Basic Information
- Location – Minim Creek (a branch of the North Santee River), Georgetown, Prince George Winyah Parish, Georgetown County
Located off US 17 about fourteen miles south of Georgetown
- Origin of name – Millbrook was named by Andrew Johnston who owned a pioneering rice mill operated by the tide.
- Other names – Annandale (1826-2001)
- Current status – Privately owned
— Millbrook Plantation Oaks © Terry Rowe —
Timeline
- 1732 – Earliest known date of existence
Thomas Lynch received a grant for 4,500 acres on the North Santee River (Linder & Thacker, p. 617).
- 1737 – Thomas Lynch died and left his plantation to his son, Thomas Lynch II (Linder & Thacker, p. 617).
- ? – Property was sold to Andrew Johnston, a relative of Thomas Lynch II (Linder & Thacker, p. 617).
- 1791 – Andrew Johnston hired Jonathan Lucas Sr. to build a rice mill. Millbrook had the first tide-operated mill
(National Register).
- 1795 – Andrew Johnston died and left the plantation to his son, William Andrew Johnston. William married Anna Maria Pinckney and they built a house near the rice fields (Linder & Thacker, p. 617).
- 1826 – William's son, Andrew, took over the management of the plantation. He changed the name to Annandale in honor of his ancestral home in Scotland. Andrew also changed the spelling of his last name to Johnstone (National Register).
- 1833 – Andrew constructed a Greek Revival house which still stands today (National Register).
- 1863 – George A. Trenholm, who was Secretary of the Confederate Treasury from 1864 until the end of the war, purchased the property from Andrew Johnstone. A year later, Johnstone was murdered in his home in the mountains by deserters of the Confederate and Union Armies (Linder & Thacker, p. 619-620).
- 1865 – Trenholm conveyed the plantation to his son-in-law, William Miles Hazzard (Linder & Thacker, p. 620).
- 1898 – William Miles Hazzard sold the property to the Santee Rice Company (National Register).
- 1911 – William Darlington purchased the plantation from the Santee Rice Company (Linder & Thacker, p. 620).
- 1919 – Darlington sold the plantation to Charles M. Reeves. The sale included Millbrook and Hopewell and Hopeland, adjacent properties. The Reeves family restored the house, converted the old rice fields for cattle grazing, grew soy beans and corn, and harvested shrimp and crabs from the wetlands (Linder & Thacker, p. 620).
- 1981-1986 – White Oak Forest Management purchases what was known as Millbrook Plantation.
- 1986-1989 – Louis Dunklin purchased Millbrook Plantation from White Oak Forest Management.
- 1988 – The house at Millbrook along with twenty-six acres was sold to Alexander Gregg, a descendant of the Johnstones. The Reeves kept 4,000 acres and retained the name Annandale. (Linder & Thacker, p. 620).
- 2001 – Dan Ray purchased Millbrook. It is protected under a conservation easement and the name Millbrook must be maintained (Linder & Thacker, p. 620).
- 2004 – Mr. and Mrs. John H. Parrish purchased Millbrook from Dan Ray.
— Great Room of Millbrook Plantation © Terry Rowe —
Land
- Number of acres – 4,500 in 1732; 4,026 in 1919; 26 in 2001
- Primary crop – Rice
Andrew Johnstone produced 900,000 pounds of rice in 1850 (Linder & Thacker, p. 619).
Owners
- Alphabetical list – William Darlington; Louis Dunklin; Alexander Gregg; William Miles Hazzard; Andrew Johnston; William Andrew Johnston; Andrew Johnstone; Thomas Lynch; Thomas Lynch II; Mr. and Mrs. John H. Parrish; Dan Ray; Charles M. Reeves; Santee Rice Company; George A. Trenholm; White Oak Forest Management
Slaves
- Number of slaves – ?
— Millbrook Plantation Garage © Terry Rowe —
Buildings
- House – 5 bedrooms, 4 baths, 5000 square feet (2005)
Web Resources
- National Register of Historic Places
– Nomination form - PDF - submitted in 1973 in the name of Annandale
– Photographs, architectural overview
Print Resources
- 30-14 Plantation File, South Carolina Historical Society
– Online Catalog - Alberta Morel Lachicotte, Georgetown Rice Plantations
(Georgetown, SC: Georgetown County Historical Society, 1993)
Order Georgetown Rice Plantations - Suzanne Cameron Linder and Marta Leslie Thacker, Historical Atlas of the Rice Plantations of Georgetown County and the Santee River
(Columbia, SC: South Carolina Department of Archives and History, 2001)
Order Historical Atlas of the Rice Plantations of Georgetown County and the Santee River - George C. Rodgers, Jr., The History of Georgetown County, South Carolina
(Spartanburg, SC: Reprint Company, 1990)
Order The History of Georgetown County, South Carolina
More about Georgetown County
- Learn more about historic Georgetown County, including the lovely town of Georgetown SC. We have helpful guides to Georgetown SC history and Georgetown SC libraries and museums – plus Georgetown SC restaurants, Georgetown SC bed & breakfasts, Georgetown SC hotels, and Georgetown SC real estate.
— Millbrook Plantation on the Santee River © Terry Rowe —
— Millbrook Plantation House from Afar © Terry Rowe —
