Auldbrass Plantation or Auldbrass is located in
Beaufort County,
South Carolina
)''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
, near the town of
Yemassee.
The main house, stable complex and kennels were designed and built by
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...
from 1939 to 1941. It is one of two structures that Wright designed in South Carolina. The property was purchased in the 1930s by Charles Leigh Stevens. Wright designed the plantation to serve as a retreat for Stevens. During Stevens retreats he would use the property for riding and hunting excursions.
Wright is credited with changing the name of the plantation from "Old Brass" to "Auldbrass." "Old Brass" was the original name given to the farmland and the local river landing after an old slave from an old plantation on the land before.
The earliest records from the farm are dated to 1736 when the farm was known as Mount Pleasant. An industrial engineer, C. Leigh Stevens, joined five parcels of land together along the
Combahee River
The Combahee River ( ) is a short blackwater river in the southern Lowcountry region of South Carolina formed at the confluence of the Salkehatchie and Little Salkehatchie rivers near the Islandton community of Colleton County, South Carolina ...
to form the plantation. The plantation was added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 1976. It was purchased in 1986 by film producer
Joel Silver
Joel Silver (born July 14, 1952) is an American film producer.
Life and career
Silver was born and raised in South Orange, New Jersey, the son of a writer and a public relations executive. His family is Jewish. He attended Columbia High School i ...
after Donna Butler, an FLW real estate appraiser, convinced him to restore it. Auldbrass Plantation is an extraordinary example of historic preservation and is open to the public one weekend every two years. Tours benefit the Beaufort County Open Land Trust.
Design
The Auldbrass Plantation was a collection of buildings. This included the main residence, cottages, guest house, caretaker's quarters, chicken runs, kennels, stables, and Granary. The main residence and a few of the other buildings implemented a hexagon module floorplan. When approaching the house, there was no grand entrance, the driveways were angled to lead visitors the farm buildings before getting to the main residence. The main residence is inspired by the nature around it, the vertically oriented brick walls and sloping cypress wood walls with narrow windows. The residence also as cooper roof with rainspouts mimicking the Spanish moss hanging from the oak trees. Apon entering the residence on the right is the living room with its clerestory like windows running above is to the right and the fireplace on the back wall. Around the fireplace is the breakfast room. To the left are the two bedrooms.
References
External links
American Memory from the Library of CongressAmerican Memory - outer buildingslarge page size
Sunday Morning, CBS News26 photos
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Beaufort County Open Land Trust
Historic American Buildings Survey in South Carolina
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in South Carolina
Frank Lloyd Wright buildings
Plantations in South Carolina
Plantation houses in South Carolina
Houses in Beaufort County, South Carolina
Houses completed in 1951
National Register of Historic Places in Beaufort County, South Carolina
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