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The Hampton-Preston Mansion and Gardens is closed on Sunday, May 18. All other sites and tours will run as scheduled, including Free Sunday at the Museum of the Reconstruction Era.

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625 Main Street

J. A. Byrd Mercantile

Constructed about 1910, the J.A. Byrd Mercantile building represents the commercial history of a small rural town. Built as a general merchandise store for Julian A. Byrd, who also founded the Farmers and Merchants Bank next door in the early 1910s, Byrd’s main customers came from the large cotton producing farms around the area. The structure was rendered in the Beaux Arts style, an architectural movement popularized in the United States during the 1890s through early 1900s, which incorporated classical elements such as rusticated masonry, ionic columns and decorative stone work with a modern twist.

  • J.A. Byrd Mercantile Building, February 1993

    J.A. Byrd Mercantile Building, February 1993. Image courtesy South Carolina Department of Archives and History, State Historic Preservation Office

33.877779494636, -80.695388583329

NTHP Preservation Award Winner
Historic Columbia

© 2025 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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