Joe McGill Plans His Third Slave-Cabin Sleepover
June 15, 2010
Next Stop James Island’s McLeod Plantation on June 19
CHARLESTON, SC – For the third time in two months, historic preservationist Joseph McGill will spend the night in a former slave cabin.
On the night of Saturday, June 19, McGill will sleep in a cabin at McLeod Plantation on James Island, South Carolina.
McGill, a program officer with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, is bringing attention to efforts to save these old dwellings because they are a significant part of the “built environment” that tells the story of the African-American experience in the Palmetto State.
Kitty Robinson, executive director of Historic Charleston Foundation, said, Since its acquisition of McLeod Plantation in 1992, HCF has long realized the importance of the property in telling the story of African Americans. With its intact slave cabins and agricultural buildings, McLeod tells the story of those who worked here, lived here, fought and died here during the Civil War, and came here as Freedmen to begin new lives after Emancipation. We are so pleased to have Joe McGill bring even further attention to HCF’s initiatives to preserve these landmarks for future generations.
McGill’s journey began May 8, at Magnolia Plantation and Gardens. He has also visited Heyward House in Bluffton. McGill has identified four other cabins where he will occupy. His schedule includes:
Goodwill Plantation, Columbia, S.C., Saturday, June 26
Hobcaw Barony, Georgetown, S.C., Saturday, July 24
Friendfield Plantation, Georgetown, S.C., unscheduled
Morris Street, Anderson, S.C., unscheduled
In 2000, McGill spent the night in a cabin at Boone Hall Plantation as part of a documentary that aired on the History Channel.
For more information, follow these links:
http://www.islandpacket.com/2010/05/21/1246945/five-minutes-with-joseph-mcgill.html?story_link=email_msg
http://blogs.nationaltrust.org/preservationnation/?p=10164
http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2010/may/08/project-seeks-to-save-slave-cabins
http://www.wciv.com/news/stories/0510/734165.html
