Collage of old Gauges

Old Columbia Water Plant

Water Turbine and a Moravian Pastor

A strange title for a post ... maybe not.

Water turbine used to drive the pumps
in the old Columbia Canal Water Plant

The turbine was manufactured
by the S. Morgan Smith Co. of York Pa.

Using Google I found out this bit of information about S. Morgan Smith.
Mr. Morgan had been a Moravian pastor and a chaplain in the Civil War before he invented turbine water-wheels. There is a stained glass window in his memory in the First Moravian Church 0f York,PA

Old Columbia Water Plant

Built in 1906 next the Columbia Canal, the pumps were powered by water turbines and were capable of pumping 7 million gallons per day. The plant was in use until the 1970's.

Waste Weir

On top of the Columbia Canal waste weir

Waste weir: an overflow, or weir, for the escape of surplus water from a canal or reservoir; a dam-like structure along the canal berm with openings to control the water level.

Video showing water flowing from the Columbia Canal waste weir into the Congaree river.

Columbia Canal Bridge

This old railway bridge(1908) manufactured by the American Bridge Company was moved here from within the state and now serves as a pedestrian walkway across the canal.

Historic Columbia Canal

The Columbia Canal was completed in 1824 and allowed safe transportation around the shoals and rapids on the Congaree river. In the early days it transported an average of 30,000 bales of cotton each year. Since 1906 it has been a source of water for the city of Columbia, SC. In 1979 the Columbia Canal was listed in the National Register of Historic places. The canal is now part of Riverfront Park and includes a two-and-one-half-mile walking trail along the canal.

Congaree Gaging Station

Water data has been collected at this gaging station since 1934. Current data on water height and discharge rate is reported every 15 minutes and is available on the Internet at this U.S. Geological Survey website.

Gervais Street Bridge

The Gervais Street bridge over the Congaree river in Columbia, SC.



The 1,415 foot-long bridge was opened in 1927 and is the third bridge built on the Congaree at this point. The first bridge was built in 1827 and was burned by Confederate soldiers to delay the advance of Sherman's troops. The second bridge was built in 1870. The regularly spaced remnants of stone piers from previous bridges can be seen in the photo below.

Stone abutment from previous bridges.

Trinity Episcopal Cathedral

The cathedral was built in 1846 and replaced an earlier wooden structure from 1814. It is modeled after York Cathedral in England and is the oldest church building in Columbia, SC. Of special interest in the church are the baptismal font designed by the sculptor, Hiram Powers; the great trinity window over the front door and the Carrara marble altar.
Under the ancient oaks and magnolias of Trinity's Churchyard are buried some of South Carolina's most distinguished sons and daughters.

Statue and State House

A statue of Wade Hampton III on the grounds of the South Carolina State House.

An Early Spring?

A saucer magnolia blooming on the South Carolina Statehouse grounds. This brings back memories of visiting Washington DC when the cherry blossoms were in bloom.

Glass Rocket

Myrtle Beach Convention Center

There's Always One...

in every crowd that is not paying attention.

Paperwhites

Thomas B. Cooper meets Wikipedia

Many times while waiting for the Socastee swing bridge to open and close, I have wondered about the history of this old building.

One day I stopped and read this sign.

I googled "Socastee Historic District" on the Internet and found more information from the SC Dept of Archives and History. The old building was the Thomas B. Cooper store dating to 1905.

Enter Wikipedia: My son, Robert, has been editing articles for Wikipedia and thought that I should too. If you are not familiar with Wikipedia, check out this description. I checked and there was no entry for the Socastee Historic District in Wikipedia but now there is. Check out my first Wikipedia article (click here). It still needs more information and I plan to visit the Conway public library and Horry County Museum in the near future.

I have also added an article for Atalaya castle and have ideas for several more.
What I like about this is I can use my love of photography, history and computers.

Pair of Cormorants

Notice the four-toed web feet. Cormorants belong to the same order (Pelecaniformes) as pelicans.

Waccamaw River Memorial Bridge

The bridge is 1270 feet long
and opened to the public in April, 1938.

Paperwhites

The paperwhite bulbs received at Christmas are now blooming.

Murals at Blackwater Market

These wall murals of Conway scenes are featured in the interior walkway at Blackwater Market in downtown Conway.

Old Steamer Terminal

This warehouse was built ca. 1880 as the terminal for the Waccamaw Line of Steamers operated by Burroughs and Collins, which ran on the river until 1919. This building along with several others comprise the Waccamaw River Warehouse Historic District which was placed on the National Registry of Historic Places in 1986.

Late Arrival

Marina on Waccamaw river - Conway, SC

Camellias in the Churchyard

Camellias at Kingston Presbyterian Church - Conway,SC

My favorite -
a new bud flowering amongst the Spanish moss.

An Old Church and Spanish Moss

The present sanctuary of the Kingston Presbyterian Church in Conway, SC was built in 1858. The original church began in the 1700's when the area was Kingston township, later known as Conwayborough and eventually Conway.

The Spanish moss is abundant in the trees around the church.

The cemetary contains graves dating back to the 1700's
and is listed on the on National Registry of Historic Places.

Tomorrow we will take a look
at the Camellias in the church yard.

Still Proud to be a Buckeye

The Art of Glassblowing

A demonstation of glassblowing by Eddie Streeter at Pop's Glass Station in Conway,SC. The studio is a former 1900's horse stable.

Conway Art Walk

Saturday was a beautiful day to take advantage of the first Art Walk in Conway. The theme was "The Art of Photography" and many of the shops had photographs of local history by amateur and professional photographers on display. This event is going to be held the first Saturday of each month.

Historic downtown Conway is a "gem" hidden away from all the billboards, glitter and traffic of Myrtle Beach.

Riverwalk along the Waccamaw river
Conway, SC

It's Blooming

Hippeastrum ( a.k.a. Amaryllis )

Another sign ...

of Global Warming?
Maybe, maybe not .. but weeds may be the least of our future problems.

Think Small

Some days there doesn't seem to be any big photo opportunities, but that is when it helps to "think small" . Macro (close-up) photography can lead to some interesting photos.

empty seed pod on crepe myrtle