Now known as The Ashantilly Center, a non-profit educational and cultural historic site, the focal point of this property is “Old Tabby”, which was the mainland home of early Georgia planter and legislator Thomas Spalding. Originally built around 1820, the home burned in 1937. The present structure was built by William G. (Bill) Haynes, Jr., incorporating what remained of the original structure. I made these photographs in 2011 at the invitation of Harriet Langford, Ashantilly’s most ardent advocate and chairman of its board of directors.
This is a section of the original tabby.
Bill Haynes worked hard to preserve the historical integrity of the property, though additions were necessary to make the house livable.
Period furniture collected by Haynes over the years can be seen in the parlor and in other areas of the house, like the dining room, seen below.
Bill Haynes was a man of many talents. He made the oil painting below in which Old Tabby can faintly be seen in the background, as it appeared before the fire of 1937.
His interest in Southern subjects is evident in this watercolor of a sweet potato harvest.
An avid bibliophile, Haynes’s collection fills library shelves throughout the house.
The attic served as a workshop for Haynes. It’s presently being cataloged and organized.
Because the house faces Black Island Creek, the rear elevation is what many people see first.
Founded in 1808, Christ Church did not build a permanent house of worship until 1820, due largely to economic troubles stemming from the War of 1812. The first structure stood until the Civil War, when Union troops damaged it so badly that members were forced to meet in their homes until the present structure was built in 1884.
The interior of Christ Church is breathtaking. Shipbuilders built the new cruciform church to resemble an inverted ship’s hull, symbolic of the ship of faith There are various stained glass windows throughout.
Christ Church Cemetery, Frederica
The church and graveyard are among the most visited and beloved places on St. Simons. It’s the final resting place of many Georgia pioneers and veterans of nearly every war dating from the American Revolution onward. The following photos are a general survey. I’ll be adding more specific burials at a later date.
Hazzard Mausoleum
The Hazzard family owned West Point and Pike’s Bluff plantations on St. Simons. This tabby mausoleum is one of the most interesting gravesites in Christ Church cemetery. The date A. D. 1813 is inscribed on a bronze marker at the foot of the mausoleum and is a bit mysterious. This history of the Hazzards was written by Carey C. Giudici: The Hazzard family was one of the Island’s most colorful families. Originally from South Carolina, Revolutionary War veteran Colonel William Hazzard moved to the area and purchased West Point in 1818. This plantation, just north of Frederica, became the home of Hazzard’s oldest son Colonel William Wigg Hazzard. Nine years later the younger son, Dr. Thomas Fuller Hazzard bought the Pike’s Bluff property that adjoined West Point to the north. The family now owned much of the north end of St. Simons Island. Very active in church activities, they also served as representatives to Georgia’s House of Representatives, enjoyed competing in their racing boats Shark and Comet, and frequently went hunting with their pack of deer hounds. Both were also noted writers; William Wigg Hazzard’s 1825 history of Glynn County is still in print. In 1838 a boundary dispute resulted in Dr. Thomas Hazzard shooting a young neighbor, John Armstrong Wylly. Tradition has it that although Dr. Hazzard was acquitted of any crime, the family was so ostracized by the other planter families that they built their own family chapel on West Point–which became known as “The Pink Chapel” because of the lichen-based discoloration on its tabby walls. Colonel Hazzard’s son, Captain William Miles Hazzard, commanded the local Confederate Army detachment during the Civil War. With nine troops and a slave named Henry, he burned the U.S. Navy headquarters on the occupied St. Simons.
Eugenia Price (22 June 1916 – 28 May 1996)
World-famous for her historical novels set on the Georgia coast in the early days of white settlement, Eugenia Price was largely responsible for the national attention Christ Church has received in the ensuing years. My mother has always been a big fan of her writing. From the Lighthouse trilogy and the Georgia trilogy to the Florida trilogy and the Savannah quartet, most of her books are still in print or readily available on the coast, especially on St. Simons.
When US 17, the Coastal Highway, was the main artery on the Atlantic seaboard from Virginia to Florida, the Brunswick Board of Trade & the Sea Island Company commissioned Francis L. Abreu to design this welcome center at the entrance to the St. Simons Causeway. Abreu, a famous architect in his own right, had collaborated with Addison Mizner on the original Cloister Hotel.
It was originally advertised as “Brunswick’s Greeting to Vacationists-Georgia’s Gateway to the Road to Romance and Recreation”. The building is in immediate need of preservation. We can only hope that Brunswick will recognize its importance and not have the same dismissive view of it that they’ve had of the historic Dart House, just down the road.
Abreu was born into a privileged Cuban-American background in 1896. His parents owned a sugar plantation and also kept a home in upstate New York. He was a member of the track team at Cornell University and served in the U. S. Navy in World War I. After earning a degree in architecture, he moved to Fort Lauderdale, where his parents had relocated, and was one of the most active early builders in the city’s first real estate boom. He met his future wife, May Patterson on Sea Island in 1938. They later settled in Atlanta where they were active philanthropists.
This is arguably the most prominent public building he designed still standing in Georgia. It should be preserved and National Register of Historic Places recognition sought.
In 1806, Charleston merchant William Brailsford purchased the “Broadface” property on the Altamaha River between Darien and Brunswick and developed one of the most prosperous rice plantations in 19th-century Georgia.
Old rice fields, Broadfield Plantation
He renamed it Broadfield. Upon his death, it passed to his son-in-law Dr. James M. Troup, brother of Governor George Troup. When Dr. Troup died in 1849 Broadfield included 7300 acres and a community of 357 slaves. The marshes are very similar in appearance today to what they were in the early 19th-century.
Broadfield Plantation Rice Mill Ruins
These tabby ruins are all that remain of the once-thriving Broadfield rice mill.
Back of Hofwyl House
Around 1851, Troup’s daughter, Ophelia, and her husband George Dent built the plantation house still standing today.
Kitchen, Hofwyl House
They christened it Hofwyl House, after a school Dent attended in Switzerland.
Vestibule, Hofwyl House
After the Civil War, mounting taxes led to the selling of most of the original lands and by the 1880s when George & Ophelia’s son James took over management of the plantation, Broadfield’s dominance was over.
Dining Room, Hofwyl House
Rice was cultivated until 1913, but without slaves to provide an essentially free labor force, it was hardly a profitable venture.
Parlor, Hofwyl House
When James died in 1913, his son Gratz established a dairy on the site, which was operated until 1942 by his sisters Miriam and Ophelia Dent.
Second Floor Landing, Hofwyl House
When Ophelia died in 1973, she left the house and grounds to the state of Georgia, who operate it today as a state historic site.
Study, Hofwyl House
Unlike most historic homes, Hofwyl House retains the original family antiques and possessions of the Brailsford, Troup and Dent families from five generations.
Bedroom, Hofwyl House
The bedrooms are on the second floor.
Bedroom, Hofwyl House
Hofwyl Dependencies
Dependencies are the barns, outbuildings, laborer dwellings, and other structures dependent upon and integral to the operations of farm or plantation. One of the most remarkable aspects of this property is the large number that survive.
Dent Dairy Barn
Gratz Dent’s dairy was a very modern operation for its time. The open-air dairy barn is where a herd of around 35 Jersey and Guernsey cows were milked daily.
Dent Dairy Bottling House
Just next door is the bottling house.
Dent Dairy Bottling House
Milk was produced here for customers in Glynn and McIntosh counties.
Commissary, Hofwyl-Broadfield Plantation
Central to any plantation operation was the commissary, where laborers were given credit for necessities and staples. Much of their income, however, went to repaying debts incurred here.
Tenant House, Hofwyl-Broadfield Plantation
Essential laborers were provided a basic tenant house like the one seen above.
Tenant bedroom, Hofwyl-Broadfield Plantation
Furnishings were spartan and utilitarian.
Pay Shed, Hofwyl-Broadfield Plantation
The presence of the pay shed indicates a well-managed property and is quite a rare thing to find today.
Built circa 1825, this sugar mill and arrowroot starch factory was the industrial component to John Houstoun McIntosh’s New Canaan Plantation.
McIntosh was born in 1773 in what is now McIntosh County. After living for a time in Florida and involvement in a plot to annex East Florida, McIntosh came back to Georgia.
He acquired two plantations in Camden County. Marianna was one and New Canaan, site of the sugar works seen here, was the other.
Thomas Spalding of Sapelo Island is thought to have been his mentor in this enterprise. It’s located across from the entrance to Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay in a publicly accessible park on Charlie Smith Sr. Parkway (Georgia Highway 40 Spur).
Houstoun’s name is sometimes spelled Houston, but for researchers interested in the Houstoun genealogy, G. Cole notes: The name is properly spelled “Houstoun.” John Houstoun McIntosh was born to George McIntosh (son of John Mohr Mackintosh) and Ann Priscilla Houstoun (dau. of Sir Patrick Houstoun and Priscilla Dunbar.)
Taylor P. Davis writes in his thesis, Tabby: The Enduring Building Material of Coastal Georgia (Athens, 2011):”The Houston McIntosh Sugar Mill, built during the 1820s, contains probably the most intact and expansive plantation era tabby ruins in this…area. This two-storied, sprawling complex, complete with columns, is the remainder of John Houston McIntosh’s sugar processing mill in connection to his New Canaan Plantation sugar cane production. The mill consisted of three main sections: a milling room, a boiler room, and a curing room.
He continues: This sugar mill also led local and visiting authors and intern local historians to reinterpret this area’s history. It was here that W. J. Hoxie, contributor to the Savannah Morning News, wrote of his imaginative thoughts of the harrowing tales of Spanish friars defending themselves against a “great siege” or fiercely battling off “pirate bands” all while trying to save the souls of the “savage natives”. It was hard for him to believe that such a well-built structure could have been used for agricultural purposes. In his article, Hoxie is quoted as saying “I have yet discovered any published work that throws any light on the origin and history of this building.” But the damage was done. Savannah Morning News readers were taken by this fictional idea. This helped to start and spread the “Spanish Mission myth” regarding tabby construction. This myth was perpetuated by James T. Vocelle’s book, History of Camden County, where he states as fact that these tabby ruins were that of the Spanish missions. For decades it was thought that all of the plantation era tabby ruins were that of the lost Spanish missions. Later this error in the chronology of tabby would be corrected, and the literature on the subject from then on would reflect the annotation.”
This tabby revival structure is one of the most historic on the Georgia coast. In his thesis Tabby: The Enduring Building Material of Coastal Georgia (Athens, 2011), preservationist Taylor Davis notes it is “one of the best examples of a historic tabby structure that is still being used as originally intended by the designers“. Whereas most people expect the rough look of present-day tabby, it was the fashion to smooth out the shells by the application of lime.
No specific date of construction is known, though the parish is 128 years old. Taylor Davis believes, however, that construction began on the site in 1874.
Read an excellent historical survey of Georgia tabby by Taylor Davis, here.
Brunswick Old Town Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
View from Chocolate, from Mud River to Doboy Sound
Chocolate is a collection of tabby ruins, begun circa 1810, constructed by enslaved people along the banks of the Mud River on Sapelo Island.
Expanse of Mud River at high tide, from Chocolate
Most of the structures are in a state of very bad disrepair. Regardless, they represent one of the most extensive collections of structures related to a working Sea Island plantation still extant.
Tabby Barn (East Facade)
The impressive tabby barn was built in 1831.
Tabby Barn (East Facade)
Restored by automobile magnate Howard Coffin in the 1920s, it is falling to ruin, as well.
“During the late 1790s, the Chocolate tract was farmed by Lewis Harrington with the labor of 68 slaves. In 1802 that property became jointly owned by Edward Swarbreck and Thomas Spalding, who leased out at least a portion of the tract until 1808.
Cotton House
“Swarbreck, a Danish sea merchant with Caribbean connections who traded in cotton and other commodities, including slaves, then directed his attention to Chocolate.
Cotton House
“His plantation layout followed a familiar and very formal design….
Cotton House
“The Big House, built of tabby, overlooked the Mud River and expansive salt marshes. His residence was flanked by outbuildings and other support structures.
Smoke House
“Two parallel rows of slave quarters, spaced some 10m apart and separated by a broad open area 50m across, were constructed behind the Big House.
Slave House 1, with Main House Chimney at right
“Vast agricultural fields extended to the north and south. Evidence of at least nine slave quarters, typically tabby duplexes with central chimneys and finished tabby floors, each side measuring about 4.3m by 6.1m, survives today as ruins and archaeological features at Chocolate.
Slave House 2
“These represent an enslaved population of some 70 to 100 people distributed among at least 18 households…”
Unidentified ruins
Unidentified ruins are located near the road and served some sort of agricultural purpose, I believe.
Unidentified ruins
The ongoing archaeological work at Chocolate is some of the most important work being done on Sapelo Island.
A barely recognizable renovation of “Long Tabby”, one of Thomas Spalding’s plantations, this structure houses the Sapelo Island Post Office today. Virginia O. Horton, who lived on the island in her youth, notes that the post office was once located nearby in a commissary and that Marie Olsen was the postmistress.
Built of tabby as South End House by Roswell King for Thomas Spalding in 1810, this grand mansion has weathered many changes in its history. The skill of the slave laborers who constructed it was put to the test during the Hurricane of 1824, which it survived.
It was damaged and looted during the Civil War and fell into a state of ruin.
Automobile magnate Howard Coffin purchased the property in 1911 and Detroit architect Albert Kahn completed a reconstruction of South End House in 1925, transforming it into one of the grandest residences on the Georgia coast. During Coffin’s ownership of the island, many prominent visitors were guests in the home, including President Herbert Hoover and Charles Lindbergh.
Coffin sold the home to tobacco heir R. J. “Dick” Reynolds, Jr., in 1934. An expansion of the house was undertaken by prominent architect Phillip Trammell Shutze in 1938. Shutze commissioned Athos Menaboni to paint a series of murals and a “circus room”. When Reynolds died in 1964, the process of selling the house to the state of Georgia, as well as the vast majority of the island, was initiated.
Owned by the Department of Natural Resources today, it serves as a lodge and event venue for small groups.
A tabby sign notes that Behavior Cemetery was established around 1805 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1996. I photographed Behavior in different seasons over several years, remembering Cornelia Bailey’s request that I be respectful and not to linger. I was always in awe of the place and the name began to make sense to me.
I believe this little hipped-roof building is a tool shed.
From Sapelo’s People: A Long Walk Into Freedom,[William S. McFeely, W. W. Norton, 1994]: “The graveyard is as irregularly plotted as were the hammocks once scattered over the island…And the uneasy grass is less level than the road under oaks and pines that takes you to the graveyard…
“Behavior is an odd name for a cemetery, but it makes sense on Sapelo Island …And a visitor to the island doesn’t find it strange, either…
“Behavior, its grounds uneven and grass-choked, its stones akimbo…suggests life rather than death.”
The images that follow are individual memorials and are shown in no particular order. They represent the memories of countless individuals who kept the Gullah-Geechee culture of Sapelo Island thriving into the modern era, as their listing on the National Register of Historic Places validates. I hope I am able to afford them some level of respect with my images.
Minto Bell (c. 1780-90-25 August 1890)
Minto (also recorded as “Bintou” and “Binty”) Bell was of seven known daughters of Bilali (also recorded as Bel-al-i and Bu Allah) Mohammed (c. 1770-1857) and his wife Phoebe. She was born in the Bahamas but came to Sapelo with her Guinean father, who, though enslaved, was a noted scholar of Islam. Bilali served as the manager of Thomas Spalding’s operations on Sapelo Island.
William Bell (c. 1856-13 September 1891)
William Bell was a descendant of Bilali Mohammed and with William Hillery and John Grovner in 1871, was one of three investors in the first Black-owned land settlement on Sapelo Island, at Raccoon Bluff. This was significant for allowing newly freed families to purchase their own land.
Charles Walker (1813-5 February 1897)
Charles Walker was the patriarch of one of the largest families on Sapelo, whose descendants still live on the island today. Cornelia Walker Bailey, for one, is among the most significant advocates for Gullah-Geechee cultural preservation, not just on Sapelo but throughout the Sea Islands.
Chloe Jacobs (c. 1838-24 September 1893)
Chloe Jacobs’s contemporary commercial memorial features a quote from the 23rd Psalm: “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want…” She is one of many born enslaved who lived to see freedom on Sapelo.
Boston Gardner (c.1824-15 June 1920)
The clock-shaped vernacular headstones of Boston and Phillis Gardner are among the most notable works of art in Behavior Cemetery. There is always an old broken clock adorning Mr. Gardner’s memorial, as well.
Phillis Gardner (c. 1839-7 December 1916)
Phillis Gardner, spelled Philis” on the memorial, was likely the wife of Boston Gardner.
Phoebe Hillery Sams (15 April 1850-4 February 1929)
The Phebie Sams memorial, in another part of the cemetery, also features the clock design. Phebie was the wife of Anthony Sams. Phoebe, spelled “Phebie” on her memorial, was a member of the prominent Hillery family of Sapelo Island.
Glasco Grovner (1856-3 November 1928)
Glasco Grovner was a member of one of the most prominent families on Sapelo Island, still found on Sapelo Island today. His father, John Grovner, was one of the partners in the Raccoon Bluff land trust. His memorial is one of the most notable vernacular works in Behavior Cemetery.
Liberty Handy (1 August 1856-20 May 1916)
Liberty Handy was a beloved member of the Gullah-Geechee communities of Sapelo Island, who was one of the charter members of the Farmers Alliance in 1892. His wife was Katie Brown (1850-1918). In local folklore, he is remembered for a dream he had the night before he died, in which he was scratched by a black cat.
Sallie Smith Hall (15 March 1886-7 August 1951)
Mrs. Hall’s vernacular memorial remains in good condition and is typical of other examples on Sapelo and throughout the coastal region.
Henry Wilson (23 January 1872-3 May 1929)
Mr. Wilson’s headstone has split but is a good example of one of the most common vernacular styles found in Behavior Cemetery, featuring stenciled characters on a standard shape.
John Carr Hillery (25 April 1857-11 September 1889)
This vernacular memorial was placed by Mr. Hillery’s wife, “In memory of my first husband.”
Monday Robinson (?-12 November 1930) and Isabella Robinson (26 September 1858-17 February 1889)
The red painted fleur-de-lis at left may be the memorial for Monday Robinson, whose wife, Isabella, is buried to its right. They were married on 6 May 1876.
Peter Maxwell (c. 1829-28 Ma7 1899)
Peter Maxwell was born on Sapelo Island and went on to serve the Union effort as a member of Co. A, 33rd United States Colored Troops. He was a prominent advocate for Civil Rights during Reconstruction and for the rest of his life.
Nancy Bailey Hall Maxwell (10 March 1842-22 July 1928)
This is one of my favorites of the many beautiful memorials in Behavior Cemetery. Mrs. Nancy was born into the prolific Bailey family of Sapelo Island. Her first husband, Sandy Hall, drowned in 1886, and she married Peter Maxwell in 1889. Peter and Nancy both had seven children from their first marriages.
Mary Wright (13 February 1873-29 September 1923)
Mary Wright’s memorial is one of many vernacular memorials surviving in Behavior Cemetery.
Mary Jackson (c. 1838-7 February 1913)
Ms. Jackson’s memorial features a passage from the 23rd Psalm.
Olsie Kitchrel (?-June 1933)
The handmade memorial for this person illustrates the difficulty in identification inherent with vernacular examples. It is thought that Kitchrel is a phonetic spelling of Kittrell. It is also possible that Olsie is a variant spelling of Ossie or Elsie.
Fannie Shepard (29 November 1891-8 June 1937)
It is important to document these vernacular memorials, as time and weather are eroding so many. While little is known of Ms. Shepard, she should not be forgotten.
Sarah Wilson (29 July 1881-18 November 1940)
Like many vernacular memorials, Ms. Wilson’s features continuous lettering. The Wilson family are longtime residents of Sapelo Island.
Martha Wilson (5 October 1862-27 August 1896)
Martha Wilson was an earlier member of the prolific Wilson family. Her commercially made headstone has long been detached from its base. One member of her family was a founder of the Farmers Alliance in Hog Hammock.
Benjamin Brown (1850-28 January 1918)
As the memorial notes, Benjamin Brown was the “Beloved Husband of Katie Brown”. They married on 7 August 1877. Katie Grovner Brown (1853-1940), a granddaughter of Bilali Mohammed, was one of the most beloved citizens of Sapelo, serving as a midwife for generations and an early member of the Farmers Alliance. Perhaps more importantly, she preserved many details about her family’s history, recorded in the Federal Writers Project work Drums and Shadows: Survival Stories Among the Coastal Negroes.
Ceaser Jackson (17 January 1893-7 February 1916)
This is one of several of the iconic “Star Motif” vernacular memorials in Behavior Cemetery, and one of dozens in coastal Mcintosh County which I believe were all made by the same unidentified craftsman. The epitaph reads: He Died in Faith. Sleep On Son. Take You Rest.
Steven Wilson (9 April 1887-17 May 1912)
This “Star Motif” memorial is in amazing condition.
Rev. John Dunham (28 February 1859-15 March 1946)
This “Star Motif” memorial is a later interpretation of the design and is significant in that sense. It appears to have been placed in recent years. Rev. Dunham was a beloved member of the community and was known throughout the island as “Sawney”. He officiated numerous weddings, funerals, and other events throughout his life. His wife was Rachel Dunham (November 1865-November 1947).
