Tower Hill Plantation – Pineville – Berkeley County

— Tower Hill Plantation © Melissa McVey, 2016 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Basic Information

• Location – Pineville, St. Stephen's Parish, Santee River, Berkeley County

  810 Tower Hill Plantation Drive
  

• Origin of name – May be because the plantation house sits on a hill (5) (7)
  

• Other names – ?

• Current status – Privately owned and operated as a special events venue (3).
  

— Tower Hill Plantation Bell Tower © Melissa McVey, 2016 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Timeline

• 1720 – Earliest known date of existence (7)
  

  Daniel Couturier cleared the property from the Santee River to the River Road and built a house he called Tower Hill (7).
  

• 1720 – House built (7)
  

• ? – Tower Hill was passed down to son Daniel Couturier II (7).
  

• ? – Daniel Couturier II left the plantation to his son John Couturier I (7).
  

• 1748* – The original plantation house was burned and a new house was built (7).
  

  * There are conflicting accounts of when the first house burned, in 1748 or during the Civil War (1861-1865).
  

• ? – John Couturier I served as captain of cavalry under General William Moultrie during the Revolutionary War Battle of Sullivan's Island. He passed Tower Hill to his eldest son, John Couturier II (7).
  

• 1820 – John Couturier II's son, Dr. John J. Couturier, along with his wife, Rebecca Palmer became owners of the plantation (7).
  

• 1834 – Dr. Couturier died of yellow fever during the area's epidemic. Dr. and Mrs. Couturier had three daughters, no sons. It appears the plantation was no longer owned by the Couturier family after John's death (7).
  

• ? – Mr. and Mrs. Edward St. Julien Marion (of the Francis Marion family) acquired the plantation (2, p. 197) (3) (7).
  

• 1934 – The house was once again damaged by fire and rebuilt in 1936 by Edward St. Julien Marion and his wife Francis "Frank" Dantzler Marion on the same foundation (3) (7).
  

• 1947 – Edward St. Julien Marion passed away. His widow, Frank, continued running the plantation with the assistance of longtime caretakers, Jack and Emma Jane White, along with neighbor, and Ed's cousin, Peter Palmer Gourdin (7).
  

• 1975 – Mrs. Frank Marion deeded Tower Hill to the Episcopal Order of the Holy Cross. A monastery, Holy Savior Priory, was established. A main chapel was built along with a cottage for Mrs. Marion's residence. There were also five cabins, one for each monk. Frank assisted the monks in managing the property (7).
  

• 1991 – The Episcopal Order of the Holy Cross closed and the Episcopal Church sold Frank's cottage and 15 acres for $5.00. The plantation house and remaining acreage was purchased by Saundra Dyson, Frank's niece, and her husband (5) (7).
  

  The Dysons lived in the plantation house, remodeled the chapel into a lodge and operated Tower Hill as a hunt club (7).
  

• 2003 – The Oakland Club purchased the 1,600 acre plantation from the Dysons to add to the neighboring (originally Bluford Plantation) hunting preserve the club already owned (5) (7).
  

• 2006 – The Oakland Club subdivided their land holdings. The house of Tower Hill, along with and additional 23 acres, was one of the tracts split-off (7).
  

• 2008 – Scandinavian couple Ida and Guttorm Berqvam purchased Tower Hill Plantation in the name of their company Berqvam Holdings LLC from Oakland Hunt Club. The Berqvams have renovated the property and opened the plantation as a special events venue (3) (5).
  

— Tower Hill Plantation Oak Avenue © Melissa McVey, 2016 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Land

• Number of acres – 3,000 in 1721; 1,600 in 2003; 24 in 2011 (3) (5) (7)
  

• Primary crop – Rice then cotton (5)
  

• The remains of the old graveyard are still visible.
  

Slaves

• Number of slaves – ?

References & Resources

1. 30-15 Plantation File, held by the South Carolina Historical Society
   –  Research Guide
   

2. J. Russell Cross, Historic Ramblin's through Berkeley (Columbia, SC: R.L. Bryan Company, 1985)
    Order Historic Ramblin's through Berkeley
   

3. Information contributed by Ida Berqvam, who purchased the Tower Hill Plantation in 2008 with her husband. Click here for their website.
   

4. Brief genealogy of the John Couturier family.
   

5. Robert Behre, Pair Brings Tower Hill Back to Life (Charleston, SC: The Post and Courier, June 6, 2011) - source no longer available online.
   

6. Tower Hill Plantation - South Carolina Picture Project.
   

7. Warner M. Montgomery, Ph.D., Pineville, a historic refuge - Tower Hill Plantation (Columbia, SC: Columbia Star, January 25, 2008).
   

Contact Information

• Tower Hill Plantation
  810 Tower Hill Plantation Drive
  Pineville, SC 29468
  

  Telephone: 850-848-3683
  Website: Click here