York County · Marker 46-67
Brick House
Brattonsville Rd. and Percival Rd., McConnells
Front inscription
In 1841, Dr. John S. Bratton began construction of a new, all-brick two-story house at Brattonsville. Completed c.1843, the Greek Revival building housed the Brattonsville Store and Post Office. A two-story rear frame section was added c.1855 to house the Brattonsville School. Napoleon Bratton took over the store by 1870 and constructed a new store building c.1885. It closed in 1915.
Lynching of Jim Williams
In March 1871, York Co. Ku Klux Klan members, led by Dr. J. Rufus Bratton, lynched black militia Capt. James Williams, hanging him from a tree near his home 1.5 miles away. His body was carried to the Brick House the next day where a coroner’s inquest was held. The murder was part of a wave of Reconstruction-era Klan violence that led to a declaration of martial law in nine S.C. counties.