This log cabin was built in the 1760s by my 6th great grandfather Andre Guillebeau. Along with a ship full of French Huguenots fleeing an environment hostile to their Calvinist faith, Guillebeau embarked upon a new life in South Carolina. Together, they formed a settlement near the Savannah River in 1764 and named it New Bordeaux. |
The new transplants set up vineyards for wine-making and also produced silk as two main industries. The town only endured for a couple of decades as the American Revolution turned these French immigrants into patriots ready to go out and defend their new homeland. Although Andre Guillebeau was one of the first of our French ancestors to settle in America, he was soon to join the local Bordeaux militia, serving as private and sergeant under Captain Joseph Bouchillon. This captain was possibly the father of Jean Bouchillon, who's son James later married Andre's daughter Susannah, and these two gave birth to John Bouchillon. We've looked a bit at John's life and friendship with my 3rd great grandfather Joseph White in a previous series of posts (click here).
Andre married Marie Jane Roquemore in 1766. She was also born in France and probably came along in the same ship with her mother Susannah. During their time in New Bordeaux, Andre built the log cabin home that still bears his name. Originally, the structure was in the area in which they settled but was later moved to nearby Hickory Knob State Resort Park in 1983. The home has been a point of interest for not just visitors to the property, but also historians and students of architecture in colonial America.
Andre married Marie Jane Roquemore in 1766. She was also born in France and probably came along in the same ship with her mother Susannah. During their time in New Bordeaux, Andre built the log cabin home that still bears his name. Originally, the structure was in the area in which they settled but was later moved to nearby Hickory Knob State Resort Park in 1983. The home has been a point of interest for not just visitors to the property, but also historians and students of architecture in colonial America.
The Guillebeau House was passed down through the family line for most of the 18th and 19th centuries. In 1972, the structure was granted inclusion on the National Register of Historical Places before being relocated to its present address as mentioned above.
Click the file below to see the whole four-page document, which includes a detailed description of the home as well as a statement of historical significance.
national_register__guillebeau_house_.pdf |
For a truly in-depth look at this house and its history, read Kenneth E. Lewis' fascinating hundred-page research work "The Guillebeau House: An Eighteenth Century Huguenot Structure in McCormick County, South Carolina" (1979). Click the file below to download.
the_guillebeau_house__an_eighteenth_century_huguenot_structure_in.pdf |