Spring Into History at Walnut Grove Plantation
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Walnut Grove Plantation Open for Tours During Spartanburg County Schools’ Spring Break
Roebuck, SC, March 24, 2011 — “Each year in April, as the warm weather returns, Walnut Grove Plantation increases the number of days we’re open,” says Zac Cunningham, director of the historic site located in Roebuck. “This year, the increase occurs the same week as spring break in Spartanburg County schools. Since many families like to have kid-friendly things to do that week, this year we’re offering visitors a chance to visit us and ‘Spring into History.’”
During Spring into History Week, guides in period dress will present tours of Walnut Grove’s historic buildings and share the history of the Moore family and of the South Carolina Backcountry in the 1700s. Hear of the Upstate’s settlement, of the American Revolution in South Carolina, and of daily life over 200 years ago. On select days that week, a Revolutionary War reenactor will tell you of the latest news in the fight for independence from Great Britain and will share what it was like being a soldier in that fight.
Spring Into History Week runs from Tuesday, March 29 through Saturday, April 2. Walnut Grove is open each day that week from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Guided tours start hourly with the last tour beginning at 4 p.m. The cost is $6.00 for adults, $3.00 for children 6-17 years and free for children 5 years and under.
Beginning with Spring into History Week through the end of October, Walnut Grove remains open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday and from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays.
Walnut Grove Plantation tells the stories of the free and enslaved people who settled the South Carolina Backcountry and the rest of Britain’s American colonies, who fought for independence, and who, in the end, built a new nation. Charles and Mary Moore established the plantation on a 550-acre land grant. The Scots-Irish family raised ten children, including Revolutionary War heroine Kate Moore Barry, in the house they built about 1765 and lived in for the next 40 years. In late 1781, Loyalist William “Bloody Bill” Cunningham killed three Patriot soldiers at the plantation and sparked a small skirmish with local militia, which is reenacted each year in early October.
Operated by the Spartanburg County Historical Association, Walnut Grove offers the public guided tours of the plantation’s 250-year-old buildings. Special events examining the history of 18th-century America and usually featuring reenactors portraying soldiers and artisans from the time are held frequently. Groups of ten or more people from schools, churches, scout troops, senior citizen groups, and other community organizations can schedule special tours and activities in advance.
SCHA activities and events are supported in part by The Arts Partnership of Greater Spartanburg and its donors, the South Carolina Arts Commission which receives funding from The National Endowment for the Arts, the City and County of Spartanburg, and by corporate and individual partners.
Contact: Zac Cunningham, Director
Walnut Grove Plantation & Historic Price House
Spartanburg County Historical Association
864-576-6546 (o), 864-576-5048 (f)
walnutgrove@spartanburghistory.org
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