Fenwick Hall Plantation, LowCountry, Johns Island, SC

Fenwick Hall Plantation, LowCountry, Johns Island, SC This plantation is lucky that it has two different Oak Alley entrances. The main drive is made of a double row of Oaks.

Home to the most prominent old families of Charleston since 1730, Fenwick Hall is the legendary site of family betrayals, a hidden tunnel, secret rooms, and a fabled ghosts who rides through the marsh when the moon is full. The secondary entrance is a single row of Oaks.

So what was British immigrant, Captain John Fenwick, builder of Fenwick, up to in Oct 1706 during the Queen Anne's War (...
06/05/2026

So what was British immigrant, Captain John Fenwick, builder of Fenwick, up to in Oct 1706 during the Queen Anne's War (French & Spanish War)? Hiding? Nope! Captain John Fenwick played a vital role in defending Charles Town during the 1706 Franco-Spanish attack, leading the land force that successfully repelled the invaders. His actions on the battlefield marked the turning point of the conflict. When the French & Spanish privateers landed troops east of the Cooper River & began plundering Hobcaw Creek, Gov Nathaniel Johnson ordered the provincial militia to intercept them. Captain John Fenwick, along side Captains John Cantey & Lynch, led a combined force of 100 colonist and Native American allies.
On Aug 30, 1706, Fenwick's forces confronted the enemy at Hatchman's Plantation (located in modern-day Mount Pleasant). Fenwick's militia met the invaders in an open field, quickly exchanging several volleys of gunfire. The militia completely overwhelmed the invaders, causing them to flee in "great disorder & confusion". Fenwick's company killed or wounded several combatants and successfully captured 33 prisoners while losing only a single militia member. The decisive battlefield victory effectively broke the momentum of the invasion, forcing the remaining enemy fleet to retreat from the harbor the following day. For John Fenwick, this "crowded hour" launched a highly successful military and political career in the Providence of Carolina. Follow for more John's Island & Fenwick history.

Glimpse of the Stono River side of Fenwick in the early 1970's. The huge magnolia tree is no longer but the camellia's h...
05/29/2026

Glimpse of the Stono River side of Fenwick in the early 1970's. The huge magnolia tree is no longer but the camellia's have been replanted in the early 2000's. Wealthy Victor & Marjorie Nott Morawetz bought & restored the plantation in the early 1930's. But unfortunately had little time to enjoy his new home. He died in 1938, and passed the property to his wife. Five years later, in 1943, she sold the land to Helen Igoe Blanchard, the wife of Claude Blanchard. Mr Blanchard was a local contractor but hoped to farm the property commercially and was interested in raising cattle. Mrs Blanchard listed the house on the NRHP (Thank you!). She sold the property to Fenwick Acres partnership in 1978; they subdivided the property into four development parcels. The plantation house was eventually converted to an exclusive hospital for alcholics & substance abusers. Penny Creek Associates purchased one of the tracts to build an apartment complex. A snippet of John's Island history..

Fenwick Hall, circa 1730. Fenwick Hall marks the cresting of a wave of prosperity that came over the Low Country in the ...
05/29/2026

Fenwick Hall, circa 1730. Fenwick Hall marks the cresting of a wave of prosperity that came over the Low Country in the decade after the end of the Proprietorial Government with its last complications of Indian wars and piratical incursions in the Low Country proper. The house also signifies the arrival at considerable wealth of an interesting family. Robert Fenwick, one of the "Red Sea Men" who upon their arrival in Carolina on the privateer Loyal Jamacia were bonded to behave themselves during their sojourn, came of a good, sometimes prominent, county family in England. John Fenwick followed his elder brother to the Province, where he shortly prospered exceedingly in business, in politics, in war and in marriage. By 1721 he owned this plantation on John's Island, besides the Stono, where in 1730, it has been stated he replaced a log-house with the central portion of Fenwick Hall. Romances have battened to an extraordinary extent on the hot-bloode tribe that held this house for half a century. The Fenwicks gave food for legend, but fancy has outrun fact, in both with them and their buildings. Typical of this over-growth is the legend of an underground passage that led, according to stories, from the deep English basement in Fenwick Hall down to the Stono River. It was, of course, designed for the escape, possibly necessary, of any desperate character and, in its more ambitious versions, was designed so lavishly that a boat could be hidden in its river end. source: Plantations of the Carolina Low Country. P.S: legends of the tunnel being used to transport pirate loot in the very early days remains.. Follow for more Fenwick Hall history..

Fenwick Hall, circa ~1730. This early 1900's image shows the limewash that had been years ago applied. Note the individu...
05/19/2026

Fenwick Hall, circa ~1730. This early 1900's image shows the limewash that had been years ago applied. Note the individuals on the roof top looking out as if it was back in the 1700's when Fenwick would watch his race horses run. Ruins of the long gone stud barn (reminants of the "John's Island Stud" farm) are off to the right now where the reflection pond is located. The coach house is off to the left in this photo.

John Fenwick came to S.Carolina from England in the early eighteenth century. A noteworthy citizen in his own right, Fenwick fought against the Spanish & French attacks on Charles Towne in 1706, led troops as a garrison commander during the 1715 Yemassee War, was an infulential political leader, and prospered in the rice trade. While he grew rice on his Black River land, north of Georgetown, S.Carolina, Fenwick Hall served a his plantation residence. Often traveling between Charles towne and Britian, John Fenwick remained connected to his English family. Near the end of his life, he left Fenwick Hall in the hands of his son, Edward (Sr), and returned to England.

When John died in 1747, Edward Fenwick (Sr) took formal ownership of Fenwick Hall. Like his father before him, Edward traveled between S.Carolina and England, maintaining familial ties. He married Mary Drayton, daughter of Thomas Drayton of Magnolia Plantation, connecting two influential families in the burgeoning colony. While he prospered as a rice planter, Edward was also instrumental in making Fenwick Hall famous for horse racing & breeding. He selected horses on his travels to England (descendants of the Goldophin Arabian) and in doing so introducted the bloodlines of successful English racehorses into America which would eventually make their way to Kentucky & Virginia.

Edward's venture into the stud business is connected to the evolution of the Fenwick Hall property. He commissioned the east and west flanker buildings in 1750. These two structures served as a carriage house and the stables for his breeding and racing business.

Following Edward's death, ownership of Fenwick Hall passed onto his son, Edward Jr., in 1775. Edward Jr. continued horse breeding on John's Island. His open sympathies with the british during the American Revolution became a source of financial hardship at the war's end. British General Sir Henry Clinton, who led the siege against Charleston in 1780, used Fenwick Hall as his headquarters, presumably at Edward's invitation. Edward participated in the formal congratulation to General Cornwallis on his victory at Camden which subsequently caused including Fenwick Hall, to be listed in the Forfeiture Act of 1782. Fenwick Hall was eventually removed from the list of properties enumerated in the Forfeiture Act, likely thanks to Edward’s relaying of valuable information regarding British plans to American General Nathaniel Greene. In 1787 Edward was forced, through financial and legal woes, to sell Fenwick to his cousin John Gibbes. Reference: HABS No.SC-100-char,413. Added a little newer aerial image of Fenwick today. Please, Fenwick is private & no tresspassing.

In this late 1930s image of the main house, the Morawetz kitchen wing and enclosed veranda on the east side, overlooking...
05/16/2026

In this late 1930s image of the main house, the Morawetz kitchen wing and enclosed veranda on the east side, overlooking the reflection pool, were added. The main 1730s core of John Fenwick's home is 45' x 38' deep. The octagonal wing with a stair hall was added slightly later and is 50' x 18'. The cacti garden was to the far right, and the Italian cypress trees, which Morawetz clearly liked, are noticeable; they were planted all over the plantation, including lining the Fenwick Causeway to the Stono River. Marjorie Morawetz sold the plantation to the Blanchards after her husband Victor's passing.

The front gate & brick wall at Fenwick on River Rd was built during the saving of the plantation from further disappeari...
05/16/2026

The front gate & brick wall at Fenwick on River Rd was built during the saving of the plantation from further disappearing by Marjorie & Victor Morawetz in the early 1930's. Note the "F" logo proudly naming the plantation on the top of the gate. During the restoration period one had to travel to John's Island from James via one of the two ferries or by private boat, etc. The first bridge was not built until ~1939.

Fenwick Hall's River Road Elevation from the early 1970's when it was still the family home of Helena & Claude W. Blanch...
05/12/2026

Fenwick Hall's River Road Elevation from the early 1970's when it was still the family home of Helena & Claude W. Blanchard. The next stewards of the plantation would be the "Fenwick Hall Hospital" after the lands were unfortunately subdivided.

Hope the bunny was generous to you this Easter! Just an past Easter Egg Hunt at Fenwick. Brunch at Fat Hen.
04/05/2026

Hope the bunny was generous to you this Easter! Just an past Easter Egg Hunt at Fenwick. Brunch at Fat Hen.

Past Easter hunt in the garden. Remembering those 3 at Easter. ❤️
04/01/2026

Past Easter hunt in the garden. Remembering those 3 at Easter. ❤️

Ever heard of the "Battery Fenwick"? Sharing some little remembered info on the impact of John Fenwick's grandson, Breve...
03/28/2026

Ever heard of the "Battery Fenwick"? Sharing some little remembered info on the impact of John Fenwick's grandson, Brevet Brigadier General John Roger Fenwick on military history. Battery Fenwick was located on Tybee Island, GA within the Fort Screven coastal defense system to guard Port of Savannah, was named after him. It sat on the island's north end, facing the Atlantic & Savannah River approaches. Battery Fenwick was part of the Endicott Coastal Defense moderation (1890s-1920's) which reimagined U.S. seacoast fortifications against then modern naval threats. Battery Fenwick was equipped with a 12-inch coastal artillery gun mounted on a barette carriage, designed to fire armo-piercing shells at enemy warships up to 8 miles offshore. Crew size was 40-60 personnel per gun during full operation. Fenwick's gun was removed around 1920 as military doctrine shifted toward mobile & aerial defense. Today: Battery Fenwick itself is now is still structurally intact and is now a private residence with an upper patio. No public entry, but visible from the walkway between Garland and Brumby. The battery sits in the middle of a cluster of very accessible historic sites on Tybee's north end.

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River Road
Johns Island, SC
29455

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