Do you know the history of Old Shandon in Columbia, South Carolina? Covering approximately 37 acres, this district features 42 buildings of architectural merit representative of housing styles and forms popular from 1893 through the 1940s. Early suburban life in this Columbia neighborhood proved a major attraction for inner-city professionals and their families as early as 1893. Life close todowntown amenities and work but within new homes situated on more spacious lots spoke to a more modern lifestyle that lured Columbia residents outside the city’s limits. With the extension of the trolley line in 1894 into Valley Park and along Devine and Maple streets in 1898, greater numbers of former downtown citizens established themselves within the new community.
On Sunday, August 12 at 2 p.m.; Historic Columbia Foundation is offering a guided walking tour highlighting the architecture and history of this historic neighborhood. A free tour for Historic Columbia Foundation members, the cost is just $6 for non-member adults and $3 for non-member youth (17 and under). Tickets can be purchased by calling 803.252.1770 ext. 24 or by email at reservations@historiccolumbia.org. Walk-up registrations are also accepted – the tour will meet at the Wheatley Branch of Richland County Public Library (931 Woodrow Street).
More about Old Shandon:
In their 1895 map of Columbia and its suburbs, city engineers Niernsee & LaMotte indicated Shandon’s original boundaries as Woodrow, Wheat, and Harden streets and Carolina Avenue (now Santee Avenue). Today’s Old Shandon area covers those blocks of the suburb that lay northeast of Devine Street, in addition to the area southeast of Woodrow Street that became Maple Street. In 2003, Old Shandon residents supported listing the portion of their neighborhood bounded by Woodrow, Cypress, Maple, Lee, and Preston streets within the National Register of Historic Places as the Old Shandon Historic District.
Historic Columbia Foundation posted a video of Geneva Johnson Maxberry reflecting on the sense of community in Old Shandon: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfP-_s4OVdc&feature=player_embedded.
About this month’s Second Sunday Stroll, Robin Waites, Executive Director of Historic Columbia Foundation says “View Columbia from a different lens as you retrace our shared past on a guided walking tour of Old Shandon.” Members of the media are encouraged to contact Ashley Tucker, Marketing Coordinator, for historic photographs and questions about Old Shandon at 803.252.7742 ext 16 or atucker@historiccolumbia.org.
About Retrace: Connecting Communities Through History:
Historic Columbia Foundation invites you to retrace our shared past through its series of web tours, walking tours, mobile apps and wayside exhibits. Explore six virtual tours of Columbia’s historic neighborhoods (including Old Shandon) by clicking on the “Retrace” icon at http://www.historiccolumbia.org. Self-guided tour brochures are available in the Museum Shop, located at 1616 Blanding Street. Your story could be just around the corner.
About Historic Columbia Foundation:
In November 1961, a small group of individuals intent on saving the Ainsley Hall House from demolition, officially incorporated as the Historic Columbia Foundation. Over the next five decades the organization, which was founded on the premise of preservation and education, would take on the stewardship of seven historic properties in Richland County. Today, the organization serves as a model for local preservation efforts and interpretation of local history. The 50th Anniversary year of Historic Columbia Foundation (which officially began on November 13, 2011) will include a variety of community celebratory events. Visit http://www.historiccolumbia.org for details.
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/histcolumbia
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/historiccolumbia
Web: http://www.historiccolumbia.org
Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/discoverhistory
###
