The early history of Botany Bay can be traced back to two plantations — Bleak Hall Plantation and Sea Cloud Plantation. Bleak Hall was originally developed by the Townsend family in the early 1800s. By the mid-1800s, owner John Townsend had purchased the adjoining Sea Cloud Plantation and was producing more cotton than any other plantation in South Carolina. Townsend was renowned for the quality of his sea island cotton, a variety prized for its unusually long and silky fibers.

About a year after South Carolina’s secession from the Union, Edisto Island was evacuated and subsequently occupied by the Union army. The Civil War proved devastating to the island and its plantations. Townsend and his descendants worked hard to rebuild what was left and continued producing the famous sea island cotton until the early 1920s, when the boll weevil all but destroyed the cotton industry in South Carolina.

The plantations remained in the Townsend family until the 1930s, when Dr. James Greenway combined them and renamed the property Botany Bay Plantation. Botany Bay was acquired by John Meyer in 1973. Before Meyer died in 1977, he deeded the property to the state to be used as a wildlife preserve, but only after the death of his wife, Margaret.

While living there during the remainder of her lifetime, Margaret took great care to protect the land and to foster a diverse array of habitats throughout the property, including maritime forests, salt marshes, tidal creeks, and hammock islands.

Today, recreational opportunities at Botany Bay include seasonal hunting, catch and release fishing, birding, and an interpretive driving trail.

The land for the grange was donated by W. Maxie Agnew. Donalds Grange is listed in the National Register, which describes it as follows:

The Donalds Grange No. 497 is significant for both its architecture and its contribution to the social development of the community of Donalds and Abbeville County. Constructed in 1935 by local Works Progress Administration labor, the building served originally as the Town Hall, the local grange, and the public library. Typical of the vernacular style used in WPA public buildings, it is relatively unaltered. The fieldstone construction and locally produced lumber give evidence of the participation of local labor in the construction. After 1940, it was the home of the grange and the library. In 1942, Donalds Grange No. 497 sponsored the Abbeville County Circulating Library, and the building became headquarters for the Abbeville County system until a self-contained library was built on adjacent property in 1959. Since its construction, the well-preserved fieldstone building has been the meeting hall for the agricultural and community-service organization known locally and most commonly as the Donalds Grange. It remains as an important example of Depression Era public buildings.

In 2009, the SC house of Representatives passed a resolution recognizing the Donalds Grange’s role in the history of Abbeville County. The resolution notes that Donalds Grange continues to welcome citizens interested in agriculture, and that it is “among the 17 oldest granges in the State constantly active since their organization.”

The resolution also recalls this interesting tidbit about the building’s construction: “Using two-horse wagons, people hauled fieldstones from their farms. Uninitiated in masonry construction, the WPA labor force initially attempted to lay the fieldstones, only to return the following morning to find them lying awry where they had fallen during the night … a Donalds contractor who had built his home of like material was then called in to teach the inexperienced their craft. Local landowners also contributed the pine poles that frame the cathedral-type ceiling of the building, the oak hand-hewn sill that supports the main floor, and the heart pine flooring.”

Many thanks to Bill Fitzpatrick of Taylors, for sending us his photo of Donalds Grange. Bill enjoys the singular distinction of being the only person ever to have visited all 1,400 of South Carolina’s National Historic Landmarks. He has published several helpful e-books which serve as invaluable travel guides to the Palmetto State.

Erskine College is a Presbyterian liberal arts college founded in 1839. It was the first four-year, church-affiliated college in South Carolina. The Philomathean Literary Society Hall is part of the larger Erskine College-Due West Historic District, which is listed in the National Register:

The Erskine College-Due West Historic District, located in the small town of Due West in Abbeville County, South Carolina, consists of eighty-eight properties, which as a unit illustrate the development of the village and Erskine College from ca. 1840 to 1930. Included in the district are portions of the campus of Erskine College, the first four-year denominational college in the state. The college was founded in 1839 by the Synod of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, whose early congregation played a large role in the formation of the village and college. Also included in the district are a residential section, containing many properties either at one time or presently associated with the college, and a commercial area. The varied architectural styles include Queen Anne, Neo-Classical, Greek Revival, Renaissance Revival, and bungalows, and their designs reveal an evolution of architecture from the early years of the area’s settlement to the early twentieth century. Most of the buildings in the district have been in continuous use. Listed in the National Register March 19, 1982.

Many thanks to Bill Fitzpatrick of Taylors, for sending us his photo of Erskine College. Bill enjoys the singular distinction of being the only person ever to have visited all 1,400 of South Carolina’s National Historic Landmarks. He has published several helpful e-books which serve as invaluable travel guides to the Palmetto State.

Special thanks to Russ Greene of Bluffton for both this info and this beautiful shot!

Russ Greene, who contributed the stunning shot above, describes the scene: “The May River is a Bluffton tradition. This picture is taken overlooking the ‘bluff’ from which the town’s name originated. Whether buying fresh seafood from the Bluffton Oyster Company, spending lazy summer afternoons on the sandbar, or fishing off of one of the many docks on its shores, the May River is a local treasure.”

Kim Holstein, also of Bluffton, submitted this beautiful shot and says, “This photo was taken off the Calhoun Street dock facing west down the historic May River. The shrimp boats you see in the distance are docked at the Bluffton Oyster Company, a locally owned family company that still fishes the waters of the May River daily.”

Although the island claims to be “the oldest seaside resort in America,” there certainly aren’t any traces of resort life. Pawleys Island is home to one of the most undeveloped public beaches in the state and is known for its “arrogantly shabby” style. Life on the island is slow and relaxed, and locals work hard to keep it that way.

Austin Bond, who contributed the beautiful photo above, describes the scene for us: “Every Tuesday I lead a Prayer Breakfast for high and middle school students before school in Pawleys Island for our church’s youth ministry. When the sun rises before 6:45 AM (since that is when the breakfast starts), I try to watch it! It has rained a lot over the last week so it was so nice to see a beautiful sunrise after so much rain … and the high clouds made the morning even more beautiful!”

Dawne Dunton, who captured the shot above, describes the scene like this: “A morning sunrise at the beach is something I love to do know matter what time of the year. Sunrises are different every day. I may miss a few here and there, but the best ones are always the ones I do see. This is my favorite place to see them.”

If you love the Springmaid Pier, you can purchase Dawne’s photos on her website.

The Kilgore-Lewis House – also known as the Josiah Kilgore House – is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. It is described as follows:

Built ca. 1838 of heart pine, the Josiah Kilgore House is one of the oldest structures in Greenville County. Architecturally it is an example of the application of the Palladian or Classical Revival style to what is otherwise an upcountry farmhouse. The Palladian style found in the Josiah Kilgore House is more sophisticated than the vernacular styles usually found in this area of South Carolina during the first half of the nineteenth century. The Palladian stance of the square giant-order posts supporting the portico is echoed not only in the entrance but also in the windows at the front elevation and in some of the windows in the rear. The portico is capped by a pediment of plain design with an oculus. The bracketing of the pediment and eaves is a later addition. The house is a two-story L-shaped design on a low foundation. Shiplap is used in the protected areas under the porches while the remainder of the exterior is clapboard. The rear elevation with projecting rear wing has a three-bay porch on the right side of the wing balanced by a similarly gabled enclosed porch on the left. Originally located in a commercial area of downtown Greenville adjacent to Buncombe Street Methodist Church, the structure was moved to a five-acre site in McPherson Park to prevent its demolition.

“I remember when I was 18 driving down the road to Wiggins and never making it to the end as I turned around and headed back to SC Highway 26 . Now I am 32 and felt it was time to conquer this feat. I went to the end to see what was there and this old build stood. Not sure the story behind it but I thought it had some special southern charm you can’t find any where else!”

Do you know a story about Wiggins or this building in particular? If you do, please send it to the South Carolina Picture Project so we can help Steven solve this mystery. Thank you!

The district straddles both Abbeville and Greenwood counties and is found at the junction of Abbeville County Road 33, Greenwood County Road 112, and Greenwood County Road 47.

As part of the Cedar Springs Historic District, the Frazier-Pressley House is listed in the National Register. It is described as follows:

The Frazier-Pressley House is a three-story, stuccoed brick building, believed to have been constructed as a residence for Captain James W. Frazier in 1852-1856. The building is composed of three octagonal sections connected by a hallway that circumscribes the central three-story octagon with a three-story portico defining the facade (south elevation) and a two-story stuccoed brick ell at the rear.

The portico of the Frazier-Pressley House features four three-story brick pillars with pilaster responds at the junctures with the house. The brick is laid on a diagonal bias, with vertical channeling resulting. The capitals of the pillars are cubical with recessed brickwork creating stepped diamond panels. A veranda is carried by the pillars at each level.

According the local tradition Captain James Frazier constructed his three-story brick plantation home between 1852 and 1856. in 1875 Frazier’s daughter Tallulah and her husband, Dr. Joseph Lowry Pressley, acquired the house. Dr. Pressley had served as a surgeon in the Confederate Army, rising to the rank of major. After his discharge he continued to serve the people of the Cedar Springs community as a doctor and teacher of medicine and dentistry. The central room on the third floor of the house served as his office.

The two-story gable-roofed log building adjacent the the Frazier-Pressley House was probably built c. 1820. Local tradition holds that the building was a stagecoach stop and inn on the road from August, Georgia, to Abbeville and Edgefield. It is likely that the stopping place was established in this location because of the community already developed around the Cedar Springs Church.

The Frazier-Pressley House is exceptional in that it is built around three octagons. These three octagonal elements are connected by a hallway circumscribing the central octagonal core of the house by a massive three-story portico, whose three tiers of porches are reached by seven entrances, all with transoms and sidelights. The composition and plan of the Frazier-Pressley House are believed to be unique in the United States.

Many thanks to Bill Fitzpatrick of Taylors, for sending us his photos of the Frazier-Pressley House. Bill enjoys the singular distinction of being the only person ever to have visited all 1,400 of South Carolina’s National Historic Landmarks. He has published several helpful e-books which serve as invaluable travel guides to the Palmetto State.

Of all the landmarks he visited, this home is one of Bill’s favorites. He explains, “I have special fondness for Cedar Springs, for it turned out to be the reason I did all of this. A fellow at a local camera shop was talking about the incredible, three-tiered, eight-sided abandoned plantation home about an hour or so south of Greenville. He knew it used to be on the border of the Cherokee Nation, so with no more information than that, I eventually found it. Only, and happily, as you can see, it is in the process of being improved. I never violated the privacy rights of homeowners, so like all other historic home shots, I took this one from the street.”