Newington Plantation – Summerville – Dorchester County

Basic Information

• Location – Dorchester Creek (a branch of the Ashley River), Summerville, Dorchester County

  Original plantation lands were located off SC 165 in the vicinity of Newington Plantation Estates (King Charles Circle).
  

• Origin of name – Named after the Axtell's family estate in England
  

• Other names – Lady Blake's House

• Current status – Residential subdivision
  

Timeline

• 1680 – Earliest known date of existence

  300 acres granted to Daniel Axtell (2)
  

• ? – Daniel Axtell died leaving the property to his wife Lady Rebecca Axtell (2)
  

• Circa 1690 – House built (2)
  

  Lady Rebecca Axtell built a large house. It was constructed of brick and reportedly one of the largest constructed at this time in the Lowcountry (2).
  

• Circa 1711 – Lady Axtell passed away, leaving the plantation to her daughter Elizabeth Axtell Blake (2).
  

• 1715 – House burned by Indians in Yemassee Indian War (2).
  

• 1726 – Elizabeth Blake died and her son, Colonel Joseph Blake, became owner (2).
  

• ? – Colonel Blake was very wealthy and rebuilt the mansion with 100 windows so he could observe his property (2).
  

• 1751 – Colonel Blake died and left Newington in his will to son Daniel Blake (7, p. 159).
  

• 1780 – Daniel Blake died at Newington and left the plantation to his wife Elizabeth Izard Blake (7, p. 160).
  

• 1792 – After traveling abroad for many years, Elizabeth Izard Blake passed away at Newington Plantation. Elizabeth's will dictated that all that was left to her by her late husband was to go to his youngest nephew Daniel Blake. This would include Newington Plantation (7, p. 161).
  

• 1803 – Daniel Blake died. His will stated Newington Plantation was to go to his son Joseph Blake then to Joseph's son William Blake upon Joseph's death (7, p. 162).
  

• 1830s – The Blake family owned Newington until it was sold this year to Henry A. Middleton by William Blake (2) (7, p. 163).
  

• 1845 – The mansion built by Colonel Blake was destroyed by fire (2).
  

• 1876 – Henry Middleton leased the old grounds and garden to the US Government for an experimental tea farm (2).
  

• 1970s – The plantation lands were developed into a residential subdivision with over 500 homes.
  

Land

• Number of acres – 300 in 1680
  

• Primary crop – Rice

• There was a large double row of oaks on each side of the avenue leading to the house.
  

• The large garden is thought to have been developed by the Blake family. Most likely based on the grand English gardens of the time and quite formal with terracing and hedges. (3, p. 26).
  

Slaves

• Number of slaves – 82 in 1751 under Joseph Blake (6)
  

Buildings

• Two mansions had been built at Newington Plantation and both were destroyed by fire. The second house, built by Col. Blake, was called the "house of a hundred windows."
  

References & Resources

1. National Register of Historic Places
   – Nomination form - PDF - submitted in 1974
   – Photographs, architectural overview
   

2. Newington Plantation History: Click here
   

3. A Context For the Study of Lowcountry Gardens - PDF - Michael Trinkley and Debi Hacker, 2007, for the Chicora Foundation.
   

4. 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
   

5. Legare Walker, Dorchester County (Published by J.W. Parker, 1979)
   

6. Information contributed by William Durant from Fold 3
   

7. The South Carolina Historical Magazine, Volumes 1-2
   

Contact Information

• Newington Plantation Estates
  P.O. Box 654
  Summerville, SC 29484
  

  Telephone: 843-875-7440
  Website: Click here