
	HARTSVILLE "The Park with the City In It" Hartsville manages to combine big city amenities with small town charm and southern hospitality. Visitors to Hartsville can visit one of the many historical sites in the community. Several houses have been restored and are open to visitors. Spend the day canoeing down Black Creek, exploring Kalmia Gardens, fishing on Prestwood Lake, or strolling through the many shops of downtown Hartsville. And, of course, be sure to enjoy a true southern meal from one of the many restaurants in town.

Jacob Kelly House

Known as the place where the "Yankees camped among the Rebels," the Jacob Kelley House was built around 1820 by landowner and farmer, Jacob Kelley. Originally a one-story log cabin, over the years an upstairs was added and the width doubled. The original carved fireplace mantle and handcrafted Southern furniture are on display inside the home. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the house is open to the public the first Sunday of the month beginning in March with special celebrations for Confederate Memorial Day (the first Sunday in May) and a Christmas Open House (the first Sunday in December).

John Lide Hart Cottage

Built in 1846, this example of federal architecture is constructed with a hewn timber frame and weatherboard siding. The interior retains the original split-lath. Tradition says that John Hart helped to fell the trees to build his house. Maintained by the Hart Cottage Guild the house may be seen by appointment the first Sunday of the month, March through December

Kalmia Gardens of Coker College

Kalmia Gardens displays a unique variety of flora and fauna on 30 acres of land on the banks of the Black Creek. Thomas E. Hart and his wife originally purchased the land in the 1820s. Their house still stands in the gardens today and is available for tours. The garden itself was started in the 1930s when William Chambers Coker obtained it for his sister-in-law, "Miss May" Coker. Walking trails, picnic areas, a sensory garden, an herb garden, and more are available to visitors. The gardens are open from dawn to dusk, 365 days a year.

Coker Experimental Farms

The Coker Experimental Farms National Landmark is one of the few agricultural landmarks in the nation. David R. Coker, son of Major James Lide Coker, used the latest techniques in the scientific breeding of crops at the Coker Farms. He began with cotton and soon expanded to field and vegetable crops. Thousands of farmers visited his fields each year to see the crops and to hear about seed breeding. By 1963, approximately 65% of the cotton acreage in the Southeast, 80% of the oat acreage, 75% of the flue-cured tobacco acreage, 40% of the hybrid corn acreage and an increasing percentage of the soybean acreage could be directly traced back to seed developed by the Coker scientists.

Hartsville Museum

The Hartsville Museum, located at 222 North Fifth St., is housed in a 1930s U.S. Post Office. The museum displays a permanent collection of Native American artifacts that were collected along the Pee Dee River and Black Creek. Exhibits like "Cotton: Field To Fabric," tell the story of cotton cultivation and the making of cotton cloth. The museum's Showcase Gallery features local fine art and traveling exhibitions as well as historical collections relative to Hartsville and the surrounding area.