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  • Sandburg’s Place

    Carl Sandburg’s study, Flat Rock, N.C.

    A 2-hour and 12-minute drive into North Carolina, about 132 miles, will take you to the home of Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and writer Carl Sandburg. For a bonus, plan a trip when the leaves are in rich color. Combine literature and leaves in one trip to Flat Rock.

    Born in Galesburg, Ill., in 1878, Carl Sandburg’s life is a classic American story. That he ended up in the American South is due in part to goats. Sandburg and his wife chose a farm and summer-home setting built by Charleston’s Christopher Memminger in the mid 1830s. Later, a Confederate veteran, Colonel William Gregg Jr. assumed ownership of the home and eventually he sold it to Captain Ellison Adger Smyth who named the place Connemara after his ancestral district in Ireland. Previously it was known as Rock Hill.

    It’s ironic that Lincoln’s biographer bought this home once owned by a Confederate officer. Mrs. Sandburg had been looking for a warmer climate for her Chikaming dairy goats. It’s said that when his wife showed him the site, he said, “This is the place. We will look no further.” Sandburg purchased this Greek-Revival home near Hendersonville in 1945 for $45,000. He liked the place for its serenity.

    Like many writers before and after him, he worked at various jobs. He left school at 13 to drive a milk wagon. From 14 until he was 17 or so, he worked as a porter at the Union Hotel barbershop in Galesburg, Ill. Other jobs included bricklayer and farm laborer on the wheat plains of Kansas. After time at Lombard College in Galesburg, he became a hotel servant in Denver, and later a coal-heaver in Omaha. His writing career began as a journalist for the Chicago Daily News. He spent most of his life in the Midwest before moving to North Carolina where he wrote many of his works. Sandburg wrote of the American people and their struggles, victories and hopes and he enjoyed national fame as a poet, lecturer, folksinger and biographer. He wrote, as mentioned above, a biography of Abraham Lincoln.

    More than 26,000 people go to Carl Sandburg’s home a year. They tour the grounds and the home where he published more than a third of his works. The day I was there I had a park ranger to myself and it was great to take a leisurely stroll through this national historic site. It’s interesting to see where the famous lived and worked. His study looks much like the studies of other writers. Go for yourself and see.

    Not far off 1-26 the 262-acre farm is easy to find. A small goat herd still lives there. While you are in the region keep in mind that Asheville is just 30 miles away. There’s much to see and do in this beautiful, historic region, and if the leaves are in full color, well what a bonus.

    If You Go …

    Turn onto Little River Road at the brown Sandburg Home sign, go approximately 100 yards, turn left into the parking area of the Carl Sandburg Home.

    No park entrance fee

    Guided House Tour Fee: $5 for adults 17 and older. $3 for senior citizens (No credit cards) Children 16 and younger admitted free

    Hours: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. except Christmas day.

    Learn more about Tom Poland, a Southern writer, and his work at www.tompoland.net. Email day-trip ideas to him at tompol@earthlink.net.

  • Council Fills Boards, Ups Rates for Manor

    Sharron Pickle
    Anthony Patton

    BLYTHEWOOD – Town Council reinstated six board members on each of three town boards – the Planning Commission, the Board of Architectural Review and the Board of Zoning appeals – during their Oct. 27 meeting.

    Council also voted to appoint the following three new board members: Sharron Pickle of Ashley Oaks to replace Scot Jeffers on the Board of Zoning Appeals; Anthony Patton of Lake Ashley to replace Susan Sorg on the Board of Architectural Review and Don Sanders of Cobblestone Park to replace Randy Humphries on the Planning Commission.

    Rules for the Park

    Council unanimously adopted rules recommended by the Town’s Park Committee for use of Doko Park and the playground. Rules for the park include prohibitions on fires, grilling, peddling/soliciting, open containers of alcohol, swimming in the pond, fishing from the bank, firearms and other dangerous weapons. It also prohibited tents in the Park except for Town sponsored events or a private event associated with rental of the Manor. A complete list of the rules and regulations for park and playground use is available at Town Hall and at townofblythewoodsc.gov.

    Storm Water Program

    In other business Council voted 5-0 to become a co-permittee with Richland County on a storm water management program in which the Town is being required to participate.

    “Now that we have been designated a Small Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System by the State,” Town Administrator Gary Parker told Council members, “we need to apply for a permit, then manage a Storm Water Management Program. This is very difficult for a town this size with limited staff to be able to devote the necessary time to do the work required by such a program. But, fortunately, we can become a co-permittee with Richland County which does have the staff resources to conduct not only their county program but also the programs of municipalities within the County.”

    Blythewood Mayor J. Michael Ross asked Parker if the Town could opt out of the program.

    “It’s highly unlikely that we can,” Parker said. “We will pursue opting out, but we don’t have an answer about this.”

    Paving Park Roads

    After receiving three bids to finish paving the roads in Doko Park, Council voted 5-0 to accept Sloane Construction’s low bid of $172,317. The project calls for applying a 2-inch layer of Type C asphalt to approximately 183,619 square feet of road surface. The asphalt tonnage submitted by Sloane was 2,040 tons. According to Parker, the work must be started by Nov. 10 and completed by Dec. 19.

    Exit 27 Landscape Bid

    After a summer of neglect, the I-77 exit 27 landscaping is going to be maintained on a regular basis. At Monday evening’s Council meeting, Council voted 5-0 to hire Phoenix Landscape Management, a local landscape company to maintain the exit 27 interchange and the flower bed and trees in the median at the Fairfield County line.

    Phoenix’s bid of $7,175, the lowest of four telephone bids, provides for a one-time weeding of all flower beds and trees at the exit 27/I-77 Interchange and the flower bed at the mile marker 34 median of I-77; install a pine straw around all trees at exit 27 and the flower bed in the median and a one-time trimming of bushes at the discretion of the Town. Price for this work will remain fixed for a one-year period.

    Manor Rates Increased

    Council accepted Parker’s recommendation to increase weekend rates at The Manor by 50 percent effective Jan. 1. Parker said the increase is in line with comparable facilities in the area. He said only three Saturdays, 25 Fridays and 44 Sundays are still available in 2015.

    Booth Chilcutt, Events and Conference Director, reported that The Manor had its best month in October with 14 paid events for a total income of $9,958. He also announced newly proposed business rates for weekday rentals and a slight increase for community-based organizations which are also limited to a maximum of 6 hours on weekdays. Prices for equipment and security deposits are also slightly increased. Tablecloths and linens, previously provided by the facility are now the responsibility of lessees.

  • Voters Oust Council Incumbents

    District 5 Councilman Elect Marion Robinson (left) gets the call with the results Tuesday night as his wife Vickie listens in. (Photo/Barbara Ball)

    Recount Triggered in District 3

    WINNSBORO – The winds of change swept through the voting booths in Fairfield County Tuesday night, leaving in their wake a pair of County Council incumbents with a third teetering on the edge of a recount. Those same winds, meanwhile, also blew into office a 24-year-old reform-minded candidate who says he is ready to roll up his sleeves and get to work changing the way Council does business.

    “There are a lot of things I want to get done, but the first thing is to fix our County Council,” Billy Smith, the District 7 Councilman Elect said late Tuesday. “I think we need some changes to our bylaws. We’ve got to get our County Council in order before we can get our county in order.”

    Smith beat out a pair of challengers for the seat being vacated by David Brown, who announced his retirement last June. Smith earned a whopping 590 votes in District 7 (60.64 percent) over Winnsboro Town Councilman Clyde Sanders’s 204 (20.97 percent) and David Brandenburg’s 173 (17.78 percent).

    Smith said he would like to see the Council put in a paid-by-attendance policy, while also reducing Council’s salaries, eliminating paid mileage for travel to and from regular meetings and eliminating County-paid home internet service and cell phones, which he called “perks and benefits.”

    “If you eliminate those perks and benefits, you might get a better group of people who are in it to serve the County and not themselves,” Smith said.

    Smith was by far the biggest winner in Tuesday night’s shakeup of County Council, but he won’t be the only new face come January, when the new members are sworn into office.

    In District 1, Ridgeway businessman Dan Ruff ousted incumbent and Vice Chairman Dwayne Perry, hauling in 468 votes (41.09 percent) over Perry’s 366 votes (32.13 percent). Michael Squirewell also made the race competitive, garnering 305 votes (26.78 percent).

    “I want to thank everyone who voted, and especially those who voted for me,” Ruff said. “And I want to congratulate Dwayne and Michael on a good campaign. They were both good friends of mine and still are. It was a good, clean campaign.”

    County Council’s long-standing Chairman, David Ferguson, was also unseated Tuesday night by challenger Marion Robinson. Robinson took home 471 votes (47.96 percent) to Ferguson’s 302 (30.75 percent). Eugene Holmes, meanwhile, earned 207 votes (21.08 percent).

    Late Tuesday night Robinson said that he was still in shock after the win.

    “I was hoping to win, of course, but I didn’t expect to win like this,” Robinson said. “This change couldn’t have been made without the people.”

    Robinson said he plans to meet with the other new Council members before the January inauguration to plan an agenda for the new administration.

    “There are so many things that need to be changed,” Robinson said, “but we have to start out slow. We have to study them.”

    One race was still too close to call late Tuesday, so close that it triggered an automatic recount.

    In District 3, incumbent Mikel Trapp edged out challenger Walter Larry Stewart, 489 votes (43.58 percent) to 484 (43.14 percent). Tangee Brice Jacobs took in 147 votes (13.10 percent). The less than 1 percent margin of victory between Trapp and Stewart, according to state law, means a mandatory recount Friday morning. The recount will include, according to law, “voting machine, absentee, provisional, emergency and failsafe votes.”

    Other county races produced far less drama. In the race for the District 1 School Board seat, incumbent Andrea Harrison fended off Marvin Robinson, 535 votes (53.23 percent) to 468 (46.57 percent). She was the only Board member facing a challenge Tuesday. Henry Miller returns to District 3 with 797 votes, Beth Reid to District 7 with 793 votes and Carl E. Jackson Jr. will fill the District 5 seat being vacated by Bobby Cunningham with 843 votes.

    State Rep. MaryGail Douglas (D-41) was also unopposed Tuesday. At press time, Douglas was on her way back to Columbia with 9,049 votes.

    In the race for the Sixth Circuit Solicitor’s Office, being vacated by Doug Barfield, unofficial results at press time had Randy Newman Jr. (R) beating out William Frick (D) 16,938 votes to 15,646 in a race that comprised Fairfield, Chester and Lancaster counties.

    Other County Results at Press Time

    County Treasurer (no challenger) – Norma Branham, 7,427.

    County Auditor (no challenger) – Peggy Hensley, 7,156.

    Probate Judge (no challenger) – Pam Renwick, 7,228.

    Soil & Water District Commission (no challenger) – Eric F. Cathcart, 4,738.

    Rocky Creek Watershed (2) – Claudia F. Dean, 42; William F. Wishert, 46.

    Jackson Mill Watershed & Wateree Creek Watershed – Write-in results not available at press time.

    All results are unofficial until certified by the County Election Commission Friday morning.

  • Unofficial Election Results for Fairfield County

    Results unofficial until certification Friday morning.

    (I = Incumbent)

    Fairfield County Council

    District 1

    Dan Ruff – 468 (41.09%)

    Dwayne Perry (I) – 366 (32.13%)

    Michael Squirewell – 305 (26.78%)

    District 3

    Mikel Trapp (I) – 489 (43.58%)

    Walter Larry Stewart – 484 (43.14%)

    Tangee Brice Jacobs – 147 (13.10%)

    District 5

    Marion Robinson – 471 (47.96%)

    David Ferguson (I) – 302 (30.75%)

    Eugene Holmes – 207 (21.08%)

    District 7

    (No Incumbent)

    Billy Smith – 590 (60.64%)

    Clyde Sanders – 204 (20.97%)

    David Brandenburg – 173 (17.78%)

    Fairfield County School Board

    District 1

    Andrea Harrison (I) – 535 (53.23%)

    Marvin Robertson – 468 (46.57%)

    District 3

    Henry Miller (I) – 797

    District 5

    (No Incumbent)

    Carl E. Jackson Jr. – 843

    District 7

    Beth Reid (I) – 793

    State House of Representatives

    MaryGail Douglas (D-41) (I) – 7,135

    Sixth Circuit Solicitor

    Randy Newman Jr. (R) – 16,938

    William Frick (D) – 15,646

    County Treasurer

    Norma Branham (I) – 7,427

    County Auditor

    Peggy Hensley (I) – 7,156

    Probate Judge

    Pam Renwick (I) – 7,228

    Soil & Water District Commission

    Eric F. Cathcart – 4,738

    Rocky Creek Watershed (2)

    Claudia F. Dean – 42

    William F. Wishert – 46

    Jackson Mill Watershed

    (Write-In Results Unavailable)

    Wateree Creek Watershed

    (Write-In Results Unavailable)

  • Pig on the Ridge Marks 16 Years in Hog Heaven

     

    Hog Wild –
    Pig on the Ridge organizers Donald Prioleau, Tom Connor, Henry Dixon and Rufus Jones show off the new monument to Ridgeway’s annual festival, which will happen again this weekend. For a complete schedule of events, see their ad on page 20. (Photo/Barbara Ball)

    RIDGEWAY – It was in May of 1999 that Tom Connor of Ridgeway was visiting family in Memphis, Tenn. and attended the country’s largest barbecue festival. To his surprise, he met up with an old friend from Ridgeway, J.W. Joye, who was cooking at the festival. Impressed with the event, Connor asked Joye if he would help arrange a barbecue festival in Ridgeway for the town’s 200th anniversary that fall. Joye agreed and the event was a success – so much so that they decided to do it again the next year.

    Joye is no longer helping with the event (he’s too busy cooking and judging barbecue at festivals around the country), but Connor and three other Ridgeway friends, Rufus Jones, Donald Prioleau and Henry Dixon, have carried on. They called the Ridgeway event Pig on the Ridge, and this year is its 16th anniversary. For eight out of the last nine years, it has been the largest barbecue cook-off in South Carolina.

    But Pig on the Ridge is more than great barbecue. It has become the Town’s main charitable event, raising more than $145,000 for community endeavors, including $76,000 for children in the Ridgeway community who might not otherwise receive Christmas gifts. The funds have been used to restore the Century House, purchase equipment for the Town’s volunteer fire department, provide welcome signs for the Town, provide smoke alarms in the homes of the elderly and disabled, and much more.

    “A festival like this involves lots of partnering,” Connor told The Voice. “We depend on the churches and Geiger Elementary School to identify children whose families need a little help at Christmas time.”

    While the four organizers plan the event, Connor said it is the 200 or so community volunteers who make the event happen.

    “Don Prioleau recruits volunteers to assist the cook teams. They distribute 3.5 tons of Boston Butts and whole hogs to the cook teams in less than an hour. We have Fanny Ford and many others who help with the ticket booths,” Connor said. “And that’s serious work; lots of hard work. But they are always there to do it.”

    The most recent recipient of Pig on the Ridge funds is a granite monument to the festival that has been set between the Old Town Hall Restaurant and the World’s Smallest Police Station.

    On Monday, cooking rigs were already setting up and volunteers were busy getting equipment ready for the weekend when festivities begin at 6:30 p.m. on Friday with the traditional “No Pig Allowed” street party. On that evening, the cook teams will be dishing out everything but barbecue. That can only be served on Saturday when judging begins at 9:30 a.m. But don’t wait too late. Regulars say the barbecue goes fast and if you arrive at 11 a.m. for lunch, you might be out of luck.

    But even being late has a silver lining. The Old Town Restaurant, under new management, will open its doors for lunch and will be open in the evening as well.

    For a small-town, family fun weekend, don’t miss Pig on the Ridge. There will be live music, rides for the kids, arts and crafts vendors, a hog-calling contest at 12:30, a cruise-by at 1 p.m. and the festival will wrap up with the awards ceremony at 2 p.m.

  • Murray’s Locks

    Locks of Love above the Lake Murray dam.

    Ready for a long trip to Paris, France? How does 4,208 miles across the Atlantic sound? Much too far? No passport? Well no need to fret. You don’t have to fly to Paris. Just drive 40 miles southwest to the Lake Murray Dam and you’ll see a touch of Paris and more. The Pont des Arts footbridge in Paris is where thousands of couples lock padlocks to a fence-like rail. They inscribe their names and messages onto the locks and throw the keys into the River Seine to eternalize their enduring love. There for all to see is an unbreakable bond.

    You can see symbols of enduring love in the Midlands too. Paris’s “love locks” have crossed the Atlantic to festoon the fence at Lake Murray Dam. What captures your emotions are the many locks and the sentiment and emotional messages they send. I drove over to the dam on a sultry September afternoon. Billowing thunderheads shot into the sky, their images reflected onto Lake Murray. As I drove over the dam to the Lexington County side I saw all types of locks glittering in late summer sunlight.

    The locks celebrate romance, the birth of babies, and sadly they offer up sentiment for the dearly departed. One lock gave the birth and death dates of one soul along with the words, “God Only Knows.” One lock secured a giant red heart to the fence. Two locks had sparkling glitter glued to them. The fence amounts to an art gallery in a way. People express love in creative ways. If you go, see if you can find the antique lock covered in rust. It’s a lock from yesteryear that requires a key like great grandparents used.

    When you’ve taken in all the locks and their messages, be sure to walk the dam. Across the dam and back is 3.4 miles, a decent walk but walking it in the heat of the day can be taxing. Why not plan a fall walk when the humidity is low. If you do, you can see the skyline of Columbia down river. On the dam’s lake side, you’ll see a huge expanse of deep water flecked white with sails and power boats’ feathery wakes.

    You’ll be walking over a historic spot too. The Lake Murray Dam, officially known as Dreher Shoals Dam, possesses a rich history. General Robert E. Lee’s Engineering Corps first envisioned a waterpower facility where the dam stands. The dam was built from 1927 to 1930 and at the time it was the world’s largest earthen dam. The Midland’s signature lake takes its name from William S. Murray, an engineer involved in the dam’s design and creation. When you walk the dam, you tread across an engineering miracle. The Dreher Shoals Dam runs approximately 1.5 miles long and stands 213 feet high. It holds back an impoundment 41 miles long and 14 miles wide at its widest point. The lake’s surface covers approximately 48,000 acres. All that water forms a 640-mile shoreline. Head down to Lake Murray and enjoy a touch of Paris. Choose a clear blue October or November day and fall foliage will make the journey all the prettier.

    If You Go …

    Dreher Shoals Dam

    Just outside Irmo on Highway 6

    Park for free in the area reserved for dam walkers

    Learn more about Tom Poland, a Southern writer, and his work at www.tompoland.net. Email day-trip ideas to him at tompol@earthlink.net.

  • Armed Robbery Suspect Caught Napping at Hotel

    James Carter Hewitt

    WINNSBORO – A Winnsboro man was arrested at a hotel in Florence last week, less than two days after police say he robbed a North Congress Street liquor store at gunpoint.

    James Carter “J.C.” Hewitt was arrested by Florence police just after 1 a.m. on Oct. 19 in the lobby of a hotel in Florence. Hewitt, who at press time was being held at the Fairfield County Detention Center, is charged with the Oct. 17 armed robbery of Jackie’s package store at 405 North Congress St. in Winnsboro.

    Freddie Lorick, Chief of Winnsboro Public Safety, said Hewitt, 36, of 220 Holly St., walked into Jackie’s at approximately 6:20 p.m. on Oct. 17 wearing a ski mask and brandishing a handgun. Hewitt reportedly approached the clerk on duty, pointed the gun at her and demanded money. The clerk, Lorick said, recognized Hewitt’s voice and could not believe, for a moment at least, that he was serious.

    “She said, ‘J.C., I know you. You’re joking’,” Lorick said.

    Hewitt was, however, quite serious. He took between $400 and $1,000 from the register, left the store and got into a 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee, in which he sped away. Hewitt operates a garage on Columbia Road, and the Jeep, Lorick said, belonged to a customer who had left it with Hewitt for repairs.

    Hewitt drove the Jeep to a home on Hilltop Road where he asked a friend living there for a ride to Myrtle Beach. When the friend refused, Hewitt took the keys to his friend’s 2000 Honda CVR and hit the highway. He made it as far as Florence, where he stopped at a hotel.

    At the hotel, Hewitt got as far as the lobby before a heart condition prompted his loss of consciousness, Lorick said. When Hewitt passed out, the gun used in the robbery fell out of his pants and the hotel clerk called the Florence police. Hewitt was returned to Winnsboro the following morning, Lorick said.

  • Montgomery Wins Runoff

    Will Montgomery

    WINNSBORO – The numbers are in, the results are final and on his third run for the office, Will Montgomery was tabbed by voters Tuesday night to represent the Democratic Party on the ballot in the Nov. 18 special election to fulfill the remaining two years on Herman Young’s term as Fairfield County Sheriff. With no Republicans declaring for the office, Tuesday’s results all but assure Montgomery’s ascension into the Sheriff’s Office.

    Montgomery earned 56.25 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s Democratic Primary runoff with 2,787 votes over Keith Lewis’s 43.75 percent and 2,168 votes.

    Both men picked up votes from their performances in the Sept. 30 primary. Montgomery, who brought in 1,613 votes on Sept. 30, picked up 1,174 votes on the campaign trail in the last two weeks. Lewis, meanwhile, picked up 573 votes over his Sept. 30 numbers.

    More people voted in Tuesday night’s runoff than in the Sept. 30 primary, by 177 votes.

    Montgomery will be the only name on the Nov. 18 special election ballot. Write-in candidates may make a run at the office, but not if they have already been rejected by voters in the primary.

    Phone calls to Lewis and to Montgomery were not returned at press time Tuesday night.

    Young stepped down in July halfway through his four-year term because of health reasons.

    Montgomery comes from a long line of Fairfield County lawmen. His father, Bubba Montgomery, and his grandfather, S. Leroy Montgomery, both served as Fairfield County Sheriff for 12 years each. Montgomery is a shift supervisor with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department, where he has worked for the last 13 years.

  • Results of the Oct. 14, 2014 Democratic Primary Runoff for Fairfield County Sheriff

    Will Montgomery: 2,787 (56.25%)

    Keith Lewis: 2,168 (43.75%)

  • Gibson Backs Lewis in Runoff for Sheriff

    Will Montgomery
    Keith Lewis

    Montgomery Gets Nod from Richland County Sheriff

    WINNSBORO – Ricky Gibson, whose bid for Sheriff came up short in the Sept. 30 special election Democratic primary, has thrown his support behind Keith Lewis in advance of this Tuesday’s primary runoff. Lewis, currently Chief Deputy at the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office, faces Richland County deputy Will Montgomery in Tuesday’s vote.

    “He’s already in office and in a position to keep the continuity of the department together,” Gibson said. “He will be able to address any issues straight from the start, instead of having to find out what the issues are. He has made a pledge that he will actively address any and all issues brought to him and I am taking him at his word.”

    Gibson earned 925 votes in the Sept. 30 primary, good enough for a third-place finish behind Lewis’s 1,595 and Montgomery’s 1,613. Those votes will be highly coveted by both candidates leading up to Tuesday’s winner take all vote. Gibson said he and Lewis will hit the campaign trail this week to round up votes in areas where Lewis under-performed two weeks ago and focus on areas where turnout was soft.

    “I feel in those areas people were reluctant to come out and vote,” Gibson said. “We have to stress the importance to the county of that vote.”

    Gibson said he has known Lewis for nearly the entirety of Lewis’s 30-plus-year career and said he believes Lewis will be a unifying force for the county.

    “I believe he will be able to unify the county, for the benefit of everyone in the county,” Gibson said.

    Lewis was endorsed early in his campaign by outgoing Sheriff Herman Young, who stepped down in late July for health reasons. A special election to fill out the remaining two years on Young’s term will be held Nov. 18, but with no Republicans filing, Tuesday’s runoff will all but officially fill the position.

    Montgomery, meanwhile, received the endorsement this week of his employer, Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott.