Boone Hall Plantation, Charleston, South Carolina

We just got home from a week vacationing with family and grandkids. Part of our adventures included a visit to Boone Hall Plantation and Gardens that is enjoyed by adults and kids alike. Located in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, it is a must-see attraction when visiting Charleston. A working plantation with southern charm, Boone Hall features the beautiful Avenue of Oaks, 9 original slave cabins, a colonial revival 1936 mansion tour and Gullah culture theatrical performance. Areas of the plantation were used in the filming of North and South, Queen, the Tempest, and The Notebook.

Boone Hall Plantation

Boone Hall Plantation is one of America’s oldest working plantations, continually growing crops for over 320 years and opened to the public since 1956.

Boone Hall Plantation was founded in 1681 when Englishman Major John Boone came to Charleston and established a lucrative plantation and gracious home on the banks of Wampacheone Creek. The McRae Family purchased the plantation in 1955 and it was Mrs. McRae who furnished the house with antiques and began giving tours. Today, the McRae Family still owns the property, and they continue to make improvements to the plantation so that visitors can experience what plantation life was like.

Avenue of Oaks

Boone Hall Plantation, located in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina is a must-see attraction when visiting Charleston. A working plantation with southern charm features the beautiful Avenue of Oaks, 9 original slave cabins, a colonial revival 1936 mansion tour and Gullah culture theatrical performance. Used in the filming of North and South, Queen, the Tempest, and The Notebook.

In 1743, the son of Major John Boone planted live oak trees, arranging them in two evenly spaced rows. The moss-draped 3/4-mile Avenue of Oaks is a spectacular approach to this antebellum era plantation home.

As you drive through the avenue of oaks, look to the left to see a number of slave cabins or cottages, which were occupied by sharecroppers well into the 20th century. Touring the plantation gives a glimpse of life in the south during a dark time in our nations history.

Each of the cabins presents a different period in black history with a self-guided tour and a pre-recorded presentation.

Themes for each cabin are as follows:

Cabin 1 – Praise House
Cabin 2 – Heritage Of Sweetgrass Baskets
Cabin 3 – Their Life & Family
Cabin 4 – Archaeological Discoveries
Cabin 5 – Their Work and Life
Cabin 6 – Emancipation & Freedom
Cabin 7 – Struggle For Civil Rights
Cabin 8 – Heroes and Leaders
Cabin 9 – Exploring The Gullah Culture

Slave Street and History Talk takes place in a cabin near the mansion where a guide discusses slave life at Boone Hall Plantation and the architectural significance of the cabins.

Plantation Coach Tour

A stop at the Hospitality Center where we were given a grounds map and helpful overview by a kind lady, we began by boarding a open air wagon for a plantation tour.

The narrated, 30-40 minute tour takes guests around the entire 738 acres that make up the plantation. A guide describes in detail, life and history as we pass the salt marsh, freshwater pond, pecan grove, and current farm lands. Boone Hall is a still working farm that has been continually growing crops for over three centuries. Our guide shared stories and information about the different aspects of Boone Hall’s history during the tour.

Because of the record cold and snow recently, crops like strawberries are a little behind but still looking good. Once known for cotton and pecans, Boone Hall is still actively producing strawberries, tomatoes, peaches, and a variety of other produce throughout the spring, summer, and fall.

Along the path we passed an occupied eagles nest way atop a pine tree.

Exploring the Gullah Culture

One of the most interesting and enjoyable parts of our visit was a live presentation given by a gifted lady in period clothing. Presented just outside of a slave cabin, we listened to a live, 35-minute presentation of the Gullah culture in the lowcounrty area. Her singing and story telling was insightful, educational, enlightening, interactive and entertaining.

NOTE: Check ahead for the schedule as I hear it is seasonal.

House Tour

The plantation includes a large Georgian-designed plantation house that replaced the lost original house on the site. The home blends recovered materials and antique furnishings to recreate an atmosphere that would have surrounded a Coastal Carolina planter’s family and his guests. The antebellum style mansion was completed in 1936 and is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places. The 30-minute, guided tour includes 5 areas of the first floor, starting on the large front porch.

Plantation Gardens

Stroll along the grounds and take in the beautiful scenes. Spanish moss hanging from the tall oaks…

Cotton growing and trees flanking the water banks…

Relax on a bench under the shade of the original oak tree (which is over 500 years old) that inspired Major Boone’s son to create the avenue of oaks.

Watch the horses alongside the trees…

The grounds and buildings of Boone Hall Plantation have appeared in a number of major motion pictures and TV series:

America (1972 TV Series)
Days of Our Lives (1984)
North and South (1985 & 1986 Mini-Series)
Alex Haley’s Queen (1993 Mini-Series)
Scarlett (1994 Mini-Series)
The Notebook (2004)[15]
The Price of Freedom (2004 Documentary)
Bin Yah: There’s No Place Like Home (2008)

Other Attractions on the plantation:

Smoke House

Dock House

Boone’s Grave

Stables

Butterfly Cafe

Butterfly Pavilion

Cotton Gin

If You Go…

Where: Boone Hall Plantation, Highway 17 in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. (Located 8 miles from Downtown Charleston, SC)
Hours: Check website for current hours and admission rates:
Admission: $24 per adult, $12 children (6-12) Children 5 and under are Free. $21 for Senior Citizens 65+, Military and AAA
Admission includes: 30-minute house tour; 40-minute narrated plantation coach tour; entry into the slave cabins, gardens, and butterfly pavilion; and performances at the Gullah Theater

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