The Middleton Place foundation

Stewardship, Stories, and Shared Legacy

The Middleton Place Foundation is dedicated to preserving the history, landscape, and living traditions of one of America’s most significant landmarks. Established as a not-for-profit educational trust, the Foundation works to nurture history, inspire discovery, and connect people to the layered narratives that define our collective past.

Designated a National Historic Landmark, Middleton Place reflects centuries of triumph, struggle, and transformation. The Foundation preserves the gardens, architecture, and stories of all who shaped this place, including the Middleton family and the generations of enslaved Africans and African Americans whose resilience and contributions continue to influence the nation.

Through immersive storytelling, engaging programs, and thoughtful stewardship, the Foundation ensures that Middleton Place remains both a source of learning and a space for reflection, where history informs the present and inspires the future.

House Museum

The South Flanker, now the House Museum, stands as a place to honor the generations of enslaved Africans and African Americans whose labor, skill, and resilience shaped Middleton Place. Their stories, alongside those of the Middleton family who lived here, are shared through portraits, furnishings, and artifacts that span more than three centuries. Within these walls, visitors are invited to reflect on a history of beauty and brutality, and to recognize the lives that built, endured, and transformed this place.

Explore the House Museum

Garden Nursery and Museum Shops

The Shops at Middleton Place feature handcrafted goods, books, garden items, and artisan-made pieces that reflect the history and traditions of this place. Blacksmiths, potters, coopers, and regional makers keep heritage skills alive through their work, offering visitors meaningful ways to connect with the past. Proceeds directly support the Middleton Place Foundation and its mission.

Shop at Middleton Place

Stableyards

In the Stableyards, visitors encounter the skilled work of enslaved artisans who forged tools, wove cloth, crafted pottery, and tended livestock that sustained plantation life. Heritage breeds of cattle, sheep, goats, horses, and more live here as living echoes of that past, animals once cared for under the hands of those whose names are largely unrecorded. Through costumed interpreters and demonstrations, the Foundation honors those lives, restoring visibility to the labor and legacy that continue to shape this place.

Step Into the Stableyard

Honoring a Family’s Journey

Moro Brewer

Born enslaved at Middleton Place around 1821, Moro Brewer’s life carried both hardship and resilience. He and his wife Rachel raised twelve children, building family and community even under oppression. During the Civil War, Moro endured violence after Union soldiers forced him to reveal where valuables were hidden, yet he persevered through emancipation to create a new life in Charleston. Taking the surname Brewer, he worked to support his family, saw his children step into freedom, and left a legacy of strength that continues to be remembered today.

Discover more stories Moro Brewer

A Home of Memory and Reckoning

Eliza's House

Eliza’s House, a freedmen’s dwelling constructed during Reconstruction, houses the permanent Beyond the Fields exhibit, which gives voice to the thousands of African and African American men, women, and children who were enslaved at Middleton Place. At its heart is a panel bearing over 2,800 names recovered through years of foundational research. Named for its final resident, Eliza Leach, the house opened as a museum in 1991 as part of a commitment to tell the full story of this land—especially the stories that were once silenced.

Visit Eliza's House Eliza's House

A Life Spanning Generations

Annette Mayes

Born at Middleton Place around 1846, Annette Mayes lived through slavery, Reconstruction, and into the 20th century. She married Smart May, raised a family, and continued her life at Middleton Place across three generations. Renowned for her talent as a chef, Annette was part of a long lineage of African American culinary savants whose creativity, knowledge, and artistry shaped Southern cuisine and influenced dining traditions across the world. She was even featured in National Geographic in 1926. Annette passed away in 1940 at the age of 94, leaving behind a legacy of resilience and mastery remembered by her children, grandchildren, and all who knew her.

Discover more stories Annette Mayes

Reserve My Stay

The Restaurant at Middleton Place

Stewardship, Stories, and Shared Legacy