Florence in Florence County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Frank Mandeville Rogers Jr.
⎯⎯⎯
Florence Tobacco Warehouse Company
Photographed by Dave W, May 4, 2023
1. Frank Mandeville Rogers Jr. side of marker
Frank Mandeville Rogers Jr. Frank Mandeville Rogers Jr. (1857-1945) of Florence Co. was influential in the introduction of Bright Leaf Tobacco in S.C. In 1884-85, he raised, cured, and sold a plot of tobacco on his Mars Bluff plantation, proving its potential to replace cotton as S.C.'s top cash crop. Rogers built a tobacco factory on Day St. and led efforts to open S.C.'s first tobacco auction warehouse, helping revitalize S.C.'s agricultural market economy.
Florence Tobacco Warehouse Company. The first auction in S.C. of flue-cured tobacco occurred on this site in Oct. 1891 at the Florence Tobacco Warehouse. Nearly 300 people attended. Before the Warehouse, Pee Dee farmers had to ship their crop to N.C. and Va. to sell. Other local markets opened soon after. By 1900, the Pee Dee produced over 90 percent of S.C.'s annual 20 million pound tobacco crop, leading The State to call the plant, "the Pearl of the Pee Dee."
Erected 2019 by Florence County Museum. (Marker Number 21-48.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Industry & Commerce. A significant historical month for this entry is October 1891.
Location. 34° 12.041′ N, 79° 45.912′ W. Marker is in Florence, South Carolina
this page online
Regionally, this marker is in South Carolina’s Pee Dee. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Deep South. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Historic Downtown African American Business District (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Trinity Baptist Church (approx. 0.2 miles away); Civil Rights Sit-Ins (approx. Ό mile away); James Allen (approx. Ό mile away); The Original Site of The Wayside Hospital (approx. 0.3 miles away); The Lorax: Unless (approx. 0.3 miles away); Bell, Florence City Hall (approx. 0.3 miles away); Swept yards (approx. 0.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Florence.
Photographed by Dave W, May 4, 2023
2. Florence Tobacco Warehouse Company side of marker
Photographed by Dave W, May 4, 2023
3. Frank Mandeville Rogers Jr. / Floreence Tobacco Warehouse Company Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on January 19, 2026. It was originally submitted on May 5, 2023, by Dave W of Co, Colorado. This page has been viewed 442 times since then and 36 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on May 5, 2023, by Dave W of Co, Colorado. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
