• 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
  • VOLUNTEERS
  • SPONSORS
  • DONATE
  • Subscribe!

Bush Homeplace

SC PICTURE PROJECT 1 Comment

SC Picture Project / Spartanburg County / Bush Homeplace

This stately home in Inman is a beautiful example not only of an upcountry antebellum farmhouse, but of a nineteenth-century renovation. The original house was built by Story Bush in 1830 for herself and her three sons. The Bush home was simple and small, consisting of just two rooms in the practical hall-and-parlor style.

Bush Homeplace

Pete Lawrence of Sumter, 2018 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

In 1850 the family significantly increased the size of the home, converting it into an I-house, or a two-story home that is one room deep and several bays wide with a central hallway. The I-house design was a popular style of architecture for nineteenth century rural farmhouses in southern and midwestern states. Here, the I-house was simply added onto the front of existing structure, affording the Bush family much more living space.

Bush Homeplace

South Carolina Department of Archives and History, 1896

Interestingly, the nearby Ray family was hired to help with the construction of the masonry on the addition, and the name Jim Ray along with the date 1871 is etched in a stone block in the south chimney, and later the names J.B. Ray and J.D. Weston are found beside the date 1876 on the north chimney. Also legible on the north chimney are the initials B.F.B., presumably for Bibby Franklin Bush, son of Story.

Bush Homeplace

South Carolina Department of Archives and History, 1904

Bibby Bush acquired the home in 1852, and his mother remained in the house until her death in 1861. Bibby was a successful farmer and increased the acreage of the family farm from 43 to 1,155. The home is located on the former Old Blackstock Road, which at one time was the Yemassee Trail, a well-worn trading route that allowed merchants and farmers to trade goods with Native Americans. It was a prime spot for homesteaders to set up residency and sell their wares, and the location proved to be fruitful for the Bush family.

Bush Homeplace

Kwdavids of Wikimedia Commons, 2012

Bibby bush died in 1890, and his obituary in the Carolina Spartan reads, “The young farmers of the community will miss him, for in his death, a broad-minded, generous-hearted man and humble, trusting Christian has been taken away.” Today the home belongs to Bibby Bush’s great-granddaughter and her husband.

The Bush Homeplace is listed in the National Register, which adds the following:

(Bush Homeplace) The Bush House is an excellent example of an upcountry antebellum farmhouse that was enlarged to meet the changing needs of a prominent Spartanburg County family. The architecture and construction of the house is representative of an adaptable and expandable type of residence that was popular with rural homeowners during the nineteenth century. The characteristics of the original ca. 1830 hall-and-parlor structure are still evident with the two unequal rooms that served multiple functions and the exterior end chimney.

The house was enlarged ca. 1850 on one end and in a perpendicular fashion to include a two-story I-House by the mid-nineteenth century as the family expanded. The transformation of the hall-and-parlor house to a modified I-House is architecturally significant as an example of two architectural forms that were once prevalent in the rural upcountry. The Bush House has been continuously in the ownership of the Bush family or its descendants since ca. 1830. Story Bush and her three sons began working a farm that would eventually become one of Spartanburg County’s most significant farms in the nineteenth century, with approximately 1,115 acres under the ownership of her descendants. In addition to the main house, one historic outbuilding – a smokehouse – is extant.

Plan Your Trip: Bush Homeplace

Where is Bush Homeplace located?
Address: 3960 New Cut Road, Inman, SC 29349
GPS Coordinates: 35.022882,-82.084179
What else should I see?
Shiloh Methodist Church 0.4 mile
McMakin's Tavern 8.4 miles
Pacific Mills 9.1 miles
Lake Bowen 10.4 miles
Show me more like this!
  • See other South Carolina Historic Houses
  • See other South Carolina National Register
    Bush Homeplace Map

    Please Donate

    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 contribution, big or small, is so valuable. If you have enjoyed this page or found it helpful, please pitch in. Even donation helps – and it only takes a minute. Thank you!

    Support the SC Picture Project!

    $ 15.00
    Select Payment Method
    Personal Info

    Donation Total: $15.00

    Related posts:

    Walter Scott Montgomery House in Spoartanburg, South CarolinaWalter Scott Montgomery House Default ThumbnailMcMakin’s Tavern Default ThumbnailEvins-Bivings House Default ThumbnailSeay House Reidville Academy Faculty HouseReidville Academy Faculty House

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Linda says

      October 3, 2020 at 2:23 PM

      I pass this house everyday and with my granddaughter, and she loves to look at the horses. I myself just can’t stop looking at the beauty of the house itself.

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

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

    Primary Sidebar

    FIND A LANDMARK

    Your Email Here

    Help Keep This Site Online

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

    $ 15.00
    Select Payment Method
    Personal Info

    Donation Total: $15.00

    Recent Posts

    • Strand Theater
    • Camden Depot
    • Charleston City Marina
    • Secession Hill
    • Faris Store

    Our Sponsor

    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. If there is no link, contact us and we will do our best to help.

    SIGN UP

    Subscribe here to receive the “SC Photo of the Week” in your inbox! Each Tuesday, we highlight a different South Carolina landmark. Emails include the landmark’s history, its location and a map, and of course, incredible photos!

    South Carolina Picture Project © 2021 · All Rights Reserved