Piece of local history comes tumbling down
'This is a tremendous loss for the county. I am very disappointed to see it go.'
By JOE L. HUGHES II Ledger Staff Writer joe@gaffneyledger.com

"Meadowbrook" before it fell into disrepair and (RIGHT) in the middle of being demolished to make room for a shopping center.

History has often been known to repeat itself, with at least one scholar proclaiming that "those who do not know their past, will not know their future."

One of the pieces of Gaffney and Cherokee County's distant past fell victim to progress this week as the Meadowbrook home on Floyd Baker Boulevard was demolished to make way for a shopping center.

Meadowbrook was built by slave labor in 1852 for Henry G. Gaffney, the son of the city's founding father, Michael Gaffney. It was the last bit of property directly linked to the Gaffney family.

"This is a tremendous loss for the county," Jane Waters, president of the Cherokee County Historical and Preservation Society (CHAPS) said. "I am very disappointed to see it go."

During the Civil War, the structure was a place of refuge for Confederate soldiers who rested there before rejoining the battles on the front lines.

The two-story antebellum home was similar to those built during the mid-1800s, with inch-thick solid boards and large pillars welcoming visitors to the front door. The bricks in the fireplaces were made on-site.

Only three families were able to own the home - the Gaffneys, the Hugginses and most recently the Webbs. Less than seven years ago, the structure was listed by the state's Department of Archives and History as one of four sites noteworthy for its historical significance and its status listed as "severely threatened."

Waters and others in the community tried to save the structure, but those efforts were in vain.

"We tried for six years to save the house," Waters said. "But everyone does not share the same interest that we do for treasures such as the old Henry Gaffney home."

Though the home has been torn down, many of its artifacts are being collected in order for the home to be remembered for years to come.

"By salvaging these artifacts we can show our history and how we came to this point," Waters said. "But it still hurts to lose a large chunk of our county's past."