Jeffries Creek Plantation – Florence – Florence County

Basic Information

• Location – Claussen community near Florence, Florence County
  

  5109 Old River Road

• Origin of name – Jeffries Creek runs through the property (1, p. 7).
  

• Other names – Claussen House, Howard-Harllee-Claussen House

• Current status – Privately owned

Timeline

• ? – Earliest known date of existence

• 1829 – Charles Brown Howard acquired the 2,900-acre plantation (1, p. 8).
  

• 1830 – House built (1, p. 5).
  

  Charles Brown Howard built a one-and-one-half story Greek Revival frame house (1, pp. 5, 8).
  

• 1834 – Howard passed away and the plantation remained part of his unsettled estate for several years (1, p. 8).
  

• 1838 – Howard's widow, Amelia Melvina Cannon Howard, married Dr. Robert Harllee. Dr. Harllee was able to purchase the plantation at public auction (1, p. 8).
  

• 1870 – Dr. Harllee sold 1,150 acres, which included the house, to Frederick W. Claussen (1, p. 8).
  

• 1873 – Claussen sold the house along with 210 acres to his nephew William Frederick Claussen. The younger Claussen continued to grow cash crops and also experimented with various grape and pecan varieties. He also remodeled the house around 1880 (1, p. 8).
  

• 1920 – Frederick W. Claussen died and willed the remainder of plantation to his son, Dr. John Rudolph Claussen (1, p. 8).
  

• 1960 – Dr. Claussen passed away; the the house remained in the Claussen family for the next 25 years (1, p. 8).
  

• 1985 – The Claussen family sold Jeffries Creek Plantation (1, p. 8).
  

• 1992 – The plantation was sold again, this time for $186,000 (5).
  

• 1996 – The house was renovated (3).
  

• 2001 – Mr. and Mrs. F. Preston Wilson owned the property (1, p. 4).
  

• 2009 – The property was put on the market with an asking price of $399,000 but didn't sell (5).
  

• 2009 – Brandon and Jencey Tetanich purchased the property which included the historic house, a carriage shed, smokehouse, chicken coop, and greenhouse. The house had been up for auction but the minimum bid had not been met. The Tetaniches submitted an offer of $245,000 for the house immediately after the auction, which was accepted. The house had been vacant for several years and needed extensive repairs (2) (4).
  

Land

• Number of acres – 2,900 in 1829; 1,150 in 1870; 210 in 1873; 2.53 acres in 2013 (1, pp. 8, 13) (3)
  

• Primary crop – Cotton; tobacco (1, p. 8)
  

Slaves

• Number of slaves – ?

References & Resources

1. National Register of Historic Places
   – Nomination form - PDF - submitted in 2001
   – Photographs, architectural overview
   

2. Information contributed by Cyndi Shull from:
   John D. Russell, Couple Restores Historic Claussen Residence in Florence - May 2, 2011
   

3. Information contributed by Cyndi Shull from:
   OldHouse.com Archives - includes photos
   

4. Information contributed by Cyndi Shull from:
   Florence County Taxes Property Card File
   

5. Information contributed by Cyndi Shull from:
   Realtor.com