This past week Furman University and First Baptist Church of Greenville have played host to composer Morten Lauridsen. Lauridsen taught several master classes at Furman, then worked with the choir from First Baptist and the Cantus Chamber Choir from the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts. The weekend culminated in a performance of Lauridsen’s Lux Aeterna at First Baptist Church, under the direction of Vivian Hamilton and accompanied by members of the Greenville Symphony Orchestra.
Glynda was at our house for dinner and we were looking out the back picture windows with a view of our lake. She made the comment that everything was getting green so fast. We were almost past the point of winter rambling, where vegetation doesn’t obscure the hidden treasures on backwoods roods. We decided it was time for one last photo trek before the leaves set on in earnest, hiding old buildings and other items of interest. Our target area would be Newberry County and parts of Saluda County.
I made my usual trip preparations – recharging camera batteries, scanning Google Earth and Facebook for possible targets, and loading up my GPS with points of interest. My POIs for this trip included several old schools, some of which I’d missed for whatever reason, along with several historic churches and cemeteries.
Duncan Chapel Cemetery near Furman University is often called “The Children’s Cemetery.” It’s rumored to be haunted, and paranormal investigators have left toys on the headstones to engage the spirits of the children. Dubious science aside, this whole notion and nickname are based on a false premise. While I was out and about exploring Greenville I made some discoveries that cast doubt on the idea of this being a “children’s” cemetery.
