From staff reports
The historic Fort Fremont Hospital on St. Helena Island will open its doors for a unique Christmas tour from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, Dec 2. Tickets are required in advance.
Now a private residence, the hospital is seldom open to the public. This is a rare opportunity to view an important piece of history and a beautiful home decorated for a 1910 Christmas celebration.
The Hospital was built in 1904 to treat soldiers stationed at Fort Fremont. It is on the National Register of Historic Places and is the only remaining building at Fort Fremont.
The building has had a storied past. After being sold by the government in 1931, it became a hunting and fishing lodge, the setting for Land’s End Plantation in Francis Griswold’s novel A Sea Island Lady, and now a private residence.
The current owners have continued the restoration to a private residence while maintaining the essence of the Fort Fremont Hospital. The exterior and most of the interior retains its original structure and architectural details.
Visitors will see the eight-bed ward with original floors and tin ceilings, ward master’s room, dispensary, and lavatory (converted to a British pub room).
The tour is sponsored by the Friends of Fort Fremont. Tickets are $40 per person and may be purchased at www.fortfremont.org. Net proceeds from this tour will be dedicated to the restoration of a portion of the rooms under Fort Fremont’s Battery Jesup.
