A bustling March full of activity is evident not only in our calendar of events but throughout our gardens, grounds and house museums at Historic Columbia Foundation. HCF staff, volunteers, members and visitors have the privilege of watching several HCF projects take shape throughout our historic sites!
The Hampton-Preston Garden project is coming to life as pathways are cleared and fountain work is underway. Phase IIA of the Woodrow Wilson Family Home rehabilitation has taken a significant step forward, and the completion of the Modjeska Simkins House rear building is drawing nigh. More details on these projects and many exciting programs (including the Great Columbia Quest and Contest and openings in our VIP tour of the Curtiss-Wright Hangar) are included in this month’s newsletter. Event proceeds benefit Historic Columbia Foundation. As always, thank you for your support.
Online registration is officially open for the much-anticipated Great Columbia Quest and Contest! Join us on Saturday, April 21 for this “Famously Hot” citywide scavenger hunt inspired by The Amazing Race as we explore Columbia’s history through the city’s significant sites!
Designed for ages 10 and up (but all ages are welcome to participate), teams of two will encounter challenges, visit historic sites and look for clues about the City’s past.
The goal: To earn as many points as possible during the three-hour time frame, competing for a variety of prizes (including a cash prize).
The challenge: To visit a variety of sites throughout Columbia’s downtown district to answer clues and overcome obstacles. Contestants will walk, bike or drive during the challenge.
The celebration: At the end of the three hours, contestants will join Historic Columbia Foundation at a finish line festival at the Hampton-Preston Mansion and Garden for drinks, snacks and prizes.
Online Registration Now Open!
Register your team at http://greatcolumbiaquest.eventbrite.com. Cost is $30 per team (includes two tickets and event t-shirts) for Historic Columbia Members and $40 per team for non-members. Prices will increase by $10 on April 1. Day-of registration will be available for $50 per team for Historic Columbia Members and $60 per team for non-members. Please arrive early for day-of registration.
Purchase tickets by April 1 to secure discounted rates at http://greatcolumbiaquest.eventbrite.com.
Photos courtesy Columbia Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau
Limited Openings! Behind-the-Scenes Tour of Curtiss-Wright Hangar
THIS Sunday, March 11 from 2 pm-4 pm
We have a few openings left for our exclusive behind-the-scenes tours of Sunday’s VIP tour of the Curtiss-Wright Hangar and The Hangars.
Photo courtesy South Carolina Department of Archives and History
Enjoy a behind-the-scenes tour of the circa-1929 Curtiss-Wright Hangar, the first building erected at Owens Field, an historic site that represents the contributions of air transportation to Columbia and South Carolina. First used to house airplanes for passenger and airmail services, this landmark building was used later as space for the civilian flight training program and finally for general aircraft maintenance.
During the 1930s, Owens Field had the distinction of hosting many well-known aviators and personalities, including Amelia Earhart and President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The tour will conclude at the Hangars Lofts, a former warehouse adapted into a unique residential experience by owner Joab Dick.
Registration/Cost Information:
HCF member rate- $8 / Family member rate- $25 / Non-member rate- $10
Tour held at the Owens Field Municipal Airport Hangar (1400 Jim Hamilton Boulevard).
Refreshments to be served. Details…
Just for Families:
Spring Break and Summer Camps Announced
If you’re the parent of an 8-12 year old, Historic Columbia Foundation is offering Spring Break and Summer Camps sure to ignite a spirit of exploration in your child! Details below.
Spring Break Camp:
April 2-4, 9 am-12 pm
Do you have fond memories of playing pick-up-sticks or marbles as a child? Or perhaps spin top fun with friends? Children will engage these and other old fashion games during our Spring Break Camp at Historic Columbia Foundation. Children will also enjoy learning to write with quill and ink, make crafts, churn butter and much more. Snacks are provided. Camp cost is just $40 for members and $50 for non-members. Registration information…
Jump Back in Time! Time Travel Summer Camp
Offered in two sessions: June 25-29 OR July 9–13
New this year: Camp runs 9 am–4 pm
Jump back in time at Historic Columbia Foundation’s Summer Camp! Children ages 8-12 are invited to take an adventure in time as we explore what it was like to live in historic time periods. History will come to life through interactive games and time spent exploring the gardens, grounds and houses found in Columbia!
On the first day of camp, kids will step back in time to 1786 – the year Columbia was founded. Time travels will continue each subsequent day when kids will find themselves immersed in a different time period through crafts, games, play and exploration.
Kids will enjoy indigo dying, learn to march like a Civil War soldier, make old fashion hardtack, learn how WWII soldiers spotted airplanes from the roof of the Robert Mills House, make a tie dye shirt and “shop” in the Museum Shop using reproduction ration cards from WWII. Each day will feature fun games and team activities related to past life in Columbia.
Camp cost is just $160 for members and $200 for non-members (Camp runs 5 days from 9 am – 4 pm each day). Registration information…
Early Columbia Lecture Series: Part II
Our Early Columbia Lecture Series continues! Part II kicks off on the evening of March 27, running through May 1. We have a few slots remaining if you’re interested in joining us. Reservations will be accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Part II will cover Columbia history as the capital city rebuilds (1865 – 1914).
Lectures are held from 6 pm – 7:30 pm at the Seibels House & Garden. Dates/topics below.
Mar 27: The Civil War Refuge and Disaster
Apr 3: Reconstruction and Healing
Apr 10: Transportation: Rivers, Roads, Railroads
Optional Bus Tour: Sunday, April 15, 2012 (SOLD OUT)
Apr 17: Economic Development: Textiles & Agriculture
Apr 24: Public Education
May 1: Higher Education: Colleges & Universities
Cost is $50 for members, $60 for guests, $35 for students OR $10 per class or tour, no registration needed but space may be limited and allowed according to availability. Download our print-friendly registration form…
Columbia Revisited will be used as the textbook for this series. If you would like to pre-purchase a copy, please let us know. The cost will be $26.95 for members of Historic Columbia Foundation and $29.95 for all other participants.
Second Sunday Stroll of Old Shandon: Free for Members!
Sunday, March 11 at 2 pm
Join Historic Columbia Foundation during this month’s Second Sunday Stroll on Sunday, March 11 at 2 pm. We’ll be touring the Old Shandon neighborhood. This guided walking tour will highlight 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). Learn more…
A Call for Nominations:
Preservation Matters: 2012 Awards
Historic Columbia Foundation is delighted to announce the solicitation of nominations for the Preservation Matters: 2012 Awards. Help us recognize the commendable efforts of both Columbia’s citizens and their preservation projects by nominating those who meet the following criteria.
Award Categories are:
• Preservation/Restoration
• Adaptive Use
• New Construction in an Historic Context
Nominations should be limited to recent projects (completed in the last five years) and located in Columbia and Richland County. Only completed projects will be considered. Awards will be presented to recipients at the Preservation Matters: 2012 Awards Reception at 701 Whaley on the evening of May 24. Please provide as much information as possible on nominations and return to our office by Friday, March 30, 2012.
New Projects at Old Sites:
Capital Repairs Ensure the Future of Our Important Cultural Resources
Phase IIA of the Woodrow Wilson Family Home rehabilitation (pictured above) has taken a significant step forward over the past two weeks, as workers have successfully completed the concrete foundation of the project’s accessory building. The footprint of the building is best appreciated from the vantage point of the second story rear porch of the Wilson House.
The Woodrow Wilson Family Home recently was opened for a special evening behind-the-scenes tour that included a tour of the Lorick House that stands immediately to its east. Seventy guests enjoyed an update on the progress at South Carolina’s only presidential site and Columbia’s greatest link to the Reconstruction era.
Hard hat tours are offered on the first Tuesday of each month. Details…
Garden work at the Hampton-Preston Mansion (pictured above) is moving along nicely with pathways, electrical and irrigation piping nearing completion. Test portions of the garden pathways have been installed and illustrate how improved the grounds will be upon the project’s completion by late March.
Students at Heyward Career and Technology Center have been busy working under the instruction of Mr. Whitaker and Mr. Sandels, who are overseeing their fabrication of structural steel ghost structures that will be installed at the Mann-Simons Site by May.
This unique addition to the landscape will allow visitors to the historic site to better understand the complex arrangement of buildings that the family owned from the late 19th century through 1970.
The much-anticipated completion of the Modjeska Simkins House rear building (pictured left) is drawing nigh. This May Historic Columbia Foundation will debut a scholar-in-residence program that will benefit from the unique live-work unit set-up that the circa-1895 building offers.
Stay tuned for continued updates on these and other projects at Historic Columbia Foundation. Thank you for your support!
Dollar Sunday Admission: March 18, 1 pm – 5 pm
Residents of Richland and Lexington Counties are invited to take a guided tour of the Hampton-Preston Mansion (seen right) or the Mann-Simons Site for just $1/person! General admission prices apply for any house tours after the first. Purchase tickets at the Museum Shop at 1616 Blanding Street. 803-252-1770, ext. 24. Walk-ins welcome. Please present valid ID to receive discount.
Preservation Matters: Main Street
We’re sharing an excerpt from our latest “Preservaton Matters” blog post. This month’s article focuses on historic Main Street in Columbia, South Carolina. Never miss a post by liking our “Preservation Matters” Facebook page.
“Like the pace and volume of the Congaree River that lies just blocks to its west, Columbia, South Carolina’s Main Street has seen its vitality ebb and flow over the 226 years since it was carved out of the Taylor family’s plantation lands. Perhaps no thoroughfare can boast as dynamic a history as the street once called Richardson.
Here fame and fortune have collided with infamy and destitution.Nowhere has war left more of its mark. Nowhere did Columbians more energetically meet the daunting task of replacing charred timbers and collapsed brick walls with handsome new commercial and governmental structures that ushered in a new era for the city’s commercial, social and architectural core. Their efforts and those of succeeding generations resulted in a dynamic cityscape that captured the imagination of Columbia residents and visitors for generations.
It was here that you came to work, shop, dine and be entertained. Today, Main Street is the beneficiary of considerable public and private investment that has led to streetscape improvements, the rehabilitation of historic structures and the construction of new buildings. Nowhere does the spirited past of yesteryear and the promising future of Main Street become more apparent than in three historic buildings – the Efird’s building, the former State/Fox Theater and the Brennen building. Within each structure lie the growing roots of a larger Renaissance whose full potential is well within grasp.
Strategically situated at the intersection of Main and Taylor streets, the historic Efird’s building has been a mainstay of Columbia’s downtown vitality since the immediate post-Civil War period. Heavily renovated in 1919 to better accommodate the Efird’s Department Store, this venerable property went on to become the home of Lourie’s, an upscale clothier that outfitted its customers with fine threads for over five decades.” Keep reading…
Pictured above: Throngs of people choke Main Street in 1876 at the end of the Reconstruction, the post-Civil War period in which many of today’s buildings where built.
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 www.historiccolumbia.org for details.
