I found two doppelgangers, right within sight of each other. First is Olympia Mills, located on the west side of Columbia. I was riding with my hosts from SCETV to lunch when we rode past, and I had to do a double-take. The design of the mill and detailing was identical to the mill that had caught my eye in Buffalo in Union County on one of my photo trips. Below is the photo of the towers of Olympia Mills:
Below is a shot of the tower from Buffalo Mills:
Both of the mills are undergoing extensive renovation. I think both are becoming either apartments or condos.
The other doppelganger was at the entrance to the Olympia Mill Village. It was an example of the "Spirit of the American Doughboy" statue by E. M. Viquesney, identical to the one on the Furman Campus. The Olympia statue is below:
And here’s the one at Furman:
I understand that there is also a statue somewhere in Anderson. I may have to go hunting for that one some weekend.
My understanding is that after WWI those doughboy statues were put up all over the country…that theres a whole slew of them in most small towns. The reason the statues look alike is that they ARE the same statue. Looks like they got around to giving him his gun back? It got stolen when I was there, when he used to live down by the lake.
~Ward
Actually, this is a replacement. The original, which was down by the lake, will be refurbished and be placed on display at the Upstate History Museum.