— Wedge Plantation © Taken between 1915 and 1923 by Howard R. Jacobs —

Basic Information

• Location – South Santee River, McClellanville, St. James Santee Parish, Charleston & Georgetown Counties
  

  The original plantation lands are located party in Charleston County and partly in Georgetown County. The plantation house is located off US 17 on Wedge Plantation Road in the Francis Marion National Forest. The original rice fields are located across the South Santee River in Georgetown County.
  

• Origin of name – The boundaries of the property form the shape of a wedge.
  

• Other names – The Wedge

• Current status – Houses the University of South Carolina's International Center for Public Health Research
  

— Wedge Plantation in 2009 © Brandon Coffey —

Timeline

• 1784 – Earliest known date of existence

  Elizabeth Deas Middleton owned property on the South Santee River. Upon her death, the property was divided into Wedge and Pine Tree Hill plantations (Linder & Thacker, p. 741).
  

• 1802 – John Hume purchased Wedge which consisted of 47 acres (Linder & Thacker, p. 741).
  

• 1819 – John Hume's daughter, Charlotte, married William Lucas, and it is presumed that they were given Wedge. No documents exist of this transaction (Bridges & Williams, p. 266).
  

• 1826 – William Lucas built a house on the property.
  

  The National Register nomination form dates the house to the 1830s, but this is an error. The deed the nomination form is referring to was the deed for 45 acres on Washashaw Creek purchased by William Lucas from his father-in-law, John Hume (Linder & Thacker, p. 842).
  

• 1866 – William Lucas transferred the property to his son Alexander Hume Lucas (National Register).
  

• 1892 – The house caught fire when sparks from the chimney set the roof ablaze. The fire was put out and the house was saved (Bridges & Williams, pp. 309-311).
  

• 1914 – Alexander Hume Lucas died. At this time, Wedge ceased to be a working plantation. It remained in the family for another fifteen years (Linder & Thacker, p. 742).
  

• 1929 – Wedge was purchased by Mr. and Mrs. Elbridge Gerry Chadwick. They also purchased Palo Alto and Woodville, two neighboring plantations (Linder & Thacker, p. 742).
  

• 1946 – Charles H. Woodward purchased the plantation and used it as a winter residence (National Register).
  

• 1966 – Dr. and Mrs. Richard B. Dominick purchased Wedge and Belleview plantations. Dr. Dominick set up an experimental laboratory to study insects. He was interested in collecting moths and butterflies (Linder & Thacker, p. 742).
  

• 1976 – Dr. Dominick died and the State of South Carolina purchased Wedge. It became home to the University of South Carolina's International Center for Public Health Research.

• 2007 – To this date, Wedge is still owned by the University of South Carolina. The university is hoping to lease Wedge to a private party. (Linder & Thacker, p. 742).
  

Land

• Number of acres – 47 in 1802, 1500 in 2007

• Primary crop – Rice

Owners

• Alphabetical list – Mr. and Mrs. Elbridge Gerry Chadwick, Dr. and Mrs. Richard B. Dominick, John Hume, Alexander Hume Lucas, William Lucas, Elizabeth Deas Middleton, Univeristy of South Carolina, Charles H. Woodward
  

Slaves

• Number of slaves – In 1850, William Lucas owned 72 slaves on his various plantations (National Register).
  

Buildings

• ?

Web Resources

• National Register of Historic Places
  – Nomination form - PDF - submitted in 1980
  – Photographs, architectural overview
  

Print Resources

• Anne Baker Leland Bridges and Roy Williams III, St James Santee Plantation Parish History and Records, 1685-1925, (Spartanburg, SC: The Reprint Company, Publishers, 1997).
  

• Suzanne Cameron Linder and Marta Leslie Thacker (with preliminary research by Agnes Leland Baldwin), Historical Atlas of the Rice Plantations of Georgetown County and the Santee River (Columbia: South Carolina Department of Archives and History, 2001).
  

• 30-15 Plantation File, held by the South Carolina Historical Society

• Claude Henry Neuffer, editor, Names in South Carolina, Volume I through 30 (Columbia, SC: The State Printing Company)
   Order Names in South Carolina, Volumes I-XII, 1954-1965
   Order Names in South Carolina, Index XIII-XVIII
  

• 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.