Dawkins, Judge Thomas, House

National Register Listing

Street Address:

Dawkins Court, N of E. Main St., Union, SC (Union County)

Alternate Name:

The Shrubs

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NRHP Nomination

Record Number:

S10817744007

Description and Narrative:

(The Shrubs) The Dawkins House, ca. 1845, served as the residence of Judge Thomas Dawkins, a well-known political leader in Union County. As a young lawyer who was a Unionist during the nullification controversy, Dawkins was surprisingly popular with his constituency. Despite his Unionist beliefs, he was elected to the state legislature. After the Civil War, Judge Dawkins served as a member of the state convention for the reorganization of the state government. In 1865, Dawkins was named to a committee that appealed to President Johnson for the release of Jefferson Davis, and in 1866 he served as chairman of the state judiciary committee of the House of Representatives. According to local tradition, the house was used for several days in February, 1865, as Governor Andrew G. Magrath’s headquarters for executing the affairs of the State. Governor Magrath had been forced to leave Columbia when General W. T. Sherman occupied and burned the city. The house is a two-story clapboard dwelling with a hipped metal roof. The five-bay wide veranda is enclosed by a balustrade and supported by six chamfered columns. Listed in the National Register April 23, 1973.

Period of Significance:

1865

Level of Significance:

Local

Area of Significance:

Politics/Government;Architecture

National Register Determination:

listed

Date of Certification:

April 23 1973

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