• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

SC Picture Project

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

  • FIND A LANDMARK
    • BY CITY
    • BY COUNTY
    • BY CATEGORY
    • BYGONE LANDMARKS
  • ADD IMAGES
  • VOLUNTEER
  • SPONSORS
  • DONATE
  • Black History

Cornwell Inn

SC PICTURE PROJECT 2 Comments

SC Picture Project / Chester County / Cornwell Inn

This inn and tavern in the Chester County community of Blackstock was built in 1841 by Elijah Cornwell. The inn was a stagecoach stop along the Charleston to Charlotte Road and serves as a rare surviving link to transportation in South Carolina prior to the Civil War. An addition to the inn – the south end of the building – was completed in 1846 when the venue became a midday meal stop along the coach route.

Cornwell Inn

Trace Walters of Rock Hill, 2017 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

The Cornwell Inn – also known as Cornwell’s – later became a rail stop in 1851 following the completion of the Charlotte and South Carolina Railroad in Chester District (now Chester County). Before the rail line was completed, the inn was the transfer point between travelers transitioning from rail to stagecoach. Cornwell’s Inn also became a water stop along the rail in 1856.

Cornwell Inn

South Carolina Department of Archives and History, 1994

Cornwell died in 1857, and his estate, which included vast landholdings, remained unsettled until 1861. During the Civil War Union troops destroyed much of the Charlotte and South Carolina Railroad just before reaching Cornwell’s Inn. It is said that a former president of the railroad, Dr. Palmer, helped the Cornwells add a side track at the stop to help refugees from Charleston during the Civil War. Following the war, Cornwell’s son, Eli, acquired the inn and its surrounding property. The railroad was rebuilt, but it is unknown whether the inn continued to function as a guest house or was used solely as a private residence during Eli Cornwell’s ownership. Dr. Fritz William McMaster Cornwell, grandson of Elijah Cornwell, was the last of the Cornwell family to occupy the house. Though the property was sold at auction in 1926, the new owners allowed Dr. Cornwell to remain in the home until his death in 1946.

Cornwell Inn

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

The Cornwell Inn is listed in the National Register:

(Cornwell’s) The ca. 1841 Cornwell Inn was built by Elijah Cornwell on property he acquired in October of that year. “The Inn” is unique in a multitude of ways in spite of a plain exterior appearance. South Carolina has few surviving buildings with the direct link to antebellum period transportation, especially one in a rural location. The Cornwell Inn is one of South Carolina’s surviving early stagecoach stops on a main state road, the Charlotte to Charleston Road. It is also connected with the Charlotte and South Carolina Railroad, one of the nation’s earliest regional rail lines. The ca. 1841 original portion of the Federal style inn (the northern half of the building) is a one-and-one-half story, five bay double pitched gable roof, heavy-timber frame and weatherboard building set on granite piers, and has two exterior end chimneys with free standing chimney stacks. The ten-foot deep, full length porches on both the west and east elevations were probably part of the original building plan. Soon after the original portion was completed, an addition with a full basement was added to the south elevation of the inn. This one-and-one-half story, five bay, double-pitch gable roofed, frame provided additional living space in the full basement, probably for the domestic servants necessary for the operation of an inn.

Plan Your Trip: Cornwell Inn

Where is Cornwell Inn located?
Address: United States Highway 321, Blackstock, SC 29014
GPS Coordinates: 34.6075,-81.178333
What else should I see?
Concord Presbyterian Church 9.3 miles
Chester State Park 10.6 miles
Chester City Hall 11.3 miles
Brainerd Institute 11.3 miles
Show me more like this!
  • Chester Historic Sites
  • See other South Carolina National Register
  • See other South Carolina Trains & Depots
    Cornwell Inn Map

    Please Help Us Stay Online

    We’d like thank everyone who generously supports the South Carolina Picture Project. You provide us with the inspiration and financial support we need to keep doing what we do. Every reader’s contribution, larger or small, is valuable. If you have enjoyed this website or found it helpful, please pitch in. Each donation helps – and it only takes a minute. Thank you!

    Support the SC Picture Project!

    $3,160 of $12,500
    105 Donations
    $ 50.00
    Select Payment Method
    Personal Info

    Credit Card Info
    This is a secure SSL encrypted payment.

    Donation Total: $50.00

    You may also like

    You may also like

    People's Free LibraryPeople’s Free Library Catholic Presbyterian ChurchCatholic Presbyterian Church Brainerd InstituteBrainerd Institute Chester Masonic TempleChester Masonic Temple Cedarleaf Farm, ChesterCedarleaf Farm

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Julie Comer says

      February 28, 2020 at 12:33 PM

      Very interesting! I have a dear friend who acquired some dishes, 20-some years ago, which were used in this inn. The Virginia Daniels family gave them to her. I do have a picture of one small plate. My number is 864-426-1947, if you have any questions. Thank you, Julie

      Reply
    2. Martha B. Macdonald says

      October 10, 2018 at 9:24 PM

      I enjoyed this, having passed this place many times on the way to Blackstock where my father, the late Dr. Roderick Macdonald, was born. Thank you.

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Primary Sidebar

    FIND A LANDMARK

    Why This Site Matters

    Help Keep This Site Online

    We depend on the support of today’s readers to document South Carolina’s landmarks for future readers. Please help us continue this important work by making a donation below.

    $3,160 of $12,500
    105 Donations
    $ 50.00
    Select Payment Method
    Personal Info

    Credit Card Info
    This is a secure SSL encrypted payment.

    Donation Total: $50.00

    Recent Posts

    • H.L. Hunley
    • Strand Theater
    • Camden Depot
    • Charleston City Marina
    • Secession Hill

    Footer

    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.

    CONTACT US

    We’d love to hear from you! Send us a quick email at share@scpictureproject.org.

    If you are looking for permission to use a photo, please reach out directly to the photographer listed in the image’s credit.

    JOIN US ON FACEBOOK

    The South Carolina Picture Project has two Facebook groups. One is dedicated to SC Historic Landmarks and Iconic Landscapes, and the other is dedicated to SC Nature and Wildlife.

    South Carolina Picture Project © 2022 · All Rights Reserved