The Roper Mountain Science Center in Greenville, SC maintains a Living History Farm that includes more than a dozen historic structures dating from 1790 – 1898 and a heritage garden. They have unveiled updated interpretive signs. SC Humanities supported this effort with a Mini Grant.
The Living History Farm includes the following historic structures: The Paris-Owings cabin (c. 1800), the Rector School (c. 1898), Corncrib (c. 1850), Barn (c. 1825), Main House (c. 1790), Kitchen/Cavender House (c. 1830), and the Williams-Earle cabin (c. 1845). The farm also includes a heritage garden that features 19th century heirloom crops and historic crops of South Carolina. The Living History Farm hosts programs and school field trips relating to South Carolina history, Cherokee culture, 19th-century living, the Revolutionary War, and more.
This project updated 7 small and 4 large signs that share about the history of these buildings. The new signs include QR codes that link to short videos produced by staff with additional context. More than 50,000 students visit Roper Mountain, including the Living History Farm, each school year, as well as 33,000 expected over the summer.
The Living History Farm is open during the Afternoon Explorations program on Thursdays and Fridays from September through May. Learn more about the Living History Farm and Summer Adventure on the Roper Mountain Science Center website: https://www.ropermountain.org/.
The mission of SC Humanities is to enrich the cultural and intellectual lives of all South Carolinians. Established in 1973, this 501(c)3 organization is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors comprised of community leaders from throughout the state. It presents and supports literary initiatives, lectures, exhibits, festivals, publications, oral history projects, videos, and other humanities-based experiences that directly or indirectly reach more than 250,000 citizens annually. South Carolina Humanities receives funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities as well as corporate, foundation and individual donors. The National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom.
Image: Williams-Earle Cabin, courtesy of the Roper Mountain Science Center
