Kingstree, 1909

In March 1909, a Clarendon County resident, whose initials were I.M.L. stopped off in Kingstree on his way to Charleston. He was much impressed by the improvements he saw in the town. He wrote about his visit, and that story was printed in The Columbia Record on March 30.

Farmers wait in line to deliver their cotton to the Kingstree Depot for shipping.

"This writer who hails from the banner county of South Carolina, Clarendon, still in duty bound must tell the truth regarding one of the most progressive towns in the State, Kingstree, an original English settlement as its name will indicate. Seven years ago, the writer visited this town and the less said the better. Now, what does he see and learn? And now, as briefly as possible, he will give  a slight resumé of the town, the people etc.

"The first thing that attracted his attention was the the splendid commodious brick depot of the Atlantic Coast Line.

"The Kellahan hotel is splendidly equipped, well-managed, and perfectly constructed. It receives and deserves the patronage of the public.

The Williamsburg County Courthouse.

"The court house is about 75 or 80 years old, but is a magnificent structure and requires only kalsomining to make it a very attractive public building. (NOTE: The courthouse was actually 86 years old in 1909, and it is worth also noting that next year, 2023, the Williamsburg County Courthouse will celebrate its bicentennial.)

 "A tobacco warehouse is now in course of construction.

The Kingstree Graded and High School on the corner of present day Brooks and School streets.

"The Kingstree High School is a model building and well-equipped for the comfort and convenience of teachers and pupils.

"Kingstree enjoys four churches: Methodist, W.A. Fairy, pastor; Baptist, Rev. Mr. Hurt; Episcopal, missionary services; Presbyterian, E.E. Ervin, pastor. All the churches have large attendance.

Williamsburg Presbyterian Church as it looked in 1909.

"Black River is spanned by a steel bridge. The town has 24 blocks of concrete pavement (Note: the pavement would have sidewalks, not streets). The streets are oval, clayed with sand, and are perfectly dry after a heavy rain in ten minutes.

 "A very commodious opera house graces the town–the Thomas. Louis Stackley and Philip H. Stoll, managers. They have two banks with large surpluses–Bank of Williamsburg, President C.W. Stoll; cashier, E.C. Epps; Bank of Kingstree, F.W. Fairey cashier; D.C. Scott, president. A model post office under the efficient care of that gentleman and Republican, Mr. Louis Jacobs. They have a long distance connection Bell telephone. Local telephone service connecting all over the county and adjoining counties. Kingstree Telephone Company, B.E. Clarkson, manager; Western Union Telegraph Company, Miss Mabel Lifrage, operator.

"A Civic League that accomplishes things; a look around the court house grounds will indicate that. Mrs. LeRoy Lee and others in charge.

"This is the home of the young, but aggressive solicitor, the Hon. Philip H. Stoll.

"A splendidly conducted county paper, The County Record, C.W. Wolfe, Esq., editor, adds materially to the growth and development of the town. It is certainly a splendid newspaper.

"Among the handsome residences I may mention. those of Messrs. J.A. Kelly, Louis Jacobs, Hugh McCutchen, and Mrs. T.A. Blakeley. (NOTE: The Blakeley house is the only one still standing in Kingstree.)

The Hugh McCutchen house, located on N. Academy Street.

This sat on what is now the parking lot on the north side of Williamsburg Presbyterian.

Source: Williamsburg County Pictorial History

"This correspondent can only give a partial list of the business houses: Farmers Supply Co.; S.L. Courtney & Co.: Kennedy-Montgomery Co.; Kingstree Dry Goods Co.; W.J. Nexsen; People's Mercantile; M.J. Porter; W.V. Strong; Louis Stackley; Williamsburg Live Stock Company; W.T. Wilkins Livery Stables; Mrs. W.P. Hawkins & Company; M.F. Heller, and P.B. Thorne, lumber and sawmill.

"Elegantly equipped drug stores are a feature of this town. M.L. Allen; D.C. Scott; Gamble & Jacobs; W.V. Brockinton; Wallace & Kelley.

"The municipal government is under the care of Hon. L.W. Gilland, mayor, and Mr. J.D. Gilland, clerk and treasurer. The legal end is represented by Messers. Gilland and Gilland; Lee & Askins; J.A. Kelley; A.C. Hinds, and E.L. Hirsch.

"Health is looked after by the following physicians: Drs. D.C. Scott, W.V. Brockinton, W.G. Gamble, E.T. Kelley, W.L. Wallace, C.L. Jacobs.

"The railroad depot is under the able management of Mr. C.W. Boswell.

"Kingstree has an aggressive board of trade, Eugene Montgomery, president; A.C. Hinds, secretary. Chief of Police S.C. Anderson informed your correspondent that Kingstree is an orderly and peace-loving town.

"Messrs, Watts & Watts have a superb establishment in which they display a splendid line of diamonds and watches and are jewelers of repute.

"Cotton buyers: Mr. Hugh McCutchen representing Alexander Sprunt & Sons, Wilmington, NC, and Jr. J.C. Kinder, Inman & Co., Atlanta, GA. 

"The future holds out sewerage and electric lights.

"Kingstree can well be proud of the progress she has made in seven years and in conclusion, like a beneficent fairy, Mr. R. H. Kellahan, a captain of industry, has opened his coffers and the golden flood of his hard-earned gold had made the Kingstree of today possible.

"May other towns in the seacoast counties take Kingstree as a guiding star."

Kingstree's Hotels, Part 3

After the Kellahan Hotel closed and was sold to Kingstree attorney LeRoy Lee, there was a period in which there was no hotel in town to serve the traveling public. Philip and Emile Arrowsmith petitioned the Secretary of State to form the Kingstree Hotel Company with proposed capital of $50,000, but due to a nationwide recession, they were unable to proceed with their plans. A year later, The Kingstree Hotel was incorporated by a group of residents with capital stock of $60,000. F.W. Fairey was president; E.B. King and L.W. Gilland, vice presidents; W.H. Carr, secretary; and H.E. Montgomery, treasurer. 

The Kingstree Hotel.

The hotel underwent major renovations, including the addition of hot and cold running water in the newly painted rooms and the installation of modern equipment throughout the hotel. When it opened in August 1921, John Gelzer was the hotel's manager. There was, however, no dining room in the hotel, and although the stockholders advertised for someone to open either a regular hotel dining room or a cafe in the building, there was no food service available at the hotel until 1924. That year, Henry and Bertha Whitaker became managers of the hotel.

A 1924 advertisement for the Kingstree Hotel

Source: The News & Courier

In 1925, the Kingstree Kiwanis Club was organized in a meeting at the hotel. Insurance agent Ira A. Calhoun was the driving force behind bringing the Kiwanis organization to Kingstree as he believed  the town would benefit from a civic club with national affiliation. Those attending the organizational meeting were serenaded by a quartet composed of M.H. Jacobs, Ira Calhoun, C. N. Griffin and Dr. LeRoy Cates, much to the audience's amusement, as these four had "never before lifted their voices in public."

The hotel benefited in the late 1920s for Bernard Baruch's patronage. Mr. Baruch often stayed in his private rail car, which was parked on the siding at he depot, when he came to Williamsburg County to hunt, but after the hotel opened, he and his guests would often stay there. 

The Whitakers left Kingstree in 1928 to operate the Carolina Inn in Chester. In December 1928, they bought the Manning Hotel. In 1929, sisters from Orangeburg County, Mary Bell King Walker and Effie King Izlar became managers of the Kingstree Hotel. Both the Whitakers and the King sisters would play additional roles in Kingtstree's hotel history later.

An ad in The State newspaper in September 1929 read: WANTED: Two speedy waiters for dining room in busiest little hotel in state. Write Kingstree Hotel, Kingstree, SC.

By March 1930, the hotel was advertising in the Raleigh News & Observer and the Charlotte Observer, gearing the ads primarily toward tourists visiting Magnolia Gardens. Accurate road information was available 24 hours a day through the installation of a "travelfax" self-service feature at the hotel. It was installed and equipped by the South Carolina Motor Club in cooperation with the hotel management.

On Saturday, April 26, 1930, around 3 a.m., fire broke out in the kitchen of the hotel. The Kingstree Fire Department was able to confine the damage to the kitchen and the pantry, but the loss of the use of the kitchen and pantry prevented the hotel from serving breakfast that Saturday morning. However, the hotel had another range which was set up in another part of the building so that lunch and dinner service were able to go on as scheduled. The news reports stated that repairs would begin immediately, and guests would not be "seriously incommoded."

The sisters managing the hotel owned a house farther west on West Main Street, located on what is now the McDonald's parking lot. In August 1930, they added on to the house and began using it as an Annex to the Kingstree Hotel. The Annex became popular among tobacco buyers and other persons associated with the tobacco market, many of whom brought their families to live in Kingstree each summer.

In January 1931, Kingstree Mayor F.R. Hemingway hosted a banquet at the hotel for town officials, including town council members, police officers, fire fighters, waterworks commissioners and all other town officials.

In December 1934, Mary Walker, one of the sisters managing the hotel, foiled a potential robbery. On Christmas night, she left the front desk for a moment. When she returned, she surprised a man rifling through the cash drawer. He fled when he saw her, but she called night policeman James Benton, who chased the suspect down. The man claimed to be a part of the a carnival that had been held on Christmas day in Kingstree. When he was arrested, he had $120 in his pocket, the amount Mrs. Walker said was missing from her cash drawer.

In May 1936, the hotel was again closed. In June, LeRoy Lee leased the building to E.W. and Louise Jerow, who planned to re-open it as the Hotel Carolina after a through renovation and the addition of several rooms. The Jerows came to Kingstree from Bishoville, where they had managed the Hotel Lee, but Mr. Jerow had extensive hotel management experience, particularly in West Virginia. Kennedy Furniture Co., a local store, was awarded the contract to completely furnish the renovated hotel.

The Charles Henry Hotel was located in the part of this building to the right.

Meanwhile, in June 1930, Henry and Bertha Whitaker opened another hotel in Kingstree, almost directly across the street from the Kingstree Hotel in the old Thomas Opera House building, which the Whitakers had bought. They named the hotel The Charles Henry, after their two sons. The downstairs contained a lobby and dining room with guest rooms on the second floor. The Charles Henry served dinner in its dining room during the intermission of the 1930 Holiday Season Kick-off Dance held at the Wee Nee Beach Club. The Charles Henry also catered to northern hunters who were beginning to flock to Williamsburg County during the winter. However, the hotel was closed by 1935 when ERA Administrative Offices moved into the second floor of the building.

The King's Tree Hotel opened by Mary Walker and Effie Izlar.

When the Kingstree Hotel closed in 1936, Mrs. Walker and Mrs. Izlar continued to run what had been called the Kingstree Hotel Annex, changing the name to the King's Tree Hotel. There is some indication that they either enlarged the building or built a new hotel on the same site. Other than a number of advertisements for waitresses, bell hops and housekeepers, there was little published about the King's Tree Hotel. However, in 1943, the hotel apparently became the target of rumors which were not uncommon during the Jim Crow era. The rumors charged the ladies with serving a family of Negroes in their dining room on May 23, 1943. Their advertisement in the Charleston Evening Post is reprinted below.

Around 3 a.m. on Monday, June 16, 1952, fire broke out on the first floor of the King's Tree Hotel. At that time, the hotel catered mostly to traveling salesmen, and only five guests were registered that night. Effie Izlar went door to door, waking the guests and escorting them to safety through the smoke-filled hallways. The Kingstree Fire Department with assistance from the Lake City Fire Department, battled the blaze for five hours, pouring 200,000 gallons of water on the fire. The fire endangered Lovett's Esso Station to its west and the home of W.K. McIntosh to the east; however firefighters were able to contain it to the hotel with no damage to the adjoining buildings. Most of the hotel, however, was destroyed. Also lost were family antiques and the wedding china of both the owners.

On August 1, 1936, the Hotel Carolina hosted a Grand Opening from 8-10 p.m. Several hundred townspeople toured the newly refurbished hotel during those hours.

The Hotel Carolina.

Source: Williamsburgh Historical Museum

The hotel quickly established a reputation as a meeting place for local clubs, including the Kiwanis Club and the Williamsburg County Medical Association. In June 1937, the Kingstree Lions Club was organized in a meeting at the hotel. They would continue to hold their regular meetings there during lunch each Wednesday. Dr. W.  Gordon Rodgers became the first president of the Kingstree Lions.

Also, in 1937, the Hotel received a gold seal certificate from the State Board of Health for 100 percent observance of all State health laws. The state inspector noted that this was the first gold seal he had ever issued to a hotel in the state.

The private dining room became a regular meeting place for the many bridge clubs in Kingstree. Numerous bridal luncheons were also held there. 

A tragedy occurred on October 5, 1937, when W.B. "Bill" Lowe, who had managed the hotel since its opening, died after drinking carbolic acid in his room. He had been ill for several days and sent a bellhop to the drugstore for the acid, ostensibly to clean the bathroom. The bellhop gave Lowe the acid, went downstairs and then returned to Lowe's room, only to find Lowe locked in the bathroom. When Lowe did not respond to the bellhop, he went to get assistance, returning to find Lowe unconscious on the bed. He was rushed to Kelley Sanitorium but didn't regain consciousness before his death.

In April 1939, work began on a large addition to the hotel. All the new rooms would have private baths and showers tiled in black and white. Private baths and showers would be added to existing room which did not already have them. Owner LeRoy Lee had retired from his law practice and now was kept busy with looking after his real estate investments and serving as president of the Exchange Bank of Kingstree.

It appears that at some time after that, E.W. and Louise Jerow acquired ownership of the hotel. By 1963, Mr. Jerow had died and Mrs. Jerow was considering closing the business after operating it for 27 years. By that time, the hotel had 42 single and double rooms, most of which were air-conditioned and had televisions in them. But on Sunday, April 7, she announced that she had leased the business to Joseph Alsbrook, Inc., so that Kingstree would continue to have a hotel.

The hotel continued to serve the town for several years. In the November 5, 1966, issue of The Charlotte Observer, J.A.C. Dunn called the Hotel Carolina "a fascinating antique of the hostelry business." He further observed, "The Hotel Carolina is white-painted brick, massive and venerable. Its marquee and recessed balcony present an open-mouthed facade to the main street, like an old man dozing in a chair."

The building was torn down in the early 1970s, and the Exchange Bank of Kingstree built a modern banking facility on the site. That building is owned today by Williamsburg County and houses the county's water department. 

Kingstree's Hotels, Part 2

When last week's post ended, it was 1907, and work on the new Van Keuren Hotel was almost complete. The new hotel was built on the site of the old Coleman House, which had served the community since the 1870s. The man who had leased the hotel from R.H. Kellahan, Herbert Van Keuren, moved to town at the end of March with his wife Maggie and their eight children.

The Hotel Van Keuren, likely 1907.

Although the hotel was not quite finished, on Friday night, April 5, it was "the scene of one of the most brilliant balls ever given in the history of Kingstree." The 40 x 60-foot dining room was converted into a brilliantly lighted ballroom, which "provided ample space for about 35 couples without crowding or jostling." Select members of the Artillery Band at Fort Moultrie provided music for the occasion. At 1 a.m., coffee, chocolate, sandwiches and salad were served before the dancing resumed. The ladies dresses were described. Here are three of those descriptions: Miss Marion Gilland, white organdie, lace trimmings, rubies; Miss Barbara Jacobs, white chiffon, opals, and roses; Miss Mary Van Keuren, white and pink coronation, pearls, and roses. The ball attracted visitors from as far away as Darlington, Florence, Georgetown and Manning. The news story concluded, "It was a sight to do the heart good, innocent youth abandoning itself to the spirit of the dance."

By May, John D. Mouzon had re-established his barbershop in the hotel. His ad noted: Is equipped with up-to-date appliances. Polite service. Competent workmen.

In September, a concrete sidewalk was poured in front of the hotel, adding to its appearance. Eugene Watts, whose father Richard had long run a jewelry store in Kingstree, was advertising a full line of jewelry at the Hotel Van Keuren building.

Herbert Van Keuren's daughter, May, held her wedding to Charles C. Brinkley in the hotel parlor at 7 a.m. on November 6.

At around 9 p.m. on Sunday, January 26, 1908, Herbert Van Keuren was talking to a friend in the hotel's lobby when he complained of feeling ill. He was escorted upstairs to the family's living quarters, and Dr. W.G. Gamble was summoned. However, there was little he could do as the 48-year-old Van Keuren had suffered a stroke and passed away before daybreak. His funeral was held at the hotel the next morning, with burial in the Johnson family cemetery, near Johnsonville. 

His wife ran the hotel for several months, but in late September announced that she was retiring from the business. She, however, remained in Kingstree, eventually building a two-story home on East Main Street. 

R.H. Kellahan considered several potential replacements before leasing the building to J.W. Chandler of Danville, VA. It was first announced that the name would change to the Hotel Kingstree, but before its reopening on November 1 the named had been changed to the Kellahan Hotel. During the month, the hotel was closed, it was refurbished, re-carpeted, and renovated. Chandler was an experienced hotelier and restauranteur. When the hotel re-opened, an article in The State noted, "The rooms are all comfortably large and well-ventilated, and water is supplied from the hotel's private plant. A large sample room, a pool room, bath and toilet rooms leave nothing wanting in the appointments of this up-to-date hostelry."

The Kellahan Hotel.

The County Record approved the name change, noting, "This is as it should be. Mr. Kellahan had public spirit enough to build this fine hotel for the benefit of the town, and it should in years to come remain a monument to his memory."

Twenty guests were registered on the first night the hotel was in operation.

The hotel offered town residents more than lodging and room for social functions. Chandler became an agent for the Sumter Steam Laundry, which allowed residents to take their clothes to the hotel, where they were transported to Sumter for cleaning and returned.

In February 1909, an artesian well was bored at the rear of the hotel to supply the building with water. They struck water at 493 feet, and with a flow of 50 gallons per minute, this was the biggest flow of water produced by any well in town.

But not all was rosy. In March 1909, The County Record noted, "Mr. J.W. Chandler, the urbane host of the Kellahan hotel, had a valuable watch stolen from his vest pocket last Saturday. The garment was hanging on a peg in the hotel lobby, and the sneak thief watched his chance and 'lifted' the timepiece."

A year later, in March 1910, the hotel played a role in a major scandal that shocked the community. Three weddings occurred on Easter Sunday that year, including the marriage of A.W. Phelps, a traveling salesman for International Harvester, to the daughter of a farmer who had recently moved to acreage just outside Kingstree. The couple took the train to Lane that evening but returned to Kingstree Monday morning, as Phelps had suffered a stroke. With no hospital, he was receiving medical care in their room at the Kellahan Hotel. As news of this spread, the Rev. W.E. Hurt, the Baptist minister who had performed the marriage ceremony, began getting calls from residents who knew Phelps from previous visits to Kingstree. They told the pastor that they believed Phelps was already married, based on conversations they'd had with him in the past. Mr. Hurt confronted Phelps on his sickbed. Phelps admitted that he had been married but said he had gotten a divorce. Hurt investigated further, speaking with the attorney Phelps said had handled the divorce. That attorney had no knowledge of such an action. Hurt then contacted the father of the bride, who arrived at the hotel, talked to his daughter and then took her home. 

The County Record noted that this situation had "stirred up the people of our peaceable, law-abiding community." But there were more surprises in store. Several days later, Phelps' wife arrived from Greensboro, NC, and also registered at the Kellahan Hotel. She brought with her evidence of their marriage 12 years before. She stayed for several days but had returned to North Carolina by the end of the month. Williamsburg County Sheriff George Graham had refrained from arresting Phelps while he was seriously ill, but as he began to slowly recover, Graham consulted with Solicitor Philiip H. Stoll, and upon his advice, served a warrant for bigamy and removed Phelps from the hotel to the county jail.

The Williamsburg County Medical Association and other organizations began holding their monthly meetings at the hotel. Also, in 1909, the long distance Bell telephone station was moved from Brockington's Drug Store to the hotel.

In April 1911, The Wee Nee Club hosted an Easter Dance at the hotel that lasted until dawn. The band played for hours longer than its booking called for, but everyone was having such a good time, that the participants only reluctantly left as the sun rose.

Chandler gave up his lease on January 1, 1912, to S.A. Nettles. Mr. Nettles had long managed a hotel in Lane and had recently operated The Nettles Hotel on the second floor of one of Mr. Kellahan's commercial buildings located near the railroad track. (Today this building is known as the Marcus building.) He planned to continue to use the Nettles Hotel to house overflow bookings from the larger Kellahan Hotel.

During Mr. Nettles' tenure, the hotel became known for its banquets. Here is a typical menu from the Knights of Pythias' 1913 District Convention, held at the hotel: Oysters on the half shell, olives, celery, pickles, roast turkey, cranberry sauce, creamed potatoes, chicken salad, Old Viriginia home-cured ham, green peas, sliced tomatoes, cream dressing, lobster salad, cheese, crackers, ice cream, cake, fruit, after dinner mints, coffee, cigars.

In May 1913, The County Record announced that a Candy Kitchen was opening in the old pool room of the hotel. Thomas M. Kellahan and E.J. Azouri were offering a nice line of delicious homemade candies and a lot of tempting fruit. John Mouzon had left Kingstree for North Carolina, and the hotel barbershop was now operated by three white barbers.

Harry Riff, who had worked as a salesman at Saul Marcus' dry goods store before leaving Kingstree, returned in 1914 and opened his own dry goods business in one of the shops on the first floor of the hotel. In 1915, L.A. Hartley ran a 5 and10-Cent store from the hotel for a time before moving into a building on Academy Street. 

In September 1915, W.P. and Lizzie Hawkins took over the management of the hotel. They had run a hotel in Marion and the Halcyon in Lake City before coming back to Kingstree. Hawkins had come to Kingstree years earlier to manage Thomas & Bradham's stables and his wife was a Suttons native so they were no strangers to Kingstree residents. 

A shoe repair store, managed by H. Tuckman was located in the hotel in 1916.

R.H. Kellahan's will, probated in April 1917, has this provision: I give unto my nephew, Tom M. Kellahan, the Kellahan hotel and lot with all furniture and fixtures. 

By 1919, there was a push for a new hotel in Kingstree. Two plans were under consideration. One was to build a new hotel on the south side of West Main Street, approximately where Farmers Furniture is located today. The other was to rebuild and modernize the Kellahan Hotel. In August 1920, Wagner Real Estate and Guaranty Company, as agent for Thomas Kellahan, sold the Kellahan Hotel and the 40-foot lot east of the building to LeRoy Lee, Esq., whom The County Record believed was acting for clients. The sale price was $25,500. The word around town was that a stock company would be formed to modernize the old hotel. It appears from later transactions, however, that Lee was the sole owner of the hotel building.

In November, the hotel closed to the public, and Kellahan auctioned off the furniture and fixtures. The November 18, 1920, issue of The County Record, editorialized: Every day that Kingstree is without a hotel, just that much farther is the Town of Kingstree shoved off the map. Let's get busy and have a hotel. It is really as important to the town as a doctor.

However, the months dragged on, and the hotel remained closed. The newspaper noted that LeRoy Lee was working with a local group. When the hotel was acquired, the national economy was booming, but now it had slowed, and many members of this local group felt it was too expensive to renovate the hotel. Lee, himself, pushed for the renovation, but others overruled him. 

But by April 1921, meetings were underway regarding the possibility of proceeding with the renovations, and by July the old hotel had been thoroughly renovated and was set to re-open as The Kingstree Hotel, to be operated on the European Plan by the Kingstree Hotel Company. 

Note: After last week's post was published, I ran across an ad in the October 21, 1885, issue of The Manning Times. It seems to indicate that Sara "Sally" Coleman had apparently remarried and was still running the Coleman House. The ad read: Coleman's Hotel, Kingstree, S.C., Mrs. S.A. St. John, Sole Proprietress, Board $2 per day. The Hotel has recently been thoroughly repaired and refurnished with all modern appliances of a first class hotel. Saloon, Billiard and Pool rooms and Feed Stables. The proprietress returns thanks for the liberal patronage heretofore bestowed, and will continue to maintain the high character which the Hotel has always enjoyed."