Planting, Preserving And Progress - All Legacies In Columbia, South Carolina

  • Thursday, September 3, 2015
  • Diane Siskin

A group of houses and gardens in Columbia, South Carolina’s capital city were in the “perfect state,” for an organization to come along in the 20th century to purchase and do some updating. A better part of the homes were either in decay or non-existence.

In other words, these historic houses provided a challenging blank slate for Historic Columbia.

The Robert Mills House & Gardens, the Hampton-Preston Mansion & Gardens, the Mann-Simmons Site and the Woodrow Wilson Family Home are once again filled with period style antiques and their gardens are boasting of traditional plantings.

These homes, while not the grandest in the country, are true museums as to what life was like during the period in which they were originally constructed and occupied.

The gardens with their flowering and blooming plants and flowers provided enticing views and charming settings, not to mention edible fruits and vegetables.

If you have an affinity for historic homes and enjoy strolling through well-thought-out and arranged gardens you will savor the handiwork of the tireless members of Historic Columbia.

“You can actually see “living history’’ within the walls of the Robert Mills House and the Woodrow Wilson Home,’’ pointed out Fielding Freed, Director of the Historic House Museums as we toured the properties.

Historic Columbia was recognized with a statewide award for the restoration of the Woodrow Wilson Family Home. “Local contractors and highly skilled craftsmen went to great lengths to preserve South Carolina’s only presidential home,” explained Mr. Freed.

The Wilson family lived in the house, at 1705 Hampton Street, from 1871 to 1874, during the future president’s teenage years.

The house opened as a presidential museum in 1933 and Historic Columbia became the property’s steward in 1968.

In 2005, Historic Columbia had to close the house due to structural issues. An unprecedented and comprehensive physical rehabilitation began in 2009 with the building’s exterior. Now there is a 21st-century museum operating within a Reconstruction-era former residence.

Renovations completed by earlier house owners were removed during the latest restoration to return the original flow to the house. Floors and banisters were refinished and original tiles on each of the 8 fireplaces were fixed and period-appropriate light fixtures were purchased and installed.

Couple of blocks away is the Robert Mills House and Gardens. This historic home was known as Ainsley Hall originally. “Historic Columbia Foundation was actually founded in 1961,’’ according to Dickson Monk, the Director of Marketing & Communications, by a group of preservationists determined to save this particular house.”

The stately mansion was designed by the same architect that designed the Washington Monument in our nation’s capital. The front entrance is reached by climbing a high center staircase, which is flanked by four tall white columns. The lower level under the staircase features white arches which compliment the arched windows lining the red brick façade.

Inside this grand home are some unusual and interesting characteristics. The main entrance hall is an oval and by design all interior elements, such as doors, lighting, wall sconces, paintings and furniture are balanced. That is to say the objects are equal and symmetrical in their placement on and along the walls.

For Your Information:

Tickets for all house museum tours are available at the Gift Shop at the Robert Mills House at 1616 Blanding Street on the Henderson Street side of the Robert Mills House grounds. Parking is available on Henderson Street between Blanding and Taylor. Hours of Operation are: Tuesday-Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (last tour begins at 3 p.m.) Sundays the hours open are 1-5 p.m. with the last tour beginning at 4 p.m. The homes are closed Mondays and major holidays.

Check out the gift shop it truly does have some unique items. Or you can take a stroll through the gardens which are open the same hours as the houses, but are free.

The Hampton-Preston Mansion and Gardens was home to two of Columbia’s most notable, planter-class families. And the Mann-Simons Site tells the story of Columbia through the experiences of one entrepreneurial African American family.

The Woodrow Wilson Family Home is open for tours Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Tours begin on the hour and admission can be purchased at the Gift Shop at Robert Mills.

For more information: visit historiccolumbia.org

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dsiskin123@gmail.com

 

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