Architecture has been defined as "the gift of one generation to the next." In the South Carolina Low Country the gift is a particularly precious one-a rich treasure of buildings that not only charm us with their graceful beauty, but offer us a glimpse into a vanished world of prosperous plantations and provincial aristocracy.
Southern plantations are an endless source of fascination. That’s no surprise since these palatial homes are rich in history, representing a pivotal time in U.S. history that truly is “gone with the wind.” With the Civil War literally exploding all around, many of these homes were occupied either by Confederate or Union troops. Today, there are more than thirty plantations open to the public in South Carolina. Plantations and Historic Homes of South Carolina takes the reader on the tours and talks to the guides to dig even further if there is more to discover. If only the walls could talk, the stories we might hear!
Bruce Roberts takes us on a photographic tour of fourteen of the famous colonial Virginia plantation houses nestled along the shores of the Lower James River from Richmond east to Jamestown and Williamsburg. Now carefully restored, often with the original furnishings, these houses are glorious monuments to a bygone era. If you have never visited the James River plantations, this book will inspire you to plan a trip there. If you have, you will find this book a wonderful memento of a special place. Robert's 141 color photographs capture the magnificent exteriors of the houses, as well as their gardens and grounds, and offer rare and intimate glimpses of their interiors and furnishings. The plantations portrayed include Shirley Plantation, one of the oldest in America; Belle Air Plantation, with its unique seventeenth-century frame house containing America's finest Jacobean staircase; and Westover Plantation, site of the elegant Georgian home built by William Byrd II. The text provides histories of the plantations, presenting them as places where real people lived and worked -- and still do, in many cases. While the plantations share some common history, each reflects the individual characteristics of the men, women, and children who lived there. In the dining room at Berkeley Hundred, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and eight other presidents enjoyed meals and discussed affairs of state. At Carter's Grove, Roberts photographed the "Refusal Room," where, according to local history, both Washington and Jefferson were refused in marriage by Virginia belles. Today many of the plantation homes have been designated state and national historic sites, and with this book you can visit them and relive four hundred years of history.
Rich survey ranges from pioneer cabins to French Provincial and Neoclassic revivals. Extensive commentary on each building, with over 100 detailed illustrations, including 36 floor plans. Bibliography.
The remains of more than twenty historic plantations rest beneath the waters of Lake Marion and Lake Moultrie, and Charleston historian Douglas Bostick raises them from the depths in this haunting visual journey. South Carolinians have long desired a route for water navigation from Columbia to Charleston. An early Santee Canal effort ended in failure by 1850, but interest was reignited in the twentieth century. Roosevelt and his New Deal provided the necessary hydroelectric power and a boost to the state's economy through the funding of a navigable route utilizing the Congaree, Santee and Cooper Rivers. This ambitious undertaking would become the largest land-clearing project in the history of the United States, requiring the purchase of more than 177,000 acres.
You may think you know the South for its food, its people, its past, and its stories, but if there’s one thing that’s certain, it’s that the region tells far more than one tale. It is ever-evolving, open to interpretation, steeped in history and tradition, yet defined differently based on who you ask. This Is My South inspires the reader to explore the Southern States––Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia––like never before. No other guide pulls together these states into one book in quite this way with a fresh perspective on can’t-miss landmarks, off the beaten path gems, tours for every interest, unique places to sleep, and classic restaurants. So come see for yourself and create your own experiences along the way!
This is the story of one man's adventures in acquiring and bringing back to life some of America's most enticing and historically significant dwellings. With the eye of a connoisseur, the business acumen derived from a legendary career in international finance, and a Jeffersonian grasp of classical architecture, Richard Hampton Jenrette reveals his charming, often risky, ventures in the world of old houses.
These great plantations are symbols of the South and days gone by. Today perhaps only a hundred along the coast and another hundred inland remain. Many of the great plantation homes were lost during the time of war, and many more were simply allowed to collapse in the aftermath. This collection of photographs represents some of the most stunning work present in the Historic American Buildings Survey, an effort to catalogue and document the architecture and building culture of America. In the South, especially, these photographs became invaluable records of a way of life that was quickly disappearing. The selections here, presented by William P. Baldwin, capture these lost dwellings--sometimes as a fragment, sometimes a whole building--and showcase the grand tradition and romantic detail of these icons of the South.
The plantations and historic homes of South Carolina, one of the richest states for plantations, draw millions of visitors each year. In this stunning memento and coffee-table book, thirty-four of the state's most famous homes are covered in loving detail and full-color photos - including each home's exteriors and grounds, gardens and interiors, profiles of their famous families, and more. In addition, sites with slave quarters are highlighted for their historical importance. This book makes the perfect collectible souvenir for anyone who has traveled to South Carolina and toured these beautiful homes.