Tag: Newberry

Picker’s Paradise in Newberry

Posted on By Tom 2 Comments on Picker’s Paradise in Newberry
Family, Local, Miscellaneous

As See on American Pickers

Two times in less than a week I’ve been drawn in by an “as seen on TV” sign. First time was a rather bad experience at a restaurant in Gaffney. This time, C. T. Summer Hardware Store in Newberry turned out to be a real winner.

It was my sister, Beth’s birthday, so Glynda and I drove down to take her out to eat. We had dropped by Prosperity to pick up our mother, and then drove back to meet Beth at The Cabana Cafe. We had a great lunch (sorry, no cafe review this time) and were surprised by Beth’s son, Mason, who had come in for lunch during his work day.

Glynda and Beth
Mason and Beth

During lunch Beth mentioned that we needed to check out the hardware store next door. I had spotted antiques in the window, and had seen the “American Pickers” sign on the front window. Having been burned once recently by a TV show advertisement, I was skeptical. Glynda and I said we would be back on a less cold and rainy day. Mother, on the other hand, said she wanted to go right after lunch. Looks like we were visiting a hardware store.

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Paddling Parr Shoals

Posted on By Tom 1 Comment on Paddling Parr Shoals
Paddling

Parr Shoals

Saturday Laura had to meet with new advisees at Furman, so Alan and I decided to do some paddling. We wanted to find a place that was fairly close to Greenville, and that we hadn’t paddled before. I’ve had my eye on Parr Shoals, just east of Prosperity, for some time now and that’s where we decided to go.

Parr Shoals is on the Broad River, and is just north of where we put in on our marathon paddle from Peak to Harbison State Forest. Parr Shoals, along with its sister reservoir, Monticello, are often overlooked. While Parr Shoals is fed by the Broad River, water is pumped from the river into Monticello, then returned to Parr Shoals via tailrace. Both reservoirs serve as impoundments for the V. C. Summer nuclear power plant, one of the first nuclear power plants in the Southeast. Construction is currently underway for additional reactors.

We were joined by Alan’s son, Joshua, a recent Furman graduate himself. We met early Saturday and Alan and Josh followed me down I-26 to the Pomaria exit, then on across country to the Cannon Creek Landing on Parr Shoals.

Alan with kayakJosh with Boats

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Prosperity, Pomaria, Peak

Posted on By Tom 1 Comment on Prosperity, Pomaria, Peak
Family, Local

…and other towns that don’t start with “P”

Pomaria Pump Color Focus

Saturday morning my sister Glynda and I headed down to Prosperity to visit the parents. Mom and dad were in the mood to get out and explore. We decided to hit some of our favorite places – the communities just to the east of Prosperity. Even though I had visited these places with the parents, Glynda had never been out this way.

First stop, Pomaria. The central business district of this little place is pretty much a ghost town, although there is still a lively community surrounding it. We stopped on Main Street to take some shots.

PeanutsPomaria PumpWilson's Pomaria Lomo

Interestingly enough, most of the businesses had the name “Wilson.”

From Pomaria we headed south to Peak.  This has always been an intersting, somewhat isolated little community on the banks of the Broad River.  I had always thought that the town got its name because of the hilly terrain, sort of like the nearby Little Mountain.  However, it was named for the railroad superintendent of the time, Mr. H. T. Peake.

The main draw for Peak (apart from its quaintness) is access to the Palmetto Trail and the spectacular bridge that spans the Broad River.  The town’s people initially rejected the plan, fearing strangers wandering through their town.  I can only see this as a good thing for the community, as more people come to visit to see the bridge and the other railroad trestles that they are converting into footbridges.

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Hope School Dedication

Posted on By Tom 1 Comment on Hope School Dedication
History and Genealogy, Local

Hope School

Saturday I attended the dedication of the Hope School Community Center located on Hope Station Road near Prosperity, SC. This historic school is one of the few survivors of nearly 500 Rosenwald schools constructed in South Carolina between 1917 and 1932. Hope School served grades 1-8 in the African-American community for 28 years, from 1926 – 1954.

In the early 1900’s Junius Rosenwald was president of Sears Roebuck, and was instrumental in the development of their famous catalog. Rosenwald became interested in the state of education in the rural south, and developed a set of plans for schools that could be ordered and build easily, similar to the house plans that had been available through the Sears catalog. Rosenwald also provided funding for for many of the schools, targeting his efforts toward African-American communities in the south.

Hope School

The Hope School was a two-room school built in 1925 on land donated by the Hope family. James H. Hope was state superintendent of schools from 1922-1946, and spearheaded many projects to reduce school funding disparities between wealthy and poor counties.

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