HISTORY · HISTORICAL MARKER
Orangeburg County
History
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Orangeburg County includes a range of historic sites that reflect local community life, education, religion, commerce, transportation, agriculture, and tourism. The Parish House, built in the 1830's and thought to be the oldest plantation summer home in the area, was acquired by the Church of the Epiphany and used for church activities before becoming a restaurant and gift shop. Holly Hill Depot, built in the 1880's, now serves as the Community Center, Tri-County Chamber of Commerce, and Visitor's Center. The school later known as Norway High School was built in 1926 as Willow School, and after it closed the town planned to convert it into a multi-use building with a visitor center and auditorium. Development of Edisto Memorial Gardens began in the 1920's with about five acres of azaleas and later expanded to include fifty beds of roses, a two thousand six hundred foot boardwalk, picnic shelters, an art center, and educational programs. The Branchville Railroad Shrine and Museum stands at the site of the oldest railroad junction in the world and features exhibits on the area's railroad history and life on the railroad. The Elloree Heritage Museum, in Elloree's Historic District, portrays the rural life of this part of Orangeburg County with exhibits on cotton, farming, and family life. The Santee Cultural Arts and Visitor Center occupies a historic schoolhouse moved from Parler to the Town Hall Complex and provides gallery space, meeting space, a tourism office, and visitor amenities. Old Springfield High School, a renovated 1929 school, served the community as a Visitors' Welcome Center and includes exhibits on education and community life as well as a four thousand square foot auditorium. Valentine's Store was founded in the early 1900s by J.L. Valentine, whose farm business included a cotton gin, fertilizer sales, and a general store, and the present store, built in the 1940s, remains a working store with the appearance of a museum.
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