Kalmia Plantation - Hartsville Darlington County South Carolina SC

Kalmia Plantation – Hartsville – Darlington County



Kalmia Gardens 2014 - Darlington County, South Carolina
— Kalmia Gardens © Melissa Roberts, 2014 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Basic Information

  • Location – Black Creek, Hartsville, Darlington County

  • Origin of name – The plantation's name is derived from the unusual abundance of mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) that grows here due to an 80-foot-tall bluff along the Black Creek. This bluff served as the ocean's fall line millennia ago, when the sea extended to the Pee Dee.

  • Other names – Laurel Land, Thomas E. Hart House

  • Current status – 22 acres of the original plantation, including the Thomas E. Hart House and Kalmia Gardens, are now owned by Coker College.

Timeline

  • 1772 – Earliest known date of existence (2)

    Benjamin Davis was granted 200 acres by King George III (2).

  • 1817 – After many intermediate owners, Captian Thomas Edwards Hart purchased the property (2).

  • Circa 1820 – House built (2)

    Hart built the house with lumber cut from the property. He was the area's first postmaster, merchant, justice of the peace, and a leader of the local militia. He was also a planter. The surrounding community experienced significant growth and became known as Hartsville as early as 1837 (2).

  • Late 1830s – Thomas Hart faced a downturn in his financial standing which lead to him selling some of the plantation's property to son-in-law Thomas C. Law. Hart was able to retain much of the property including the house (1, p. 3).

  • 1842 – Thomas Hart died. Kalmia was held in trust by his brother-in-law, John W. Lide, for Hannah Lide Hart, Thomas's wife. She resided at the house until 1859 (2).

  • 1859 – Hannah Hart sold the remaining property and house to son-in-law Thomas C. Law (1, p. 3).

    Kalmia passed hands throughout the early 1900s and sadly, became neglected (2).

  • 1932 – Dr. William Chambers Coker, a noted botanist, obtained the property and gave it to his sister-in-law, Mrs. May Roper Coker (1, p. 2, and 2).

    Mrs. Coker was an avid gardner and returned Kalmia to a thriving estate. She also restored the home and built a rear addition (2).

  • 1935 – Mrs. Coker opened her garden gates to the public (2).

  • 1965 – Mrs. Coker gave 28 acres of Kalmia to Coker College in memory of her late husband, David Robert Coker (2).

Thomas E. Hart House 2014 - Darlington County, South Carolina
— Thomas E. Hart House © Melissa Roberts, 2014 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Land

  • Number of acres – 200 in 1772; 1,223 under Hart ownership; 44 in 1932; 28 in 1965 (1, p. 2-4 and 2)

  • Primary crops – Cotton, tobacco (2)

Slaves

  • Number of slaves – ?

Kalmia Gardens Black Creek 2014 - Darlington County, South Carolina
— Kalmia Gardens Black Creek © Melissa Roberts, 2014 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

References & Resources

  1. National Register of Historic Places
    Nomination form - PDF - submitted in 1990
    Photographs, architectural overview

  2. History - by Kalmia Gardens of Coker College

  3. Photos of Kalmia Gardens

  4. Photos of the Thomas E. Hart House

Contact Information

  • Kalmia Gardens
    1624 West Carolina Avenue
    Hartsville, SC 29550

    Telephone: 843-383-8145
    Website: Click here





SC Plantation Inns
SC Plantation Tours
SC Plantation Pictures
SC Plantations by Place
SC Plantation Weddings



Abbeville County
Aiken County
Allendale County
Anderson County

Bamberg County
Barnwell County
Beaufort County
Berkeley County

Calhoun County
Charleston County
Cherokee County
Chester County
Chesterfield County
Clarendon County
Colleton County

Darlington County
Dillon County
Dorchester County

Edgefield County

Fairfield County
Florence County

Georgetown County
Greenville County
Greenwood County

Hampton County
Horry County

Jasper County

Kershaw County

Lancaster County
Laurens County
Lee County
Lexington County

Marion County
Marlboro County
McCormick County

Newberry County

Oconee County
Orangeburg County

Pickens County

Richland County

Saluda County
Spartanburg County
Sumter County

Union County

Williamsburg County

York County


Flower photographs by Virginia Saunders, Columbia, SC. Please click flower for more info.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

Are you able to correct
an error?
Please click here.


SouthCarolinaPlantations.com
is maintained as a public service by

South Carolina

Home Edit Info Contact

HomeCorrect InfoSearchContact