This old store is located along US 176 – also called Old State Road – in Sandy Run. In the 1800s, it was a main stage road from Charleston to Columbia. A man named Herman Geiger built the first floor of the building, a combined residence and dry goods store, in 1819.
Ann Helms of Spartanburg, 2010 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent
It became known as the Asmann Store in the 1830s, when it came under the ownership of William Asmann. Frederick William Muller, a German immigrant, married one of Asmann’s daughters and added the second story around 1846. Mr. Muller is buried nearby in the Lutheran church cemetery just down the road.
Zelma Dawdy Covington of Eutaw Springs, 2018 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent
More Pictures of The Red Store
Michael Mascari of Blythewood, 2018 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent
Johnna Hansen of Summerville, 2019 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent
Good News! I am currently in the process of submitting my research to the state for eligibility on the National Register. The State Dept. of Archives has given me a very positive response; there is no question as to the historical significance of this building.
The owners have been very eager about this effort. As with any preservation project, it boils down to cash. Restoration such as this can be very expensive, but funding is out there … you simply have to be creative and find it.
Here is a Flickr set dedicated to photos taken in the Summer and Fall of 2013. These include the elevations of the store and the house, with its interior. http://www.flickr.com/photos/66396919@N02/sets/72157637169577995/
Feel free to email may if you wish to help or have any questions: liozac0261@gmail.com.
So glad for this info.. Have been riding by it off and on for years and
wondered what its story is. It should be preserved!!!!
Grant money has not been available for properties like this in a long time. It only seems people take interest in something when it is (almost) gone.
It is a true shame that this landmark is presently dilapidated. It is literally almost falling apart. It is privately owned and has not been cared for in years. I am a Sandy Run resident — I drive by this building every day and have watched it slowly ruin. If only it could be preserved through a grant so that it will not have to be condemned. This building is a significant piece of South Carolina history!