" Drayton Hall is probably the finest example of Georgian Palladian architecture that you find anywhere in the country. It was built in 1738 by the Drayton family, and it survives intact to this day. Very interesting story is that during the civil war, when the union army was burning and destroying much of the south, Dr. John Drayton who owned the house posted yellow flags indicating that this was a smallpox hospital, and of course the army never came close. Today, Drayton Hall is open to the public. It's owned by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. And Kathy Jenkins, the Director of Public Relations, is gonna be our tour hostess. Let's get started. Well, Kathy we're really looking forward to a tour of Drayton Hall."

" I was very glad to have you here, Bob, but first, I feel like I should clarify something you said earlier."

" Uh huh."

" Dr. John Drayton at that time who posted the house as a smallpox hospital, that story comes to us through a family legend. It's a good story, but we're not really sure. That's why I'm not----"

" It's great legend, though."

" Yeah."

" Listen, what is it about this house that qualifies it as Georgian Palladian architecture?"

" It is Georgian as in the reign of King George the Second of England, and it was the style popular then."

" So that anchors it in time?"

" Right, and then Palladian, as in the sixteenth century Italian architect Andrea Paladio, Paladio, and his style was based on symmetry and proportion."

" Uh huh. So that if we look at this house, it is indeed bilateral symmetry. It's the same on the left as on the right. Tell us a little bit about the whole detail."

" Right."

" First of all, the portico, which is a porch with a pediment on top, and we see here a double-chaired portico."

" Yeah."

" The first example of its type."

" Yeah."

" You also might look at the column. It gives you an idea of Roman Classical architecture. If you look at the capitals and it shows you the importance of the post of that area."

" What about the other facade?"

" Well, Drayton Hall is wonderful for another reason because it has 2 magnificent fronts. What we're looking at is what would have been the front of the house when travel in the 18th century would have been by a river, and this is the Ashley River. Travel would have been faster by a river at that point."

" Uh huh."

" This facade is more Georgian in nature, although it has Palladian features. If you look at the heavily ornamented pediments over the windows."

" Indeed. And what about the brickwork?"

" It is laid in a Flemish bond pattern, which is alternating headers and stretchers. I believe the bricks would have been made of [unk]."

" Wonderful."

" Shall we go inside?"

" Let's do."

" Great."

" Tell us about the floor plan of the house."

" Well, the symmetry is carried out throughout the floor plan. This is based on a central great hall with 2 rooms on either side that are symmetrically upstairs [unk]."

" And the woodwork in this great hall is unbelievable."

" It really is. It's all hand carved on a yellow poplar. The mantel and [unk] as well as the features up above. The walls are solid sheets of old cypress."

" Uh huh."

" It was considered a secondary wood, so it was always painted."

" Is this the original paint job?"

" No, it's not. This is a second paint job in the house."

" In 200 years, only 2 groups of paint?"

" Right."

" Amazing. What about the ceilings?"

" Let me show you the finest ceiling in the house."

" Okay."

" Tell us how that ceiling was made."

" Okay. It was [unk] that was done in the 1600s, so it's an original ceiling to the house. So that's about 1742, and it's carved out on wet plaster."

" So, it was not molded. It's actually made in [unk]."

" Right. That was actually hand carved. That's one and the only carved ceilings like it in the country today."

" Gorgeous. And I'm looking at this bricked up doorway and wondering what the story is."

" Right. This is a sand door. It was here just for balance of the other door."

" Oh, so it wasn't bricked up to help the structure of the house with brick walls on the interior?"

" Right. There was never anything behind that door. It's just there for balance."

" A door is missing, but it was just there again for the symmetry."

" Where is the grand staircase?"

" Let's go look at it. So, it's a double staircase?"

" Right. This is one half of the double staircase."

" And it's amazing that after 200 years. If this is the original wood, it's never been painted."

" Well, you would have painted it. This is rare wood that was imported from the West Indies."

" Mahogany, yeah."

" Right."

" Of course, the house not ever having been heated or, you know, that's one of the reasons probably that it survived."

" Right."

" What's the height of the ceiling here?"

" 27 feet high."

" Amazing. And what's over here?"

" Let's step up and take a closer look at it."

" Why a bridge?"

" This bridge was built to expand the floor as we continue to study the ceiling and stabilize it and also this ballroom flooring."

" The structure is just too weak to support much traffic here, right?"

" That's right. We have over 60,000 visitors a year and this house wasn't built for that."

" This is neat. It's a suspension bridge, isn't it?"

" It sure is. It's the only one like it in the country today, and in fact, it's one in world."

" Really?"

" Yeah."

" It's wonderful. Well, I love that vista with a big live oak tree and the Spanish moss. It's just gorgeous."

" Beautiful, isn't it?"

" How much land do you have with the house?"

" The National Trust for Historic Preservation along with the State of South Carolina owns over 650 acres."

" That's great. So not only is the Trust preserving Drayton Hall but also a lot of open green space. "

" Right. And for those who do not know, the National Trust for Historic Preservation is a nonprofit, non-government organization that's dedicated to preserving America's last culture and architectural heritage."

" Indeed it is. Thank you for the tour."

" Thank you."