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

Mount Hope, Fairfield County (S.C. Hwy. 34, Ridgeway vicinity)
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Facade Left Oblique Left Elevation Right Elevation Right Rear
Oblique
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Rear Elevation Left Rear Oblique Basement
Entrance
Interior
Main Entrance
Interior
Wainscoting
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Interior
Door Hardwar

Mount Hope is significant as a relatively intact example of nineteenth century vernacular architecture in Fairfield County and for its association with Dr. John Peyre Thomas, a prominent physician and amateur scientist. Dr.Thomas reportedly ordered the construction of Mount Hope in 1836 for $1,025 by a Mr. Killian, along with the construction of a kiln for making brick and tiles for the basement floor. Thomas graduated from South Carolina College, completed a medical degree in New York, and obtained one of the earliest medical licenses in South Carolina. His “Diary of Weather and Occurrences” provided one of the earliest meteorological chronicles for interior South Carolina. Mount Hope is a one-and-one-half story, weatherboarded, frame residence on a raised basement. Three pedimented dormers with nine-over-nine windows pierce each slope of the gabled roof. Front and rear elevations have porches supported by 8-foot high masonry piers. The front porch features flush wall boards with a chair rail, a plain balustrade, pilasters, and six cedar columns. The rear elevation features two shed rooms which flank the porch, which has been screened. Side elevations display twin double-shouldered chimneys laid in Flemish bond. Outbuildings include a ca. 1850 frame smokehouse and a ca. 1875 tenant house. Listed in the National Register December 6, 1984.

View the complete text of the nomination form for this National Register property. In addition, the Historic Resources of Fairfield County includes historical background information for this and other related National Register properties.

Most National Register properties are privately owned and are not open to the public. The privacy of owners should be respected. Not all properties retain the same integrity as when originally documented and listed in the National Register due to changes and modifications over time.

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