Attractions
Heritage Gold Mine
Park Manager – Dave Gray
- Tour the mine and pan for gold
- Open by appointment April – October
- Open on 1st and 3rd Saturdays & Sundays 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (May – Oct)
Area resident William B. Dorn discovered gold here and developed this mine. which produced a yield of 200,000 in the first year of operation in 1853. The mine was later owned by Cyrus Hall McCormick, inventor of the reaper, for whom the town of McCormick is named. The mine operated at intervals until as late as the 1930s
Permits for panning in the National Forest through the National Forestry. For more information http://www.fs.usda.gov/scnfs/
For panning on Army Corp of Engineers land your permit must be obtained at the Strom Thurmond Visitors Center at the Dam. For more information, visit this site:
http://www.sas.usace.army.mil/About/DivisionsandOffices/OperationsDivision/JStromThurmondDamandLake.aspx
J.J. Dorn House
The J.J. Dorn House was built in 1917 and is currently owned by the Town of McCormick. Tours are available. The house is on the National Register of Historic Places. The first floor houses a museum that depicts the life-style of wealthy Southerners at the turn of the century. The house is on Gold Street two blocks east of Main Street. This historic home portrays the historic home of Joseph Jennings Dorn, former Senator of Sourth Carolina. Architect J. C. Hemphill, designer of many famous buildings; worked as a draftsman for Thomas Edison. For tour information, call 864-852-2225. Town of McCormick.
Thurmond Lake Office & Visitor Center
510 Clarks Hill Highway.
Clarks Hill, SC 29821
Phone:
864-333-1147
800-533-3478
For your convenience, the visitor center is open 7 days a week from 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. except for holiday closures, which take place on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day.
Willington On The Way
Willington On The Way is a non-profit organization dedicated to restoring and revitalizing the historic commercial district of Willington, S.C.
Learn more about Willington on the Way at this resource:
http://www.sciway.net/sc-photos/mccormick-county/willington.html
Guillebeau House
The Guillebeau House, a log cabin, which is the only remaining documented structure of the French Huguenots in the South Carolina upcountry. The house was built around 1770. The house was moved from Bordeaux to Hickory Knob State Park in McCormick County and restored. The historic preserved house is available to be rented and sleeps four (4). 864-391-2450-Hickory Knob State Park.
Dorn Mill and Gin
Built CA. 1898, this steam-powered mill employed a milling process pioneered earlier by inventor Oliver Evans which virtually eliminated manual labor. First known as the McCormick Enterprise Ginnery, the mill became Dorn-Finley Co. in 1917, its purpose “to operate and carry on an oil mill, cotton gin, and grist mill.” Dorn’s Mill closed in the 1940’s. Contains original steam engines and equipment (based on designs by Joseph Dart 1943) which were powered by sawdust and wood chips from Dorn Lumber Yard. 864-852-2835 McCormick County Chamber of Commerce.
Historic Train Depot
www.plantationquilts.com/SCWildsHeritageCenter_museum.html
McCormick Depot — The present one-story frame building is the third train depot in McCormick. This structure dates to 1911, following earlier depots built in 1882 and 1890. The building is a good example of many train stations constructed in South Carolina in the early twentieth century and highlights the impact of the railroad in McCormick’s development. In the 1880’s, McCormick became a rail center for the area and was a shipping point for timber and cotton. At one point, as many as eight trains a day came to McCormick.
