Sunnyside Plantation – Edisto Island – Charleston County

— Sunnyside Plantation Main House © Brandon Coffey, 2016 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Basic Information

• Location – Store Creek, Edisto Island, St. John's Colleton Parish, Charleston County

  Off north side of Peter's Point Road
  

• Origin of name – ?

• Other names – ?

• Current status – ?

— Sunnyside Plantation Side of House © Brandon Coffey, 2016 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Timeline

• ? – Earliest known date of existence

• Circa 1870-1880 – House built

  House constructed by Townsend Mikell. Townsend's father, Isaac Jenkins Mikell owned nearby Peters Point Plantation (1, p. 2).
  

• ? – Mrs. Edwin Belser acquired Sunnyside from her father Townsend Mikell. She and her husband used it as a summer home (1, p. 3).
  

• 1986 – Dr. Ritchie Besler, son of Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Belser, and his wife Gale were owners (1, p. 3).
  

• 2004 – Scenes from the movie The Notebook was filmed at Sunnyside Plantation. The house that served as Frank Calhoun's (Sam Shepard) homestead is located on the drive leading to the main house (4).
  

— Sunnyside Plantation Stairwell © Brandon Coffey, 2016 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Land

• Number of acres – 3 in 1986 (1, p. 3)
  

• Primary crop – Sea Island cotton (1, p. 2)
  

— Sunnyside Plantation Cotton Gin Ruins © Brandon Coffey, 2016 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Slaves

• Number of slaves – ?

— House in The Notebook Post-renovation © Brandon Coffey, 2016 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Buildings

• The main house, barn, and two smaller houses are on the property (1, p. 2).
  

— House in The Notebook Pre-renovation © Gazie Nagle, 2014 —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

References & Resources

1. National Register of Historic Places
   – Nomination form - PDF - submitted in 1986
   – Photographs, architectural overview
   

2. 30-15 Plantation File, held by the South Carolina Historical Society
   –  Research Guide
   

3. 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
   

4. SCIWAY's movie page about The Notebook