Hampton County – Building a better South

June 20, 2015June 17, 2015

Two years later, Hampton, S.C.

Compare the above photo of downtown Hampton, S.C., with this one taken almost two years earlier when construction was being done to revamp the central business district. Looks a lot better, huh?

The downtown appeared vibrant despite the fact that this Promise Zone county is home to 4,000 fewer people in 2010 than it was a century ago. More. Some 22.6 percent of Hampton County’s 21,900 residents live below the poverty line.

Hampton’s annual Watermelon Festival is the state’s longest, continually-running festival. The town of Hampton includes a brownfield of a former medical waste incinerator. More.

QuickFacts from the U.S. Census

June 17, 2015

Rolling, rolling, rolling, Yemassee, S.C.

Train crosses road near I-95 in Yemassee, S.C.

A CSX train loaded with wood chips and other cargo barrels down a track near Interstate 95 at Yemassee, S.C., on the edge of Hampton County.

Hampton’s annual Watermelon Festival is the state’s longest, continually-running festival. The town of Hampton includes a brownfield of a former medical waste incinerator. More.

QuickFacts from the U.S. Census

June 14, 2015June 17, 2015

Old store, Cummings, S.C.

This old store, marked with the spray-painted word “sold” in a window, is very near this vernacular house in Cummings, S.C. (One of our favorite photos).

The store, replete with an area where gas pumps used to be, is in Hampton County, located in the southern part of South Carolina. It was home to 21,090 people in 2010, about 4,000 fewer than a century earlier. More. Some 22.6 percent of Hampton County residents live below the poverty line.

Hampton’s annual Watermelon Festival is the state’s longest, continually-running festival. The town of Hampton includes a brownfield of a former medical waste incinerator. More.

QuickFacts from the U.S. Census

October 9, 2014November 16, 2014

Vernacular house, Cummings, S.C.

We’re not really sure about the story behind this great, old vernacular house along the railroad tracks in tiny Cummings, S.C., a few miles southeast of Hampton. And while the house is boarded up and front door is open, it seems to still be getting some use as a storage area. No doubt, there a lots of stories that could be told about its better days.

Hampton’s annual Watermelon Festival is the state’s longest, continually-running festival. The town of Hampton includes a brownfield of a former medical waste incinerator. More.

QuickFacts from the U.S. Census

November 30, 2013November 25, 2013

Convenience store, Estill, S.C.

People across the South often have to shop in convenience stores, such as this one in Estill, S.C., because their rural town doesn’t have a grocery store. Estill, a town of about 2,000 located in rural Hampton County, is lucky to have an IGA store in addition to the Mid-Mart. Towns like Greeleyville, S.C., no longer have a grocery store.

Hampton County, located in the southern part of South Carolina, was home to 21,090 people in 2010, about 4,000 fewer than a century earlier. More. Some 22.6 percent of Hampton County residents live below the poverty line. Hampton’s annual Watermelon Festival is the state’s longest, continually-running festival.

QuickFacts from the U.S. Census

October 19, 2013November 17, 2013

Closed Saturday, Yemassee, S.C.

This battered business is what train passengers wee when looking east while at the station in Yemassee, S.C., crossroads of four counties. Next door to this business is a white store with “Praise the Lord” and “Jesus is Lord” painted on large windows. The sign on top of the building says “Church of the Lord Jesus Christ Deliverance.” Down the street is a similar store converted into “The Holy Temple Church of the Lord Jesus Christ, Inc. of the Apostolic Faith.”

While Yemassee touches on Beaufort, Colleton and Jasper counties, the station and buildings in the photo appear to be in Hampton County, home to 21,090 people in 2010, about 4,000 fewer than a century earlier. More. Some 22.6 percent of Hampton County residents live below the poverty line. Hampton’s annual Watermelon Festival is the state’s longest, continually-running festival.

QuickFacts from the U.S. Census

October 16, 2013November 17, 2013

Fresh shrimp, Yemassee, S.C.

The town of Yemassee, S.C., which is at the intersection of four different Crescent counties, is all about shrimp. It has a shrimp festival every year. And as you can see from this picture, it’s even sold in bait shops (although, we’ve got to admit, that from some angles, the sign appears to be pointing to the pool hall.)

Just around the corner from this commercial complex is the other big thing in Yemassee — the Amtrak station. While Yemassee touches on Beaufort, Colleton and Jasper counties, the station and buildings in the photo are in Hampton County, home to 21,090 people in 2010, about 4,000 fewer than a century earlier. More. Some 22.6 percent of Hampton County residents live below the poverty line. Hampton’s annual Watermelon Festival is the state’s longest, continually-running festival.

QuickFacts from the U.S. Census

June 27, 2013July 13, 2013

Downtown street work, Hampton, S.C.

A street construction crew worked in May to reconfigure Lee Street to make the downtown area more welcoming to residents and visitors alike. The work was just in time for the community’s 71st Watermelon Festival, an annual event that runs this year through June 30. (Visit the Watermelon Festival Web site.)

Hampton, like many rural Southern towns, is redoing its downtown to make it more attractive for people visiting smaller towns throughout the South. It seems to be working on Lee Street where, on one end of the street, is a funky coffee shop. At the other end is the old art-deco Palmetto Theater operated by the Hampton Arts Council. A resident on the council said its neon looks magnificent at night — and that we should return to see one of its productions.

Hampton County, located in the southern part of the state, was home to 20,090 people in 2010, about 4,000 fewer than a century earlier. More.