Right from the very beginning of the year I knew that one of
the things on my Year Abroad Bucket list was to visit a Plantation House in
South Carolina. I’m sure that for many people the word ‘Plantation’ is
synonymous with slavery and the pre-Civil War era. But, without dwelling on
America’s harrowing past I decided I wanted to visit a real plantation to see
the history and reflect for myself.
With over hundreds of plantations to choose from, I was kind
of spoilt for choice. In the end I decided on Boone Hall in Charleston. Boone
Hall Plantation is one of America's oldest working plantations; it has been
continually growing crops for over 320 years!
The large Colonial Revival plantation house was built in the
193Os and replaces the original antebellum house. On my visit I found out that
it’s actually the fourth house to stand on the plantation grounds, the original
dating back to 1790.
What made Boone Hall stand out was the fact that there are
nine original slave cabins still on the property. Although an exact date of
construction is not known, it is estimated that they were built between 1790
and 1810. All of the cabins are built of brick which was probably made on the
plantation brickyard and they sit in a row along the Avenue of Oaks.
When you enter the property you have to drive down a breath
taking, long, straight driveway with live oak trees engrossing the path either
side with branches intertwining as Spanish moss drapes down from the leaves.
The slave cabins are arguably the first thing you notice upon entering the
plantation, and it has been disputed amongst historians that this was a way for
the owner of the plantation to show off his wealth.
The weather was incredibly warm for the beginning of May and
the girls and I strolled through the beautiful gardens and took in the history.
Boone Hall has now become somewhat of a desirable location for filming and high
class events, for example, it is most recognisable as Allie’s house in the film
The Notebook and has held private events
such as Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively’s wedding.
I thoroughly enjoyed my historical day trip out, but, after all
the lessons, the learning about Boone Hall and the workings of a Carolina
Plantation, I still felt like there was a piece of the story missing. Something
a little eerie. So whilst I viewed some of the buildings and immersed myself
into discussions about how a plantation ran and what crops were grown on it, I
couldn’t help but think I was getting a tainted perspective. I was only
learning the information the tour guides wanted to share, the history they were
told to give. So what about all the untold stories? What about all the voices
and opinions of those too low down on the social scale to be noticed? Because,
after all, that’s where the real stories lie.
