It is remarkable that any of the plantation houses are left standing. Accidental fire was the most frequent cause of destruction on South Carolina’s Low country and Sea Island Plantations, and war was a close second. In 1715, the Yemassee Indians destroyed nearly all of the plantations south of Charleston after the owners abandoned them and fled to the safety of the port.

The manors that survived the ravages of time did so, in part, because cypress was the favoured building material. Resistant to rot and termites, cypress shrinks very little over time. Heart pine was used for flooring, poplar and mahogany for trim. In the colonial period, masonry was the preferred exterior, and bricks were usually made at the site.