The Britt Family’s Deep Roots at John de la Howe and Their Investment in Its Future

McCormick County farmers Douglass and Paulette Britt are longtime supporters of the South Carolina Governor’s School for Agriculture at John de la Howe, giving in ways that allow the school to respond to its greatest needs, strengthening students, programs and the working farm that defines hands-on agricultural learning.

By Abigail Cannon 

McCormick, S.C. — When you drive onto the Britt family farm, a white farmhouse built in the 1930s greets you like an old friend.

The home, known simply as “The Britt Farm,” sits comfortably in its place, as if it has always belonged to the land around it. Built in 1937 after the original homestead burned, it reflects the quiet durability of McCormick County. Doug Britt was born just steps away, in the old cook house that still stands on the property.

The Britt Farm sits just a few miles from the SC Governor’s School for Agriculture campus, close enough that the school has always felt less like an institution and more like part of the neighborhood.

Inside, the sense of history is immediate. Family portraits line the walls. The ceilings and white beadboard walls were milled locally at the Dorn Lumber Company in McCormick, lumber cut from this very farm and planed just down the road. It’s a house shaped by place, craftsmanship, and continuity.

For Douglass and Paulette Britt, that continuity matters. It has shaped their lives, their work, and their steady support of John de la Howe, the historic campus that today is home to the South Carolina Governor’s School for Agriculture, supported by the John de la Howe School Foundation.

Interested in supporting agricultural education close to home? Learn more about giving through the John de la Howe School Foundation and how gifts support students, programs, and campus needs.

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A Lifelong Commitment to Agriculture and Land Stewardship

At 92, Doug Britt doesn’t overthink questions.

When asked what his favorite aspect of agriculture is, he answers without hesitation. “Cotton.”

Paulette smiles. “Watching things grow, Doug. You love watching things grow.”

Doug lifts a hand, half amused. “She asked me the question, Paulette.”

The room settles into an easy pause. And as he begins talking about seeds, seasons, and what he’s planting next, it becomes clear she’s right.

“I started growing things when I was four or five years old,” Doug says. “I’ve always loved it.” It’s a small exchange, but it captures something essential about how the Britts see agriculture, as something you tend patiently and pay attention to over time.

That belief is also at the heart of why they support John de la Howe, and why they continue to stay engaged as the school carries its mission forward as the South Carolina Governor’s School for Agriculture.

Agricultural Education Shaped by Experience and Responsibility

Agriculture has shaped every chapter of Doug’s life. All of the Britt brothers attended Clemson University, and Doug earned a degree in agricultural engineering before serving in the U.S. Army as part of Clemson’s final ROTC graduating class. During the Depression, McCormick County was poor, and making a living often meant leaving home, even if home never really left you.

Doug went on to work as a John Deere dealer and later became a local dealership partner and owner in Tifton, Georgia. There, he helped pioneer mechanized cotton harvesting, selling cotton pickers in Georgia, a single machine capable of doing the work once done by many hands.

Innovation, for Doug, was never about replacing agriculture. It was about helping it endure.

He still remembers a story that underscores how deeply agriculture runs in this place.

At one point, McCormick was nearly chosen as the home of South Carolina’s state agricultural college, what is now Clemson University. The decision came down to a legislative vote. John de la Howe was a serious contender, and the college was lost by a single vote.

Even so, agriculture never left this land.

Generational Support for John de la Howe and Agricultural Learning

The Britt family’s connection to John de la Howe is not only historical, it is woven into the very landscape of the campus itself.

Doug’s uncle, Gerard Thomas, was a dairyman and served as the first county agent for Clemson Extension in 1915. During that time, he supported the construction of several silos to be erected across the county, including on the John de la Howe campus.

Another uncle, Arch Britt, a civil engineer, helped shape the campus in a different way. He designed the roads that still wind through John de la Howe today, guiding generations of students and visitors across the historic grounds.

The family’s connection continued through Doug’s father, Leslie Britt, who later served on the John de la Howe Board of Trustees, helping guide the institution through decades of growth and change.

Doug’s sister, Georgia Britt, also shared a meaningful connection to campus life. She was married to Rev. Lewis Sherard, a Methodist minister who served as pastor of McKissick Chapel, located on the John de la Howe campus. As a young girl, Georgia often played the piano in the chapel, another small but enduring thread in the family’s long relationship with the school.

Today, that legacy continues through Doug and Paulette Britt, whose support reflects a deep appreciation for the school’s history and a shared belief in its future. Their commitment helps ensure that John de la Howe continues to provide hands-on agricultural education and life-changing opportunities for the next generation of students.

Community Partnerships That Strengthen Agricultural Education

For Paulette, the connection to John de la Howe, now the South Carolina Governor’s School for Agriculture, is very much present-day.

As treasurer of the McCormick County Forestry Association, Paulette is actively involved in the county’s forestry and land-stewardship work. For years, the association struggled to find a consistent place to meet, gathering wherever space was available, including the basement of the old library.

When John de la Howe offered the group a place to meet on campus several times a year, it mattered.

“They were so thankful,” Paulette says. “And impressed.”

Meeting on campus allows her to see the school in action, students learning, land being stewarded, and agriculture practiced every day. It keeps her connected to the modern mission of the Governor’s School for Agriculture and affirms the value of a school that opens its doors to the broader agricultural community.

That relationship has also led to continued support, not only from the Britts personally, but through the Forestry Association as well. For the Britts, giving is practical. It grows out of trust, shared values, and seeing good stewardship firsthand.

Advancing Agricultural Education in South Carolina Through Philanthropy

For the Britts, supporting the SC Governor’s School for Agriculture and the work of the John de la Howe School Foundation isn’t about recognition or scale. It’s about sustaining what works.

“People forget where their groceries come from,” Paulette says plainly. “Without agriculture, we wouldn’t exist.”

In a world increasingly focused on technology alone, the Britts believe students still need to understand how things grow, crops, land, and responsibility.

That belief has lived on this land for generations. Today, it continues to grow on the John de la Howe campus through the South Carolina Governor’s School for Agriculture, one student, and one season, at a time.

Some missions are announced loudly. Others are planted, tended, and quietly watched as they grow.

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