Mr. McCuUough was instrumental in bringing
her grandparents to this country. She says, in speaking of
the old inn: "My earliest recollection of the place is when it
was a well-kept home with many beautiful outdoor shrubs and
flowers, having also a well-furnished conservatory. To my
childish mind the beautiful hothouse flowers were things
of wonder. ' '
Still another member of the family is Mr. W. D. SulHvan,
of Gray's Court, an old gentleman over eighty years of age,
who takes much interest in such matters, and has written a
great deal of historical data dealing with this section. His
290
THE JOSEPH McCULLOUGH HOUSE, ABOVE GREENVILLE
JOSEPH McCULLOUGH HOUSE
sister married one of the McCulloughs, and thus became lady
of the house. Although still owned by the original family, it is
no longer occupied by them; from the writer's personal visit
to the place, however, and from letters of relatives the history
of the old house has been compiled, the narratives of several
■widely separated people agreeing as to names and dates.
Mr. Sullivan suppUes an interesting story about the house
itself in the following account: "In about 1850 I was at John
Robinson's circus at McCuUough. We took care of the whole
outfit. The manager made a great impression on me and I
now call to mind that he had all the show people registered
and assigned to rooms just hke a hotel. All the rooms of
the house were numbered, with signs tacked on the doors on
white papers. ' '
Other interesting anecdotes are told concerning this house
and its inhabitants. As one of the writers naively says : "Old
Joseph McCullough, from some of the things I have heard of
him, was not a reUgious man. ' ' His characteristic as a shrewd
trader is evidenced in a story told of his having packed a
grindstone in a bale of cotton to increase its weight, and send-
ing it to Atlanta to be sold. However, "chickens come home
to roost," said the narrator of this incident, "and some time
afterwards my grandfather was at the store when old Uncle
Joe opened a barrel of sugar and there was the stone, which
had come back to him. He called his cousin and partner, 'Oh,
Read, come here,' and holding up the grindstone remarked, 'it
looks familiar, doesn't it ! ' "
It seems that old Colonel James McCullough, who inherited
the house upon the death of his father, Joseph McCullough,
was an officer in the Confederate Army, being Colonel of the
16th South Carolina Volunteers. He was also a big planter,
ran a general store, and ginned for the public. He and his
wife, who was a Miss SulUvan, had no children, but they
seemed to have loved young people, and to have been open-
hearted, as they raised a dozen or more nieces and nephews.
The original owner had other children than Colonel James
McCullough, as we glean from the fact that J. W. McCullough,
a grandson of Joseph (the first), is still Uving, although the
291
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
house did not remain with him in the direct family Hne, but
passed to the adopted son of Colonel James McCullough, Hon.
Joseph A. McCullough, formerly of Grreenville, but now of
Baltimore, Md. This latter is a prominent and well-known
lawyer, in whose hands the old place now remains.
Stirring times indeed must have been witnessed by this
ancient structure, and one feels that the house and the owner
thereof fit in very well with the spirit of the poem which says :
"Let me live in a house by the side of the road
Where the race of men go by ' '
PORT HILL, CALHOUN'S HOME
"Fort Hill" is best known as the home of John C. Calhoun.
The oldest part of the building was erected by Eev. James
McEUienny, who was called to the pastorate of the ' ' Old Stone
Church" in the present county of Oconee, about 1807. He
named the place "Old Clergy Hall" and used it as a rectory
because he and his son-in-law, the Eev. James Archibald
Murphy lived there together. The Eev. McEIhenny was twice
married, his first wife was Miss Jane Moore, of York District,
but the second time he married a widow, a Mrs. Wilkinson, of
John's Island, who was originally a Miss Smith, of Charleston.
One of the daughters of this marriage married Lieutenant
Hamilton Hayne, U. S. N., and her son was Paul Hamilton
Hayne, the poet. That singer of rare and beautiful songs, so
little known, was born in Charleston, S. C, in the house now
standing on Ashley Avenue on the western side (one door
north of Bull Street), now occupied by Mr. Gibson, superin-
tendent of the Charleston Water Works.
When Clergy Hall passed into the hands of the Calhoun
family the name was changed from "Clergy Hall" to "Fort
Hill, " and it is evident that at this time the wings to the house
were added. The house is erected on a gentle slope in sight
of the Seneca Eiver. It is one of the characteristics of the
colonial buildings, that wdien a view is to be commanded the
house is placed flat on the ground, and this house is no excep-
tion. The building faces southwest and has a porch on that
292
r
•FORT HILL," RESIDENCE OF JOHN C. CALHOUN, CLEMSON COLLEGE
JOHN EWING CALHOUN HOME, NEAR CLEMSON COLLEGE
Built by a Harrison, DOW ii residence of the Ravenci family
FORT HILL
side, but there are also porches on the north and south sides
of the house. The present owners, nieces of John C. Calhoun,
use the north porch as an entrance, but when the house was in
the possession of John C. Calhoun he used the porch that faces
east. Much attention is given to these porches because they
are the best architectural feature of the house. Their columns
are of brick, plastered over, and the flooring is paved with blue
and white flagstones. The wood used in the construction of
the house is probably cedar, because it is very prevalent on the
estate. The inside woodwork is of red cedar. Formerly in the
large rooms were a number of pictures that are now in the
Clemson College library. There are now a great many relics
in one of the rooms, some very handsome pieces of furniture ;
among them a broad sofa, on which is carved a large eagle. It
is said that the design of the eagle on the silver dollar was
taken from this old sofa. The dining table of John C. Calhoun
is another piece of furniture of interest in this house and an
interesting chair, also Calhoun's piano complete the list.
John C. Calhoun married his cousin, Floride Calhoun. In
the f oUomng extract from a letter of Mrs. Calhoun, Floride 's
mother, to Andrew Pickens, Jr., an interesting reference is
made to this young girl who afterwards married John C. Cal-
houn. The letter is dated September 2nd, 1800, and post-
marked at Newport, September 4th.
"I had the happiness to find my family well and my mind
relieved of a great deal of anxiety occasioned by a foolish re-
port which prevail'd in Charleston, that Floride was engaged
to be married, and indeed so far as to say that the event had
taken place, but there was not the least foundation for such a
report . . . what anxiety a Daughter who is growing up
occasions a Parent, but I have every reason to hope that she
will be a comfort to me as few girls of her age conduct them-
selves with more propriety. ' '
When at Fort Hill, Calhoun arose at daybreak and walked
over the hills that made up his plantation. His keen eyes took
in at a glance the condition of the fields and of the crops. At
half-past seven he again entered his home and sat down to
breakfast. Then he worked steadily in his office until three
293
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
o'clock. The writing of long letters on public questions kept
him busy. After dinner he read history and books of travel or
carried on conversation mth distinguished visitors of whom
he had many.
It is interesting to note that John C. CaUioun inherited
many of the characteristics of his pioneer progenitors, as will
be found in an amusing anecdote of his father, Patrick Cal-
houn, told by Judge 0 'Neal :
"In the debate of a law in the legislature of the colony to
give a premium of so many shillings for a Wolf's scalp, Patrick
Calhoun (who settled in 1756 on Lory Cane, Abbeville County,
the founder in South Carohna of the Calhoun family) is repre-
sented as saying he would much rather 'gie a poond for a
lawyer's scalp.' He was the same who, in 1765, was called
Captain Calhoun, and who at the head of a company of rangers,
was directed to escort the palatines to their settlement called
Londonerry. His ^\'ife was Martha, sister to John Caldwell,
who was an eminent surveyor and located much of the land in
Newberry District. ' '
John Caldwell Calhoun, after a final speech on nullification,
died on the last day of ]\Iarch. He was the most prominent
advocate of State sovereigntj", was noted for his keen logic,
his clear statements and demonstrations of facts, and his pro-
found earnestness. Webster said concerning him that he had
"the indisputable basis of high character, unspotted integrity,
and honor unimpeached. Nothing grovelling, low, or mean or
selfish came near his head. ' ' His sarcophagus is found in the
western cemetery of St. Philip's Churchyard, Charleston, and
a large monument stands on Marion Square.
A painting in the City Hall at Charleston of John C. Cal-
houn, executed by Healy, an American artist, is a much ad-
mired one. It represents CaUioun in his characteristic attitude
of addressing the Senate, with his left hand, beautifully femi-
nine in appearance, upon his breast. On the cajivas in the
background are several faces depicted, said to be of his con-
temporaries. The painting is the masterpiece of Healy 's art.
After Mr. Calhoun's death in 1850, Mr. Thomas C. Clemson,
who married Calhoun's daughter, Anna Maria, sold his farm
in Edgefield County and moved to Pendleton, his wife's child-
294
LOWTHER HALL
bood home. By -will, Mr. Clemson gave to the State of South
Carolina, a portion of that property in Pendleton for the pur-
pose of establishing an agricultural college. On this property
stands Clemson Agricultural College, which is now one of the
largest colleges for men in the South. It is located on the divid-
ing line between Pickens and Oconee Counties in the pictur-
esque foothills of the Blue Eidge Mountains. It has an elevation
of about nine hundred feet and commands an excellent view
of the mountains. The climate is invigorating and healthful, and
the surroundings are in every way favorable to the best physi-
cal and mental development.
One of the most interesting sidelights thrown upon the
character of John C. Calhoun, is furnished in a book written
by the late Mr. George W. Williams, describing the behavior
of Calhoun — a visitor at Nacoochee, the WiUiams' Georgia
Estate — when news was received that South Carolina had
"nullified. " Mr. Williams tells of how Mr. Calhoun remained
silent for several hours and betrayed the utmost agitation,
walking swiftly up and down the corridor of the house with
his hands behind his back. He knew the price the South would
have to pay for the Doctrine of States Rights.
LOWTHER HALL, PENDLETON
Pendleton District Records concerning old homes have all
been destroyed, although the county boasts a handsome Court
House which is a beautiful piece of architecture, and which was
formerly the "Farmers' Hall," now used as a Post Office.
This building has been the scene of many historic gatherings,
A visitor will be attracted by the old sun dial and the cannon
in front called the "Red Shirt" cannon — "Red Shirts" being
the name by which Hampton's men were known during the
reconstruction days.
Although the subject matter does not relate directly to
Pendleton, it is of interest to know of a scene which trans-
pired in old Oconee, formerly part of the Pendleton District,
when Hampton was electioneering. One of the men who wit-
nessed it, Mr. Charles Russell, now in his eighties, said that
295
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
when Hampton spoke at Walhalla he stood on a little balcony
outside of the hotel, the crowd being so large that no hall would
contain it. The dramatic moment arrived when Hampton
raised his right hand, leaned forward, and said to those rude
mountain men to whom he was appeahng for support in the
coming election intended to redeem South Carolina from Radi-
cal Rule, ' ' Gentlemen, if I am elected to rule in this high office,
by the Living God I will rule ! ' ' The crowd went wild. Hamp-
ton was afterwards elected, and the mountain men flashed the
news from peak to peak ; as in the old days of Grecian history,
they signaled by fire.
In speaking of the absence of records. Miss Annie Sloan, of
Charleston, a descendant of the Sloan family long identified
Avith the Pendleton district and whose ancestor built and oper-
ated probably the oldest mill in consecutive use in South Caro-
lina, said that at one time she visited a house bought by people
without any regard for history and arrived just after papers
relating to the Blockade Runners had been burnt. At another
time her brother, Earl Sloan, rescued the manuscript notes of
some of the celebrated German chemist, Lieber's, documents
Avhich were being similarly disposed of.
The Reverend C. C. Pinckney, at one time rector of the
Episcopal Church built in 1820, spoke of his congregation-
then composed of Earls, Calhoims, Hugers, Sloans, Hanckels
and others — as being representative of the greatest collection
of wealth and culture in the State.
An interesting story connected with Pendleton concerns
"Tommy Dawson," who dwelt vnth his daughter in a pretty
little place right by the village of Pendleton. His garden was
so beautiful that it led to the discovery of his story, which was
that he had been a drummer-boy in the Enghsh army in the
Battle of Waterloo, and afterwards became one of Queen
Victoria's gardeners.
There are some old homes in and around Pendleton, but as
no records can be found, and few dates and Httle data of any
special significance the history of this interesting section will
have to be rather meagre. Tradition says that Lowther Hall
is the oldest house in the town of Pendleton, but no one knows
296
LOWTHER HALL
beyond the fact that there really was a Lord Lowther, and that
he built or occupied as a hunting lodge the house now retaining
his name. Lord Lowther was an Englishman and loved to
roam. It is said that he perished at sea on his way back to
America from England. Lowther Hall has been added to and
almost entirely rebuilt in some parts. It is now in the pos-
session of Edward A. Trescot.
The original lodge was built of logs in one day, the founda-
tion, sills, and all structural timber being of the same material.
When the house was undergoing repairs the carpenters called
attention to the massive timber of sohd tree trunks roughly
adzed on four sides by hand, and in as perfect condition and as
strong and fine as when first cut. The house was never nailed
together, but mortised with foot-long oaken pegs.
The present owner, Mr. Edward Trescot, says that the
original lodge was said to have been a small two-room house,
one up and one down, and was built by one of the Sloans, who
afterwards went to England, taking with him a water color
view of the Blue Eidge Mountains as seen from the rear of the
house. Having used up all of his money, Mr. Sloan showed the
picture to Lord Lowther, who Avas so much taken with it that
he said he would buy the house as a hunting lodge.
Whether the foregoing is really true is hard to ascertain.
But a friend of the Trescot family who was connected with the
Foreign Office in London made, about 1895, somewhat of an
investigation of this tradition, and as a result was more than
inclined to believe that Lord Lowther had owned and used the
house as a hunting lodge. His letter to Mr. Trescot 's father
bearing on the subject perished in a fire which destroyed the
Trescot country home near Pendleton.
From November, 1768, to January, 1772, there appeared in
the Public Advertiser in London the celebrated "Junius Let-
ters." Later these were published separately in two volumes.
The identity of ' * Junius ' ' has remained forever a mystery. It
is said that a man named Miller, who assisted in the printing
of these letters, was forced or induced to leave England in
order to keep this secret. It is also said that part of his pay
was the printing outfit on which these political volumes were
297
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
set up. Whether this latter is true or not, it is certain that
Miller landed in Charleston with a printing outfit, located later
at Pendleton, and there issued, from Lowther Hall, The Pen-
dleton Messenger. It is a curious coincidence that one of the
first sets of volumes of the "Junius Letters" found a resting
place at Lowther Hall, where Miller first put up the printing
press after issuing the letters in London, these volumes having
been sent to Edward Trescot, great-grandfather of Edward
Trescot, the present owner.
The Trescot family were originally from Charleston and
were wealthy and cultured people. Studying the Abstract of
Titles will reveal the fact that they possessed, among other
pieces of property, land in Hampstead, and on East Bay at the
comer of Broad Street, where the Carolina Savings Bank now
stands. The will of Edward Trescot, dated in 1818, states
that he has four sons, John, George, Henry and Wilham, and
names his grandchildren, Edward, Henry and Elizabeth, chil-
dren of his late son WilUam. Space does not permit of tracing
the ramifications of this family, the most distinguished member
of which is William Henry Trescot, born in Charleston, S. C,
1822, died in Pendleton, S. C, 1898. After graduation at the
College of Charleston he studied law in the office of his uncle,
Edward McCrady. Soon after his admission to the bar he
married EUza Natalia Cuthbert and settled as a planter on
Barnwell Island, an island on the coast which came down to his
wife by Royal Grant of George III, where he lived until the
plantation was occupied by Federal troops during the Civil
War. At thirty years of age, in 1852, he was appointed Secre-
tary of the Legation at London, served two years, returned to
Charleston, occupying the house where his law office was, and
reentered upon the practice of law, diplomatic and interna-
tional subjects. As early as 1857 in Russell's Magazine it
was said of him :
"Our readers, we take it, mil scarcely need to be told that
among the younger prose-writers of the South, Mr. Trescot is
one of the most vigorous, thoughtful and matured. His two
elaborate works upon the Diplomacy of the Revolution, and the
Diplomatic History of the Administrations of Washington and
Adams, have earned for him a wide and deserved reputation."
298
LOWTHER HALL
Mr. Trescot became Assistant Secretaiy of State in 1860 ;
during the Civil War not only served in the Legislature of
South Carolina, but was on the staff of General Roswell S.
Eipley. Of this period of his life Mrs. Chestnut says in her
"Diary from Dixie": "Trescot is too clever ever to be a
bore. . . . Calls himseK 'Ex-Secretary of State of the
United States,' 'Nothing in Particular' of South Carohna or
now the Confederate States. ' '
A less facetious pen, that of Governor McGraw, deals more
justly with Mr. Trescot 's perceptions and sentiments, saying
that with the election of a RepubUcan President, March 4,
1861, to use the terse and expressive language of Trescot, "a
circle was to be drawn around the South beyond which insti-
tutions should not grow, and within which it was the expressed
desire of an all powerful Government that they should gradu-
ally perish, and that it should stand, like one of its own oaks,
rung for slow but certain destruction."
Mr. Trescot was assistant to the Hon. James L. Petigru in
codifying the laws of South Carolina. In 1877 he was Consul
for the United States before the Halifax Fishery Commission,
and in 1880 he was Commissioner to China to negotiate a
treaty, which he succeeded in signing. A list of the offices
he held includes Special Envoy Extraordinary and Minister
Plenipotentiary to Chili in 1881, Commissioner to negotiate
a commercial treaty with Mexico in 1882, and Delegate to the
Pan-American Conference in 1889.
Mr. Trescot was an able WTiter. His principal pubKshed
works relate to diplomacy, upon which subject he is universally
regarded as the highest authority in the South. He is the
author of "Diplomacy of the Revolution," Appleton & Co.,
1852 ;" Diplomatic History of the Administrations of Wash-
ington and Adams," Little, Brown & Co., 1857 ; "An American
View of the Eastern Question," John Russell, 1854; "Address
Before South Carolina Historical Society"; "Eulogy on Gen.
Stephen Elliott before South Carolina Legislature," 1866;
"Memorial of Gen. Johnston Pettigrew," 1870.
In writing of his death which occurred in 1898, LeRoy F.
Youmans calls him the "Greatest American Diplomat," and
299
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
pays a tribute to Mr. Trescot in the News and Courier which
cannot be quoted on account of its length, but which is illumi-
nating and instructive. Edward Trescot has this to say of
his father's death: "At the time of my father's death he had,
I feel confident, been sent on more diplomatic missions than
any other man. He was buried in the churchyard of St. Paul's
Episcopal Church here, and upon the monument which marks
his grave is a quotation from an address of his before the
South Carolina Historical Association at Charleston in May,
1859. It reads as follows: 'South Carolina . . . she will soothe
the hours of that long twilight when we will creep gladly to
her bosom, there to rest forever.' "
TOMASSEE
"Tomassee," the home of General Andrew Pickens, is of
interest to the people of South Carolina not because of its
beautiful architecture and costly equipment, but because it
was the home of one of the most noted sons of our State. In
the hills of South Carohna can be found the home that in many
respects reflects the character of this noted statesman, soldier
and scholar.
In 1752, Andrew Pickens, a boy of thirteen years, was
brought to the Piedmont section of South Carohna by his
parents, who were in search of a milder climate than that of
the States farther north from whence they came. As years
passed on his strong character and undaunted courage made
him a leader among men. At twenty-one years of age we find
him a colonel in the expedition against the Cherokee Indians.
In 1765 he married Miss Rebecca Calhoun, a daughter of Eze-
kiel Calhoun, a prominent man of the Piedmont section.
Historians have neglected to emphasize General Pickens'
service to his country. He was widely kno^vn all through upper
South Carolina for his piety and fearless bravery, and when
he declared against George III men everywhere flocked to
the patriot standard. Gen. Pickens never drew a cent of pay
for his Revolutionary services, he felt his reward in the love of
his country. Aside from many other honors bestowed upon
him he was a member of the convention which formed the State
300
TOMASSEE
Constitution. In 1794 he became a member of Congress, which
then sat in Philadelphia. The following is quoted from a book
concerning the Old Stone Church of Oconee County.
"At that time there were neither railroads nor stage
coaches. . . . All travel was done on horseback. Picture to
yourself a man who was approaching his three score years, of
martial figure and dignified demeanor, mounted on a spirited
milk-white Andalusian steed, whip in hand, and hostlers filled
with a brace of pistols, the silver mountings of which ghttered
in the sunlight ; a three-cornered hat, from beneath the silvery
gray hair, put smoothly back, and tied in a queue, and undress
mihtary coat, ruffled shirt, fair top boots, with handsome silver
spurs ; following at a little distance, on a stout draft house, is
his African attendant, Pompey, in livery of blue, with scarlet
facings, carrying a portmanteau, with a consequential and dig-
nified air shomng in every movement the pride of a body-
servant to his revered master. Paint tliis in your mind's eye,
and you have before you a gentleman of the Eighteenth Cen-
tury, Avith his servant on his way to Congress ; such was Gen-
eral Andrew Pickens, as he passed through to Philadelphia
in 1794."
After refusing reelection to Congress, General Pickens re-
tired to his old home, "Tomassee," where he died in peace and
quiet on the 11th of August, 1871. In the cemetery of the Old
Stone Church on the road between Pendleton and Fort Hill can
be found on a simple tombstone this inscription: "General
Andrew Pickens was bom 13th, September, 1739, and died
11th August 1817. He was a Christian, a Patriot and Soldier.
His character and action are incorporated with the history
of his country. Filial affection and respect raises this stone
to his memory. ' '
The Daughters of the American Revolution have converted
Tomassee into a school for the mountain children, and it stands
as a memorial to its owner. Pickens' library, which is very
complete, is being used in this school. Near Tomassee stands
a colonial fort, once garrisoned by the British, called
Oconee Station.
A little may be said here of General Pickens' younger son,
Andrew, who afterwards became Governor of South Carolina.
He was elected Just before the breaking out of the Civil War,
301
HISTORIC HOUSES OF SOUTH CAROLINA
rendered distinguished service in the legislature, in Congress,
at the Court of St. Petersburg and in the executive chair of the
State. Governor Pickens' home stands in Charleston at the
northeast corner of Smith and Beaufain Streets. Governor
Pickens' son, Francis, was also Governor of South Carolina,
thus we find that this family has been well represented in the
poUtical history of the State.
The family later became identified with the history of Edge-
field County and in the toAvn of Edgefield is to be found a
large old rambling wooden house, built and occupied by the
Pickens family.
One of the most interesting of the family was the
daughter of the lovely Lucy Holcome, of Texas, and the
Andrew Pickens who Avas the Ambassador to Eussia — her
name being "Duscha."
Duscha Pickens is said to have been the most fascinating
woman of upjoer South Carolina. Although she was not beauti-
ful, she had made, so it is said, a study of man and his moods,
and could subjugate at a moment's glance the most doughty
flirt of the opposite sex, and one of her descendants who now
resides near Washington, D. C, is said to have inherited this
peculiar quality of fascination.
THE BUET HOUSE IN ABBEVILLE
The house in Abbeville, S. C, known as the Burt house
was built by Mr. David Leslie about the year 1850. The house
was bought by Eev. T. Hoyt, a Presbyterian minister, who
left Abbeville. Mr. Andrew Simonds was the next owner of
this property. He was the president of the First National
Bank of Abbeville. He married Sarah CaUioun, and with
his wife later moved to Charleston, being connected with the
First National Bank of Charleston. It is to be remarked that
his two sons, Jolrn and Louis, now occupy the positions of
President and Vice President of this establishment.
The Simonds ' home in Abbeville came into the possession
of Mr. Amiistead Burt, who was an intimate friend of Gen.
George McDuffie, also of John C. Calhoun, and was the asso-
ciate of Mr. Calhoun for years in Congress, being his nephew
302
THE BURT HOUSE, ABBEVILLE
by marriage. Mr. Burt occupied this place during the Confed-
erate War, and in this house, on the sixth of May, 1865, was
held the last cabLaet meeting of the Confederacy, only three
members being present in. addition to President Davis.
It may be asked how so strange an historical coincidence
came to pass, that in Abbeville ia the Burt house, was per-
formed the last official act of the Confederacy, while hardly
a stone's throw from the spot was Secession Hill, where four
years previous was held the first of the Secession meetings,
at which Judge Wardlaw of Abbeville vainly pleaded for some
other way to be found for the South to secure her political
rights than by secession. It may be said in. answer that Armi-
stead Burt had been in the House of Representatives
while Davis (afterwards President) was in the Senate, and
a warm personal friendship had sprung up between these two
men. It is only reasonable to suppose that when President
Davis, his cabinet and escort, were retreating through South
Carolina, after leaving the hospitable home of General M. W.
Gary in Cokesbury because pursued by Federal forces, the
thoughts of President Davis should turn to his friend Armi-
stead Burt, and that he should seek shelter under his hospitable
roof, there to hold the last meeting of his cabiaet.
Tradition states that when the last official document had
been signed and the official seal of the Confederacy impressed
by Secretary of State Judah P. Benjamin, the great seal of
the Confederacy was thrown into a well on the premises. Thus
do we touch upon one of the great mysteries of Southern his-
tory, the fate of the Great Seal of a Nation that perished.
The following afternoon, hearing again, the Federal forces
were only a few miles otf, it was deemed expedient for the
President's party to push on and across the Savannah river,
and endeavor to escape into Georgia. About midnight, there-
fore, the order was given, slowly and wearily the soldiers
went out of the town. As President Davis was captured and
incarcerated soon after leaving the Burt house, this place has
a peculiar significance in Southern history.
ADDITIONAL HOUSES OF HISTORIC INTEREST
IN SOUTH CAROLINA
Below are given names of houses not included in the present volume
for lack of space. These include the most important.
A Abbeville — Town and County.
Cheves Homestead (County).
Wardlaw Home (Town).
B Barnwell— Town and County.
Aldrich Homestead (To^vn).
Hagood Residence (Town).
Hagood Homestead (County).
The Brabham House at Bhrhardt, S. C, Barnwell Co.
The Ford House (County).
C Camden.
Tom Kirkland's House (County).
The Boykin Home (County).
Old Cheraw — Town, County, District.
Kollock (County).
Duval (Town).
House near Basterling's Mill where Gen. Winfield Scott stayed.
Hartwell Edward's Home — Mar's Bluff.
J. W. Wallace's Home near Mar's Bluff.
Old Houses at Society Hill (Old Cheraw District) .
Pegues (Town).
Chester — Town and County.
Davie Homestead — Langford Section (County).
"Red Bank"— The Eberhardt Home, Chester County.
Arthur Gaston's Residence (Town).
D Darlington.
James Homestead (Town).
B. M. Williamson House (Darlington County). Built in 1812 by
Jordan Sanders.
E Edgefield.
Hammond Houses near Hamburg (Old Edgefield District).
The Bettiss, Bouknight Place (County).
The Pickens' Home (Town).
O Georgetown.
" Chantilly," Alston Place (County).
House from which Major James escaped.
304
ADDITIONAL HOUSES OF HISTORIC INTEREST
M Marion.
Jacob Brawler's Primitive Home (Marion Comity).
Gen. G. N. Evans' House (Marion Town).
"Pierre Haven" — Home of Judge C. A. Woods (Town).
0 Orangeburg.
The John Cart Home (Town) .
The Bull Residence CTown).
Salley Residences (County).
S Sumter.
The Colcalough Homestead.
The Dick Homestead.
W Winnsboro.
The MacMaster Homes, "Winnsboro (Town).
The James Kincaid House, "Winnsboro (Town).
Comwallis' Headquarters, "Winnsboro.
r York.
The Bratton House (Scene of Huck's defeat).
The Bratton Homestead (Town).
It has not been considered needful to include in this list the houses
in Charleston, S. C, which have received such adequate treatment in
the "Dwelling Houses of Charleston," by Miss Alice Smith and her
father, Mr. D. E. Huger Smith.
20
INDEX
Abbeville, 302
Academy of Fine Arts, 127
Additional Houses of Historic Interest,
List of, 304, 305
Agassiz, Prof., 198
Agriculture, Pinckney's Lovet of, 105
Aiken Family, 280
Ainsley Hall, 262
All-Saints, 115
All-Saints, Act of Assembly, 115
All-Saints, Church Register, 115
All-Saints, Commissioners for build-
ing, 115
All-Saints, Waccamaw, 115
AUston, Washington, The Artist, 118,
125
AUston, Benj., 114
AUston, R. F. W., Governor, 125
AUston, Wm., 118
Alston, Joseph, 118
Anderson, Dr., 170
Anderson Family, 165, 168, 169
" Ancient Lady," 30, 88
Archdale Hall, 194
Argyle, 164
Argyle, Duke of, 27
Ashby Family, 83
Ashley Ferry, 193
Ashley River, 3
Aston Hall, 49
Back Kiver, 22
Bacon's Bridge, 195
Baker Family, 195
Balfour, Col. Nesbit, 6
Ball, Alwyn, 45
Ball Alwyn, Jr., 40
Ball Book, 35, 37-40, 45, 47, 50, 76
Ba;ll, Eleanor, 37
Ball, Elias, 36-38, 40, 85
Ball, Elias, (Red Cap), 40
Ball Family, 18, 36, 37, 47, 49-51, 83,
85
BaU, John, 18
Ball, John Coming, 86
Ball, Mrs. I. G., 40
Ball, Wm., 18
Bamboretta, 72
Barbary Pirates, 15
Barker, Abbie Ann, 53
Barker Family, 57, 58
Barker, Sanford, 58
Barker, Theo. G., 57
Barksdale, Thomas, 181-183
Barnwell Castle, 246
Barnwell Family, 241-243
Barnwell, Founder of Beaufort, 241
Baruch, Bernard, 130
Bay, The, 243-245
Bearhill, 107
Beaufort, 237, 240-242
Beaufort Families, 240-241
Bee's Ferry, 201
Beech Island, 62
Belfast, 281, 282
Bellinger's Ferry, 21, 201
Bellinger House, 10
Bellinger, Landgrave, 235
Bellinger, Mr., 10
Belle Isle, 137
Belmont, 17
Belvideq-e (Charleston Neck), 12-16
Belvidere (EutawvUle), 139-141
Benjamin, Judah P., 303
Bennett, John, 31
Bearesford Bounty, 186
Beresford, Richard, 186
Biggin Church, 41
Biggon Church, 71
Black Dragoons, 65
Blake Family, 193, 208
Blanton Duncan House, 266
Bleak Hall, 222
Blessing, The, 80
Blome, Richard, 1
Bloomfield, 24
BloomhiU, 165
Bluff, Thei, 47
Bonneau Family, 77
Bonneau's Ferry, 76
307
INDEX
Bonneau, Dr. Peter Porclier, 184
Boone, Daniel, 179
Boone Hall, 179
Bosais, 77
Boyleston House, 258
Brahamville Acadeimy, 277
Brailsford Family, 157
Brewton, Miles, 6
Brick House, 213, 229
Brisbane Family, 27
British Museum, 146
Broad Path, 16, 21, 22
Broughton Family, 58, 59, 62
Broughton, Mary, 67
Broughton, Mrs. Nath., Letter, 61
Broughton, Thos., 73
Bryan, Geo., Judge, 11
Bryan, Jonathan, 11
Bull Family, 241
Bull, Stephen, 241
Bull, Wm., 241
Burden, Kinsey, 209
Burnham Grant, 16
Burr, Aaron, 118, 119
Burr, Theodosia, 118
Burt, Armistead, 302, 303
Burt House, 302, 303
Caeey Family, 251-254
Cainhoy, 185
Calais, 18
Calhoun Family, 292-294
Calhoun, John C, 292-294, 302
Camden, 161, 171, 172
Cameos of Colonial Carolina, 67-69
Campbell, Mad Archie, 27, 77, 79
Camp Main, 107
Camp Veie, 80
Cannon, Mrs. G., 54
Cantey Family, 159
Cantey, John, Capt., 26
Capers, Ellison, Bishop of S. C, 138
Carolina Bourbon, 136
Carolina Cavalier, 71
Carroll, B. R., Historical Collection, 1
Carson Family, 34
Carson, Jas. P., 34
Cartaret Tract, 12
Casa Bianca, or White House, 126, 127
308
Caatle Ruin, 72
Cat Island, 107, 111
Catawba Indians, 21
Cavalier Stock, 2
Cedar Hill, 80
Chacan, 66
Channing Family, 50
Chantilly, 187
Chapman, Clarence E., Owner of Mul-
berry, 63
Charles Town, 3, 4
Charleston, Beaufort, 233
Charleston, College of, 198
Charleston Country Club, 12, 16
Charleston, Evacuation of, 12
Charleston, first site of, 202
Charleston Museum, 110, 226
Charleston Neck, 12, 124, 188, 190
Charleywood Plantation, 187
Chatham, 193
Chee-Ha River, Plantations on, 236
Cheraws District, 269
Cherokee, 125
Cherokee Indians, 242, 300
Cherry Hill, 80
Chesterfield County, 269
Chestnut Family, 176
Cheves, Langdon, 3, 239
Chicken, Catherine, 81
Chicken, Mrs. Lydia, 40
Chicora College, 265
Child, James, 41
Child, Lydia, 49
Childs Family, 169
Childsbury, 41, 193
Christ Church, 179
Christ Church Parish, 14, 178, 179
Church Act, 58
Circus, John Robinson's, 291
City Gazette and Daily Advertiser,
12, 100
Clay Hill, 194
Clement, John, 18
Clement's Ferry, 18
Cleanson, 294
Clemson College, 295
Clemson Family, 295
Clinton, Sir H., 6
Coateswood, 286
INDEX
Cochran, Captain, 7
Cochran's Ship Yard, 16
Colcock, Miss Annie T., 71
Colleton Family, 32
Colleton, Sir John, 59, 67, 70
Colonial Exhibit, 190
Columbia, 255
Combahee, 234
Combahee and its settlements, 234
Coming, Aflfra, 36
Coming, Capt. John, 36
Coming Family, 36
Coming Tee, 36
Coming's Tee, 32-36
Coming Tee Brick House, 38
Coming Tee, Garden at, 38
Commg Tee Wooden House, 38
Comings Family, 74
Confederacy, Seal of, 303
Confederate Cabinet, last meeting, 303
Confederate Cavalry, 105
Confederate War, 199, 246
Conscience, Liberty of, 2
Continental Congress, 43
Cooper River, 12, 14, 18, 19
Copley, 28
Cordes Family, 132
Cornwallis, 43, 168
Cornwallis at Hillcrest, 168
Cornwallis House, 171
Cornwallis, Lord, 64
Cote Bas, 19
Cotton, 123
Country lifei in S. C, 88
Court Times, 271
Courtenay, Mayor, Year Book, 108
Craig Family, 270-273
Craig Family in Civil War, 272
Craig House, 269, 270
Craven, Governor, 12
Crawford House, 258, 259
Croft, Mr. Hill, 21
Cromartie, Earl of, 23
Crovatts, 26
Crowfield Hall, 24
Cunningham, Ann Pamela, foimder of
Mt. Vernon Assn., 276-279
Cunningham Family, 277
Cunningham House, 276
Cypress Barony, 32, 84
Dalcho's Church History, 151
I>aniers Island, 14, 187
Darlington County, 269
Daughters of the Revolution, 191
Davis, President, 303
Dean Hall, 31-34
De Brahm, Wm. Gerard, 210
De Bruhl House, 260 (See Marshall
House )
Dejamere, Mary, 37
Delegates to Provincial Congress, 1775,
St. Mark's Parish, 155
DeLiesline, Francis 6., Narrative, 91, 92
DeSaussure, Chancellor, 261
DeSaussure, Daniel, 239
DeSaussure Family, 173-175, 239
DeSaussure House, 261
Diary from Dixie, 263, 266, 299
Dicey's Ride, 275
Dockon, 54
Donaldson, John 0. Willson, 250, 251
Dorchester, 192
Dover, 17
Dover to Calais, 18
Drayton Family, 202, 203
Drayton Hall, 202
Dress of the women, 1738, 194
Dry, Wm,, 21
DuBose, Jacques, 54
DuBose, Samuel, Reminisences of St.
Steven's Parish, 153, 154
Duels, 189
Dwelling Houses of Charleston, 2, 3
Dwight Family, 137
Eddings, Capt. Wm., 214, 219
Eddings Family, 217, 219
Eden Hall, 280
Edgefield County, 302
Edisto, characteristics of inhabitants,
215
Edisto Inlet, 215
Edieto Island, 213
Edisto Island, Bounds of, 215
Edisto Island, Confederate! Soldiers
on, 220
Edisto Island, The Burrough, 220
S09
INDEX
Edisto Island, Commissioners, 228
Edisto Island, Episcopal Church, 228
Edisto Island, families owning plan-
tations on, 216
Edisto Island, Plantations on, 224
Edisto Island, Spaniards at, 231
Ellington, Rev. Mr., 27
Elliott, Capt. Barnard, 10
Elliott Family, 238, 246-248
Elliott and Gibbes' Burying Ground,
209
Elliott, Mrs. Phoebe, 247
Elliott, Thomas, 18
Elliott, Wm., Carolina Sports, 233, 235,
236
Elliott, Col. Wm. 244
Elms, The, 28
Elwood, 45
Emerson, Mr., owner of Prospect
Hill, 122
England, Church of, 22
England, Koyal Arms, 22
English Settlement, 22
Episcopal Residence, 10, 11
Eutaw Springs, 138, 139
Exeter, 67
Fairfield, 72, 94
Fairlawn Barony, 1, 32, 57, 70
Farmfield, 77
Fawnliill, 106
Fenwick Castle, or Headquarters, 19,
209-212
Fenwick Family, 209-212
Ferguson Family, 54-57
Ferguson, Fannie, 53
Ferguson, James, 53
Ferguson, Mrs. General, 54
Ferguson, Thos., 54
Ferguson, Wives of, 55, 56
Fej-ry rates in 1754, 201
Finley, Capt., 252, 253
Fischer and Wife, 16, 17
Fishburne, Mrs. K., 141
Fish Pond, 74
Fitzsinunons Family, 62
Fitzsimmons, Samuel Barker, 63
Fleury de la Plein, Abraham, 22
Fleury de la Plein, Isaac, 23
310
Fontainebleau, 200
Ford, Timothy, 42, 47
Ford, Timothy, Diary, 233, 237, 240
Formal Gardens, 24, 25
Fort Hill, 292
Four Mile House, 16
Freer Family, 213
Friday's Ferry, 254-256
Friendfield, 123
Friendship Presbyterian Church, 281
Frierson Family, 165
Frierson, James Nelson, 165
Frigate " Columbia," 15
Frogmore, 227
Frost, Misses, 5
Fuller Family, 206
Furniture, St. John's Berkley, 132
Gadsden, Christopher, 57
Gadsden, Wm. S., 9
Gaillard, David, Engineer, 150
Gaillard Family, 149, 150
Gaillard, John, 148, 152
Gaillard, John, President of U. S. for
24 hours, 148
Garden, Dr., 17, 27
Garden, Mrs. Alexander, 208
Garden, Rev. Alex., 186
Gascoyne, Joel, 2
Gazette, 22
Geddings, Dr. Eli, 29
Geiger, Emily, 254, 255
General Muster, Cheraw District, 271
Georgetown , 112
Gervais, John Louis, 209
Gibbes Art Gallery, 127
Gibbes' Documentary History, 21
Gibbes Family, 189, 209, 211
Gibbes House, 188
Gibbes, John, 189
Gibbes, Mary Anna, 208
Gippy, 71
Girardeau, Rev. Thomas J., 107
Glasgow, Agnes of, 172
Glebe lands, 36
Glen, Governor, 12, 97
Goose Creek, 19, 22, 24, 29
Goose Creek Church, 22
Gourdin Family, 152
INDEX
Gourdin, Harriette P., 139
Gourdin, Martha, 152
Granby, 251
Granby, Fort, 251-253
Graves, Admiral, 71
Graves, Life of Mrs., 70
Green, Helen Coles Singleton, 163
Green Meadow, 107
Greene, General, 65, 138, 139, 164, 195
Greene, Gen., at Hillcrest, 168
Gregorie Family, 184
Grimball Family, 224
Grimball's Point of Pines, 224
Grimball, Mrs. Wm., 54
Grimke's Digesit, 2
Grove, The, 188
Guerard's Corner, 10
Guerins BridgCj 187
Guignard Family, 251-253
Guignard, Rev. Mr., 251-253
Hagan, The, 78
Haggatt Hall, 196
Hall, Ainsley, 262
Hall, Maria, 27
Halsey Family, 164
Halsey, Mrs. Leroy, 159
Hamilton, 26
Hamilton Family, 228, 244
Hamilton, Miss Mary, 244
Hamilton, Paul, 229, 243
Hammond, Mrs. James, 260
Hammonds, 62
Hampton, 101
Hampton Family, 263
Hampton, Gen., 263
Hampton Park, 189
Hampton, Col. Wade, 41, 65
Hampton, Gov. Wade, 160
Hampton at Walhalla, 296
Hanover House, 141
Hanscom, Joseph, 200
Harleston Family, 33, 36, 74-77
Harleston, Col. John, 46, 77
Hartford House, 187
Hastie Family, 205
Hay, Kev. P. D., 67
Hayfield Farm, Dr. Harris', 16
Hayne, 255
Hayne, Col. Isaac, 6
Hayne, Paul Hamilton, 292
Hazlehurst, Robetrt, 187
Headquarters, 163
Hearst, Wm. Randolph, 280
Hext Family, 213
Hext, Sarah, 10
Heyward Family, 8, 53, 54
Heyward, Frank, 53
Heyward House, 7, 8
Heyward, Marie,, 54
Heyward, Nathaniel, 18
Heyward, Panchita, 54
Heyward, Judge Thomas, 7-9
Hillcrest, 167
Hillcrest, Library at, 170
Hillcrest, Treasures at, 170
Historical Commission in Columbia, 229
History of the Turf, 161
Hobcaw Barony, 124
Hodgson, Adam, 101
Holmes, Hon. John Ben, Recorder, 7
Holmes, Prof. F. S., 198, 199
Home Place, 161
Hooper Family, 168
Hopkinson Family, 222
Hopkinson, Francis, 222
Hopkinson Houses, 221
Hopkinson, Mr., 218
Hopseewee, 106, 107
Horlbeck Family, 179-181
Horry, Daniel, 102
Horry, Elias, 93
Horry, Harriet, 77
Howard, Gen., Hdqrs., 267
Huger, Alfred, 82
Huger's Bridge, 32
Huger, Daniel, 79, 84
Huger Family, 84, 128, 129
Huger, Dr. Wm. Harleston, 77, 78
Hughes, Henry, 3
Hughson, Shirley Carteir, 137, 200
Huguenot Church, 31
Huguenot Refugees, 93
Huguenot Settlement, 22
Huguenot Seittlers, St. John's, 134
Huguenot Transactions, 131
Hut, The, 74
Hyde Park, 86
311
INDEX
Indian Trade, 214
Indian Tribes, 94
Indian War, 58, 59
Indigo, 114, 133, 159, 215, 216
Ingleside, 198, 199
Ingraham Family, 50
Ingraham, John Henry, 74
Irving, Dr. J. D., 41, 53, 72, 81
Irving's History of the Turf, 33
Itinerary of Bishop, 1855, from South-
ern Episcopalian, 116
Izard Family, 28, 126, 195, 210
Izard House, 11
Izard, Mr. and Mrs., Portrait, 28
Izard, Ealph, 28, 29
Jacksonborough, 192
Jackson Family, 210
Jamestown, 94, 192
Jenkins Family, 223, 230
Jenkins, Micah, 209
Jockey Club, 20, 78, 189
John's Island, 208
John's Island Burying Grounds, 208,
209, 213
Johnson, Andrew, 274
Johnson, Dr., 27, 54, 55
Johnson, Govprnor, 12
Johnson, Sir Nathaniel, 67
Johnstone Family, (Chancellor), 286-
288
Johnstone, J. A., Gen., Hdqrs. of, at
Columbia, 260
Jones, A. J., 69
Jones Family, 210
Junius letters, 297, 299, 300
Kensington, 86
Kexshaw Fam.ily, 171
Kershaw, Rev. John, 172, 173
Kershaw, Gen. Joseph Brevard, 172, 173
Kinard, House, 265, 266
Kinloch Family, 112
Kittredge, Benj., 32, 35
Ku Klux Days, 258
La Bruce Family, 117
La Bruce, Joseph, 117
312
Lachicottei Place, 187
Ladson, John, 17
LaFayette, 11, 28, 43, 57, 114, 122, 129,
130, 173, 218, 221, 222, 245, ?46,
261, 262
Lancaster, 283
Lander College, 250
Langley, Miss M. Elise, 31
Laurel Hill, 227
Laurels, The, 196
Laurens County, 274
Laurejis Family, 43, 44
Laurens, Henry, 37, 42-44
Laurens, John, 44, 189
Laurens, John Samuel, 42
Laurens, John, Voyage of, 44
Lausanne, De Saussure Homestead, 173
Lausanne, Lafayette entertained at, 173
Law Suit, Laurens vs Laurens, 80
Lawson, John, 94
Lawton, Mrs. Cecelia, 18
Lee, Light Horse Harry, 195
Legarei, Hugh, 136
Legareville, 213
Leland, Dr., 261
Lely, Sir Fetei, 68
Lewisfield, 63-66
Limerick, 53, 84, 90
Litchfield, 120
Little Edisto, 225
Littli^ Miss Rebellion, 23
Lloyd, John, 22
Locke Island, 214
Lockwood, 22
Lockwood, Mrs. Dunbar, 141
Long Point Creek, 16, 17
Longwood, 82
Lowndes, Rawlins, 24
Lowther Hall, 295, 297
Lucas, E., 53
Lucas, Eliza, 24, 25, 202, 208
Lucas, Col. George, 96
Lucas, John Hume, 107
Lynch, John, 107
Lynch, Thomas, Signer, 107
Lynch, Thomas, 110
INDEX
Madison, Mrs. Dolly, 162
Magnolia Cemetery Company, 16
Magnolia Gardens, 204
Magnolia Umbra, 12
Magwood's Gardens, 202
Maham, Col. Hezekiah, 117
Manchester, 159
Manigault, Ann, 28
Manigault, Charles I., 29
Manigaulft, Elizabeth, 18
Manigault, Dr. Gabriel, 18, 28
Manning Family, 157
Manning, E, I., War Governor, 158
Mansion House, 197
Marion, Gen. Francis, 65, 102, 137, 200
Marion's Oak, 200
Marlboro Court House, 269
Marsh, The, 107
Marshall House, Sometimes called De
Bruhl House, 260
Marshland, 18
Martin, Judge Wm., 261
Mathews, Lois, 27
Matthews, Gov. John, 196
Mazyek Family, 143, 144
Medway, 29, 30
Melrosei, 159
Mepkin, 42
Mepshew, 52
Michaux, Andrew, 24
Middleburg, 81, 82
Middleton, Admiral Sr. G. Brook, 24
Middleton, Arthur, 24, 25
Middleton, Arthur, Signer, 25
Middleton, Arthur C, 26
Middleton, Chas. Edward, 23
Middleton, Commodore, 25
Middleton Family, 25, 228
Middleiton Gardens, 207
Middleton, Henry, 21, 23
Middleton, Henry A., 25
Middleton, Lady Mary, 23
Middleton, Thomas, 24
Middleifcon, Wm., 24
Midway, 160
MikeU Family, 219, 227
Miles Brewton House, 4-7
Milford, 156
Milford, Manning's Folly, 156
Mill, oldest in S. C, 296
Millbrook, 207
Mill Dam, 107
Mills, Statistics, 58, 147, 216
Milton, Old Mill, 275
Mitchell, John, 72
Mitchell, Julian, 224, 225
Monck's Comer, 70
Monroe, President, 122
Monjtcrief, Col., 17
Moore House, 260, 261
Moreland Family, 202
Morton, John, Inventory of estate of,
231, 232
Mortons and Wilkinsons, 230-232
Mottei, Jacob, 178
Motte, Rebecca, 6, 103, 104
Motte, Miss Sarah, 15
Moultrie Family, 48-50
Moultrie, Dr. Jas., 48
Moultrie, Gen. Wm., 12, 50
Mount Boone, 194
Mount Moriah, 94
Mt. Pleasant, 178, 200
Mt. Vernon, 276-279
Mulberry, The, 58-63
Mulberry, Home of Author of " Diary
from Dixie," 175-177
Murray's Register, 216
Musgrove Mill, Revolutionary Battle-
field, 275, 276
Musgrove's Mill, 274, 275
Muster Ground for Militia, 21
McCall's History of Georgia, 275
McCord, Louisa, 267
McCrady's History, 4, 87, 274, 275,
283, 284
McCuUough Family, 290-292
McDuffie, Geo., 160, 271, 302
McLaughlin's Grant, 17
Navy Yard, 18-20
Negro Education, 180
Negro Life on Rice Plantations, 238
Negro Story, 66
Nelson Family, 157
Nelson's Ferry, 155
Nesbit, Sir Aleixander, 33
313
INDEX
Newberry, 286
Newington, 193
New London, 192
Newman, Dorman, 1
Niersee, Arcliitect, 266
North Island, 128
Northrop, Bishop, 10, 11
North Santee, 106
Nullification Convention, 288
Oak Hill, 117
Oak Island, 218
Oakland Plantation, 181
Oaks, Tliei, 23, 118, 164
Oatland, 120
Observation of the Lord's Day, 2
Odenheimer Family, 35
Old Cheraws, Gregg's History, 269
Old Dominion, 226
Old Fashioned Dances, 151
Old Field, 134
Oldfield Barracks, 178
Old House, 197
Oldmixon, 1, 29
Old Preitender, The, 23
Olney Family, 163
O'Neale's Annals of Newberry District,
294
Ordinance of Secession, 11
Ordinary, 21
Otranto, 26, 27
Oyster Point, 36
Page, Thos. Nelson, 205
Pain, James, 21
Palmex Family, 137
Parker Family, 199, 200
Parker, Mrs. John Rose, 114
Parnassus, 29
Parsons, Edwin, 23
Paul House, 11
Peaceful Retreat, 209
Peale, Rembrandt, 174
Pecan Trees, 181
Pendleton, 295
Pennington, Patience, 126-128
Perry, Dr. Benj. Lucas, 197, 198
Perry Family, 194, 197
Peter's Point, 227
314
Petigru, James L., 27, 35, 299
Phosphate Deposits, 198
Pickens, Gen. Andrew, 300
Pickens, Duscha, 302
Pickens Family, 300-302
Pierce Family, 210
Pillmoor, Joseph, 183
Pimlico, 50-52
Pinckney at Court of St. James, 99
Pinckney, Gen. C. C, 7, 96-101
Pinckney, Rev. Charles Cotesworth,
D.D., 106, 296
Pinckney, Charles, Chief Justice, 17
Pinckney, Cotesworth, 94
Pinckney, Eliza Lucas, 17
Pinckney Family, 94-99
Pinckney, First Minister to London, 98
Pinckney's Funeral at St. Philip's
Church, 106
Pinckney, House of, 97
Pinckney, Life of, 106
Pinckney, Mrs. Marion De Veaux, 166
Pinckney Plains, 194
Pinckney's Swords, 106
Pinckney Tablet, St. Michael's Church,
100
Pinckney, Gen. Thomas, 98, 103, 106
Pine Hill, 194
Pinen'ille, 147
Pineville Ball, 151
Plantations Inland, of Fairlawn Bar-
ony, 71, 72, 73
Pleasant Meadow, 107
Poinsett, Joel R., 169
Poinsett, Joel, 16, 126, 127
Point Comfort, 51, 52
Point, The, 243
Pollock, Sir Henry, 25
Pope House, 227-229
Poplar Hill, 197
Porcher Family, 134-136
Porcher, Isaac, 23, 184
Porcher, Philip,, 27, 134, 152, 182
Porgson, Rev. Mr., 26, 53
Pottery, 29
Pourtales, Count, 198
Powder -Horn buildings, 12
INDEX
Poyas, 22
Poyas, Catherine Gendron, 88-90
Preston Family, 263
Preston House, 262-265
Preston House, distinguished guests
at, 264
Preston House, Garden of, 263
Preston House, Hdqrs. of Gen. J. A.
Logan, 264
Preston House, Presbyterian College
for Women, 265
Pre,ston House, Saved by Mother Supe-
rior, 264
Primitive mill, 280, 281
Prince George Winyah, 112
Pringle, John Julius, 206
Pringle, Mrs. John Julius, 127
Prioleau, Rev. Elias, 31
Prioleau Family, 77
Prioli, 31, 76, 77
Prospect Hill (Edisto Island), 224, 225
Prospect Hill (Georgetown), 121, 122
Provincial Library, 3
Pulaski, steamer, 5 1
Purrysburgh, 192
Pyatt, or Alston House, 114
Pyatt, John S., 120
Pylis Reuben, Journal of, 279
Quarter House, 20, 21
Quimby, 82, 83
Quinby, 53, 82-84
Quinby Creek, 32
Radnor, 193
Randolph, John, 33
Rat Trap, The, 16
Ravenel, DanieJ, 33, 59
Ravenel Family, 142-145
Ravenel Herbarium, 145, 146
Ravenel, Ren6, 131
Ravenel, St. Julien, 16
Ravenel, Mrs. St. Julien, 17
Rawdon, Lord, 6
Read, D. Harleston, 46
Red Bank, 29
Reese Family, 165
Re,ese House, 165
Religious Freedom in S. C, 98
Reynolds House, 165
Rhett, R. G., 9
Rice, 9, 30, 39, 60, 81, 102, 105, 114
Rice Fields, 33
Rice Hope, 46, 107
Rice, James Henry, 234
Rice, James Henry, Jr., 234
Rieg Mills, 108, 109
Richardson Family, 157
Richmond, 77
Ripon, Lord, 211
Roper Family, 52, 213
Roosevelt, Mrs. Nicholas, 141
Rosemont, 276, 279
Ruins, The, 165
Runnymede, 206
Russeil, Chas., Pioneer, 295, 296
Russell's Creek, 226
Russell's Magazine, 154
Rutledge, Archibald H., 102
Rutledge, Edward, 7, 10
Rutledge, Capt.. Edward, 16
Rutledge Family, 10
Rutledge, Frederick, 77, 102
Rutledge, Mrs. Frederick, 102
Rutledge, Col. H. M., 102
Rutledge, Harriet Horry, 16
Rutledge, Henry, letter concerning
Burr, 119, 120
Rutledge House, 9
Rutledge, Hugh, 10
Rutledge, John, Dictator, 9, 10, 165
Salley, A. S., Jr. 22, 30, 48, 58, 229,
256, 279
Salt Hill, 196
Sams Family, 245
Sand Hills of St. Mark's, 156
San Domingo Model, 3
San tee, 91
Saunders Family, 167
Saunders, Wm. Harrison, Capt., 167
Saxe-Gotha Settlement, 265
Sayle, Governor Coll., 3
.S'. C Gazette, 33, 110
8. C. Gazette and Country Journal, 5
8. C. Historical and Genealogical Mag-
azine, 76
315
INDEX
S. 0. Historical Magagine, 20, 72, 178,
193
S. 0. Historical Magazine, Whaley Fam-
ily, 226
Schenkingh, Capt. Benj., 26
Scotch-Irish Families, 281
Screven, Rev. Wm., 112
Seabrook, Carolina LaFayette, 221
Seabrook Family, 218-220
Seabrook, Tom, House, 220
Seabrook, Wm., Houses, 217
Sea Cloud, 224
Seal of SoTith Carolina, 203
Secession, 303
Secession, Ordinance of, 10
Secret Passages, 19
Secret Stairways, 19
Seibelfl House, 256, 257
Sheffnal Church, England, 49
Shem Town, 21
Sherman's Army, 204, 261
Sheirman's Army, Howard's Corps, 172
Sherman, Gen., 183
Sherman's Orders concerning Blantou
Duncan House, 266
Shingler Place, 187
Ship Yard Creek, 16
Shubrick Avenue, 16
Shubrick, Edmund, 16
Shubrick, Edward Rutledge, Capt., 15
Shubrick Family, 12, 13, 15, 83
Shubrick, Capt. Templer, 15, 16
Shubrick, Thomas, 15, 16
Shubrick, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas, 15
Sickles, Gen., 184
Silk Hope, 67, 86
Silver forks, 162
Simmons Bluff, 209
Simms, Wm. Gilmore, 249, 268
Simonds Family, 302
Simons Family, 63-65, 81
Simons, Col. James, 82
Simons, Katherine Drayton Mayrant, 91
Simons, Keating, 63
Simons, Dr. Manning, 82
Simpson Family, 282
Sims House, 283-285
Sims, James Marion, M.D., 283-285
Singleiton, Angelica, 162
316
Singleton Family, 158-163
Singleton Hall, 161
Singleton, Richard, 161, 162
Sinkkr Family, 134, 139-141
Sinkler, Peter, 133
Slann's Bridge, 194
Sloan, Miss Annie, 71
Sloan Family, 296, 297
Sloop-of-War "Hornet," 15
Slyde, Frank E., 28
Smith, Alice Huger, 4
Smith Family, 110, 111
Smith, Judge H. A. M., 16, 20-22, 59,'
70, 76, 110, 124, 188, 217
Smith, Governor Landgrave, 30
Smith, Thos. Rheitt, Jr., 237
Smith, Gov. Thomas, 21, 22
Snowden, Yates, 136, 261
Somerton, 192
Southern Architecture, 146
Southern Magazine, 237
South Mulberry, 57
Stage Routes through S. C, 268
Stanyarne Family, 213
Stevens, Charlee, 65
Stevens Family, 196
Stoke, 36
Stone Church, Oconee, 301
Stone, Col., Hdqrs., 261
Stoney Point, 21, 280
Stoney, Samuel G., 31
Strawbeirry Chapel, 41, 46, 63, 85
Strawberry Ferry, 41
Stromboli, 17
St. Andrew's Hall, 11
St. Andrew's Parish, 202
St. George's Church, 193
St. Helena's Church, 240
St. James, Goose Creek, 23, 27
St. John's Berkley, 131
St. John's Hunting Club, 143-146
St. John's Parish, 94
St. John's and St. Stephen's, Books on,
134
St. Julien Family, 142
St. Mark's, Division of Parish, 155
St. Mark's Parish, 26, 158
St. Michael's Church, 10, 100, 172
St. Michael's Steeple, 190
INDEX
St. Paul's Church, 300
St. Paul's Parish, 208, 231
St. Philip's Church, 6, 15, 36, 37, 50,
83, 106
St. Philip's Church, Bradford Springs,
167
St, Stephen's Church, 152
St. Stephen's Club, 143
St. Stephen's Parish, 94, 151
St. Stephen's, Types of Houses, 132
St. Thomas' Parish, 94, 185
St. Thomas' and St. Denis' Parish, 81
Sullivan Family, 281
Sullivan, Wm. D., Capt., 280
Summerville, 22, 194
Sumter, Gen., Monument to, 166
" Swamp Fox," Marion, 33
Tabby, 1, 115, 192, 241
Tarleton, 172
Tarleton's Men, 168
Tattnall, Commodore, 210, 211
Taylor Family, 256
Taylor, Thos., 256
Tennent Family, 29
Thomias, Theo. Gaillard, 215
Tidyman, Philip, M.D., 111
Titanic, 51
Tomassee, 300
Tomassee School, 301
Tongue, Edvrard, 197
Tonguewell, 197
Tory, 253
Townsend Family, 218, 222, 223
Townsend, John, 222
Tranquill Hill, 194
Trapier, Banj., 123
Treasure of Pierre Gailliard, 31
Trescot Family, 297, 298
Trescot, famous writings of, 299
Trescot House, 297
Treseott, offices held by, 299
Trip up the Cooper River, 185
Trott, Nicholas, 75
True Blue, 162
Tucker Family, 120
Tudor, Margaret, The Story of, 71
Tumbling Shoals, 280, 281
Tunno, Adam, 18
Tuscarora Jack, 242
Tyburn Hill, 17
Underground Passages, 19, 212
Van Buren, Col. Abram, 162
Vanderhorst House, 213
Venning Family, 79, 187
Venning, Nicholas, 80
Videau's Bridge, Battle at, 79
Villa, The, 76, 77
Wadboo, 32
Wadmalaw Island, 231
Waite, Ezra, Architect, 5
Wallaces Family, 282
Walker, Gen. I., 200
Walker, Rich, 22
Walton, Katharine, 114
Wambaw, 93
Wambaw Church, 93, 103
Wampee, 196 . '
Wando River, 3, 14, 186
Wantoot, 145
Wappahoola, 53
Ward Family, 117
Ward, Joshua John, 117
Waring, Benjamin, 193
Waring Family, 194
Waring, J. I., 24, 26, 28
Washington, George, letter, 113
Washington Oak, 102
Washington, Picture by Savage, 105
Washington, Portrait of, 175
Washington, President, 7, 8, 15, 44, 114
118, 122, 174, 200, 221, 222
Washington Race Course, 189
Washington, Wm., 208
Washingtons and Pinckneys, 100
Watt's Cut, 214
Wayne, Daniel G., 123
Webber, Miss Mabel, 178
Wedding of Margaret Huger and Eliae
Horry, 93
Wesley, John, 183
West Indian Exposition, 190-192
Westo Plantation, 196
Whaley Family, 219, 220, 226
Whaley, J. Swinton, 225
Whaley, P. H., 225
317
INDEX
Wharton Family, Phila., 140
Whigs, 253
White, Alonzo, 71
White, John Blake, 17
White Oak, 106
White Point, 5
Williamsburg County, 1
Williams, Mr. and Mrs. David R., 177
Williams, Geo. W., 295
Willson House, 250
Willson Family, 250
Willtown, 192
Wilson, John Lide, 261
Wilson, Samuel, 78
Wiltown, 63
Winyah, Barony, 110
Winyah Bay, 106
Winyah Indigo Society, 112
Withers, Frank, 123
Withers, Wm., 201
Witt«, C. O., 16
Wood, Gen., Hdqrs., 267
Woodstock, 200
Woodward, Henry, 214
Wragg Family, 196
Wragg, Joseph, 54
Wragg, Samuel, 54
Wren, Christopher, 193
Yates, Capt., 213
Yeamans, Gov., 21
Yeamans' Hall, 21
York, Cardinal of, 23
318
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