FIND OUT WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE A REAL PARANORMAL INVESTIGATOR!
INTIMATE EVENING WITH TOBY AND TONI HARTFORD OF AFTERLIFE PARANORMAL. 6 GUESTS ONLY, PRIVATE ROOM W/BATH, GOURMET DINNER, REAL GHOST HUNT WITH PARANMORMAL EQUIPMENT IN YOUR HANDS, TARROT CARD READING, PARANORMAL GOODY BAG AND BREAKFAST IN THE MORNING IN ONE OF SOUTH CAROLINA'S MOST HAUNTED LOCATIONS! (EACH TICKET IS FOR 2 PEOPLE PER ROOM.) THIS IS A NON ALCOHOL EVENT FOR THE RESPECT OF ALL.
There are said to be 10 spirits, energy forces, or ghosts that share the Inn at Merridun. These include men, women, children, Native Americans and a white dog. The inn has more recent history of unusual happenings and occasional sightings, and the resident cat talks to "someone" frequently
Merridun, an antebellum mansion listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is surrounded by shady oaks and century old magnolias and is located in the gently rolling upstate region of South Carolina. The nine-acre property is located in the tranquil community of Union, South Carolina. The mansion, although very secluded, is only 3-4 blocks from the main section of downtown Union.
Now one of the most regal homes in this city of colonnaded mansions, the originally Georgian styled house was built in 1855-57 by William Keenan, a local merchant and {also intendant (mayor) of Union} in 1855. The property at that time included 4000 acres and was known as Keenan Plantation.
The house and property were acquired in 1876 by Benjamin H. Rice, a local Union lawyer. He had inherited a plantation in the Buffalo area known as Pleasant Grove, which adjoined the Keenan property. At the time of purchase, the house in Union became their town home on this 8000 acre estate; cotton was the main industry of the plantation. Some major renovations were done to the home in the early 1880's.
In the Early 1880's Thomas Cary Duncan (1862-1928), son of Bishop W.W. Duncan and Medora Rice Duncan, moved to Union to live and work with his grandfather, B.H. Rice. In 1885 T.C. Duncan brought his bride Fannie Merriman (1863-1948) of Greenwood, SC to live in Union. T.C. Duncan inherited the house from his maternal grandparents and renamed it "Merridun"- a combination of three family names that graced this ancestral home (Merriman, Rice, Duncan).
In 1893 T.C. Duncan, almost single-handedly restored Union to its former position of wealth and prestige by introducing the textile industry to the city. He built the first successful cotton mill within sight of this mansion. A political and industrial leader, he served in the South CarolinaHouse of Representatives from 1892-94 and 1916-18 and is also responsible for constructing the mill in Buffalo, Union's B.U.C. Railroad and hydro-electric plant.
After inheriting Merridun T.C. Duncan "remodeled" giving the originally patterned Georgian style exterior its characteristics of the classic revival style. The original plain double piazza's with doric columns were replaced with corinthian columns and side wing marble porticos were added, resulting in over 2400 square feet of porch space.
The 7900 square feet Georgian floor plan includes a stunning curved staircase, large foyers on both floors, a music room, parlor, library, dining room, kitchen, 7 bedrooms, multiple bathrooms, and a third story cupola. A brick wing behind the main house once was used as servant's kitchen, well, laundry house, quarters and a smoke house. The carriage barn, located behind the brick wing, still houses the Duncan's carriage; plans for restoration are underway. Unique architectural aspects of this mansion include frescoed ceilings in the music room and dining room, mosaic tiles and turn of the century stenciling and faux graining in the main foyer and beautiful chandeliers.
T.C. and Fannie Duncan had 2 sons (both died at a very young age) and 3 daughters: Medora Eleanor Duncan Fitten (1887-1960), Louisa Merriman Duncan Eaves (1890-1975), Fannie Merriman Duncan (1897-1974). Medora married and moved to Atlanta; Louisa and Fannie lived at Merridun until their deaths. Louisa's only son, Thomas Cary Duncan Eaves and his wife Juliet Caruana Eaves, inherited Merridun; seven generations of the Benjamin Rice family enjoyed the pleasures of Merridun prior to being sold in the summer of 1990. Portraits of Thomas Cary Duncan and his wife, Fannie Merriman Duncan hang in the foyer and parlors.
