“The
problems of victory are more agreeable than the problems of defeat, but they
are no less difficult.” Winston
Churchill
Carol
writes: From
Atlanta we headed northeast to Roebuck, South Carolina, for a visit with a very
special family in our life. We were
delighted to spend an evening with Matt, Yvonne, Jillian and Jackson in their
lovely southern home. We had fun
catching up and meeting the newest family member while sharing a wonderful
family dinner together.
SPARTANBURG/GREENVILLE AREA
From our campground in rural Roebuck, we also looked forward to some sibling
time with Al’s sister, Rhonda, and her husband, Bill. The four of us had a very
special time together the day we made the trip up to Kings
Mountain and Cowpens Revolutionary War battlefields. More Revolutionary War battles were fought in the state of South
Carolina than in any other colony. The
Battle at Kings Mountain was pivotal in that this Patriot victory turned the
tide toward victory in our war for independence. As a native South Carolinian, Kings Mountain
had great
personal
significance for Bill. Five (or so) great-grandfathers back, a man named Preston
Goforth fought and died in the battle at Kings Mountain. Indeed, the name Preston Goforth was
memorialized on the monument! Not
surprisingly, the name Preston was used by several successive generations of
the Goforth family.
During our hike to the top of Kings
Mountain, we were truly in awe of the beautiful autumn day. Fall colors were positively dazzling!
As for our day on the battlefield honoring some
of the very first American patriots who made the ultimate sacrifice at Kings
Mountain… to my way of thinking, that was the perfect place to spend Veterans
Day.
On the way home we took a swing by Cowpens, another
Revolutionary War battlefield where American Patriot forces defeated British
troops in January 1781.
At the time of the battle, Cowpens was frontier
pastureland known locally as the ‘cow pens’ because it was used for wintering
cattle on their way to market in Charleston.
During our stay in Roebuck, dozens of wildfires broke
out in eastern Tennessee. Tragically, as
the weeks played out, spread of these fires ultimately caused massive
devastation and tragic loss of life in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Toward the end of our stay in the Roebuck
campground, smoke from the wildfires was beginning to affect air quality. Nevertheless, we decided to brave a trip into
Greenville to look around. Smoky air
almost made us turn back; however, we were glad we persevered, because
Greenville was worth the effort.
Once a textile center along the Reedy River,
present-day Falls Park, a lovely urban oasis in a
revitalized downtown, is the centerpiece of Greenville.
COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA
Our last stop before reaching the Atlantic Ocean
was in Columbia, the capital of South Carolina.
Unseasonal warm, summery days followed us, and there wasn’t a drop of
rain to be found.
Tours of state capitol buildings can be great
opportunities to learn a little about a state’s history, and so it was in
Columbia at the South Carolina State House.
Earlier this summer, on orders from Governor Nikki Haley, the
Confederate flag was removed from the grounds of the capitol. On looking closely, you could discern an area
of slightly faded grass where the Confederate flag once stood.
Today, the capitol grounds continue to pay honor
to George Washington, whose statue still holds the broken cane that was
vandalized during the Civil War by troops under Union General William Tecumseh
Sherman.
Bronze stars marked the spots where Sherman’s Civil War cannons damaged the blue granite exterior of what was then the new State House.
Inside, the South Carolina State House was a
beauty with its creative use of colors which resulted in a unique southern style.
Paintings depicting the Revolutionary War battles
at Kings Mountain and Cowpens occupied prominent positions on the wall.
 |
| Battle of Kings Mountain |
 |
| Battle of Cowpens |
Only a block from the South Carolina State House was
an entrance to the grounds of the University of South Carolina.
In spite of the fact that the Gamecocks had a home
game that day, we we had no trouble completing a great walking tour of the
campus. The most interesting part of the
campus was the historic over 200-year-old Horseshoe, USC’s original campus.
Our stay in Columbia also gave us an opportunity
to check out the neighborhood where Al’s parents once lived during his father’s
final years in the Army at Fort Jackson, just before retirement and their move
to Florida. As a newly engaged couple in 1977,
this was the house where I first met Al’s parents. However, the Bendemeer house
didn’t look anything like we remembered.
So many of the trees were gone… and the neighborhood was fully
developed…
Finally, while in Columbia we couldn’t pass
up the chance to visit Congaree National Park, one of the few remaining national
parks that we have never visited. At
Congaree it is all about the trees and the protection of a rare old-growth
bottomland hardwood forest.
With just the right amount of water and
light, Congaree’s loblolly pines have grown into record-setting giants.
The ranger-led walk
led us through swamps dotted with bald cypress
trees and their characteristic knobby ‘knees’.
Recently, Hurricane Matthew wreaked havoc on
Congaree and closed access to a popular section of hiking trails, but we felt
fortunate to see what we did since regular seasonal flooding often closes the part of
the trail we were able to hike.
Sometimes your timing is just right…
We had sure enjoyed an 11-day stay in Upcountry
South Carolina followed by 3 days in the central capital of Columbia. Visits with special people,
...family,
...history,
...and a new national park—couldn’t ask for more in
our lifestyle.
As I reflected back on our travels in 2016, I
thought about the fact that we had left the Pacific coast at San Diego in
March. Nine months later, by way of
Michigan, we were just a short drive from the Atlantic coast at Charleston. It was in Charleston where we planned to meet
up with our daughter for a belated Thanksgiving dinner and some precious time
together. Would Charleston have anything
else in store for us?
“We got to stop the tree
cutting. They’re cutting the ‘Redwoods
of the East’.” Carol Kososki
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