Skip to main content
Menu

Historic Columbia

search toggle

Donate
menu close

Historic Columbia

Donate
collapse

Navigation

  • Tours
    • House Tours
      • Robert Mills House and Gardens
      • Hampton-Preston Mansion and Gardens
      • Mann-Simons Site
      • The Museum of the Reconstruction Era
      • Modjeska Monteith Simkins House
      • Hours and Pricing
    • Garden Tours
      • Garden Database
      • Plant Sale
    • Offsite Tours
      • Bus Tours
      • Walking Tours
    • African American History Tours
    • Online Tours
    • Group Tours
  • Events
  • Education
    • Field Trips
      • House Tours
      • Bus Tours
      • Walking Tours
      • Early Adventures
    • Traveling Trunk
    • Homeschool Friday
    • Scout Troops
    • Summer Camp
    • Adult Education
  • Preservation
    • Current Projects and Initiatives
      • Bull Street Campus 
      • Columbia's Green Book Sites
      • Veterans Administration Regional Office
      • Women’s Club of Columbia
    • Preservation Awards
    • Resources for the Public
      • For Property Owners
      • For Neighborhoods
      • Take Action!
  • Support
    • Corporate Support
    • Donate
    • Membership
      • General Membership
      • Palladium Membership
      • Corporate Membership
    • Volunteer
    • Partners and Donors
  • Rent a Venue
    • Gardens of the Woodrow Wilson Family Home
    • Seibels House and Garden
    • Robert Mills Carriage House and Gardens
    • Gardens of the Hampton-Preston Mansion
    • Recommended Vendors
    • Contact Us
  • About
    • Blog
    • Board Members
    • Careers
    • Contact Us
    • Gift Shop at Robert Mills
      • Online Store
    • Local History
      • Columbia Jewish Heritage Initiative
    • Newsletter
    • Staff Directory
  • Frequently Asked Questions

1811 Gervais Street

Alston House

Built in 1872 for Caroline Alston, a prominent African American businesswoman, and her husband, John E. Alston, this one-story Greek Revival cottage once included an addition on the front that served as her retail grocery store until 1906.

Prior to emancipation, Alston’s family was enslaved by Colonel William Wallace just north of Columbia on a plantation that was later purchased by the South Carolina Lunatic Asylum. Her brothers included Edward B. Thompson, a prominent carpenter at the state asylum, and Reconstruction-era legislator, city council member, and judge Samuel Benjamin Thompson, whose daughter was Clarissa Minnie Thompson, South Carolina’s first female, African American novelist. Upon Alston's death in 1909, she left her entire estate to another niece, Carrie Thompson Davis, who soon moved to Ohio during the Great Migration, which took place from 1916 to 1970.  

  • C. Drie, Bird’s Eye View of the City of Columbia, S.C., 1872

    Alston House depicted in C. Drie's Bird’s Eye View of the City of Columbia, S.C., 1872. Image courtesy Library of Congress

34.0046795, -81.0234356

Newsletter Signup

newsletter signup

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter for events, news, and updates from Historic Columbia!

  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Flickr
Historic Columbia

© 2021 Historic Columbia

1601 Richland Street,
Columbia, SC 29201

(803) 252-7742
Website by Cyberwoven