John Joyner Smith was a Beaufort plantation owner during the late 1700s to early 1800s. The John Joyner Smith House was his estate built in 1813.
The John Joyner Smith House has always had its entrance from Bay Street.

However, when it was remodeled, the entrance was moved to its current location at Wilmington Street. This change forced some major modifications in the interiors of the house, since everything has to follow from its new entrance. Records of the correspondence of a William Thompson Lusk to his mother show more depth and history of the house. It was apparently occupied by General Stevens during the Civil War, with Lusk as his aide.

Aside from the two-story Greek Revival style main house, there?s also a smaller house in the property, believed to be a former barn or carriage house.