Pleasant Hill Plantation – Garnett – Hampton County

— Pleasant Hill Plantation, 1994 © Thomas Manley —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Basic Information

• Location – Garnett, Hampton County

  3036 Pleasant Hill Road
  

• Origin of name – ?

• Other names – ?

• Current status – ?
  

— Barn and Corral at Pleasant Hill Plantation, 1994 © Thomas Manley —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Timeline

• 1775 – Earliest known date of existence

• ? – House built

• ? – John Hancock Robert Sr. acquired the plantation (5).
  

• 1835 – John Hancock Robert Sr. died. It appears as if his estate was divided among his children and heirs with daughter Elizabeth Robert Cruger inheriting Pleasant Hill Plantation (5).
  

• 1855 – John Hancock Robert Jr. acquired the plantation from James Tupper. Tupper was representing the children of Elizabeth Robert Cruger (5).
  

• 1865 – House was burned during Sherman's March to the Sea (2) (5).
  

• Circa 1890 – A new house was built at Pleasant Hill Plantation on the same site as the original house. It is believed John Hancock Robert Jr.'s daughter, Jennifer M. Jones, spearheading the construction of the house as she longed to come back "home" (2) (5).
  

• 1897 – John Hancock Robert Jr. passed away (5).
  

• Circa 1940s – Dr. and Katherine Clark Morris purchased the plantation (7).
  

• ? – Dr. Harrison Lee and Elizabeth Peeples purchased the property from Katherine Clark Morris after her husband's death (7).
  

• 2009 – Upon the death of Elizabeth Peeples, her three daughters, Elizabeth Peeples Laffitte, Patricia Peeples Westmoreland, MD, and Brenda Peeples Batten inherited the plantation. Dr. Peeples had passed away prior to his wife (7).
  

• 2015 – As of October, the plantation was for sale with an asking price of $2.98 million (5).
  

• 2017 – As of February, the plantation was for sale with an asking price of $1.995 million (5).
  

— Manager's House at Pleasant Hill Plantation, 1994 © Thomas Manley —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Land

• Number of acres – 1,840 in 1855; 367 in 2015 (5)
  

• Primary crop – ?

• Under the ownership of Mrs. Morris, Tom Manley shares his observations from a visit in 1948, "To sum it up, 15,000 acres of all kinds of hunting. No phone or electricity. Occupied by black tenant farmers who lived for free and raised their crops with mules supplying the power."
  

Slaves

• Number of slaves – ?

— West Gate Cabin at Pleasant Hill Plantation, 1994 © Thomas Manley —
(Do Not Use Without Written Consent)

Buildings

• Tom Manley shared the following with us, "[The] manor house [stands] at the head of oblong drive and green flanked by huge oak trees."
  

• The west gate cabin, pictured above, was used as a commissary by Sherman's troops during their march through South Carolina. It is now used as a guest cottage.
  

References & Resources

1. Grace Fox Perry, Moving Finger of Jasper - scroll down to "HENRY MARTYN ROBERT"
   
   
2. Brief description of Pleasant Hill Plantation - PDF - see page 6
   
   
3. 30-15 Plantation File, held by the South Carolina Historical Society
   
   
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. Information contributed by Cyndi Shull from:
   – Real Estate Listing
   
   
6. Information contributed by Tom Manley, who visited the plantation in 1948 and 1994.
   

7. Information contributed by Brenda Peeples Batten who, along with her two sisters, inherited the plantation from their mother in 2009.
   
   
   — Kid's House at Pleasant Hill Plantation, 1994 © Thomas Manley —
   (Kid is a slave descendant)
   (Do Not Use Without Written Consent)
   
   
   
   
   — Cooking Shed at Pleasant Hill Plantation, 1994 © Thomas Manley —
   (Do Not Use Without Written Consent)
   
   
   
   
   — Green at Pleasant Hill Plantation, 1994 © Thomas Manley —
   (Do Not Use Without Written Consent)