Hopsewee Plantation: A brief history
Hopsewee Plantation, South Carolina’s First National Historic Landmark, is a preservation rather than a restoration and has never been allowed to fall into decay as it has always been cherished. Only five families have owned.
Hopsewee, although it was built almost 40 years before the Revolutionary War.
Ownership Timeline
1740s: Thomas Lynch, Sr. built the house that still stands at Hopsewee.
Lynch Sr. and his wife Elizabeth Allston, of Brookgreen Plantation,
made Hopsewee their home.
1749: Thomas Lynch, Jr., was born at Hopsewee on August 5th.
Thomas Jr. would be one of the three signers of the
Declaration of Independence from South Carolina.
1762: Thomas Lynch, Sr. sold Hopsewee to Robert Hume for £5,000.
1766: Robert Hume died, leaving Hopsewee to his young family.
1841: John Hume, Robert’s son, died, leaving the property to his
estate, including his children and grandchildren.
1844: The estate put Hopsewee up for sale, and John Hume’s grandson,
John Hume Lucas, became the highest bidder.
1853: John Hume Lucas died, and his wife and children only returned to
Hopsewee for holidays, hiring an agent to continue rice production.
1861-1865: During the Civil War, Hopsewee was looted, and rice
was never grown again after the war.
1945: The descendants of Robert Hume held Hopsewee until 1945.
1969: Mr. and Mrs. James Maynard acquired Hopsewee Plantation,
renovated the building, and opened it to the public in 1970.
2001: Frank and Raejean Beattie purchased Hopsewee Plantation
and have owned it since January 2001.
Hopsewee Plantation was originally part of the lands owned by Thomas Lynch, I (deceased 1738). He owned most of the property on the North Santee from Hopsewee to the ocean, with seven plantations in production. This beautiful site was chosen of all the Lynch property for the family home of Thomas Lynch, Sr. (1726-1776) Hopsewee overlooks the beautiful Santee River and the rice fields which were its source of income until the Civil War. Lynch Sr. was married to Elizabeth Allston, of Brookgreen Plantation, another prominent Georgetown family, and they had two daughters Sabina (b. 1747) and Esther (b. 1748) and one son, Thomas Lynch, Jr. (b. 1749) After Elizabeth Allston died (c. 1750), Mr. Lynch married Hannah Motte, and they had a daughter, Elizabeth (b. 1755).
The Senior Lynch was a distinguished public servant and one of the most important Santee River planters. As a prominent Indigo planter, he was the first President of the Winyah Indigo Society founded in 1755.
Thomas Lynch, Sr.
Thomas Lynch, Jr.
In 1751 Lynch Sr. was the delegate elected to the Commons House of Assembly from Prince George, Winyah Parish where he served with the exception of one term until his death. He served on the 1765 Stamp Act Congress and in 1774 was elected to the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia. Lynch was highly esteemed by the founding fathers and in October, 1775, Lynch was appointed with Benjamin Franklin, and Colonel Benjamin Harrison as advisors
to General Washington.
In February 1776 he was paralyzed when he suffered a cerebral hemorrhage while in Philadelphia. His son, Thomas Lynch, Jr., was serving in the South Carolina militia and requested leave of his commanding officer, Christopher Gadsden, to join his ailing father. The request was denied but the South Carolina Second Provincial Congress selected the son as a delegate to join his father in Philadelphia. Thus Thomas Lynch Sr. and Thomas Lynch Jr. were the only father and son team to serve the Continental Congress. Thomas Lynch Jr. was the second youngest signer of the Declaration of Independence at 26 years of age and thus gave his birthplace, Hopsewee Plantation, a place in American History.
In December, 1776, while returning to South Carolina, the senior Lynch died and is buried in Annapolis, Maryland. Thomas Lynch, Jr. returned to South Carolina and retired from public life due to a malingering fever contracted during his service with the South Carolina militia in 1775. He and his wife, Elizabeth Shubrick, resided at Peachtree Plantation on the South Santee River. In 1779 he and his wife left for France by way of the West Indies to improve his health. Their ship was lost at sea with all passengers. He and his wife had no children.
