On Friday, November 18, Dr. Eric Emerson, Director of the South Carolina State Department of History and Archives presented Pat Bell, President of the Dataw Island Owner’s Association and Ted Bartlett, General Manager of Dataw Island, with a certificate and plaque officially listing “The Sams Plantation Complex Tabby Ruins” on the National Register of Historic Places. The ruins are located on Dataw Island.
This designation is the culmination of 25 years of archaeological and preservation work initiated by Dataw Island’s developer, Alcoa, Inc., and continued by resident volunteers from the Dataw Historic Foundation.
The ceremony was held in the Carolina Room of the Dataw Island Club. Dr. Emerson spoke to residents of the Dataw Community, as well as to a host of distinguished guests, including descendants of the Sams family, noted historians and preservationists. He discussed the significance of this prestigious award, pointing out that the “Sams Plantation Complex Tabby Ruins comprises one of the finest and most complete examples of late 17th, early 18th century Sea Island plantation living. The site contains a main house and various outbuildings including a unique dairy/cold room with an intact pitched tabby roof, the only surviving one in the United States.
“This designation is the result of many years of hard work,” said Ted Bartlett general manager of Dataw Island. “The historical aspects of Dataw Island are significant and only because of the extraordinary efforts of the Dataw Historic Foundation can we insure their preservation.”
The National Register of Historic Places is a U.S. Department of the Interior program, begun in 1980, and administered by the National Park Service. This program seeks to preserve our national heritage by recognizing both public and private efforts to set aside and care for sites, buildings, and districts throughout the country which have played a significant role in our development as a nation and as a people. There are about 80,000 such designations in the U.S.
The Dataw Historic Foundation began in 1995, it is comprised of resident volunteers who provide for preservation work through financial support and the donation of their time, interest and energy to the various projects undertaken each year. The Dataw Historic Foundation has received numerous accolades for its preservation work over the years.
