Millford Plantation
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| Millford Plantation Pinewood, South Carolina |
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| (U.S. National Historic Landmark) | |
.jpg/235px-Milford_Planation_(Sumter_County,_South_Carolina).jpg) |
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| Location: | On SC 261 west of Pinewood, South Carolina |
| Area: | 712 acres surrounding house (out of 4,251 acres total) |
| Built/Founded: | 1839 |
| Architect: | Unknown; builder Nathaniel F. Potter of Providence, Rhode Island |
| Architectural style(s): | Greek Revival |
| Designated as NHL: | November 7, 1973[1] |
| Added to NRHP: | November 19, 1971[2] |
| NRHP Reference#: | 71000808[2] |
| Governing body: | Private |
Millford Plantation (also spelled Milford) is an historic place located on SC 261 west of Pinewood, South Carolina. Its monumental two-story Greek Revival mansion built in 1839 for John L. Manning, Governor of South Carolina from 1852 to 1854, and his wife, Susan Frances Hampton Manning, has been called "South Carolina's finest residential example of the Greek Revival style."[3] It was called Manning's Folly, though, when first built because of its remote location in the High Hills of Santee section of the state and because of its elaborate details. On November 19, 1971, Millford Plantation, also called the Governor John L. Manning House, was added to the National Register of Historic Places and on November 7, 1973, it was declared a National Historic Landmark.[4][1][1][5]
Millford Plantation is one of three National Historic Landmarks located on SC 261, the Kings Highway, in the High Hills of Santee. The other two are Borough House Plantation and Church of the Holy Cross, both in Stateburg.
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[edit] Early history
Millford Plantation's monumental 2-story Greek Revival mansion was built in 1839 for John L. Manning and his wife, Susan Frances Hampton Manning by Nathaniel F. Potter of Providence, Rhode Island, who may have also done the design work. Its facade features six large carved columns on granite bases that support the portico. Its two-foot thick walls are of brick made on the premises while the granite was shipped from Rhode Island. The central interior feature is an "unsupported flying circular staircase in the central rotunda."[1] John and Susan Manning furnished Millwood in the Grecian style including "an enormous quantity of Duncan Phyfe furniture," much of which is still in the house.[6]
Susan Frances Hampton was the daughter of General Wade Hampton I and his wife, Mary Cantey, and half-sister of Colonel Wade Hampton II, who, though he alone inherited their father's considerable fortune, shared it equally with her and another sister. She died in 1845 giving birth to her third child with John L. Manning. In 1848 Manning married Sally Bland Clarke and had four children by her.[7]
Millford was threatened with destruction by Union troops on April 19, 1865, but was saved by the intervention of their commander, Brigadier General Edward E. Potter of New York, whose exchange with Governor Manning was recorded as follows:[6]
- Potter: This is a fine structure.
- Manning: Yes, it was built by a man from New England by the name of Potter, and I suppose a man by the name of Potter from New York will destroy it!
- Potter: No, sir. That is not my intention. Your house shall be protected.
Millford Plantation remained in the Manning family until 1903 when it was sold to Mary Clark Thompson. It remained in the Clark family until recently.[8][9]
[edit] Recent history
Millford Plantation was bought in the early 1990s and meticulously restored by Richard Hampton Jenrette, one of the founders of the New York investment banking firm, Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and a collateral descendant of Susan Hampton Manning. In 1995, Jenrette received a South Carolina Historic Preservation Award for Millford and in 2006 he received the Governor's Award for his work on Millford and the Robert William Roper House in Charleston, another National Historic Landmark he owns and restored.[10][11][12][13]
[edit] See also
- List of Registered Historic Places in South Carolina
- List of National Historic Landmarks in South Carolina
- St. Mark's Episcopal Church (Pinewood, South Carolina), the parish church for Millford Plantation.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Millford Plantation. National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Retrieved on 2008-03-18.
- ^ a b National Register Information System. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service (2007-01-23).
- ^ 2006 South Carolina Historic Preservation Awards
- ^ South Carolina Department of Archives and History listing for Milford (sic) Plantation
- ^ Mrs. James W. Fant (June 3, 1971), National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Millford PlantationPDF (32 KB), National Park Service and Accompanying three photos, exterior, undatedPDF (32 KB)
- ^ a b Antiques magazine article, May 1997, Living with Antiques: Millford Plantation in South Carolina, by Thomas Gordon Smith
- ^ Smith, Thomas Gordon, Living with antiques: Millford Plantation in South Carolina, Antiques Magazine, May, 1997
- ^ nomination form for the National Register accessible only by Internet Explorer through the link on South Carolina Department of Archives and History listing for Milford (sic) Plantation
- ^ Antiques magazine article, May 1997, Living with Antiques: Millford Plantation in South Carolina, by Thomas Gordon Smith
- ^ Richard Hampton Jenrette biography
- ^ Antiques magazine article, May 1997, Living with Antiques: Millford Plantation in South Carolina, by Thomas Gordon Smith
- ^ 1995 South Carolina Historic Preservation Awards
- ^ 2006 South Carolina Historic Preservation Awards
[edit] External links
- Millford Plantation listing within National Historic Landmarks program
- National Register listings for Sumter County
- National Register Information System
- South Carolina Department of Archives and History listing for Milford (sic) Plantation
- Historic American Buildings Survey index for Milford Plantation
- South Carolina Plantations listing for Milford Plantation
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