- Margaret D.
- Wednesday, September 02, 2020
With over 7,000 images in the Local History Digital Collections it can be hard to find those hidden gems. Take a look at what your neighbors found interesting in July, 2020.
The Walker Local and Family History Center maintains a healthy collection of historic photographs, postcards and other local memorabilia. A selection of these are online in the Local History Digital Collections, with new additions each week. Each month I’ll share the most popular images from the previous month. Below are the top 5 images from July, 2020.
5) Julian Bond, William Whitney, John Lewis and Calvin Harris at VEP meeting, 1972. From The State Newspaper Photograph Archive.
With Lewis’ recent passing this photograph is a reminder of his many years of service. Here Georgia Rep. Julian Bond (left), and the late John Lewis (second from right), director of the Voter Education Project, meet with local dignitaries at the Town-N-Tourist Motel on Harden St. The group are assembled to kick off a campaign to encourage Black South Carolinians to vote in the upcoming presidential election. Pictured with Bond and Lewis are William Whitney, assistant director of the Columbia Urban League and Calvin Harris, director of the South Carolina Voter Education Project.
4) Waitresses at Doug Broome's Drive-In, 1948. From the Bicentennial Photograph Collection.
The curb girls at Doug Broome’s Drive-In on Harden Street, a legendary teenage hang-out operated by energetic local restauranteur Doug Broome. Broome’s was well known for good music, cheap food, and serving beer on Sundays in milk-shake cups. Broome opened additional locations on North Main and Rosewood before he passed away in 1976.
3) Sign for the Trenholm Plaza, 1969. From The State Newspaper Photograph Archive.
The Trenholm Plaza in Forest Acres was constructed in 1960 and this original sign with floodlights stood in the center of the parking lot. The Piggly Wiggly grocery store is visible beyond. The Plaza is still going strong today, though the sign has since been removed.
2) Camp Fornance section, 1959. From The State Newspaper Photograph Archive.
The Camp Fornance section, also known as Black Bottom, was an impoverished neighborhood north of Columbia in an area once used as a training camp during the Spanish-American War. The area lacked indoor plumbing and many homes were want of other basic necessities like heat, insulation or electricity. In this photograph, several neighborhood boys are investigating as the photographer takes a picture from the roof of one of the homes.
1) Eau Claire Town Limits, 1955. From The State Newspaper Photograph Archive.
View of the sign at the Eau Claire town limits on the outskirts of Columbia. Eau Claire was established in 1899 as an independent municipality just north of Columbia. Soon after this photograph was taken, Eau Claire residents elected to join the city of Columbia.
Want to see more? Click to see the top 5 from June 2020 or August 2020.