Tag: Phototrek

McCormick County Photo Trek

Posted on By Tom 14 Comments on McCormick County Photo Trek
Family, History and Genealogy, Photography

Mount Carmel Presbyterian Lomo

Houston and I had a day off in common, so it was time for one of our mid-winter photo treks. I really like exploring the area south of Abbeville, McCormick, and Edgefield. That part of the state is rather remote and rich in history, including our family history. Even though we’ve been down that way several times, I never seem to cover all of it, so it was ripe as another target.

Our exploration group was larger than usual. In addition to the two of us, Houston’s wife, Lynda, was coming along, as was our sister Glynda. The plan was to meet Houston and Lynda Sunday morning in the parking lot of Calhoun Falls Pentecostal Holiness Church. From there we would head south and see what we would find. Our route would take us past paddling venues, ghost towns, fire towers, and several important genealogy spots. It had the makings of a perfect day.

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Union County Photo Trek

Posted on By Tom 3 Comments on Union County Photo Trek
History and Genealogy, Local, Photography

Pinckneyville Panorama

It started with a cryptic e-mail which began as follows:

Hello Tom,
I don’t know you and you don’t know me, but I do know about your fascination with ghost towns.

Mark Elbrecht had contacted me through this website, and he had a proposal. Mark is a fellow Flickr photographer, and it seems that he and I have similar interests as far as subject matter is concerned. He had arranged to meet with a representative of the Union Historical Society and get access to the Pinckneyville site, a ghost town I’ve been wanting to visit for quite some time, and he invited me to come along. There was absolutely no way I was going to pass up this opportunity.

Union

My brother Houston joined me, and this past Saturday we made the trek from Greenville to Union to join up with the group. We arrived a bit early, so we wandered the main street of Union and took a few photos of the architecture, including the spectacular court house…

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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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