Spring Park Inn

In 2019 the Travelers Rest Historical Society was approached by the owner of the Spring Park Inn with a request to donate the historic home and its surrounding property to the historical society for restoration and preservation. Originally constructed before 1820, the Spring Park Inn served as a home and place of lodging for travelers on the Old Buncombe Road throughout the 19th century. With the establishment of the Swamp Rabbit Railway, the Inn hosted families from the low country escaping the heat and disease of summer on the coast. Mrs. Gibson was the last descendant of the Anderson family that had owned the home since 1873. The society accepted the property with an easement from Upstate Forever and a historic designation from the Greenville County Historic Preservation Commission to provide monitoring and oversight. The society worked with Preservation South to develop a plan for the restoration of the building based on its appearance in the late 19th century that would allow the building to serve multiple functions including an interpretive space showing it as the Spring Park Inn, a space for the display of the museum’s collections, and a space for community functions.

Following a significant fundraising effort, the project commenced using a large team of craftspeople to undertake the various detailed scopes. On the exterior, the building was scraped and prepped by hand and repainted in its historic color scheme, determined by historic photos and paint analysis. The roof was replaced with wood shingles on the front where it is visible from the Swamp Rabbit Trail, to match a section found in the attic, and asphalt shingles on the rear to conserve funds. The front porch was reconstructed based on historic photos, which were painstakingly scaled by contractor John Carrol to make sure the details were in proportion to the original. The historic windows were removed, refurbished, and reinstalled, and new shutters were constructed to match the originals. The chimneys were repaired with their original height restored, and the late 19th century lightning rod system was recreated to function.

On the interior, the kitchen and residential bathrooms were removed, and a catering kitchen and accessible bathrooms were installed. The carpet was removed, and the wide pine floors were refinished and carpet appropriate to the period was installed in some of the higher style rooms. All new MEP systems were installed, and period fixtures were sourced from as far away as Poland to be electrified and installed. Paint analysis of the interior was completed, and period replica wallpapers were selected to align with the historic color schemes. The papers were meticulously laid out and trimmed by Mario Russo, who graciously came out of retirement to assist his son's team in installing them based on the detailed interior plans. Antique furnishings included with the home's donation were retained and recovered in a period appropriate manner. The home is decorated with furnishings that are 85% original to the home.

The building, now protected and restored, will soon open its doors to visitors wishing to learn more about the history of Travelers Rest. It will once again serve as a hub for the community and a legacy of the generosity of Nell Anderson Gibson for her home.