Historic home at Butler Island Plantation damaged in fire

This story was originally published by The Current GA.

A suspect has been charged in the fire Wednesday night at historic Butler Island Plantation that caused extensive damage to a home built there in 1927.

Lt. Mike Ward of the McIntosh County Sheriff’s Office confirmed to The Current GA Friday morning that Kyle Gregory Gill is charged with two counts of arson and one count each of destruction of government property, second-degree criminal damage to property, interference with government property, criminal trespass, and theft by taking.

He also confirmed that Gill will be arraigned this afternoon but added the time depends on whenever the judge comes in.

Credit: Robin Kemp/The Current GA

Credit: Robin Kemp/The Current GA

According to a prepared statement Ward issued to the Darien News on Thursday, McIntosh County deputies, the Darien Fire Department, and the McIntosh County Volunteer Fire Department responded about 7 p.m. Wednesday to a report of a structure fire at the site.

“While responding, witnesses reported seeing a male leaving the residence as smoke began billowing out of the historic home,” he said. “Once on scene, emergency units began to report a working fire and firefighting efforts began. An alert deputy located a male, matching the description given by witnesses, walking approximately a quarter mile from the fire. During his investigation, the deputy noted that the person had items that came out of the structure. This deputy came to this conclusion from several training events they participated in at the Butler River House. The Criminal Investigations Division was notified, and the subject was taken into custody. He is identified as 33-year-old Kyle Gregory Gill, from Colorado. Gill had an active arrest warrant, out of Kentucky, for failing to comply with the sex offender registry.”

A check of Kentucky’s sex offender list notes that Gill had been convicted in Colorado for “sexual contact—no consent,” adding, “Offender is non-compliant” and that his last known address had been in Brooksville in Bracken County, Kentucky.

Ward added that an investigation by the sheriff’s office, the Georgia State Fire Marshal’s Office, and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources ruled out lightning strikes in the area at the time.

Credit: Robin Kemp/The Current GA

Credit: Robin Kemp/The Current GA

Dozens of people drove, walked, and biked to the scene early Wednesday night to watch the fire, which could be seen for miles. Some even brought folding chairs. The crowd watched quietly as flames consumed the fourth-floor attic and fire crews raced back and forth across the Butler River bridge.

The McIntosh County Sheriff’s Office posted a request on Facebook “that our concerned citizens allow space for our first responders to work at the current Butler River House Fire. A person of interest is in custody and the McIntosh County Office of the Sheriff’s Criminal Investigation Division is currently investigating how this fire started. Also, the McIntosh County Office of the Sheriff would like to extend our prayers for all the brave Firefighters working to preserve this historical building in McIntosh County.”

The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation listed Huston House as one of Georgia’s “Places in Peril” in 2019, noting that the structure was “unoccupied with no long-term plan for use or maintenance. Changing climate and the severity of recent hurricanes have exposed the house to the elements. Without a plan in place, these threats will lead to continued deterioration of the building.”

In a statement Thursday morning, the group mourned the loss. “The Georgia Trust is saddened to learn about the loss of the Huston House on Butler Island,” said Georgia Trust President and CEO W. Wright Mitchell. “Despite the site’s association with a difficult period in the history of our state, the property is nonetheless an important historic resource that allows us to tell Georgia’s full and complete story. Unfortunately, when historic buildings are allowed to sit vacant and neglected for long periods of time, fire is not uncommon.”

In 1859, Butler Island Plantation was the source of the nation’s largest single sale of human beings, known as the “Weeping Time.” 436 people from the plantation were herded to a racetrack in Savannah and sold to pay off Pearce Butler’s gambling debts.

Credit: Robin Kemp/The Current GA

Credit: Robin Kemp/The Current GA

Local descendants of people who had been sold during the Weeping Time and historians like Hermina Glass-Hill of the Susie King Taylor Women’s Institute and Ecology Center, pushed back against efforts to sell off parts of the historic site to private developers.

Darien resident Alberta Mabry was alarmed after the fire and worries about the future of the land, which is managed by the state. “We need a thorough investigation from top to bottom on this,” Mabry said. In recent years, efforts have continued to develop the land, leading some to worry about the future for preservation efforts.

The house, built in 1927, was built by T. L. Huston and the land was converted to a dairy and lettuce farm. Huston was a engineer better known as a co-owner of the powerful New York Yankees in the 1920s. After his death, the plantation was sold to R.J. Reynolds, Jr.

In April, the Georgia Assembly passed legislation to establish the Weeping Time Cultural Heritage Corridor Authority, which is meant to preserve Weeping Time and Gullah Geechee history.

Among those watching the fire were Darien City Councilman William H. A. Collins and other leaders of the Gullah Geechee community.

Susan Catron contributed to this report.

Credit: The Current GA

Credit: The Current GA

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