The Dr. William Columbus Cauthen House, also known as Oak View Farm, was constructed circa 1848 near Kershaw in Lancaster County and is recognized as the oldest known residence in the county. The two-story, frame, weatherboarded I-house follows a traditional central-hall farmhouse plan and retains an exceptional degree of historic integrity. A one-story shed-roof porch spans the front façade, supported by large wooden posts on granite blocks, while nine-over-nine sash windows, exterior brick chimneys, and a simple gable roof reinforce the house’s restrained antebellum character. Original pine plank floors, walls, ceilings, doors, locks, and interior mantels survive throughout the principal rooms.

The house was built for Dr. William Columbus Cauthen, a physician, farmer, and prominent Lancaster District politician who served three terms in the South Carolina House of Representatives between 1852 and 1858. Cauthen later represented Lancaster District at the 1860 Secession Convention and was one of its delegates to sign South Carolina’s Ordinance of Secession. A circa 1865 kitchen addition and surviving agricultural outbuildings, including a log barn, contribute to the property’s historic character and illustrate its continuing role as a rural farmstead. The Cauthen House was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1982 for its architectural and political significance.