Miss Gott ran the notice that the trustees gave her the use of the building, equipment, furniture, etc. seven times between December 1858 and February 1859. She announced, “my School, for the instruction of Girls and young Ladies, will be resumed on the 17 th of January next, without the aid of Trustees.” 16 The last phrase possibly indicated the girls’ school was no longer a denominational school. That her ad ran at the same time the trustees sold the building and land to Waller 17 probably confirmed this. The trustees probably sold the building contents to Waller, too. Miss Gott possibly continued the school until Waller unexpectedly died six months later. Then, or shortly after, the school probably ceased operation. Three months after Waller died, when his widow filed her equity court suit, the school building was unoccupied. Her lawyer referred to the school as the “former Fuller Institute.” 18 Court-appointed appraisers of Waller’s property valued the former Fuller Institute building and land at $1,000. 19 The property could not be equally divided among Waller’s heirs. As a result, the Abbeville District Commissioner in Equity announced he would sell the former Fuller Institute. 20 Greenwood Methodist Church bought the school building and land in 1860 for $1,005. Conversion from school to church was swift. 21 The founders’ dream was a reality at last. 16 “School Notice,” p. 4, col. 4. 17 Abbeville Dist., S.C., Equity Court, Waller v. Waller, Exhibit B, 4 February 1859, Albert Waller Estate. 18 Abbeville District, South Carolina, Equity Court, Jane Elizabeth Waller v. Pelius A. Waller, et al., Bill for Partition, 12 November 1859, Albert Waller Estate; Abbeville County Probate Court, Box 9, Pkg. 253; SCDAH microfilm AB 124, frames 137-162; South Carolina Department of Archives and History, Columbia. 19 Abbeville District, South Carolina, Equity Court, Jane Elizabeth Waller v. Pelius A. Waller, et al., Return of the Commissioners, n.d., Albert Waller Estate; Abbeville County Probate Court, Box 9, Pkg. 253; SCDAH microfilm AB 124, frames 137-162; South Carolina Department of Archives and History, Columbia. 20 “The State of South Carolina. Abbeville District. In Equity, Jane E. Waller v. Pelius A. Waller and others, Bill for Partition,” The (Abbeville, South Carolina) Independent Press , 23 December 1859, online archives (https://www.newspapers.com : 2 December 2020), p. 3, col. 3. 21 Harry R. Mays, The History of Main Street United Methodist Church, Greenwood, South Carolina (Franklin, Tennessee: Providence House Publishers, 1992), 31.
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