South Carolina from A to Z

“B” is for Bee, Barnard Elliott (1824-1861). Soldier.

“A” is for Ashley River Road. The Ashley River Road is one of the oldest roads in South Carolina.

"B" is for Boyd, Blanche McCrary [b. 1945]. Writer, educator.

“B” is for Banks, Anna De Costa (1869-1930). Nurse.

“A” is for African Theological Archministry, Inc. (Oyotunji Village).

"W” is for Waring, Joseph Ioor (1897-1977). Pediatrician, medical historian.

This week Bobbi Conner talks with Dr. Christina Abrams about sickle cell disease in the adolescent years.

The first television station to go on the air in South Carolina was WCOS-TV in April 1953.

"T" is for Trenholm, George Alfred (1807-1876). Merchant. Financier.

"S" is for Santee River. The 143 mile long Santee River is formed by the confluence of the Congaree and Wateree rivers.

"R" is for Richardson, Richard [ca. 1705-1780]. Legislator Soldier.

"P" is for Perry, Maddie Elmina (1868 to 1957). Healing Evangelist, a native of Oconee County.

"M" is from McClennan, Alonzo Clifton (1855 to 1912). Physician hospital administrator, a native of Columbia. McClennan was the second African-American admitted to the US Naval Academy.

“J” is for Jehu Jones (ca. 1769-1833). Free Black entrepreneur. Born into slavery, Jones was emancipated in 1798 and established himself as a successful tailor. He invested in real estate and purchased enslaved persons to assist with his business enterprises.

“H” is for Hawks, Esther Hill (1833-1906). Teacher, physician.

“G” is for Gist, William Henry (1807-1874). Governor. An ardent secessionist, Gist was elected governor in 1858. As sectional tensions reached their climax in 1860, he did his best to hasten the final push to secession.

“F’ is for Fort Watson. Fort Watson, named for Colonel John Watson, was one of a series of supply depots between Charleston and Camden during the Revolutionary War.

“E” is for Elmore v. Rice (1947). In 1946 George Elmore, an African American who was eligible to vote in general elections, was denied the right to vote in the Democratic Party in Richland County.

“W” is for White, Josh (1914-1969). Musician. A native of Greenville, White was a sophisticated guitarist and singer, Broadway actor, and favorite of the New York City folk music and leftist political scenes of the 1940s.

“A” is for Ashley River. Emerging from the Wassamasaw and Cypress Swamps in Berkeley and Dorchester Counties, the Ashley River runs only about sixty miles before flowing into Charleston harbor. Despite its short length, the river transitions through three separate types of riverine ecosystems.

“D” is for Dial, Nathaniel Barksdale (1862-1940) U.S. senator. Influenced by the New South movement, Dial became an advocate for improving the region’s economy by building financial institutions, developing energy resources, and industrialization.

“C” is for Cash, Wilbur Joseph (1900-1941). Author. Cash’s masterpiece and only work, The Mind of the South sought to dispel myths of the “Old South” by tracing the pervasive influence of racism on southern history and culture. Joseph Wilbur Cash died six months later.

“B” is for Beaufort County (587 square miles; 2020 population: 195,656).

“T” is for Travis, William Barret (1809-1836). Soldier. William Travis died at the Alamo on March 6, 1836.

“S” is for Santee Canal. A canal to connect the Santee and Cooper Rivers had been conceived as early as 1770, but the Revolutionary War intervened, and the plans were postponed.