Once Abandoned And Left To Decay, The Darlington Post Office In South Carolina Has Been Restored To Its Former Glory
By AnneMarie|Published April 17, 2023
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AnneMarie
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South Carolina has been home for AnneMarie since 2001. Her favorite part of the state is Lake Jocassee. An App State alumna, it's always the mountains; the lake bonus makes it heavenly. When not writing about the state, she may be spending time with family, relaxing by the pool, or out somewhere enjoying nature.
In 1912, a new post office was built in Darlington to better serve the needs of the growing community. The lot on Pearl Street had been proposed as a possible location by its owner, Ida Jeffords, and her requested sales price was $2,500. She ended up receiving $1,500 from the government for it instead. After 89 years of delivering mail in Darlington, a new post office was built across the street from the Darlington County School District and the Pearl location closed. It sat mostly vacant since then, in 2001, until 2019 when this building was purchased by Darlington County Coroner Todd Hardee and his family to preserve and repurpose it into an incredible event venue in South Carolina.
You can see that it was starting to show signs of deterioration before the restoration project began, which has transformed the space into a beautiful performance and event venue.
It's always amazing to see what a little love shown to an old property can do. In May 2021, a horse-drawn carriage parked in front for the prom at The Grand Old Post Office. What a cool place for a prom!
The sign out front was hand-painted by Jimmy Jolly, a local sign shop. Also in front of the building are foot markers in loving memory of Earle B. Wilson Jr. (1927-2018) and James Whitfield “Whit” Lee (1920-2008), two dedicated U.S. Postal Service employees who served in the facility and who surely would have loved to have seen this building repurposed and preserved for years to come.
Around the corner from where the post office counter was located, there's a display box showing the postal rates from 2001 that has been preserved. There wasn’t much left from the time the building was the post office, but this piece of memorabilia survived so they decided to leave it. People have enjoyed looking at it and seeing how the rates have changed over the years.
Other pieces in the lobby also came from there or from Pageland Antique Mall. During the half-million-dollar renovation, great care was taken to make sure everything selected either had a story or was local.
Around the corner from where the post office counter was located, there's a display box showing the postal rates from 2001 that has been preserved. There wasn’t much left from the time the building was the post office, but this piece of memorabilia survived so they decided to leave it. People have enjoyed looking at it and seeing how the rates have changed over the years.
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This is a perfect room for getting ready for a performance or big event.
Take a look at the detail of that stunning chandelier ... gorgeous! Blaine Eads, Executive Director of the Grand Old Post Office, said the goal in the renovation effort was "to give the community something to be proud of."
Aside from these basic decor details, the best part about the restoration work here is the incredible mural in the hallway, capturing a moment in the history of this building and the important work that happened inside. Reba Marlowe poses by the picture of her father, Whit Lee, who worked at the original Post Office. You'll find this mural as you come in the side door entrance facing Dargan Street.
And now for the main area inside the building, a spacious 3,600-square-foot ballroom space. There are two televisions and a projector that shows the stage to ensure that wherever one is in the ballroom they can see and hear everything that is happening on the stage.
Throughout the building, effort was made to keep everything timeless so it would still have a historic feel, while also being very elegant. The desire was for people to be able to remember how it looked when they walk in, but see its new beauty with modern touches.
The venue is perfect for all types of events with a capacity of 200 seated and 299 standing. Round, rectangular, high top tables, and chiavari chairs are included in the rental packages.
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Whatever the occasion, the Grand Old Post Office team will help to ensure an unforgettable event.
The front lobby, for example, is perfect for intimate cocktail hours, a standing room only setting that will accommodate up to 25 people. There's also a podcast studio equipped with everything you need to record your own podcast.
What do you think about this former post office turned event venue in South Carolina? Are you aware of another great building in our state that’s been restored? Nominate it and we’ll check it out for a potential feature in the future.
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