Koger Plantation – Grover – Dorchester County
Basic Information
- Location – Grover, St George Parish, Dorchester County
Located about 2½ miles west of Grover on Wire Road (SC 19) at intersection of Quaker Road (SC 49) near crossing of I-95
- Origin of name – Named for a previous owner
- Other names – Old Carroll Place
- Current status – Owned by the Upper Dorchester County Historical Society
Timeline
- 1775 – Earliest known date of existence
Thomas Ferguson owned the property (12).
- 1786 – After Ferguson's death in this year, the property was sold to David Campbell (12).
- Circa 1786 – Campbell constructed the plantation home, three slave dwellings, and a large barn (12).
- 1793 – Campbell sold the plantation, which consisted of 1,203 acres, for four hundred pounds sterling to John Milhous, Jr. (12).
- 1797 – John Milhous, Jr., died and left his Dorchester County plantation to his children, Elizabeth and John, but stipulated that his wife Abigail was to remain at the plantation until her death (12).
- 1802 – By this year, both Elizabeth and John had passed away so their mother Abigail inherited the property. Later this same year, Abigail married Joseph Koger, Jr. (12).
- 1812 – Abigail died; per her marriage settlement with Koger, the plantation passed to him. Later this same year, Koger married Mary Murray (12).
- 1838 – Koger sold the plantation to his brother-in-law, John Soule Murray, and moved to Mississippi after becoming disgruntled with district politics (12).
- 1844 – John May purchased the property after Murray's death (12).
- ? – May sold the home to Judge James Parsons Carroll of Aiken. Carroll used the house as a winter home (12).
Judge Carroll was a member of the SC House of Representatives from 1838-1840, a member of the South Carolina State Senate from 1853-54, and 1858-59, and a delegate to the South Carolina Secession Convention of 1860.
- ? – Lewis E. Parler was the next owner (12).
- 1900 – Parler sold Koger Plantation to Mattie A. Hartzog. The plantation consisted of 100 acres at this time (12).
- ? – The plantation's next owner was R. D. Canaday (12).
- ? – The plantation was sold to Henry Allen Westendorff, an employee of the Panama Canal Zone (12).
- 1946 – The property was sold to Fitzhugh L. Sweatman, Sr.
- 1986 – Fitzhugh L. Sweatman, Jr was owner of record (12).
- 2004 – Fitzhugh L. Sweatman, Jr. and his wife Martha donated the home, along with one acre of land, to the Upper Dorchester County Historical Society.
- 2005 – The Upper Dorchester County Historical Society was awarded a $2,000 grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation for the restoration of the house. The grant, along with funds raised locally, will be used to do a structural assessment and develop restoration plans for the Koger House (2).
- 2009 – Restoration of the house was completed in October (8).
Land
- Number of acres – 1,203 in 1793; 100 in 1900; 1 in 2003 (12)
- Gravestone - photo from 1974
There are six known burials on the plantation; however, only two gravestones remain. One is located about 150 feet from the house and the other is located about 1½ miles east of the house, deep in the woods. Click here to read the inscriptions on the gravestones.
In 1979 Fitzhugh L. Sweatman stated that there was a stone for Joseph Koger at one point, but he was unable to locate it despite a thorough search of the surrounding woods.
- Primary crop – Rice
Slaves
- Number of slaves – In 1806 Joseph Koger purchased Hugh, Dinah, Hector, and Sylvia from James Maull. According to the US Census, there were 42 slaves at Koger in 1850 and 26 in 1860.
Buildings
-
The plantation house was built in the Georgian style. It is two stories with an attic/dormer and a rear shed porch that has been enclosed. The house is built of black cypress and rests on brick pillar foundations. The dates 1792 and 1829 have been carved in the two chimneys. The 1829 date might signify the completion of an addition or renovation (1, p. 2).
In 1974, the house was being used as a barn. In 2003, the house was donated to the Upper Dorchester Historical Society which completed full restoration of the house in 2009.
References & Resources
- National Register of Historic Places
– Nomination form - PDF - submitted in 1974
– Photographs, architectural overview
- Ann Atkins, Historical Dorchester County Landmark to be restored (The Times and Democrat Newspaper: January 13, 2005)
- Carroll Place (News and Courier: 1933)
- Koger House Historical Marker Dedication
- A.S. Salley, The Introduction of Rice Culture into South Carolina (Bulletins of the Historical Commission of South Carolina)
(Columbia, SC: The State Company, 1919)
Order The Introduction of Rice Culture into South Carolina (Bulletins of the Historical Commission of South Carolina)
- South Carolina's War of 1812 Units - Regiments and Companies
- Bishop Francis Asbury - short biography and picture
- Upper Dorchester County Historical Society
- David Gavin, The Diary of David Gavin: St. George's Parish-Dorchester County South Carolina 1855-1874 - With Assorted Documents
(Spartanburg, SC: The Reprint Company, 2004)
Order The Diary of David Gavin: St. George's Parish-Dorchester County South Carolina 1855-1874 - With Assorted Documents
- Lillian H. Harley, Pattie W. Heaton, and Lillian D. Kizer, Cemetery Inscriptions of Dorchester County, South Carolina
(St. George, SC: Dorchester Eagle-Record Publishing Company, 1978-1980)
Order Cemetery Inscriptions of Dorchester County, South Carolina
- Contribution by Nancy R. Mott who visited Mr. Sweatman, Jr., toured the home, and was taken to the headstone in the woods (April 1, 1979).
- Information contribution by Peggy M. Phalen who conducted extensive research into the property.
Contact Information
- Upper Dorchester County Historical Society
P.O. Box 15
Dorchester, SC 29437
Website: Click here
