Category: Local

Local items of interest from Greenville and Upstate SC.

Twelve Feet from Royalty

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Entertainment, Local

Prince Edward Waves to Us

This weekend the Greenville Scottish Games were held at Furman University. Laura and I decided to take we wanted to get in on all of the party, so we went to both the parade down Main Street on Friday and the games themselves on Saturday.

This year Prince Edward, youngest son of Queen Elizabeth, was special guest at the games. He was there ostensibly to present the Duke of Edinburgh award to the contestants of the Miss South Carolina Contest. In order to qualify for the award, the contests had to show some athletic skill. That’s where the Scottish Games come in – princess wannabees wearing tiaras and throwing axes and hammers. I’m not kidding.

Beauty Pageant Axe Throw

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Vote Greenville for Google Fiber!

Posted on By Tom 1 Comment on Vote Greenville for Google Fiber!
General Technology, Local

Google’s at it again with another product that everyone wants. This time it makes more sense than Buzz or Wave. Google is looking for a community to serve as a test bed for its 1 gigabit fiber optic Internet connection, and Greenville wants it. Of course, so do several other cities. Topeka, Kansas notoriously renamed … Read More “Vote Greenville for Google Fiber!” »

Swamp Rabbit Revisited

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Local

Swamp Rabbit Trail

It had been quite awhile since I had ridden my bike on the Swamp Rabbit Trail.  In that time there have been quite a few changes and improvements.  The trail has been paved from Watkins Bridge Road almost all the way up to the Renfrew community above Travelers Rest.  The town of Travelers Rest has done massive improvements along its main street, adding parking, lighting, sidewalks, and benches all along the street and the trail.  I figured it was time I rode the trail once more and experienced some of these changes for myself.

I parked at the southern edge of the Furman University campus, where the trail crosses Duncan Chapel Road.  For ages there has been an old Pullman car here that has served as home for various Boy Scout Troops.  More parking has been added to accommodate the trail visitors.

From the parking area I first headed south just to see how far the county had gotten with paving the trail.  I was able to make it about a mile more, down to Watkins Bridge Road.  The trail on the other side of the road was dirt, but didn’t look as rough and bumpy as the last time I had ridden it.  I rode on down a bit, but decided that I had plenty of paved trail to explore, so I turned around.

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Furman Singers and the End of an Era

Posted on By Tom 1 Comment on Furman Singers and the End of an Era
Local, Music

Tuesday night Laura and I attended the Furman Singers’ concert. It was the last tour concert with Dr. Bingham Vick at the helm. This May Vick will retire from Furman after 40 years as a professor there. In most respects the concert was typical of the Singers’ tour concerts. The first half featured major choral … Read More “Furman Singers and the End of an Era” »

Echo Valley Photographic Proof

Posted on By Tom 2 Comments on Echo Valley Photographic Proof
History and Genealogy, Local

After reading my recent post about Echo Valley, my brother Houston decided that further photographic proof was necessary.  As archivist for our family, he had the necessary photographs and sent them to me via email. So, here we go.. Here’s a photo of me standing in front of the Swamp Rabbit Railroad… …and here’s the … Read More “Echo Valley Photographic Proof” »

Memories of Echo Valley

Posted on By Tom 43 Comments on Memories of Echo Valley
History and Genealogy, Local

Echo Valley from the Ridge

In the northern part of Greenville County the Middle Saluda River flows across a long flat valley. Where Highways 276 and 11 come together, and where the Saluda crosses this road, one finds the community of Cleveland, South Carolina. The valley now hosts a post office, convenience store, and a couple of other businesses, but at one time an exciting amusement park occupied this same spot.

It was the late 1960’s and I was seven or eight years old. Dad and Mom loaded five of us (my two oldest siblings were in college) into the Chrysler and we headed toward the Great Smokey Mountains. It was a fantastic trip up through the mountains of North Carolina, with stops at Pisgah National Forest, Maggie Valley, and eventually Gatlinburg, Tennessee. That was the trip that we visited Echo Valley, a Western-styled theme park along the banks of the Saluda River in Cleveland, South Carolina.

Echo Valley Ticket

During this time Western theme parks were all the rage in North Carolina. There was Ghost Town in the Sky in Maggie Valley, Frontierland in Cherokee, and Tweetsie Railroad in Boone. Most of these featured a Wild West town with regular shoot-outs and the endless conflicts between cowboys and Indians. There were also carnival rides and can-can dancers to round out the bill. Echo Valley followed this same pattern, and was developed to capture some of that Wild West market for Greenville audiences.

The late Melvin Jarrard was postmaster of the Cleveland post office and a local businessman. In his autobiography The Mountaineer of Cleveland, South Carolina, Jarrad describes how Harry Stuart brought the idea of Echo Valley to the area, and how that idea had originated with Ghost Town in the Sky.

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A Tourist in Your Own Home Town

Posted on By Tom 1 Comment on A Tourist in Your Own Home Town
Local

Lake Hartwell

In 1991-92 we moved to Tucson, AZ for a year. Laura was on sabbatical from Furman, doing research at the University of Arizona, and I spent the year wandering in the desert – quite literally. I would drop Laura off at the lab, then go find a canyon to climb or arroyo to explore. On the weekends we would pick some other location, trying to take advantage of all that the area had to offer.

We made many friends among the locals while we were there. Occasionally we’d talk about some of the places we had visited, and the response was often, “I’ve never been there” or “I didn’t know that was here.” In some cases it was ignorance, and in some cases they just hadn’t gotten around to it. We always said in reply that we knew we had a finite amount of time to see things – one year. Living in an area you tend to think you’ve got plenty of time to visit all of these places, which means that often you just don’t get around to it.

For that reason I’ve found that it’s not a bad idea to pretend you’re a tourist in your own home town. Check out what the local tourism board or other resources have to say about spots in your area, then actually VISIT those spots.

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Exploring L. A. (Lower Anderson)

Posted on By Tom No Comments on Exploring L. A. (Lower Anderson)
Local, Photography

Old School ReDynamix HDR

I hadn’t been out on a photo ramble in a long time. So, Saturday morning I grabbed my cameras and headed out. I only had a vague target in mind (as usual). I knew I wanted rural scenery so I could capture some old farm houses. I wanted to try some new post-processing techniques. My route took me down across Southern Greenville County and finally into Lower Anderson.

This time of year the lighting is always oblique. You don’t have to wait until the “golden hours” just after sunrise or right before sunset to get some interesting shots. The day was clear and bright, and it looked like the lighting would produce some interesting shots.

My first stop was in Connestee at McBee Chapel (Map). I had photographed it many times before, but I thought I would see what other angles I could bring to it. I don’t think they are still having regular services here, but I would love to attend one when they have a special service.

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