Tom – Page 64 – Random Connections

The Mystery of Shiloh School

May 3, 2015 Tom 2 Comments

History and Genealogy, Photography, Rambling

Back last fall we were presented with a mystery. Fellow photographer Hank Myers had contributed a photograph of an old brick school to the SCIWAY.net South Carolina Picture Project. The project editor, Tara Bailey, had initially labeled the school as Shiloh Rosenwald School. After a bit of research, the three of us decided that it wasn’t a Rosenwald school, so Tara edited the photo entry to reflect that new information.

When Ken and I visited the location we had a couple of potential sites for the Rosenwald School. We checked those out, but couldn’t find any existing schools at those locations. Based on that information, the SCIWAY entry now says that the school is no longer extant.

…or is it?

Busy Spring Update

May 3, 2015 Tom No Comments

Family, Miscellaneous, Paddling, Photography, Travel

The past couple of weeks have been a blur. I realize that I haven’t posted anything in that time, which is unusual for me. While lots has happened, it’s been in bits and pieces that didn’t seem like they needed, or weren’t quite read for an entire blog post. Those events include the following: Rambling … Read More “Busy Spring Update” »

Sacred Harp in Greenville

April 19, 2015April 19, 2015 Tom 3 Comments

Local, Music

Each month a Sacred Harp singing is held just around the corner from my house at the First Christian Church. The singing takes place on “the Friday before the third Sunday of each month,” using the parlance of singing organizers. This singing has been going on since the 1990s, and as close as it is to where I live, I’d never attended. I decided that needed to change, so this past Friday night I decided to pay them a visit.

It had been a long time since I’d participated in a singing. I think the last one I did was the William Walker Memorial Singing in Spartanburg way back in 2009. I’ve always seemed to have conflicts with the big singing days, usually a paddling trip with my friends. I had planned to do a podcast episode on shape note singing, so I knew I wanted to take part in another one soon.

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The Plantation Islands of Lake Marion

April 13, 2015April 13, 2015 Tom 1 Comment

Paddling, Photography

The problem with planning a paddling trip in spring in South Carolina is that the weather can be quite fickle. It was a second Saturday, and time for our monthly Lowcountry Unfiltered excursion. Originally, we had planned to do a new section of the Edisto River. However, recent rains and the threat of more rain in the area had us a bit worried about river levels and currents. The stretch under consideration was long with lots of twists and turns. With a strong current it could turn out like our trip on the South Edisto, which was not the most pleasant paddling trip.

Instead, we turned our attention to Lake Marion and the Santee National Wildlife Refuge. An out-and-back trip would give us greater control over the route should bad weather arise. Our group has paddled several sections of this lake, including Sparkleberry, High Falls, Ferguson, and Persanti Island. However, we hadn’t done the wildlife refuge on the north side of the lake. It was time to check it out.

The Stone Carvers

April 9, 2015January 28, 2024 Tom No Comments

History and Genealogy, Podcast

After a long delay, the second episode of the RandomConnections podcast is now online. “The Stone Carvers” is the first episode in a series I’m calling “The Tapho Files.” This episode looks at the artisans that carve headstones.

Killing Time in Hendersonville

April 2, 2015 Tom 1 Comment

Photography, Rambling

We had spent a delightful afternoon at a birthday party for a two year old, the daughter of friends that live in Hendersonville. Glynda was flying into Asheville later that evening, and I wasn’t keen on making two trips up the mountain. Laura caught a ride back to Greenville with some other friends, and I decided to hang out in Hendersonville while I waited for my sister’s plane. It gave me a bit of time to explore.

Laurens Cemetery Tour

April 1, 2015April 2, 2015 Tom 4 Comments

History and Genealogy, Local, Photography, Rambling

A couple of weeks ago I received notice through Facebook that the Laurens County Museum would be holding tours of the old Laurens City Cemetery. Glynda and I had visited several weeks ago, and I thought this would be an excellent follow-up, and possibly answer some of the questions we had generated on our trip. I figured that this might also be a good opportunity to get some audio for my upcoming podcast on cemeteries.

Prior to the tour I contacted Bill Cooper, who is chair of the Laurens City Cemetery Committee. Bill works at the local library. He’s also an organist, and would fill in occasionally for me when my organist at First Presbyterian in Laurens was absent. Bill would be conducting part of the tour, and was willing to contribute to the podcast.

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Spring Cleaning and a New Look

March 29, 2015 Tom 3 Comments

Miscellaneous

You may have noticed that something has changed. I decided to go for a new look and feel for the RandomConnections website.

I’ve never been completely happy with the appearance of this website…until now. While each of the themes I’ve tried out over the years has its merits, none really gave me the effect I was after. The last one came close, but I didn’t like the font readability (or lack thereof) on the main body of the posts.

Modoc Cemetery Ramble – Part 4, Willowbrook and a Bonus

March 28, 2015March 30, 2015 Tom 3 Comments

History and Genealogy, Photography, Rambling

The wonderful luck and visit we had at Horn’s Creek Baptist Church was going to be a hard act to follow. It was getting later in the afternoon, and we had quite a ways to go to get home. Anything from this point on was going to be an afterthought. But sometimes those afterthoughts can … Read More “Modoc Cemetery Ramble – Part 4, Willowbrook and a Bonus” »

Modoc Cemetery Ramble – Part 3, Horn Creek

March 27, 2015March 27, 2015 Tom 2 Comments

History and Genealogy, Photography, Rambling

Alan Russell and I had made it to Modoc. However, it wasn’t quite what we had expected. It was a bit past the noon hour, and we were ready for some lunch, so we headed toward Edgefield. Lunch was on the square at Row Market, and consisted of some excellent sandwiches. The decor of the place was an odd mix – antique general store accoutrements with several LCD screens.

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