Beech Island in Aiken County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Farm Equipment in the Twentieth Century
Photographed by Benjamin Rubin, October 5, 2025
1. Farm Equipment in the Twentieth Century Marker
When John Shaw Billings III purchased Redcliffe in 1935, the mansion and outbuildings weren't the only things he changed. He also purchased farm equipment to meet the needs of the nearly four-hundred-acre site. This display shows an antique disc plow, hay wagon, disc harrow, and belt-driven saw that were used by Redcliffe's caretakers as early as the 1930s.
The caretakers who used this equipment were paid African-American staff, mainly the Henley and Larke families. Both the Henleys and Larkes were descendants of enslaved people. Their families were stewards and residents of former Hammond plantations for over a century.
(captions)
James "Jim" Henley (c. 1910-1989) on an Oliver Tractor and Messiah Larke (c. 1877-1938) near the attached disc plow. Jim was an employee at Redclife, Messiah regularly worked at Kathwood, another of James Henry Hammond's former plantations.
New shed built onto the stables in 1937 to house farm equipment. The belt-driven saw is in the back left corner.
All images from the John Shaw Billings Online Photograph Album Collection. Courtesy of South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina, Columbia, S.C.
Follow this QR Code to see Dennis, William, and Jim Henley using the belt-driven saw, tractor, and hay wagon.
Erected by
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Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Agriculture • Parks & Recreational Areas. A significant historical year for this entry is 1935.
Location. 33° 25.184′ N, 81° 52.126′ W. Marker is on Beech Island, South Carolina, in Aiken County. It can be reached from Redcliffe Road 0.3 miles west of Hammond Road, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 187 Redcliffe Rd, Beech Island SC 29842, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Greater Augusta and in the Midlands. 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 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Redcliffe Plantation (approx. 0.3 miles away); Historic Church (approx. half a mile away); Downer Institute & School / Downer School, 19241986 (approx. half a mile away); Beech Island Baptist Church (approx. 0.7 miles away); Silver Bluff Baptist Church (approx. 1½ miles away); Savannah Town / Fort Moore (approx. 2.7 miles away); Signal Corps Aviation School (approx. 5.2 miles away in Georgia); Storm Branch Baptist Church (approx. 5.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Beech Island.
Another marker is no longer nearby. Beech Island Agricultural Club (was approx. 0.4 miles away but has been confirmed missing).
Credits. This page was last revised on October 10, 2025. It was originally submitted on October 7, 2025, by Benjamin Rubin of Columbia, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 100 times since then and 21 times this year. Photo 1. submitted on October 7, 2025, by Benjamin Rubin of Columbia, South Carolina. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
