Charles Pinckney National Historic Site

My next stop on our February 2021 trip to Charleston was to the Charles Pinckney National Historic Site at Snee Farm northeast of Charleston in Mt Pleasant.

Charles Pinckney was born on October 26, 1757, the eldest son of Colonel Charles and Frances Brewton Pinckney. Born into a prominent, wealthy family in South Carolina, he was elected as a delegate to the Third Continental Congress of 1777-1778. After serving in Congress, Pinckney returned to the Charleston area and obtained a commission as a lieutenant in the South Carolina militia. After serving in the siege of Savannah in the autumn of 1779, his unit returned to the defense of Charleston. When Charleston fell on May 12, 1780, Pinckney was captured and held as a prisoner for over a year before a prisoner exchange was implemented, possibly in Philadelphia. Returning to South Carolina in 1783, Pinckney was elected to the Continental Congress and served from 1784 to 1787. 

Selected as one of four delegates from South Carolina to the Constitutional Convention of 1787, Pinckney tooke the floor over 100 times during the convention. According to the biography of Pinckney posted on the website of the historic site

scholars today attribute approximately 28 clauses to Pinckney. His major contributions were:

The elimination of religious testing as a qualification to office.

The division of the Legislature into House and Senate. 

The power of impeachment being granted only to the House.

The establishment of a single chief executive, who will be called President.

The power of raising an army and navy being granted to Congress.

The prohibition of states to.enter into a treaty or to establish interfering duties.

The regulation of interstate and foreign commerce being controlled by the national government.

Further contributions Pinckney made to the Convention and the Constitution may never be known, but it is obvious he contributed significantly to the proceedings, earning the nickname "Constitution Charlie".

Returning to South Carolina, Pinckney worked to get the new US Constitution ratified. He was elected governor four times and also served in the legislature for many years. In addition, he was appointed to  an unexpired term in the US Senate, but he resigned before the term ended to become the Minister Plenipotentiary to Spain in 1801. After retiring from public life in 1814, Pinckney was persuaded to run for US Congress in 1818 and won a seat in the Sixteenth Congress (1819-1821). He retired from politics entirely in 1821 and died in Charleston on October 29, 1824.

Through inheritance and marriage, Pinckney owned three rice plantations and two homes in Charleston. He also owned over 150 slaves to work the plantations. Snee Farm was the smallest of his plantations, but still utilized 40 slaves. None of the original buildings have survived, and the vast majority of the 715-acre plantation has been converted into residential subdivisions and a private country club. The remaining 28½ acres includes the sites of the main house as well as at least some of the slave quarters. A short nature trail leads through the woods to a boardwalk near the headwaters of Boone Hall Creek and continues on to the site of some of the slave quarters.

Pinckney’s home and out buildings at Snee Farm were damaged, possibly by one or more hurricanes, in the early 1800s. According to an onsite educational exhibit entitled Archeology, “It is believed that when William Matthews purchased Snee Farm in 1828, he tore down the damaged buildings and built the present house, which stands on the same site as Pinckney’s.”

Where known, the foundations of former outbuildings are outlined in brick.

Visitor Center

Picnic pavilion at the visitor center with more picnic tables on the lawn

View of the house from the visitor center

Camellia in bloom

Rear of the house

Side wing of the house

Path continues past the house toward Boone Hall Creek

An educational exhibit showing how rice fields were flooded

Path through the woods

A bench has been placed at the beginning of the boardwalk

View downstream

End of the boardwalk

Another bench

View from the bench

Wet ground

Another boardwalk

Not solid enough to walk, nor wet enough to paddle

Some of the large trees on the site

A bench sits in the middle of the former slave quarters

There was no indication how many slaves might have lived in a structure this size

More outlines

The sign notes that the slave community expanded well past the limits of the historic site

Spanish moss on live oaks

The historic road on the site

Front of the house

More spanish moss

Another view of the house with a nearby outbuilding

The restrooms and grounds at Charles Pinckney National Historic Site are open Wednesday through Sunday, 9 am - 5 pm. The historic house is open Friday - Sunday, 9 am - 5 pm.  The park is closed on Monday and Tuesday. There is no entrance fee at the site.

The park website is https://www.nps.gov/chpi/index.htm.