27 www.ReadMPM.com | www.MountPleasantMagazine.com | www.MountPleasantPodcast.com our town life at Boone Hall and the significance of the nine original brick cabins built between 1790-1810 that once housed the enslaved, but now have been adapted to display the “Black History In America Exhibit.” Other tour options include the newly renovated Gin House museum with history on display that spans over three centuries, the popular Farm and Nature Tour across the entire property, tours of the plantation home, strolls through the gardens and so much more. For as Willie McRae, who lived at Boone Hall since his family purchased the property in 1955 until he passed away in 2020, and who established a conservation of the grounds, once said, the plantation is a “magical, mystical place where history, beauty and grace exist altogether.” As Boone Hall’s Marketing Director Rick Benthall also related, “The Avenue of Oaks stand as sentinels over a diverse tapestry of cultures and traditions stitched together by time.” Purchase tickets at boonehallplantation.com. HAMPTON PLANTATION A grand six-room house built in 1734, Hampton Plantation was home to the affluent Serre, Horry, Pinckney and Rutledge families. Of note, it was here that Eliza Pinckney introduced indigo to the South. Additionally, George Washington visited the property on his way to Charleston. And the back facade was used as the image for the cover of Margaret Mitchell’s novel “Gone With the Wind.” Walk the grounds and cemetery, enjoy a picnic under the magnolias and regard rice trunks protruding out of a brackish field. Take a tour of the house but be prepared for stifling heat as it is un-air conditioned and there is zero circulation. It’s worth the time spent if you wear something light and airy and bring a small battery-operated or paper fan and a bottle of water. Guided tours of the mansion are at noon and 2 p.m. from Friday through Tuesday and tickets can be purchased at the onsite office located at 1950 Rutledge Road in McClellanville. HOPSEWEE PLANTATION Built in 1733 and the birthplace of Thomas Lynch Jr., a signer of the Declaration of Independence, the eight-room manor of Hopsewee Plantation is situated on a bluff above the North Santee River. Enjoy a tour of the air-conditioned house and museum; explore the restored enslaved cabins equipped with benches where you can sit and reflect on the history of the space; and make sure to stop for lunch or high tea at the Tea Room. As a bonus, every Wednesday at 4 p.m. owner Raejean Beattie curates Wine on the River, followed by a haunted tour of the house at 5 p.m. with acclaimed author Elizabeth Huntsinger wearing period dress. Both experiences are musts on this tour of plantations. Visit hopsewee.com to book your tickets and reserve a table and ghostsofgeorgetown.com to secure your spot on Huntsinger’s ghost tour. MANSFIELD PLANTATION Mansfield Plantation is a privately-owned property that is not open to the public and is only accessible to its bed and breakfast guests by boat or car. Set two miles off Hopsewee Plantation.
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