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The purpose of the South Carolina Picture Project is to celebrate the beauty of the Palmetto State while preserving some of its vanishing landscapes.

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The Cedars

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SC Picture Project / Aiken County / The Cedars

The Cedars in Aiken County is also known as the Ardis House or the Atkinson House for its two previous owners. Abram Ardis, Jr., built the house in 1825. Businessman Edward Heyward Atkinson added to it in 1908, opting for an ornate Victorian style in keeping with the fashion of the early twentieth-century elite.

The Cedars in Aiken SC

Bill Fitzpatrick of Taylors © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

The Cedars is listed in the National Register:

The Cedars complex is significant because it is an unusual combination of two wholly distinct architectural styles, the simple vernacular and the ornate folk Victorian. The later addition represents the changing social status of the owner at that time, Edward Heyward Atkinson, a local farmer, businessman and community leader in Beech Island. Built by Abram Ardis, Jr., around 1825, the original core of The Cedars main residence was a two-story, three bay, frame and weatherboard structure with no exterior embellishment with the principle entrance on the east elevation.

Edward Heyward Atkinson, who doubled the size of the original building, built the second stage around 1908-1910. This two-story addition was built onto the south elevation of the original house and was faced with a one-story, full-width porch. The property is also significant because of three contributing agricultural outbuildings: a weatherboard barn with a standing seam metal roof, an early twentieth century frame tenant house covered with board and batten siding (a two room house, it is one remaining of the three that originally stood on the property), and a smokehouse. The complex of house and outbuildings represent and codify the changing agricultural practices of rural Aiken County from 1850 to 1925.

Many thanks to Bill Fitzpatrick of Taylors for sharing this shot. Bill enjoys the singular distinction of being the only person ever to have visited all 1,400 of South Carolina’s National Historic Landmarks. He has published several helpful e-books which serve as invaluable travel guides to the Palmetto State.

Plan Your Trip: The Cedars

Where is The Cedars located?
Address: 1325 Williston Road, Beech Island, SC 29842
GPS Coordinates: 33.409967,-81.830312
What else should I see?
Redcliffe Plantation 3.6 miles
First Baptist Church of Beech Island 4.2 miles
Silver Bluff Baptist Church 5.7 miles
Capers Chapel Methodist Church 6 miles
Show me more like this!
  • Beech Island Historic Sites
  • See other South Carolina Historic Houses
  • See other South Carolina National Register
    The Cedars Map

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    ABOUT US

    We are a federally-recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit that works to preserve the history of South Carolina’s historic, natural, and cultural landmarks before they are lost to time. This website serves as a permanent digital archive of over 2,300 South Carolina landmarks – and counting. Learn more about our work.

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    ABOUT US

    We are a federally-recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit that works to preserve the history of South Carolina’s historic, natural, and cultural landmarks before they are lost to time. This website serves as a permanent digital archive of over 2,300 South Carolina landmarks – and counting. Learn more about our work.

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