Calhoun County Museum
Come and enjoy the history of Calhoun County and South Carolina presented with a personal southern touch.
William Pinckney Cain (August 3, 1843-October 2, 1895) built the house in St. Matthews about 1872 with unusual architecture. Cain married Adella Clark, who taught pupils at home. All the Cain children were born in the house. George Wannamaker, who died in 1921, also lived in the house with his wife Lillie Bates Wannamaker.
On Thursday, May 29, 1913, there was a public celebration during which the laying of the cornerstone of the “new courthouse” for Calhoun County took place. The architect was W. A. Edwards, and the contractor W. R. Rose.
The site of the Court House and jail was donated, “without cost to the county,” by F. J. Buyck and M. Jarecky. According to Merritt’s Historical Sketch of the Formation and Operation of Calhoun County filed with Clerk of Court Muller on June 23, 1933, the Court House was erected for less than $20,000. However, the truly unique feature of the construction of Calhoun County Court House is that not one cent of its cost came from public funds.
On May 10, 1958, during the celebration of the 45th anniversary of the laying of the court house cornerstone, a South Carolina historical marker was dedicated.
The house in which the Calhoun County Library is located was built in 1866. It is one of the oldest buildings in the county seat of St. Matthews and was constructed in the Greek Revival style. It has a colonial-type façade, which includes four pillars or columns. There is a spoked, half-wheel window in the front portico and a fan-shaped window over the front door with side lights. The building has not been significantly altered since its construction. The chimneys on the outside have never been blocked and remain as they were over a hundred years ago.
An unusual beauty spot upon which a series of caves is located in the Southeast Basin of South Carolina referred to in South Carolina Geology as the Lower Pine Belt or Savannah Region. The area is a part of the Santee Marls which form the lowest member of the calcerous strata of the Charleston Basin. It falls in the Pleiocene and Post Pleiocene Periods.
Cave Hall, also called Wright’s Bluff, is on the Santee River, the waters of Halfway Swamp, and Bull Bluff Creek. It traverses Clarendon County to its northwest corner and was granted to the Honorable Chief Justice Robert Wright in 1735 and comprised 2,000 acres. It was sold by Wright’s estate in 1755 to Moses Thomson. Thomson sold 1400 acres of the tract, keeping 600 acres called Cave Branch which ran next to the river.
It was on this tract that Moses Thomson established his Cave Hall plantation. His grandson, William Russell Thomson either inherited or bought the place. William Russell Thomson, son of Colonel and Mrs. William Thomson was born April 22, 1761 and died in 1807.
Not a great deal is known of Moses Thomson, who bought Cave Hall. However, the prominent life of William Russell is well documented. Moses’ son, Colonel Thomson, established Belleville, which helps to explain why the grandson settled Cave Hall.
Calhoun County Historical Sites (cont.)
Cain - Duensing House - Church St., St. Matthews, SC
Property of Calhoun County Museum Archives.
Not to be used without written consent.
