Pickens-Salley House history and present reparations
Student concerns about the complex history of the Pickens-Salley House on campus have been brought to Chancellor Dr. Sandra Jordan’s attention.
In response, the chancellor brought together a group of faculty, staff and students to reinterpret the story of the house.
The Pickens-Salley House was gifted to USC Aiken in 1989 and was known to be originally built in 1829.
South Carolina Gov. Andrew Pickens built the house for his son Francis Pickens the future governor. Francis Pickens was a member of a prominent South Carolina family known since the time of the American Revolution. He was a lawyer, a politician and a slave owner.
The house was known to be a hub for officials of the Confederacy during the Civil War. Mrs. Pickens was an author and a secessionist, and the only woman to appear on confederate currency. She became known as the “Queen of the Confederacy.” After the war, the Pickens family lost that all they owned except Edgewood.
Thirty years after Mrs. Pickens died, Eulalie Chaffee Salley bought the structure that was falling into decay. Salley was a nationally known champion of the women’s suffrage movement, a realtor and wife of the mayor of Aiken.
During the Great Depression, she had the house moved to the site of her grandfather’s first homesite in Aiken. She hired two architects to resurrect a Federalist Style House as an example of neoclassical architecture.
After Mrs. Salley’s death, Ronald Bolton purchased the property to develop. The building was on the National Register of Historic Buildings known as the Pickens House and was offered to USC Aiken as a gift. Thus, it was moved again.
With the faculty, staff and students’ recommendation, the chancellor’s office moved to the Penland Administration Building. After consulting with the historian the school learned while consulting with the historian were that the original house might not have been built in 1829 as reported, and the birth date of the original owner may have been 1805, not 1807.
Over the summer, USC Aiken staff erected a new sign renaming the building the “Alumni House.” The office of Economic Development has moved in now that the Chancellor’s office moved out.
“We are committed to making certain that the campus environment promotes hope, healing and the best aspects of the human spirit through the educational opportunities and resources available at the university,” said the Chancellor, “Please continue sharing your ideas on how we can make every aspect of our campus welcoming and inclusive.”
