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102 Southwood Drive

J. Carroll Johnson House

With an architecture degree from the Armour Institute of Technology, Swedish-born John Carroll Johnson accepted a position with the Columbia firm of Wilson, Sompayrac, and Urquhart in 1910. During his first decade in Columbia, Johnson designed many public works as well as over 30 houses within the Hollywood and Rose Hill neighborhoods. Johnson planned his residence, completed in 1925, with the unique feature of an attached garage, a new trend that became more prevalent with the automobile age. The stoop's turret-shaped roof is reminiscent of Norman architecture from which the gifted architect drew his inspiration Within two years of his coming to Columbia and working with Wilson, Sompayrac, and Urquhart in 1910, Johnson established a partnership with Urquhart. This arrangement led to a number of important commissions including Columbia High School (1915) and South Caroliniana Library (wings in 1927 and 1928) to name just two.

  • J. Carroll Johnson House

    102 Southwood Drive. Image courtesy South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina, Columbia

  • J. Carroll Johnson

    J. Carroll Johnson. Image courtesy Andy Chandler

  •  J. Carroll Johnson House

    The J. Carroll Johnson-designed home of local builder J. Stuart Rawls at 224 South Gregg Street stands shrouded in snow, circa 1958. Image courtesy Thelma Rawls

  •  J. Carroll Johnson House

    One of J. Carroll Johnson's most impressive accomplishments was his design of 21 Heathwood Circle for physician Robert E. Seibels in 1927. Image courtesy Bob Seibels

Johnson's legacy on residential design, while considerable within the Hollywood neighborhood, also reached into other Columbia neighborhoods, both in terms of new construction and in the rehabilitation of earlier buildings. Some of his most celebrated designs for new structures included commissions for the Senate Street house of Benjamin F. Taylor (1910-1912) and two houses for Dr. Robert E. Seibels in 1927 and 1933, respectively.

Andrew Chandler summarizes J. Carroll Johnson's distinctive style

33.988816, -81.017914

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Historic Columbia

© 2023 Historic Columbia

Administrative Offices
1601 Richland Street
Columbia, SC 29201

Tours
All historic house and garden tours start at the Gift Shop at Robert Mills.
1616 Blanding Street
Columbia, SC 29201

Questions? Call (803) 252-7742.

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