South Carolina Department of Archives and History
National Register Properties in South Carolina

James Building, Clarendon County (124-126 Main St., Summerton)
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Facade Right Entrance Left Entrance Left Oblique Rear Elevation
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Interior
Stairwell
Interior
Second Floor

The James Building, also known as Summerton Hardware or the Summerton Hardware Company, is significant for its association with Captain Joseph Alfred James (1866-1937), conductor on the Northwestern Railroad and longtime Summerton merchant, and architecturally as the best surviving intact example in Summerton of an early twentieth century commercial building with a cast-iron storefront. This imposing two-story brick building constructed in 1905 is one the few remaining commercial buildings with a cast-iron storefront on Main Street, which at one time was lined with such buildings. The fact that the building housed the telephone exchange and a hardware store is also significant as the building would have been a central focus of the town in the early twentieth century. The building contains two distinct storefronts and interior spaces with single-story sections to the rear. Three narrow brick vertical piers divide the two segments of the building's street level facade. Each of the storefronts features a traditional configuration of central canted entrances with flanking display windows. While bulkheads consist of raised wooden panels and windows and doors are framed in wood, the structural elements of the facade's first level are decorative cast iron pilasters decorated with ornate raised vines and other motifs. The cast iron lintel feature raised cast iron rosettes that serve to disguise the anchor bolts securing the cast iron elements of the facade to the remainder of the building's facade and structure. Listed in the National Register March 28, 2007.

View the complete text of the nomination form for this National Register property.

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