by Jon Kohler, JD
Some of America’s finest architects have left their mark on the South, but few people understand the relationship between land and architecture as deeply as my friend Bill Thomas.
A fourth-generation James Islander and graduate of The Citadel – where he also played football – Thomas carries with him the cadence and warmth of a true Charleston native. His voice recalls a time when life moved slowly enough to savor iced tea on the porch beneath ancient oaks.
“In our world, what we did in the Lowcountry was to create a recreational tract of land where we incorporated deer hunting, turkey hunting, a sporting-clays facility and a pavilion on a half-acre pond that added a great aesthetic to the property,” Thomas said. “In Charleston, you have a nine-month outdoor place. January can be tough, and so can July and August. Otherwise, you can enjoy nature for much of the year.”
The Land Shapes the Architecture
Few regions embody a sense of place more strongly than the Lowcountry. Over generations, extended outdoor living gave rise to its own vernacular. Places like the South Carolina Low country, Middle Georgia and the Florida coast each developed architectural traditions shaped by their landscapes.
“I don’t know if others see it,” Thomas said, “but the style of architecture takes its base from the quality of the land. I was showing land the other day and noted to the client to watch the architectural styles change as the quality of the soil changed.”
In the past, wealth came from the bounty of the land. Fertile soils and access to shipping created extraordinary wealth in towns across the South. In turn, remarkable homes were built and were testaments to prosperity, crafted with detail few carpenters or budgets could match today. Drive only a few miles, and as the soils thin, so too does
the architecture, becoming simpler, less inventive.
“It’s a shame this is long gone,” Thomas said. “It’s unrealistic to think it could come back.”
Architectural Legacies and Sporting Estates
Today’s landowners often seek to create something meaningful – something that will outlast them. Architecture has become both a reflection of place and a stage for entertaining, a statement of wealth, taste and legacy.
Sometimes the results are astonishing. The largest log cabin east of the Mississippi, for instance, stands not in the mountains but in a North Florida longleaf forest, its Canadian logs milled in Montana before finding their home (with a 22-car garage) along a ginclear creek.
Few realize that the Southern sport of quail hunting was introduced by former Yankees. By the time hunting plantations emerged as today’s asset class, the old cotton plantations had been gone for more than 20 years. While classical revival architecture remains popular, very few original antebellum plantation homes exist on modern hunting properties.
Yet, exceptions endure. Judge Morton, who created Morton Bray Plantation in 1843, commissioned John Wind – architect of Greenwood, Susina and Pebble Hill. Stanford White once declared Greenwood “the most perfect example of a classic revival home in America,” cementing both Wind’s reputation and the prestige of the Red Hills.
A generation later, across the street, Jack Archbold, vice president and heir to Standard Oil, built Chinquapin Lodge – an emblem of industrial wealth set against Southern sporting tradition.
I’ve had the privilege of representing many such estates. Morton Bray Plantation has changed hands three times under my brokerage, including a sale to Virgil Williams, who restored its ante-bellum home to near-museum quality. I also sold Williams’s 7,000-acre Heritage Plantation, which included the meticulous relocation and restoration of Camellia Hall. That sale required only one call to my Rolodex and achieved full price.
As I travel the rural South, I can almost feel the history – what people went through – just by looking at the architecture.
All of these regions boast remarkable architecture, but only in the Lowcountry can one glance at a home and immediately recognize its place.
And I’ve long observed: “There are people who have a passion for architecture and people who have a passion and an eye for managing land. It is almost never the same person.”
Examples abound. On Black’s Island in St. Joe Bay, Deltec homes were brought into what was once pirate Black Sam Bellamy’s hideout, with power lines run beneath the water. Against all odds, those homes survived a Category 5 hurricane, much like the famous Forrest Gump scene where only Jenny’s house endured – an event dramatic enough to be featured on The Weather Channel.
Elsewhere, Oak Hill is celebrated as one of the most historically accurate reproductions of classical revival design, while Old Fields provides another faithful interpretation. Enon and Chad-wick showcase carefully restored cabins that honor their frontier past, while Setter Run and Chadwick incorporate Appalachian style architecture, blending rugged authenticity with a sense of permanence. Together, these properties illustrate how history, land and vision continue to shape the South’s most enduring architectural legacies.
From Entrepreneurship to Land Stewardship
Thomas’ journey blends entrepreneurship with stewardship. After earning his degree in the 1970s, he began his career as a textile production supervisor in Virginia, earning a modest $13,000 salary. Yet he always knew he would chart his own business path.
“I’ve grown and sold several businesses since then,” Thomas said. “I enjoy finding the missing links and developing a way to fill them.”
His career later included five years with Abbott Laboratories in Europe, before returning to Charleston in 2001. There, he launched PortWatch Group, a logistics, trucking and warehousing
firm, while also pursuing his deeper passion: shaping land in ways that reflect the region’s plantation traditions.
The Birth of Thomas Hall
Soon after returning, Thomas ac-quired a parcel of land along Rantowles Creek, 13 miles south of downtown Charleston. Over time, that property became Thomas Hall, a 125-acre estate.
“My wife and I wanted a place to teach our three sons the value of outdoorsmanship – a place where people could gather and enjoy themselves in the sporting life as well as in quiet, tranquil surroundings,” Thomas said.
Working with an architect, the Thomases envisioned a home that paid homage to classic plantation architecture. “We believe it’s a traditional construction type with an emphasis on a plantation home with brick-tapered columns that mirror some of the traditional designs,” Thomas said.
Their architect encouraged them to call it a “Hall,” and the name stuck.
History Preserved
The land’s history stretches back to the 1770s, when it was part of Grayton Hall’s 20,000-acre holdings. After the Civil War, investor John Bradley purchased it for phosphate production.
In 1969, developer Speedy Falco proposed carving canals into the old
rice fields for a South Florida–style sub-division of 144 homes. Thankfully, the plan never materialized. Today, those 60 acres of rice fields remain protected on the historic registry, preserved for future generations.
Even during construction, reminders of history emerged: horseshoes un-earthed during septic work connected Thomas Hall to the lives once lived on the land.
A Sanctuary of Leisure and Nature
Today, Thomas Hall blends nostalgia, nature and plantation inspired architecture. Its 7,300-square-foot main house overlooks preserved rice fields and marshland. The estate also includes an outdoor pavilion, detached living quarters, a fishing pond, a skeet shooting facility and direct access to the Intracoastal Waterway.
Though private, it lies less than 20 minutes from downtown Charleston, surrounded by county land for privacy and protected under a Ducks Unlimited conservation easement – part of nearly one million acres safeguarded in South Carolina.
“The possibilities for outdoor enjoyment are endless at Thomas Hall,” Thomas said. “The hunting is bountiful, the land is beautiful, and access to the waterways – and Shark’s Tooth Island – is easy. For younger generations, it in-stills confidence and pays dividends in society going forward.”
Defining Plantation Architecture
carries hallmarks born of both history and climate. Wide, columned porches – or piazzas – captured breezes and provided shade. Symmetry lent order, while tall windows and raised foundations responded to humidity and flooding. Brick and wood grounded these homes in their landscapes, with grand entryways designed to welcome. Above all, plantation homes were built to connect indoor life with the outdoors – a philosophy carried forward at Thomas Hall.
On to the Next Chapter
When it came time to sell Thomas Hall, Thomas and his wife turned to Erica and me.
“The Kohlers have a great team and a different mindset,” Thomas said. “They were very helpful with guiding, directing and networking. They’re just good people.”
We sold Thomas Hall for $6 million dollars to a Florence businessman. Thomas has since purchased 103 acres for his next recreational homesite, continuing a pattern I see growing across the Lowcountry.
“There’s a lot of diversity here,” Thomas said. “Great beaches, rivers, hiking and biking – it’s a great foundation. A lot of people are moving to Charleston, Beaufort and Savannah. They believe it’s a bit of paradise.”
Today, Thomas lives next door to his former estate and is already envisioning his next project. And he told me: “When the time is right for a real estate transaction, you’ll be the first guy I call.”
From murky farm ponds to pristine glacier-cut lakes and everything in between, Knox Daniels’ expertise stems from a lifelong fascination of water and the creatures that live in and around it. He recognizes and helps clients appreciate the value water features bring to a property. “My goal is to help buyers realize and sellers maximize the value different water bodies bring to a property, not only in a recreational sense, but also for social storm reasons.” After extensively traveling the country for collegiate BASS fishing tournaments, Knox graduated and worked for the Southeast’s finest fisheries and wildlife biologist, Greg Grimes. With Grimes’ company, AES, Knox managed many of the southeast’s finest private lake estate/impoundment properties, and learned the intricacies of upscale property management. Learning from Greg and other biologists, Knox honed in on the specific conditions and habitat needed for optimal gamefish growth in private lakes. He has also worked as a property manager on several thousand acres and for a commercial developer, facilitating the dirt work and builds of several apartment complexes, but his true passion has always been in the outdoors. “I’ve always had an insatiable fascination with ponds/lakes and am grateful to be able to help to place clients on the properties of their dreams and make their personal fisheries/wildlife goals reality with JKA.” – Knox Daniels
Jason has been assisting landowners for the last 28 years in Georgia and South Carolina obtain achievements the owners did not realize were possible. His degree in Biology from Georgia Southern stemmed from the desire to know how things in nature work. His plantation roots began at just 16 years old outside of Albany, GA and the last 20 years were spent in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. His entire career has been spent developing a global approach to plantation management. That plan included sales. Sales is in Jason’s blood- his mom had a 45-year career as a real estate broker. After college, he chose to pursue his passion of making properties great. In 2011, Jason sold his first plantation. Since then, he has assisted buyers and sellers with over $20 million in sales while most of that time working as a full-time General Manager of a large Lowcountry plantation. Today, he is committed to using his unique skill set and experience to guide landowners through the many challenges of plantation ownership.
Bruce Ratliff is a retired elected official (Property Appraiser Taylor County). Bruce brings years of experience in ad valorem tax knowledge. His property tax background gives JKA Associates & clients a unique insight into the complicated tax process. Bruce held several positions in the Florida Association of Property Appraisers, including member of the Board of Directors, President, Vice-President and Secretary, and served on the Agricultural & Legislative Committees for the Association. The real estate business has been part of Bruce’s life since childhood. His mother, Shirley Ratliff owned Professional Realty of Perry, Florida and his father, Buster owned Ratliff Land Surveying which Bruce was General Manager of before his political career.
Hailing from a long line of outdoorsmen, Tim learned a great deal from his father and grandfather. He saw first-hand what it means to be a good land steward. He believes land is so much more than a place to hunt, fish, and grow timber or crops. “It’s an identity, a resting place, a safe haven and a way of life, said Tim.” Tim’s family ties to Alabama run deep. During his grandfather’s first term, Governor James was responsible for signing into law Alabama’s first state duck stamp which helped to ensure funding for the procurement, development, and preservation of wetlands for migratory waterfowl habitat. He also established Alabama’s lifetime hunting license, so it is no surprise that Tim is an avid outdoorsman with a keen eye as to how best to improve habitat for the greater good of its wildlife.
With Madison County roots, Lori grew up on her family farm at Pettis Springs along the historic Aucilla River. A love of the land was instilled in Lori very early on by her father who was a local farmer. Lori understands the importance of good land stewardship and has witnessed first-hand how her own father, a former 2-term member of the Florida House of Representatives whose district encompassed many rural counties of the Red Hills Plantation Region, with a little bit of sweat equity, so lovingly worked their own family land. These are core values she carries with her today, and nothing gives her more personal satisfaction than to represent some of the south’s best land stewards.
Cole’s dedication to land management lies in his family roots. As a fourth-generation timber expert, Cole’s earliest memories were spent with his father managing timber investments. With a degree in Food Resource Economics from the University of Florida, Cole is the epitome of an up-and-coming leader. He grew up with a hands-on approach to learning land management and conservation and has spent the last 15 years learning every angle of the real estate and forest industry. Cole is a member of the Florida Forestry Association, Red Hills Quail Forever, Southeastern Wood Producers Association and he uses this platform as an advocate for landowners and their land investments. His family has dedicated the past 60 years to providing landowners in North Florida and South Georgia with professional land management services focused on improving and protecting one’s forestland and wildlife investment. In fact, their family business, M.A. Rigoni, Inc., was one of the first to introduce whole tree chipping to the Red Hills Region.
As a landowner of his own family farm, Lick Skillet, along with family land that has been passed down and enjoyed together at Keaton Beach for 40 years, Jon knows what it means to be a steward of the last best places. As a third-generation land broker with more than 30 years of experience in advising landowners in this niche, Jon is known for his innate ability to harvest a land’s unique intrinsic value. Touting several notable sales under his belt, Jon personally closed Rock Creek/Molpus – 124,000 acres of premium timberland at $142,000,000 – which was known as the largest timberland land sale in the Southeast for eight years running. He is a co-founding member of LandLeader and achieved the real estate industry’s highest honor, “2022 National Broker of the Year – Recreational Land Sales,” by the Realtors® Land Institute.