Lawrence Reese

Front: West Broad Street features several late-19th to early-20th century residences designed and built by Lawrence Reese (1865-1915), a native of Marlboro County who came to Darlington as a merchant by 1887. Reese, who had no formal training in architecture, was a self-taught master craftsman and designer. The Belk Funeral Home, at 229 West Broad, was built ca. 1900 as a residence for Abraham Hyman and was Reese's own favorite of the several houses he designed here. Reverse: The West Broad Street Historic District, listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1988, features 14 houses designed and built by Lawrence Reese between ca. 1890 and ca. 1910, most of them with elaborate Eastlake, Queen Anne, and other Victorian era architectural elements. Reese also designed and built the South Carolina Western Railway Station on Russell Street, built in 1911 and also listed in the National Register in 1988.