1619 Pendleton Street
Cain-Matthews-Tompkins House
Also known as the Black House, this Eclectic style home with Tudor (chimney pots), Craftsman (exposed rafter tails) and Colonial Revival elements (windows and form), was built for John Jefferson Cain, a leading building contractor in Columbia, in 1911. The University of South Carolina bought the property in 1974 with the intent to demolish it, but eventually kept the structure after the community spoke out against its impending demise. The Black House now forms the historic core of the Graduate Columbia.
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![The Black House surrounded by the Inn at USC]()
Black House (center) and the Inn at USC, 2006. Historic Columbia collection
In 2006, Historic Columbia awarded the team effort between the university, preservationists, and the University Hill neighborhood with two preservation awards for the work on the Inn at USC. The work completed on the Black House earned an Adaptive Use award for retaining the historic character of the residence, including preserving the Honduran mahogany woodwork throughout the home, and successfully adapting it to its new use as the hotel's lobby.