The Anderson automobile is considered the most successful automobile built in the Southeastern United States. While the Anderson Motor Company was only operational from 1916 to 1925, it will forever be remembered as a what-if story and a part of South Carolina’s haunted history. John Gary Anderson started the business in Rock Hill, South Carolina,…
Albert Einstein’s Ties to Spartanburg, South Carolina
According to various online reports and the website Find-A-Grave, Albert Einstein’s grandson, David Einstein, is reportedly buried in Spartanburg’s Greenlawn Memorial Gardens. His other grandson, Klaus, is buried in Greenville, who tragically died at age five on January 5, 1939. Einstein’s son, Hans, lived at 223 Randall Street in Greenville in 1938. Written By: John…
Al Capone’s Ties to Hell Hole Swamp
Did you know that South Carolina has a swamp called Hell Hole Swamp? The name dates to the mid-1700s, and there are many theories about how the area got its name. One account says the swamp got its name from the Revolutionary War from Colonel Tarleton because the British had a hell of a time…
The 1991 Myrtle Beach Pavilion Ferris Wheel Accident
In July of 1991, a tragic accident rocked the Grand Strand when a 12-year-old girl was thrown from her seat on the Ferris wheel at the Myrtle Beach Pavilion. The young girl found herself clinging to a cable more than 30 feet above the ground. The accident reportedly occurred when a teenager began rocking his…
The History of Echo Valley Western Theme Park in Northern Greenville County, South Carolina
Echo Valley Theme Park operated in Cleveland, South Carolina, in northern Greenville County, from 1964 to 1968. In late 1963, Harry Stewart, one of the founders of Ghost Town in the Sky in Maggie Valley, North Carolina, approached local businessmen about opening a western theme park similar to Ghost Town. According to travelersresthere, the park…
Remembering The Halloween Hurricane
In 1899, people along the eastern side of North and South Carolina received a scare when the Halloween Hurricane made landfall near Garden City, South Carolina, on October 31. The storm was classified as a Category Two hurricane, and to date, it remains the only one to have made landfall in South Carolina after October…
The Tragic 1988 Greenwood School Shooting
On September 26, 1988, 19-year-old Jaime William Wilson walked into Oakland Elementary in Greenwood and opened fire. Wilson is responsible for one of the first deadly school shootings in the country. He was armed with a 22-caliber pistol when he started in the cafeteria and moved into a classroom. In the end, Wilson shot 11…
The 1985 S.C. Bold Prison Break: Get to the Choppa
Like something from a movie, in 1985, Joyce Bailey Mattox, of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, devised a plan to rescue her love interest, Jesse Glenn Smith. There was only one problem: Smith was an inmate, serving a lengthy prison sentence at the time. No one knows how Mattox became acquainted with the prisoner. It has…
The Historic Old Stone Church
Old Stone Church, which now resides in Clemson, was constructed in 1802 in the Pendleton District. Many are laid to rest in the cemetery, including Andrew Pickens, Robert Anderson, patriots, pioneers of industry and education, and 45 Confederate soldiers. Written By: John G. Clark Jr Image By John G. Clark Jr.
The 1934 Chiquola Mill Massacre
The Chiquola Mill Massacre, also known as Bloody Thursday, occurred on September 6, 1934, in Honea Path, South Carolina. During a textile workers’ strike, seven striking workers were killed and at least 30 others were injured when Dan Beacham, the mayor and magistrate in the small town, ordered armed townsmen, deputized by him, to fire…