Henry Houser House Plantation – Grover – Cherokee County

— Henry Houser House 1938 • Library of Congress —
(Prints & Photographs Division HABS SC-15)

Basic Information

• Location – King's Creek, Grover, Cherokee County

  Rock House Road

• Origin of name – For early plantation owner Henry Houser

• Other names – Howser; The Rock House

• Current status – Location of the Kings Mountain National Military Park; the house is located in a remote section of the park and is open to the public only once or twice a year (4).
  

— Henry Houser House Fireplace 1938 • Library of Congress —
(Prints & Photographs Division LC-J7-SC- 3130)

Timeline

• ? – Earliest known date of existence

• 1788 – Henry Houser purchased 125 acres on King's Creek (3).
  

• 1789 – Houser purchased an additional 120 acres (3).
  

• 1801-1803 – House built (5)

  An engraving can be found over the front door of the house. It is dated 1803 and has the names of Henry Houser, the home's owner, and Jane Houser on it. Jane was not Henry's wife but a slave and as was custom at that time, took the last name of her owner. Jane was an accomplished stonemason, as was Henry, and the two worked side by side to construct the two-story rock house (3) (5).
  

• 1822 – Henry Houser died. His will stipulated the plantation be sold at public sale and the proceeds distributed among his heirs (3).
  

• Subsequent owners of the house include: (3)
  – Monroe Hardin
  – W. Ross Hambright
  – Robert Moore
  – Grigg Howell
  – J. F. Jenkins
  – Tom Morris
  – Ray Sheppard
  – Jim Norman
  

• 1932 – Charles M. Smith, president of Farmers & Planters National Bank was owner. The house and property were occupied by a tenant farmer, Ray Sheppard, and his family (5).
  

• 1930s – The US Park service acquired the property to create the Kings Mountain National Military Park (3).
  

• 1977 – Restoration of the rock house was completed (3).
  

— Henry Houser House Door 1938 • Library of Congress —
(Prints & Photographs Division LC-J7-SC- 3128)

Land

• Number of acres – 125 in 1788; 245 in 1789; 520 in 1932 (3) (5)
  

  There is a Houser family cemetery located 200 yards from the house (3) (5).
  

• Primary crop – Corn which Henry Houser distilled some into spirits (3)
  

Slaves

• Number of slaves – 4 in 1820 (3)
  

  We are actively seeking information on the slaves who lived and worked at this plantation. If you find a resource that might help, please fill out this form. Thank you.
  

References & Resources

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

2. Information contributed by Dr. Thomas Huffman.
   

3. RootsWeb posting
   

4. Historic Howser House will be open Saturday at Kings Mountain Park
   

5. Newspaper article submitted by Gary Downard:
   Stewart Atkins, Stone Building Erected by Two (Spartanburg, SC: The Spartanburg Herald-Journal, October 9, 1932
   

Contact Information

• Kings Mountain National Military Park
  2625 Park Road / South Carolina Highway 216
  Blacksburg, SC 29702
  

  Telephone: 864-936-7921
  Website: Click here