Tom’s habit of photographing old gas pumps at country stores had him cross paths with the grandson of a man killed for $500—murder for hire. The mayhem that ensued made history, involved Strom Thurmond, and led to eight people’s death, all because a mule kicked a calf in the head. The sole electrocution of a … Read more
An illustrated talk takes the audience behind the scenes to a haunted cemetery, South Carolina’s oldest bridge, North America’s only tea plantation, a wild ride down the Chattooga, an old mill where a tractor killed one of the last men making stone-ground cornmeal, a colony of carnivorous pitcher plants, forest fire entrapment while photographing rocky … Read more
Before walking out as SC Wildlife‘s managing editor to freelance, Tom made a road trip with photographer Robert Clark in search of a story. They found it and “Tenant Homes, Testament To Hard Times,” landed them a book contract. That book led to four others. Their initial 100-mile journey in time would lead to more than … Read more
Tom often writes about the vanishing ways, places, and traditions that have blessed the South with a sense of place: small towns that close at noon Wednesdays, vanishing country stores, telephoning fish, wasp attacks in church, casting spells to remove warts, and more. He brings the Southland of yesteryear alive … despite change and newcomers … Read more
Tom travels many a road off the beaten path. Three legs across South Carolina on Highway 76 reveals the state’s rich and surprising character. Other journeys have taken him from the Chattooga River to the Glendale Ruins to the Lowcountry. A surviving drive-in theater, the Kings Highway, a covered bridge, nuclear weapons reactors, poke salad … Read more
A traveling display of Lincoln and Civil War memorabilia and artifacts is available as a separate program. It requires a dedicated classroom for the day and at least six folding or library size tables. One or more classes can be rotated through the exhibit during a period of perhaps four repetitions; commentary and historical explanation … Read more
Kate has written four picture books about our state’s history: Palmetto – Symbol of Courage, about the famous Revolutionary War battle that inspired the color and symbols on our beautiful state flag; Francis Marion and the Legend of the Swamp Fox, the story of South Carolina’s most famous Revolutionary War hero; Almost Invisible – Black Patriots of the … Read more
Dozens of tales of ghosts and haunted places have found their way into South Carolina’s mainstream media. Many have their origins in the 19th century and most in historic places. Some places have only one or two supernatural stories while others like Charleston, Columbia, Beaufort, Chester, Darlington and Edgefield have numerous sightings and unexplained phenomena. … Read more
Henry Timrod’s stint as a war correspondent for South Carolina’s Charleston Mercury was brief, but the Civil War and his experiences at the battlefront were the inspiration for poems that created his legacy as an important 19th century Southern poet. His poetry, which is usually included in Southern studies and most anthologies of American poetry, was “borrowed” … Read more
