St. Paul Liberty Hill House (built 1940)

Historic Liberty Hill House sits in the heart of what is now little more than a peaceful & scenic wide spot in the road in Clarendon County, South Carolina known as St. Paul. Now found on the outskirts of the town of Summerton, St. Paul and the surrounding areas are richly steeped in both Civil War and Civil Rights & Desegregation history.


Elevated at 90 feet above sea level, the area became popular in the mid-1800’s among plantation owners seeking reprieve from the intensely concentrated mosquito & insect populations on the banks of the Santee River. The elevation, being considerable in what is famously known as the “Lowcountry” of South Carolina, provided better breezes, less stifling humidity and, most importantly, an escape from the low-lying swamp areas, then widely associated with malaria. The area became known as a health retreat and popular summer destination, hence it’s original designation of “Summer Town”, shortened later to the present Summerton.