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Zeno Hicks House

SC PICTURE PROJECT 16 Comments

SC Picture Project / Cherokee County / Zeno Hicks House

This historic Cherokee County farmhouse in Chesnee was built in 1886 for Zeno Hicks, a local self-taught doctor and veterinarian. The home is a rare example of an I-house with a central chimney. I-houses were named so due to their proliferation throughout – but not limited to – Indiana, Illinois and Iowa, which all begin with the letter I. The vernacular homes are at least two rooms wide, one room deep, and two stories tall. Many I-houses found in the South, including the Zeno Hicks House, feature porches adorning the front of the home and sheds covering the rear. The Zeno Hicks House was built of hand-hewn heart pine by Ramus Wadkins.

Zeno Hicks House

Bill Fitzpatrick of Taylors, 2012 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

The home’s wrap-around porch was added by Jubilee Lovelace in 1887. A one-story addition was built in 1888. The home’s interior includes South Carolina’s only known original Y-shaped stairwell (seen below), meaning a central staircase that branches off into two separate staircases leading to the second floor.

Y Staircase Zeno Hicks

SC Department of Archives and History, 1989

Hicks and his five brothers, all musicians, formed the Hicks Orchestra in 1875. The brothers performed around both South Carolina and North Carolina into the early part of the twentieth century, and crowds would often form around the front porch and elsewhere on the four-acre property and listen to the combo play its mix of violin, cello, banjo, guitar, and melodeon (similar to an accordion). Though the group called itself an orchestra, its music was more akin to bluegrass or Scots-Irish folk music.

Zeno Hicks House, Side View

Bobby Martin of Spartanburg, 2019 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

In 2011 the Cherokee Historical Preservation Society celebrated its 125th anniversary at the home, which remains a private residence. Musicians once again gathered and played to a crowd from the porch, in keeping with the farmhouse’s lively history. The event served as a tribute to Zeno Hicks, his brothers, and the house that once entertained a community.

Zeno Hicks House, Highway View

Bobby Martin of Spartanburg, 2019 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

The Zeno Hicks House is listed in the National Register:

(McKinney-Hicks Homeplace) The Zeno Hicks House, built in 1886, is a relatively intact example of a vernacular rural farmhouse of the late nineteenth century and is associated with Zeno Hicks, a prominent local folk doctor and musician of Cherokee County. The house is architecturally significant as a rare example of a central-chimney I-House in the state. Many of the original finishes, such as batten doors, plain mantels and paneled walls still remain. The unusual Y-shaped stair leading to the second floor is the only identified example in the state. Ramus Wadkins, a local craftsman, built the house on land Nan Hicks had inherited from her father. In 1887 Jubilee Lovelace, another local craftsman, added the porch which originally extended around the four sides of the house. The house is a two-story, rectangular frame house built of weatherboard hand sawn from heart pine. A one-story addition was built in 1888 adjoining the main block at the rear; each block has a gabled roof. A one-story porch with shed roof, built in 1887, extends around the façade (southeast elevation) to the southwest elevation on the main block. The rear elevation of the house has a shed roof which continues the porch roof over a small addition created by the partial enclosure of the porch as a storage room c. 1955. The property also contains an historic outbuilding, once used as a corncrib. Hicks, though he had no formal medical training, served the Chesnee community as a doctor and veterinarian, learning from medical books, journals, and experience. Hicks was also a noted musician. He and five brothers formed “the Hicks Orchestra” in 1875, which performed for nearly 50 years in North and South Carolina.

Plan Your Trip: Zeno Hicks House

Where is Zeno Hicks House located?
Address: United States Highway 221, Chesnee, SC 29323
GPS Coordinates: 35.155768,-81.851262
What else should I see?
Mayo Mill 7.7 miles
Possum Trot School 15.6 miles
Gaffney Peachoid 16.5 miles
Belue Farms 16.8 miles
Show me more like this!
  • See other South Carolina Historic Houses
  • See other South Carolina National Register
    Zeno Hicks House Map

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Kayla says

      May 15, 2017 at 3:01 PM

      Yes, someone does own the house. It’s my grandmother’s and my family’s home and I go there for the summer and sometimes the holidays.

      Reply
      • Deborah ezell says

        May 16, 2017 at 4:25 PM

        Hello, I am descended from the Hicks and I live in Chesnee. My grandmother was Helen Hicks, Estelle’s sister. I was wondering if you might have Facebook so we could connect?

        Debbie Ezell

        Reply
    2. Norma Richbourg says

      May 14, 2017 at 9:29 PM

      My brother and I were both born in this family home. My mother is currently the sole owner. I am praying that she will make wise decisions regarding its future. So many wonderful memories there.

      Reply
    3. Nancy Ezell-Suggs says

      May 14, 2017 at 6:23 PM

      Proud to say that is my great-great-grandfather on my paternal side!

      Reply
      • Linda Lamb says

        May 30, 2018 at 6:09 PM

        Hi, Nancy. I am Estelles’s great-granddaughter and named my daughter Nancy. I bet you have the same name-sake!

        Reply
    4. Doug Wood says

      February 25, 2017 at 3:14 PM

      We live about a mile from this house. It looks run down and the out building, which is a log structure, has collapsed.

      Reply
      • Linda Lamb says

        May 30, 2018 at 6:07 PM

        Grandma passed away at 98, so was limited in what she could do with regards to maintenance. We are doing our best to bring it back!

        Reply
        • SCIWAY says

          May 30, 2018 at 6:35 PM

          We think it’s a stunningly beautiful home!

          Reply
    5. Bill Martin says

      September 10, 2016 at 7:26 PM

      Wonderful History! Does someone live in this house now? Thanks for sharing!

      Reply
    6. Ed Cody says

      July 14, 2016 at 9:15 PM

      Who owns the house now? And does someone live there?

      Reply
      • SCIWAY says

        July 15, 2016 at 6:13 AM

        It is privately owned, though we do not know if it is presently occupied.

        Reply
    7. Lynne Crawford Ray says

      May 26, 2016 at 3:26 PM

      Do they ever give tours? My grandfather played in the Hicks Orchestra back in the early 1900's!

      Reply
      • SCIWAY says

        May 26, 2016 at 1:08 PM

        We have not heard of the owners give tours, but that is a neat story! Thank you for sharing!

        Reply
      • Linda Lamb says

        May 30, 2018 at 6:12 PM

        I would love to hear your story! I am Zeno’s great great granddaughter.

        Reply
    8. Margaret Scruggs says

      March 2, 2016 at 7:06 PM

      I remember this house ,I was brought up above Chesnee.

      Reply
    9. Patricia Conner says

      February 25, 2016 at 9:09 PM

      I love this place. Go by there often !!!!!

      Reply

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