The South Carolina Humanities Board of Directors awarded over $45,000 in Major Grants to 10 cultural organizations after a September 23, 2016 Board Meeting in Columbia.
The awards were selected through a competitive application and review process and are made possible by SC Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Matching community support for the 10 awarded projects totaled: $243,014.
A list of awarded grants is provided below:
Sponsoring Organization: Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture at the College of Charleston
Project Title: Somebody Had to Do It Transcribing and Programming
Project Director: Dr. Mary Battle
Awarded: $6,041; Cost-share: $6,082
The Avery Research Center will transcribe 15 oral histories from the Somebody Had to Do It collection of African American “first children” who integrated public schools in the 1950s and 1960s. The newly transcribed and formatted oral histories will be added to the physical collections at the Avery Research Center and the digital collections on the Lowcountry Digital Library; they will also be integrated into an existing online exhibition on the Lowcountry Digital History Initiative.
Sponsoring Organization: Historic Beaufort Foundation
Project Title: Remnants of the Rice Culture: Agricultural History as Art
Project Director: Isabella Reeves
Awarded: $4,000; Cost-share: $29,255
Historic Beaufort Foundation will present a photographic exhibit at the Verdier House Museum from October 20, 2016 – March 31, 2017. “Remnants of the Rice Culture: Agricultural History as Art” examines the Lowcountry’s rice fields and the history of their creation through slave labor. Monthly lectures and events will take place from November 2016 –March 2017 and include such topics as “The Reintroduction of Carolina Gold Rice,” “Historic Rice Production: The Tools, the Buildings, the Fields,” and “How an 18th Century Landscape Impacts Conservation in the 21st Century.”
Sponsoring Organization: Allison Creek Presbyterian Church
Project Title: Let the Land Say Amen
Project Director: Patrice Gaines
Awarded: $2,000; Cost-share: $13,825
The Allison Creek Presbyterian Church in York will conduct a multi-faceted project about common ground and the history of the community surrounding the church, which includes two historic cemeteries and public trails. They are planning a four-day festival “Let the Land Say Amen” from May 4 – 7, 2017.
Sponsoring Organization: Phi Alpha Theta (History Honors Society) at the Francis Marion University Department of History
Project Title: The American Heritage Festival
Project Director: Paul Graham
Awarded: $2,000; Cost-share: $70,412
The American Heritage Festival is an annual cultural event commemorating Colonial America and the American Revolution that takes place on Graham’s Historic Farm outside of Lake City in Florence County. It will take place December 2 – 4, 2016 and will feature a variety of activities, including revolutionary battle re-enactments; musical entertainment; historic lectures and presentations; a Colonial Christmas village with presentations on cooking, blacksmithing, wood working, furniture building; and more. The event has a $10 ticket price.
Sponsoring Organization: Historic Columbia
Project Title: Hampton-Preston Mansion African American Interpretation Revitalization
Project Director: John Sherrer
Awarded: $8,000; Cost-share: $62,330
Historic Columbia Foundation will launch new interpretation efforts at the historic Hampton-Preston Mansion in downtown Columbia. The product will be a more complete interpretation that integrates the stories of enslaved persons and post-emancipation domestic workers into the exhibits, tour scripts, web materials, and programming platforms; this side of the home’s history has not been well-told before, and the exhibits that do touch on it are currently located in the basement, which is often overlooked. The timeline to complete these revitalized interpretive elements is approximately one year.
Sponsoring Organization: South Carolina African American Heritage Foundation
Project Title: The Black Pearl: Recalling the History and Cultural Heritage of South Carolina’s Atlantic Beach
Project Director: Jannie Harriot
Awarded: $6,000; Cost-share: $9,000
The South Carolina African American Heritage Foundation will partner with the Town of Atlantic Beach, SC to present three interactive public programs as part of a year-long recognition of Atlantic Beach’s 50th anniversary. The public programs will promote the understanding of the social and cultural contributions of Atlantic Beach in particular and the African American population of South Carolina at large, including to social dances like the shag.
Sponsoring Organization: Gullah/Geechee Angel Network
Project Title: Gullah/Geechee Famlee Day: Ready for the Family Reunion: An Interactive Workshop Digitizing Gullah/Geechee Records for the Next Generation
Project Director: Queen Quet Marquetta L. Goodwine
Awarded: $3,700; Cost-share: $13,000
The Gullah/Geechee Angel Network will conduct a day-long history harvest and public program to document and celebrate Gullah/Geechee heritage and history. The program will be presented in partnership with the St. Helena Branch of the Beaufort County Library and the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition and is proposed to take place in April 2017.
Sponsoring Organization: University of South Carolina – Anthropology Department
Project Title: Intimate Grammars: A Diné (Navajo) Poetry Panel
Project Director: Anna Hamer
Awarded: $2,000; Cost-share: $3,000
The University of South Carolina Anthropology Department will present a public program featuring linguistic anthropologist Anthony Webster and Navajo poets Laura Tohe and Rex Lee Jim discussing “intimate grammars,” emotionally saturated language often used by and meaningful to particular cultures. The program will take place on November 4, 2016 at the McKissick Museum in Columbia.
Sponsoring Organization: USC Lancaster Native American Studies Center
Project Title: South Carolina Prehistory Exhibit: Sharing a Little of that Human Touch
Project Director: Christopher Judge
Awarded: $7,723; Cost-share: $10,110
The USC Lancaster Native American Studies Center will create an exhibit on South Carolina Prehistory titled “Share a Little of that Human Touch” that will open to the public on March 16, 2017. A series of public programs will take place over the opening weekend, including a gathering of Native American tribal leaders, guided exhibit tours, lectures, and public programs for students and the general public on “12,000 Years in 45 Minutes.” The exhibit will be open for at least three years.
Sponsoring Organization: Deckle Edge Literary Festival
Project Title: Deckle Edge Literary Festival 2017
Project Director: Annie Boiter-Jolley
Awarded: $4,000; Cost-share: $26,000
Deckle Edge Literary Festival will present their second annual event scheduled for February 24 – 26, 2017 in Columbia. The festival will feature a variety of authors and presenters in panels, readings, book signings, workshops, as well as other special events including activities for children.
For more information about any of these grant-supported projects, please contact T.J. Wallace at 803-771-2477.
