A collection of photography and exploration focusing on Upstate South Carolina and beyond.
Yesterday when we were kayaking on the Savannah River we found something rather disturbing. About a half mile south of Stokes Bluff Landing on the South Carolina side of the river several headstones were embedded in the rip rap along the bank.
It was a second Saturday, and we were long overdue for a Lowcountry Unfiltered paddling trip. We missed last month, and the two months before that our schedule had been somewhat off. I really needed to get back on the water and it seemed that the Savannah River was just the ticket.
I drove down Friday afternoon and stayed overnight in Walterboro. Alan and I met up for breakfast there, then we headed on toward our put-in at Stokes Bluff in Hampton County. The section we would be floating wasn’t as long as some of our other trips, but we would have opportunities for several side excursions.
November 6, 2014
Election day – always a bummer in South Carolina for someone of the political persuasion like mine. Even so, I walked down to our local polling place to cast my ballot. While I was in line to vote, my good friend Tim Taylor came up behind me. We caught up while in line, and decided to have lunch together. Since Tim had the Election Day off from his job at the Roper Mountain Science Center, over lunch we decided to head over to Lake Connnestee Nature Park.
We drove over to the park headquarters. There we met Gina Varat and David Hargette, who work at the park. They filled me in on some of the happenings at the park, such as some of the history walks and an upcoming Nature Journaling class with author John Lane. Tim chatted with them a bit, then we headed on our way.
It started with a mystery. Fellow photographer Hank Myers and my friend Tara Bailey down at SCIWAY.net had a question about Shiloh School, and whether or not it was a Rosenwald School. The extant school is a brick building, but the Fisk Rosenwald database show a classic two teacher Nashville design. I decided that a trip to the school was in order, to see if there were any stone markers that might indicate when the school was built. It would also give me an excuse to check out some fall colors.
Since I would be passing right past his place, I swung by and picked up Ken Cothran in Clemson. We got coffee, then took a quick tour through the heart of Clemson. However, our first target was the school. I plugged it into the GPS and we headed that way.
As you drive through several communities in Western North Carolina, you will see wooden crosses dotting the countryside. These crosses are free-standing, about ten feet high, and bear a message, usually something like “Jesus Saves from Sin” or “Jesus Died for Sinners.” These are found in front of Baptist churches in the area, and occasionally in front of private homes.
It’s been awhile since I’ve done a restaurant review. Diets and limited income just aren’t conducive to eating out a lot. Even so, a new one caught my eye, and I decided to check it out. Tandem Creperie recently opened this year, right on the Swamp Rabbit Trail.
Last Sunday we had gone on a leaf-peeping drive, and stopped for the first time at The Forest Coffeehouse, down the street.
The coffee at The Forest was excellent, and it reminded me of all the new spots in Travelers Rest, and I remembered seeing an article about Tandem. I hadn’t had crepes in ages, so I decided to head up that way.
This week we have lots of Furman activities going on. This weekend I’m photographing the wedding for two Furman Alumni, and it also happens to be Furman Homecoming. So, Friday afternoon we had the rehearsal for Megan and Kyle, then Laura and I headed on up to Furman for the Friday night activities on the mall.
Former Furman Chemistry student Rebecca Geiseking was giving a talk about her amazing origami at the Roe Art Building. We managed to make it there just at the end of her talk. Rebecca is now at Georgia Tech pursuing a Ph. D. in chemistry, but she continues to do her artwork. She described the engineering and mathematics that go into designing the folds for her paper designs.
Monday, October 20, 2014
I had started off the morning with a nice visit with Nicole and Carrie at the Pottersville site, just north of Edgefield. On my previous visit to the site, Carrie had told me about the old Tompkins School, where Sue Logue had been a teacher. I didn’t find it on that trip, but was able to locate it in Google Earth. Since I had the location pinpointed, I was determined to find it this time.
To recap, Sue Logue was the first woman to be executed by electric chair in South Carolina. Logue was sentenced for orchestrating the death of Davis Timmerman, as well as being implicated in the shooting deaths of Sheriff Wad Allen and Deputy “Doc” Clark. She was also rumored to be having an affair with Strom Thurmond. The Tompkins School was not only where Logue taught, but where it was rumored that she had several rendezvous with Thurmond when he was superintendent of schools for Edgefield County.
October 20, 2014
When I visited the Pottersville archeology dig last week, they were just getting started. I wanted to see how they were progressing, so I headed back down there. Plus, I wanted to get back to some of the school locations I’d missed.
I headed down early, but not as early as I had last time. I wanted to make sure they were underway when I arrived. I drove straight down without distraction, and made it there by about 10:00. Once again, only Nicole and Carrie were at the site.
Thursday, October 16, 2014
It had been a busy week. I had been to Georgia, Laura had been to Florida and returned just in time for her birthday, and now it was time for another ramble through South Carolina. Several weeks ago, before all the craziness began, Dwight and I had agreed to try a phototrek down his way. Dwight said he had never been to Camden, so we decided to head that way. We would also throw in a trip out to Pearl Fryar’s Topiary Garden.
I picked up Dwight in Columbia, and we headed east out of town in I-20. We passed the exits for Lugoff and Camden, then took an exit we thought might be the correct one. Turns out we still had a few miles to go. No matter, we took two lane roads on into the town of Bishopville. Along the way we spotted a couple of interesting sites, such as an antique hearse and a Hogwarts wannabe. We even crossed the Scape Ore Swamp, home of the legendary Lizard Man.
We entered Bishopville and turned south onto Highway 15. At Broad Acres Road we saw the sign for Pearl Fryar’s Topiary Garden, so we turned that way.