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| Old Town Hall |
By now I think everyone knows that Linda and I make our headquarters in the suburbs of the amazing metropolis of Ridgeway, SC, population 380 or so, depending on the day of the week. Sherwood maintains our 'big city' point of contact in 'big ol' Columbia, our state capitol. Well, the SCTravelersX3 feel fortunate to have both places as "home" because each offers loads of opportunities to experience life in South Carolina at its best. For a number of years we have seen continuous improvement in the availability of theater, art, symphony, ballet, literary programs of all kinds and a general commitment to the arts. When we first came to Ridgeway we were involved in some early efforts to develop an "Arts Council"
and I am pleased to say that in recent years, the community has come together to make it happen in a big way. For the last couple of years Mayor Charlene Herring (her husband was instrumental in those early efforts to establish the Arts Council) and Mayor Pro-Tem
Donald Prioleau (who was also on the Town Council at that time) have done a
spectacular job promoting Ridgeway and, particularly, the arts. We just celebrated our second annual "Arts on the Ridge" festival and our little town was really hopping. Over the last year the merchants in town have sponsored "First Friday" on the first Friday of each month.
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| The Century House - Now our City Hall |
The merchants stay open late and there are numerous sidewalk exhibits of special offerings. This month, First Friday coincided with the "Arts on the Ridge" and it was really wonderful. Numerous businesses 
sponsored musical groups and refreshments and at "The Century House" a marvelous art exhibit, reception and awards ceremony was the highlight of the evening. The Century House is a beautiful structure and has a ton of history behind it. When we first came to Ridgeway the Century House was in very limited use. (Including being the local site of the Fairfield County Library.) The building was on the verge of collapse and before 
long it was condemned and could not be used. As we pointed out earlier, at that time we were trying to stimulate interest in an Arts Council and, specifically, using the old Ridgeway High School building for that purpose. Both buildings - high school and Century House - were on the Register of Historic Places but it became apparent that only one of the structures could be saved. The vote went to the Century House. Now, several years later, the investment has paid off enormously. While I truly lament the loss of the beautiful school house structure, the Century House is absolutely gorgeous. The picture to the left is looking from the front yard back toward Main Street. In the center of the picture, just to the right of the water tower, you can see the rear of the old Police Station - listed by Guinness Book of Records as the worlds smallest police station. In the picture you can also see the peaked turret of the Old Town Hall (see the top right picture) which now houses the "Yesteryear" restaurant. The most important thing, however, is that the art we saw on exhibit was stunningly good. But most impressive 
was the fact that while the "professional" or "adult" categories showcased extraordinary art in many styles, the "youth" categories were equally impressive. We are also excited to be invited to the premier event of the Blythewood Arts Guild tomorrow. Blythewood is a neighboring community and the creation of this new organization promises to take interest in the arts to a whole new level in our area. But, as we get ready to close this post about our wonderful town we want to point out the d
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Ridgeway Town Flag
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elicate ties that bind one era to another. As you might recall, a couple of posts back we were down in Charleston and we took time out to visit Fort Moultrie. During our visit we met General P.G.T. Beauregard who was the commander of that installation and who later gained fame as the military leader who captured Fort Sumter and ushered in the conflagration we now refer to as the War Between The States. Well - as you can see from this historic marker, almost exactly four years after that episode in Charleston Harbor, General Beauregard appeared in the midlands of South Carolina in a far different role. I suppose the proverbial "bottom line" is that - whether you are seeking cultural events or 'living history', our area can probably accommodate you. Please take the time to visit us soon. We'll be back with our new 'adventure plans' in the near future. See ya.
By now I think everyone knows that Linda and I make our headquarters in the suburbs of the amazing metropolis of Ridgeway, SC, population 380 or so, depending on the day of the week. Sherwood maintains our 'big city' point of contact in 'big ol' Columbia, our state capitol. Well, the SCTravelersX3 feel fortunate to have both places as "home" because each offers loads of opportunities to experience life in South Carolina at its best. For a number of years we have seen continuous improvement in the availability of theater, art, symphony, ballet, literary programs of all kinds and a general commitment to the arts. When we first came to Ridgeway we were involved in some early efforts to develop an "Arts Council" 
and I am pleased to say that in recent years, the community has come together to make it happen in a big way. For the last couple of years Mayor Charlene Herring (her husband was instrumental in those early efforts to establish the Arts Council) and Mayor Pro-Tem Donald Prioleau (who was also on the Town Council at that time) have done a
spectacular job promoting Ridgeway and, particularly, the arts. We just celebrated our second annual "Arts on the Ridge" festival and our little town was really hopping. Over the last year the merchants in town have sponsored "First Friday" on the first Friday of each month. 
sponsored musical groups and refreshments and at "The Century House" a marvelous art exhibit, reception and awards ceremony was the highlight of the evening. The Century House is a beautiful structure and has a ton of history behind it. When we first came to Ridgeway the Century House was in very limited use. (Including being the local site of the Fairfield County Library.) The building was on the verge of collapse and before 
long it was condemned and could not be used. As we pointed out earlier, at that time we were trying to stimulate interest in an Arts Council and, specifically, using the old Ridgeway High School building for that purpose. Both buildings - high school and Century House - were on the Register of Historic Places but it became apparent that only one of the structures could be saved. The vote went to the Century House. Now, several years later, the investment has paid off enormously. While I truly lament the loss of the beautiful school house structure, the Century House is absolutely gorgeous. The picture to the left is looking from the front yard back toward Main Street. In the center of the picture, just to the right of the water tower, you can see the rear of the old Police Station - listed by Guinness Book of Records as the worlds smallest police station. In the picture you can also see the peaked turret of the Old Town Hall (see the top right picture) which now houses the "Yesteryear" restaurant. The most important thing, however, is that the art we saw on exhibit was stunningly good. But most impressive 
was the fact that while the "professional" or "adult" categories showcased extraordinary art in many styles, the "youth" categories were equally impressive. We are also excited to be invited to the premier event of the Blythewood Arts Guild tomorrow. Blythewood is a neighboring community and the creation of this new organization promises to take interest in the arts to a whole new level in our area. But, as we get ready to close this post about our wonderful town we want to point out the d
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