Directly out front you will find the Conway Town Clock, and across the street is the current Horry County Courthouse.

SCIWAY thanks Tony Morano of Longs for this picture taken in June 2010.

The contractor was Charles Beck who worked with the famous Robert Mills on many of his designs around South Carolina. While Mills did not design the Edgefield County Courthouse, the building’s brick structure, prominent front porch, and symmetrical exterior and interior are undeniably influenced by him.

During the 1930s the courthouse underwent an extensive restoration which modernized and enlarged many of the rooms. The building is part of the Edgefield Historic District and is listed in the National Historic Register.

SCIWAY thanks Stephen Brenton of Ladson, who took this great picture in November 2011.

Thinking about visiting Edgefield? Make sure to stop by and see Steve Ferrell at Old Edgefield Pottery to learn about his unique stoneware folk-art.

From 1953-1954 the courthouse’s interior and exterior was substantially remodeled, but the building still reflects much of Mills’ original vision.

The Williamsburg County Courthouse is listed in the National Historic Register.

For more information about the courthouse, call 843-355-9565.

From 1843-1844 the Colleton County Courthouse underwent extensive renovations, and it was enlarged in 1916. A project of the Works Progress Administration in the 1930s covered the west wing with brick, added an east wing, built an addition on the north entrance, and remodeled the interior.

The Colleton County Courthouse is listed in the National Register of Historic Places, and received its historical marker in 2001. A monument to Southern soldiers and women of Colleton County are also on the courthouse grounds.

SCIWAY thanks Mark Clark for contributing this historical information about the courthouse. Mark also says that he has “lived in Winnsboro since 2002 and has served on jury duty several times inside this court house. Each time I have been impressed with the buildings design, both inside and out. To me, it stresses the importance of the matters at hand.”

Born in Charleston, Robert Mills (1781-1855) was the architect of the Washington Monument and designed courthouses for 18 counties in South Carolina , along with many other buildings, including the Fireproof Building in Charleston.

The historical marker picture below reads:
“On this corner stood the gaol (jail), built in 1771 and burned in 1812. During the Revolution the British imprisoned in it many American soldiers and civilians. Among them, after his capture near the Waxhaws, was the boy Andrew Jackson, later seventh President. He is said to have watched the Battle of Hobkirk Hill through a hole he cut in the wall of the gaol’s second story.”

The folks at See Lancaster, a non-profit group which promotes travel and tourism in and around the “Red Rose City” sent us the picture below and told us that “hearts sank on the morning of August 4, 2008 when residents of Lancaster witnessed their beloved historic county courthouse burning. Fire destroyed the roof and most of the interior. Worse news was to follow when they learned a teenage suspect had been arrested for arson. The courthouse, built in 1828, retained many original features and was still in use as a hall of justice when it was set ablaze.”

On March 23, 2009, just a few months after the devastating fire, roof frames were returned. The roof’s restoration uses timbers similar to the original design and each truss is signed by local firefighters, emergency workers, and government officials.

Learn more about the history of this building by visiting its listing in the National Historic Register.

The mansion was sold to the Presbyterian Synod of South Carolina and Georgia, and the Presbyterian Theological Seminary began holding classes in 1831. In 1927, the seminary moved and the property gradually fell into disrepair.

A major grassroots movement saved the house from demolition in the early 1960s. After extensive restoration, it opened in 1967 as a historic house museum.

Wilson Jumper of West Columbia took this picture of the Robert Mills House, located in Columbia, in July 2008.

Learn more about historic Columbia homes.