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Drayton Hall, 18th-century estate in the Charleston, South Carolina Lowcountry, is vital to our understanding of early American history. Voted the Best Place to See by Condé Nast Traveler. Visit
Drayton Hall is an 18th-century plantation house located on the Ashley River about 15 miles (24 km) northwest of Charleston, South Carolina, and directly across the Ashley River from North Charleston, west of the Ashley in the Lowcountry.
Founded in 1738, Drayton Hall is the nation’s earliest example of fully executed Palladian architecture and the oldest preserved plantation house in America still open to the public. Because of our preservation philosophy, all imperfections and changes over time have survived to the present.
Drayton Hall is dedicated to interpreting a complete history of Drayton Hall, including the lives of both the enslaved and the planter class. The Draytons were slave owners, and slavery is part of the history of Drayton Hall.
Drayton Hall is the oldest and only preserved and accurate plantation house that can be visited and toured in Charleston. The house, which you can tour daily from 9 am to 3 pm, is c. 1738. Drayton Hall has not been restored and the museums galleries are the best plantation house museums to visit in Charleston.
Drayton Hall is the nation’s finest and earliest example of fully executed Palladian architecture and its double portico is acclaimed as the first of its kind in the world.
For more than 250 years, Drayton Hall has stood witness to the American South. Among the best and most complete examples of Southern colonial life open to the public today, the property holds a vital educational responsibility.
