MIDDLEBURG PLANTATION The Benjamin Simons Family

3  Black & White

In the account of Orange Quarter, mention was made of the grants of  land in the vicinity to Benjamin Simons, the immigrant ancestor of that   family. These included 100 acres in 1697 and 350 acres in 1?04 which are considered to be part of Middleburg Plantation. A map prepared in 1913   by Judge H. A. M. Smith and. published in Volume 18 of The South   Carolina Historical Mugctzine shows the lands along the Eastern Branch of the Cooper River, Middleburg is shown on the River; next to Pompion Hill Church. East of it are Longwood Plantation (the 17th. Century-Ponkin Hill Plantation), and a small part of Quenby; on the south are the Club House tract, "The Camp" of Daniel Lesesne, and the Samuel Simons tract which was originally granted to de la Motte; on the west are Camp Vere and a back end of The Blessing.

Judge Srnith calls Middleburg "the starting place of the Simons family," and states that the above mentioned 1697 warrant for land is the first recorded reference to Benjamin Simons, who is not mentioned in any of the Huguenot lists. The name of the Plantation is said to have come from "Middleburg," an ancient provincial capital of Holland. Mr. John Gibbs of Charleston, whose interest in Pompion Hill Church and connection with Middleburg reminds me that the first Benjamin Simons,  like so many of the Huguenots in London, had nothing and, as a child, was taken into their family by Josias DuPre and his wife, Martha, with their "three sons and two daughters."

Benjamin Simons was married in 1692 to Mary Esther DuPre daughter of his benefactors.

According to the Simons family records as copied by A. S. Salley, fourteen children were born to this first Benjamin Simons and when he died on August 18, 1717, he left to his youngest son, Benjamin, 1,545 acres which made up Middleburg at that time. Judge Smith states that. this included the 100 acres originally granted to Nicholas de Longuemare in 1693/4,220 acres of a grant to John Aunant in 1703, 305 acres granted Simons in 1704 and 875 acres of a grant to him in 1705.

He recieved a number of grants in this section and accumlated a large estate.

The second Benjamin Simons was married twice, and of his fifteen children thirteen were living at the time of his death in 1772.  The acreage of Middleburg had increased to 1659 acres and it became the property of Benjamin the third, who had married Catherine Chicken.  He added to Middleburg until it contained 3,342 acres of which he sold the Camp Vere tract to John Bryan in 1785.

When Benjamin the third died in 1789; the 2,599 acres then remaining in the place went to his three daughters. Lydia, Mrs. Jonathan Lucas, received 774 acres including the house and most of the waterfront. Catherine, the wife of William Hort, received 768 acres of pineland and the remainder of the waterfront. This was referred to as Simons Ville but took the popular name of "Horts." Mary, Mrs. David Maybank, received 1,056 acres of pineland and inland rice land, which was known as "Smoky Hill."

"Horts" and "Smoky HiII" were owned for a time by John Bryan and were conyeyed in 1843 to W illiam J. Ball, and the Lucas part was added tothe others when John Coming Ball acquired all three parts of the 2,599 acres that had been owned by the third Benjamin Simons.

The nearest possible dating of the construction of the Middleburg house is found in the Bible record of the birth of the children. As copied by Mr. A. S. Salley, the record states that .the fourth child was born in December, 1697 in the house of "Maptica" but that "the fifth child is a girl born on Tuesday, 2lst. of April, 1699, at 6 o'clock in the evening in the house at Middleburg Plantation:" .

The house is credited with being the oldest surviving wooden dwelling house in South Carolina. The house is very simple with hipped roof and clapboarded walls and the original part followed the single line of three rooms. Projecting into the original rooms are the heavy corner posts and girts reminiscent of the century in which it was constructed. The porches and exterior rooms are considered l8th. century additions. This early example of the "single house" used local materials and took advantage of any breeze by placement of doors and windows.

A large Crepe Myrtle and the "Allee" of large Japonica trees have received national notice. In May, 1970, Secretary of the Interior, Walter J. Hickel announced that Middleburg was among nine buildings in South Carolina eligible for designation as national historic landmarks, which fact had been recognized by Harold Ikes in the 1930's.

Until recent years Middleburg continued in the possession of descendants of the builder. During the long ownership of Mrs. Edward von Siebold Dingle, the Dingles made their home at Middleburg and Mr. Dingle achieved fame there as a painter of our Berkeley County birds.

Notes on the Simons FamilyLand Grant Simons FamilySimons Family BibleMilitary Records of The Simons Family and Their Connections

Information and Article from "Historic Ramblin's Through Berkeley"  written by and used with permission of Mr. J. Russell Cross