— Grove Plantation © Brandon Coffey —

Basic Information

• Location – Edisto River, Adams Run, St. Paul's Parish, ACE Basin, Charleston County
  

  Located east of Willtown Bluff off Jehossee Island Road. Follow signs for ACE Basin National Wildlife Refuge.
  

• Origin of name – ?

• Other names – ?

• Current status – Grove Plantation is now part of the ACE Basin. The house has been converted into offices and serves as its headquarters.

— Staircase at Grove Plantation © Brandon Coffey —

Timeline

• 1694 – Earliest known date of existence when Robert Fenwick was given a land grant (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• 1695-1825 – The property would have nine different owners (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• 1825 – George Washington Morris purchased the land and named it Grove Plantation (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• 1828 – House built by Morris (National Register, p. 2)
  

• 1834 – Morris died and his wife Maria took over ownership and management turning the plantation into a successful enterprise (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

  Maria eventually turned over management duties to her son George Washington Morris Jr. Unfortunately, George Jr. was not as business savvy as his mother and ran up huge debts (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• 1858 – John Berkeley Grimball became owner of the plantation after George Morris Jr.'s death the year prior. The Grove remained in the Grimball family until circa 1920 (National Register, p. 2).
  

  Grimball had married a niece of the Morris' and owned the neighboring Pinebury Plantation. He combined the two properties and moved his family into the Grove house (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• 1866 – Grimball was able to regain ownership rights to the Grove after the plantation had been confiscated. During the Civil War, the Grimballs fled to Spartanburg as skirmishes took place on their land. The Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands considered the plantation abandoned and had seized it (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• 1870 – The war was financially devastating to Grimball. He was unable to maintain the mortgage payments and the plantation reverted back to the Morris' heirs Josephine M. Porter and Sabina Ann Morris (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• Once again, the Grove would pass through the hands of several owners (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• 1929 – Owen Winston, President of Brooks Brothers, purchased the plantation and restored the house (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• 1930 – Thompson Brown purchased the property for a winter home (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• 1964 – R. Carter Henry purchased the Grove and had extensive work done to the house and outbuildings (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• Early 1970s – Henry sold the plantation to A. Leigh Baier (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• ? – Baier sold the Grove to Margaret B. Hendricks (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• 1991 – The Nature Conservancy purchased the property from Margaret B. Hendricks (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

• 1992 – The Nature Conservancy sold the Grove to the US Fish & Wildlife Service who uses the house as the offices of the ACE Basin National Wildlife Refuge (US Fish and Wildlife Service).
  

Land

• Number of acres – 1,112 in 1857 (National Register, p. 3)

• Primary crop – Rice (National Register, p. 3)

Owners

• Alphabetical list – A. Leigh Baier (early 1970s-?); Thompson Brown (1930-?); John Berkeley Grimball (1858-1870); Margaret B. Hendricks (?-1991); Mr. and Mrs. R. Carter Henry (1964-early 1970s); George Washington Morris (1825-1834); George Washington Morris Jr. (?-1857); Maria Morris (1834-?); Nature Conservancy (1991-1992); Mr. and Mrs. W.J. Newton; Josephine M. Porter and Sabina Ann Morris (1870-?); Owen Winston (1929-1930); Whitney
  

Slaves

• Number of slaves – 136 in 1857 (National Register, p. 3)

Buildings

• The house was built in the late Federal period style and features polygonal rooms (National Register, p. 3).

Web Resources

• US Fish and Wildlife Service, ACE Basin National Wildlife Refuge's History of the Grove Plantation House: Click here

• National Register of Historic Places
  – Nomination form - PDF - submitted in 1977
  – Photographs, architectural overview
  

Print Resources

• 30-14 Plantation File, South Carolina Historical Society
  –  Online Catalog

Contact Information

• ACE Basin National Wildlife Refuge
  8675 Willtown Road/PO Box 848
  Hollywood, SC 29449
  

  E-mail: acebasin@fws.gov
  Website: Click here
  

More about Charleston

• Learn more about historic Charleston County including the port city of Charleston. We have helpful guides to Charleston history and Charleston libraries and museums – plus Charleston restaurants, Charleston bed & breakfasts, Charleston hotels, Charleston real estate, and Charleston jobs.