The Center for a Better South
It’s that time of year — the time of year that the land is producing acre upon acre of bountiful food. This corn field, along U.S. Highway 176 at the Calhoun-Orangeburg county line, illustrates the continuing importance of agribusiness to the Palmetto State. Coming soon: Fresh tomatoes, beans, squash and more. (Photo by Andy Brack)
Construction is moving along apace on a new Family Dollar building on Main Street in downtown Kingstree on the spot once occupied by a Piggly Wiggly grocery store, writes photographer Linda W. Brown. She says the town already has two Family Dollar stores and, presumably, one will move into the new building. Kingstree also has two Dollar General stores.
Copyrighted photo by Linda W. Brown taken in April 2015. All rights reserved.
Trucks seem to have a long life in Williamsburg County, S.C., as farmers use their equipment as long as it lasts, notes photographer Linda W. Brown, who spied this old truck on a farm between Cades and Hebron.
Seeing a fleet of mothballed Coast Guard helicopters — particularly in rural Williamsburg County — isn’t an everyday sight, notes Kingstree photographer Linda W. Brown.
“These old Coast Guard helicopters have been accumulating on the grounds of the old Hebron School. After the school closed, the building was used as a “sewing plant.”Once it, too, closed, it appears that the owner is using the grounds for helicopter “storage.” Note the guard dog! ”
There’s not much business these days at this abandoned store on U.S. Highway 17 outside of McClellanville in the northern, rural part of Charleston County.
[UPDATED, May 1, 2015] | The Center for a Better South is an integral part of the team that put together the successful application for rural counties in the southern part of South Carolina to win a federal Promise Zone designation this week.
“Without the visionary leadership and guidance of the Center for a Better South, the counties in the SouthernCarolina Alliance never would have applied for a federal Promise Zone designation, much less been able to put together the winning application that will change the lives of tens of thousands of people in the southern part of South Carolina,” said Danny Black, president and CEO of the Alliance, an economic development agency that will lead work in the Zone counties. “We look forward to continuing to work with the Center to grow jobs, reduce poverty and make our communities better.”
Better South President Andy Brack, who worked with the Alliance as part of a leadership team to bring together more than 20 organizations to partner on an application for the federal designation, said the Zone designation would make a big difference.
“This is going to change people’s lives,” he said. By being part of a new Promise Zone designations, just over 90,000 people in Allendale, Barnwell, Bamberg, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper counties will have new tools to be able to tap into existing federal grant dollars and other opportunities.
“It’s a big deal,” Brack said. “South Carolina is only the nation’s second rural Promise Zone and the only one announced today. If the same kinds of things happen here that have happened in the other rural Zone in eastern Kentucky, we should be looking at an infusion of millions of dollars over time to grow jobs, improve the economy, have better schools, get more affordable housing and reduce crime.”
Photographer Linda W. Brown of Kingstree, S.C., said she’s not exactly sure what this contraption in a Florence County pasture was used for on the farm. “Personally, I like all the different levels and sizes of wheels.”
Copyrighted photo taken by Linda W. Brown. All rights reserved.
Although never incorporated, Salters, S.C., has a town hall,” writes Kingstree, S.C., photographer Linda W. Brown. “Built around 1900 as a project of The Salters Social Club, it hosted community and club meetings and was a venue for school commencements, community plays, dances and suppers.
The social club members bought stock at $10 a share to raise money for its construction. The stock purchases raised $1,000 to build the structure in Williamsburg County, she said.
Copyrighted photo taken by Linda W. Brown. All rights reserved.
These tobacco barns probably date to the middle of the last century and, though not evident in this photograph, the one in the foreground is leaning badly, says VanishingSouthGeorgia.com photographer Brian Brown.
“The ‘Cracker’ style double-pen farmhouse is the real highlight of the property, though. The owners have done a great job in keeping it authentic and stabilized. See more here.
Tattnall County in eastern Georgia just south of Interstate 16, is home to about 25,000 people, some 24 percent of whom live below the federal poverty line including 33 percent of children. It’s county seat is Reidsville, known as home for one of the state’s toughest prisons.
Copyrighted photo by Brian Brown. All rights reserved.
Many of Brooklet’s historic downtown storefronts have been restored or well maintained and Parker Street continues to be the commercial heart of the town, writes VanishingSouthGeorgia.com photographer Brian Brown.
Brooklet, home to about 1,400 people, is in Bulloch County, Ga., about nine miles east of Statesboro, which is home to Georgia State University. Bulloch County, located in eastern Georgia county along Interstate 16, is deeply in poverty with 31 percent of residents living below the federal poverty line. The county, which has a median household income of $33,902, is home to 72,694 people (2012), two thirds of whom are white.
Copyrighted photo by Brian Brown. All rights reserved.