Magnolia Plantation Gardens located about 10 miles outside Charleston.  According to the Magnolia Plantation's website:

"Many myths surround the destruction of the plantations along the Ashley River Road. One is that Sherman burned them; however, General Sherman never brought his army to Charleston, rather he went on towards Columbia from Savannah and never came through Charleston. It was Federal troops from the Army of the South that had been laying siege to Charleston the previous years that marched into Charleston when it fell.
As for the plantations, certainly some plantations, such as Middleton Place, were burned by Union forces, but under orders and not in some uncontrolled rampage. Union soldiers enlisted the help of former slaves whenever possible, and recent research suggests that Magnolia Plantation’s main house was destroyed by both soldiers and slaves.

In October of 1865, Reverend Grimke’s mother wrote him a letter from Charleston keeping him abreast of the news while he was in Flat Rock, North Carolina. In the letter she talks about how West Ashley had been taken over by the former slaves and she states:
“I do not think the negroes will allow any white man to remain there again.  It is believed your house was burned by your own negroes as well as some others.”

However, the real heart and soul of Magnolia Plantation, the beautiful gardens, remained fairly intact. It would be these gardens that would revive Magnolia Plantation and help it grow into the future."

© Mike Lynaugh