Berners Barnwell Sams

• Dawtaw Island -

1800s - Sams' two sons divided up the entire island. Berners Barnwell Sams occupied the original plantation house. Lewis Reeve Sams built a new home, the archaeological evidence of which still remains on the Morgan River shore

1861 - The tragedy of the WBTS brought an abrupt end of this idyllic chapter of history for Beaufort County. The Union Army occupied the entire area, and the planters' holdings were seized as "abandoned" and distributed to former servants and soldiers. The rich left the area. The Golden Age came to a tragic end.

1876 - The buildings of the Sams Plantation on Dataw were destroyed by an fire. Today, the tabby ruins are being carefully preserved, as part of the development of Dataw.

Berners Barnwell Sams House, 310 New Street. Built in 1818 by Dr. Berners Barnwell Sams with the help of local labor, it served as a hospital during the WBTS. Sams also built a house on Laurens Street.

Berners Barnwell Sams House, 201 Laurens Street. Built in 1852, the second of two houses built by Dr. Berners Barnwell Sams. It was used as a military hospital.