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

Hopsewee, Georgetown County (U.S. Hwy. 17, North Santee vicinity)
S1081772200201 S1081772200202 S1081772200203 S1081772200204 S1081772200205
Facade Left Oblique Right Oblique Right Elevation Right REar Oblique
S1081772200206 S1081772200207      
Rear Elevation Outbuilding

(Hopsewee-on-the-Santee; Thomas Lynch, Jr., Birthplace) Hopsewee was the birthplace and boyhood home of Thomas Lynch, Jr., a signer of the Declaration of Independence for South Carolina, planter, soldier, and politician, from 1749-1763, when his father sold the farmhouse. It is the only extant house closely related with Thomas Lynch, Jr., the only son of a wealthy rice planter. Thomas Lynch, Jr. entered public life in 1774. He was a member of the first and second provincial congress (1774-1776), of the constitutional committee for South Carolina (1776), and of the first state General Assembly (1776). Built by Thomas Lynch, Sr. in the 1740s, Hopsewee is a two-and-one-half story frame structure on a brick foundation covered by scored tabby, with a hipped roof, dormers, and two interior chimneys. A broad two-story porch or piazza with square columns extends across the front of the house. The frame, comprised of black cypress, is of mortise and tenon construction and the walls are clapboard. The farmhouse has a central hall plan. The mantels, wainscoting, cornice mold, and heart pine floors are all original and of excellent craftsmanship. There are two one-story cypress shingled outbuildings on the property, probably originally used as kitchens. Listed in the National Register January 25, 1971; Designated a National Historic Landmark November 11, 1971.

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

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.

Images and texts on these pages are intended for research or educational use. Please read our statement on use and reproduction for further information on how to obtain a photocopy or how to cite an item.


Images provided by the South Carolina Department of Archives and History.