Our History

Kings Mountain Military Academy

Circa 1920

  
Circa 1955

A History of Caring

In its 160 years of serving children, York Place has changed, moved, and grown with the times. 

The home was established in 1850 in Charleston, SC as the Episcopal Church Home for Children.  An orphanage described by its founders as a "place of refuge". 

By the early 1900's, the home had outgrown its facility.  Several South Carolina towns competed to be its new location.  York (then called Yorkville) offered 10 acres of land at the site of the former Kings Mountain Military Academy, free water and power for 10 years and other inducements.  In 1910 the Episcopal Church Home moved to York, South Carolina.

By 1969 the home had helped more than 1,700 children over the  years, but alternative ways to care for children without parents reduced the need for an orphanage.  The home undertook a new challenge:  offering a haven of healing and hope to children with severe emotional problems.

Now called York Place, this facility is a fully accredited Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF) for up to 36 children.  The campus has grown to 120 acres and includes a gym, indoor heated swimming pool, tennis court, play ground, fishing pond, athletic field, pottery / arts & crafts room, nature and bike trails, and the Sprouting Wings agricultural program.

       New Building Dedication

Sarah Tatum Smith Dining & Assembly Hall
Henry & Eleanora Richardson Center