Kenmure has a History of Generosity
"For some time now, I have been writing about Kenmure residents who make donating time for the good of others part of life. It has occurred to me that there is a definite history of generosity on our mountain." -- Galen Reuther
Galen has been kind enough to permit us to reprint the first of a series of articles that appeared in the KPOA newsletter dated October, 2009.
- Background: The Kenmure Country Club mansion was formerly Glenroy, the home of Dr. Mitchell Campbell King of Charleston, South Carolina.
We are fortunate enough to live in one of the most beautiful parts of the county, on land once part of the Argyle estate c1829, built by Judge Mitchell King, one of the earliest settlers of Flat Rock.
The judge gave large parcels of land to many of his children, one of which was his son Mitchell Campbell King, who would become a beloved county-wide physician. He attended Charleston College, the Medical College of South Carolina and the University of Gottingen in Germany.
Upon his return to Flat Rock, and to the land given to him by his father, he built The Cottage, a beautiful house reminiscent of German architecture, where he and his family spent summer months. Before long, the draw of his beloved mountains brought Dr. King home permanently, where he would build his Glenroy and practice medicine until he died.
Dr. King and his family lived in The Cottage while building Glenroy, designed by Freeman, a Scottish ship builder. Timbers for the house were cut and aged on the property, and when Glenroy was completed c1850, the estate included not only the main house but a beautiful little building, built into the hillside, that served as a medical office, as well as 23 outbuildings. The Cottage was placed on giant logs and rolled to its present location immediately to the south of Kenmure.
It is now Rutledge Cottage and under an historic easement with Historic Flat Rock, Inc. It will never be destroyed nor greatly altered.
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Dr. King treated many without payment
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Dr. King tended the sick with little regard to their ability to pay for his services. He traveled far and wide throughout the county when his patients could not come to Glenroy for treatment. At all hours, he could be seen traveling in his small buggy, pulled by one single black horse to wherever he was needed, always wearing his Confederate gray suit, especially tailored for him.
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Yellow fever epidemic hits Florida and
thousands recuperate in Henderson County |
In the summer of 1888, the worst yellow fever epidemic in memory broke out in Florida, especially around the Jacksonville area.
Dr. King had learned during his travels that yellow fever did not occur at higher elevations. He managed to convince the Hendersonville and Henderson County forefathers that it would be kind to invite those afflicted with the disease to come here to recuperate. Thousands did just that, and not one person died. Floridians continue to flock to our area in the summer months.
Glenroy stayed in the King family until 1924.