Conway, Historical and Architectural Survey
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A Historical and Architectural Survey of Horry County, South Carolina New South Associates 6150 East Ponce de Leon Avenue Stone Mountain, Georgia 30083 A HISTORICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL SURVEY OF CONWAY, SOUTH CAROLINA Horry County, South Carolina Report submitted to: City of Conway • 1001 Third Avenue • Conway, South Carolina 29528 and South Carolina Department of Archives and History, 8301 Parklane Road, Columbia SC 29223 Report prepared by: New South Associates • 6150 East Ponce de Leon Avenue • Stone Mountain, Georgia 30083 Mary Beth Reed – Principal Investigator Jennifer B. Langdale – Architectural Historian and Author July 30, 2005 New South Associates Technical Report 1264 HISTORICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL SURVEY OF CONWAY, SOUTH CAROLINA iii The activity that is the subject of this report has been financed in part with Federal funds from the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, and administered by the South Carolina Department of Archives and History. However, the contents and opinions do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Department of Interior, nor does the mention of trade name or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendations by the Department of the Interior. Title VI and Age Discrimination This program receives Federal financial assistance for identification and protection of historic properties. Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the U. S. Department of Interior prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, or handicap in its federally assisted programs. If you believe you have been discriminated against in any program, activity or facility as described above, or if you desire further information, please write to: Office for Equal Opportunity, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C. 20240. In addition to the above, the consultant complies with the Age Discrimination Act of 1975 , 42 U.S.C. 6101 Et. Seq . which prohibits discrimination on the basis of age. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This report is indebted to a number of individuals. Joni Jordan, grants and special projects coordinator for the City of Conway, supervised this project. She always kept her office door open for the surveyors, fielded numerous phone calls from the general public, and provided all contacts for the project. Anthony Rabon, GIS specialist for the city, supplied the necessary maps and tax parcel numbers. Other city employees who assisted with the survey include Rose Marie Hussey, Sabrina Morris, Steve Thomas, and Mayor Greg Martin. Ben Burroughs, president of the Horry County Historical Society, collaborated with the author by furnishing histories of many buildings in town and reviewing all of the materials submitted for the project. There are many other citizens who opened their homes and memories to the surveyors and provided them with access to their properties and information about their buildings. They include Cynthia Brockington, Sylvia Conwell, Naomi Scott, Wanda Cooke, Leslie Wilson, Helen Chambless, Susan Hoffer McMillan, Anthony Kelly, Sylvia Cox Reddick, and many others too numerous to mention. David Kelly and Brad Sauls monitored the project on the SCSHPO level. Melissa Umberger served as photographer and an invaluable assistant for this project. Tom Quinn expertly produced the graphics. HISTORICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL SURVEY OF CONWAY, SOUTH CAROLINA v TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .........................................................................................................................IV TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................................................. V LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................................................VII LIST OF TABLES........................................................................................................................................IX I. PROJECT SUMMARY.............................................................................................................................1 II. PROJECT OBJECTIVES ...........................................................................................................................3 III. SURVEY METHODOLOGY....................................................................................................................5 HISTORICAL RESEARCH .......................................................................................................................5 FIELD SURVEY ......................................................................................................................................6 IV. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW.....................................................................................................................7 FIRST CONTACT................................................................................................................................7 Spanish Exploration ........................................................................................................................7 Proto-Historic Period........................................................................................................................8 COLONY TO INDEPENDENCE: 1730-1783.......................................................................................9 KINGSTON TOWNSHIP.................................................................................................................9 Revolutionary War....................................................................................................................... 12 ANTEBELLUM PERIOD THROUGH THE CIVIL WAR, 1783-1865........................................................ 12 Conwayborough.......................................................................................................................... 12 Naval Stores and Lumber Industry................................................................................................. 15 Civil War .................................................................................................................................... 16 RECONSTRUCTION THROUGH THE GREAT DEPRESSION, 1865-1941 ........................................... 16 The Rise of River Traffic ................................................................................................................ 16 The Railroad and Conway’s Incorporation..................................................................................... 19 Turpentine to Tobacco.................................................................................................................. 22 The 1920s................................................................................................................................... 23 The Great Depression................................................................................................................... 25 WORLD WAR II TO THE PRESENT, 1941-2005 ............................................................................... 26 V. BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................................................................................................................. 30 PRIMARY SOURCES....................................................................................................................... 30 SECONDARY SOURCES................................................................................................................ 31 VI. EVALUATION OF RECORDED PROPERTIES....................................................................................... 35 NATIONAL REGISTER LISTED PROPERTIES........................................................................................ 35 EVALUATION OF PROPERTIES RECORDED DURING SURVEY ........................................................... 35 Conway’s Extant Antebellum Architecture...................................................................................... 37 Buildings of Conway’s Steamboat, Early Railroad and Tobacco Market Era, 1870-1910 ................ 41 Public and Commercial Buildings.................................................................................................. 46 Buildings of the Early Twentieth Century (1910-WWII)................................................................... 49 Public and Commercial Buildings.................................................................................................. 61 Post World War II Era.................................................................................................................. 67 PROPERTIES RECOMMENDED AS ELIGIBLE FOR LISTING IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES................................................................................................................... 72 Conway Post Office (0571).......................................................................................................... 73 Railroad Bridge over the Waccamaw River (0603)........................................................................ 73 vi Horry County Memorial Library (0607) ......................................................................................... 73 Nye’s Pharmacy (0920) ............................................................................................................... 74 Cherry Hill Baptist Church (0987)................................................................................................. 74 Kingston