Belle W. Baruch Institute for South Carolina Studies
The Belle W. Baruch Institute for South Carolina Studies is a center focused on education and research in the arts, humanities, as well as the social and behavioral sciences. Based on the property of Hobcaw Barony, the Institute is a cooperative project between Coastal Carolina University and Francis Marion University.
The Belle W. Baruch Institute for South Carolina Studies seeks to foster collaborative, transdisciplinary inquiry and education that enhances public understanding of Hobcaw’s past and present importance to our region, state, and nation. Located across Winyah Bay from Georgetown (South Carolina’s 3rd oldest city) with 16,000 acres to explore, Hobcaw is a unique site for academic research. In addition to serving as the home of Bernard and Belle W. Baruch for much of the early 20th century, still-visible shell middens, a segment of the original King’s Highway, family cemeteries, and other extant structures speak to the historical presence of Native American settlements, antebellum plantations, and African American communities, both enslaved and free.
Thanks to the generosity and foresight of Belle Baruch, the property has been preserved from development and remains a vibrant place for research and education in accordance with her will.
