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Thoroughbred Country
encompasses four counties totaling 2,462 square miles.
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Allendale County is
the youngest county in South Carolina. It was formed from parts of Barnwell
and Hampton counties in 1919.
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The Town of Salley
is known as the "Chitlin' Capital" of the world. To celebrate, the town
hosts the
Chitlin' Strut
every fall.
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Denmark is home to
nationally-known artist
Jim Harrison.
Known for his paintings of rural Americana, Jim has a public gallery here in
a restored sign shop.
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The legend of the
Healing Springs near Blackville dates back to the 1700's when Indians used
its waters to cure their ailments. Many locals still believe in the healing
powers of the springs. The acre of land surrounding the springs was legally
deeded to God by its owner in 1944.
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Barnwell is home to
what is believed to be the only vertical sundial in the United States.
Although erected prior to Standard Time, the sundial keeps within two
minutes of that.
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The Battle of Rivers
Bridge was the only major resistance encountered by Sherman's army on its
historic march through the state. Breastworks from the battle can still be
seen at Rivers Bridge State Historic Site near Ehrhardt.
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The wonderful
climate and natural beauty of Thoroughbred Country attracted Mennonites from
western states. Experience their culture and cooking in Blackville.
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Blackville is located 50 miles south of Columbia, 50 miles east of
Augusta, GA, 30 miles west of Orangeburg and 30 miles east of Aiken. Several
small towns, all within a 10-mile radius, surround Blackville.
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In the early 1900's, North
Augusta was in competition with Hollywood, CA to become the new home of the
movie industry. Fearing that the industry would cheapen their resort
community, local developers allowed the industry to choose Hollywood.
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General Sherman came through Bamberg
because it was home to the President of the South Carolina Secession
Convention, David Flavel Jamison. Jamison also introduced the legislation
that started
The Citadel.
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Many communities in
this area grew up along the Charleston-Hamburg Railway, the first commercial
railway in America and the longest commercial railway in the world at that
time.
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Brigadier General
Irene Trowell-Harris was born on a small cotton farm in Aiken County. In
1993, she was selected as the first female African-American General in the
357 year history of the National Guard.
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The Monetta Drive-In
opened in 1951 and provided decades of entertainment before closing in 1986.
The theater reopened in 1999, reviving a unique tradition and an almost lost
past time. The theater is the only operating Drive-In Theater in South
Carolina.
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Bamberg was home to South Carolina's most
notable author, William Gilmore Simms. Simms wrote the history of South
Carolina in 1841.
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Langley Pond in
Aiken County is the fastest growing rowing venue in the Southeast and the
only Olympic size course in South Carolina. Visitors from all over the world
compete in national and regional competitions annually.
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Silver Bluff Baptist
Church, located in Beech Island, is regarded as the oldest African-American
church in America.
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Polo has been played
in Aiken for well over a century and matches are still held today at several
fields. Whitney Polo Field has the distinction of having the longest
continuous period of play of any field in the country.
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In 1934, an
innovative coach lit the football field at Denmark High School. Although
there is no documentation to prove or disprove the claim, local historians
claim this was the first lighted football field in the state.
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The whole area, a
portion of the Old Barnwell District, was known for raising thoroughbred
horses after the Revolutionary War and thus has been popular for quite a
while with thoroughbred racing fans.
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Hitchcock Woods,
located in Aiken, is two and a half times the size of Central Park. Known as
the largest urban forest in the country, these 2000 acres are great for
walking, hiking and horseback riding.
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Dixie-Narco, located
in Williston, manufactures most of the world's vending machines.
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Dupont Planetarium,
located on the campus of USC-Aiken, is a 45 seat theater with a 30 ft
diameter tilted dome. The facility is complemented by two large sundials, a
variety of telescopes and the only known camera obscura (pin-hole camera)
that displays real time, outside images on a planetarium dome.
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Barnwell's Episcopal
Church of the Holy Apostles was not burned during Sherman's march but rather
it was used as a stable for Union horses. The altar window, which depicts
the entire doctrine of the Christian church, was removed and buried before
Sherman's troops arrived. The hiding place proved to be a good one.
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Matilda Arabelle
Evans, MD was born in Aiken County. Evans was the first African-American
woman to be licensed as a physician in South Carolina.
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Some artifacts found
at an archaeology dig in Allendale County are believed to be over 12,000
years old. These artifacts are helping add to the theory that the first
North Americans did not walk over in one main migration, but came earlier by
other methods such as by boat.
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The AT&T Building in
Denmark was a significant participant in the first historic transcontinental
telephone call, made January 15, 1915. The building now houses an antique
store.
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Some of the products
of Thoroughbred Country include: peaches, passenger and light truck tires,
industrial gases, concrete block, metal rims, fertilizer, kitchen and bath
cabinets, steel wool, bronze markers, combed cotton, coated textiles,
kaolin, tissue products, disposable diapers, wine, retail bakery products,
poultry, nuclear handling tools, fiber optic patch cables, proprietary
drugs, industrial felt, rebuilt railway cars, animal feed, grass and
certified seeds.
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