Spring has sprung at The Venue at Springfield Estates where azaleas, camellias and wildflowers are in full bloom. Beneath a canopy of historical oaks dripping with Spanish moss, a soft breeze stirs the soulful stories of a bygone era.
Here, looking out over rice fields and the Great Pee Dee River, time stands still. A bald eagle soars above the fiery sunset and a family of deer dart through the forests along ancient creek beds. Without city lights, stars and planets pop against the dark velvety night sky. The hustle and bustle of daily life falls away as the fresh air and peaceful silence command attention to the present while paying homage to the past.
Once an American Indian trading post, the land was developed as a plantation and contributed to the rice boom in Georgetown County, which became the richest county in America in the 1850s. Over the centuries, Springfield changed hands multiple times, until Dr. J. Howard Stokes and his wife Peggy purchased the property in 1977. As Springfield’s original house and a hunting lodge had burned down, the Stokes built the current home in 2002.
Now the estate is run by their daughter, Michelle Stokes Blackstock, who has dedicated the property’s landscape as a unique venue for weddings, events and photoshoots. “I’ve been coming to Springfield since I was 12 or younger. I remember my mom and dad were the ultimate hosts and entertained friends with the best parties here.”
Blackstock inherited the Stokes’ talent for hosting at Springfield, where they held 16 private weddings for friends and family, not including her own to husband Ed. Because of her passion for entertaining and in memory of her parents, it was a natural progression for Blackstock to open the estate as an event venue.
The sprawling 250-acre property invites countless options for the setting of any event. Whether tenting a wedding on the front lawn, having a ceremony under “The Promise Tree,” the cathedral of oaks or hosting a cocktail hour overlooking a “Monet view” of the lily pad pond, the experience will be one to cherish for a lifetime.
Adjacent to the main house is a guest suite with a large bedroom, a bathroom painted in Peggy’s favorite color, eggplant, a wall-length vanity and full-length antique mirror. With stunning views of the river and rice fields, the space lends itself as a quiet place to catch a breath before the festivities or an ideal changing room for a bridal party.
On the ground floor of the main house is the groom’s man cave, fitted with a pool table, chess set, fireplace and piano. In the living space, decorated with leather-bound books from a library of days gone by and taxidermy, a Murphy bed occupies a wall-length built-in. The bedroom has two queen beds and a bathroom. A door leads to a grassy lawn where guests can soak in the sun while playing a riverside round of cornhole or croquet.
To learn more about booking your special day at The Venue at Springfield Estates, visit vasegt.com.
By Sarah Rose
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