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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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720 Queen Street

Smith House

Joel A. Smith, Sr. and his wife Beulah Lever Smith built their impressive Queen Street residence in 1913. Here the couple and their six children maintained a small "farm" consisting of a barn, chicken coop, a pigeon flyer, and stables where they kept a horse and carriage. In 1921, the property received a unique addition- a miniature bungalow playhouse by Smith's company, Palmetto Lumber, which served as an entry in a Shriners Parade.

An extension to the electric trolley line in 1917 made Camp Jackson the final stop on the Shandon line. The influx of troops during the late 1910s in training for World War I led to the division of existing Shandon residences that were then rented to wives and families of soldiers. This trend was sustained by the Depression and the Second World War. 

 

  • 720 Queen Street

    720 Queen Street, 2018. Historic Columbia collection

  • palmetto lumber co

    Smith family playhouse, circa 1921. Image courtesy the Smith family

  • Joel A. Smith, Sr. and his wife Belulah Smith

    Joel A. Smith, Sr. and his wife Belulah Smith. Image courtesy the Smith family

  • Smith Children and Nanny

    Two of the Smith children, Natalie and Beulah, were photographed with an unidentified nanny from across Queen Street looking back toward the family's home, circa 1918. Image courtesy the Smith family

  • soldiers on woodrow street

    Here two military personnel, who rented rooms at the Smith house and "commuted" to Fort Jackson, pose for an unidentified photographer. Image courtesy the Smith family

  • Jane and Arnold Bultema

    Further soldiers and their wives came to call the Smith residence their temporary home during World War II. Jane and Arnold Bultema from Grand Rapids, Michigan stayed with the Smiths during 1943. Image courtesy the Smith family

  • violet and tony pinto

    The following year Violet and Tony Pinto boarded at the Queen Street residence. Image courtesy the Smith family

33.9992909, -81.0086228

NTHP Preservation Award Winner
Historic Columbia

© 2025 Historic Columbia

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1601 Richland Street
Columbia, SC 29201

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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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