Historically Speaking
SUMMER 2020
Special Preservation issue
A NEWSLETTER OF HISTORIC COLUMBIA
From the Executive Director
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ach May, Historic Columbia celebrates Preservation Month by highlighting the myriad ways that our community embraces historic places and the stories they hold. We recognize exemplary projects and inspiring people at our annual preservation awards luncheon. We offer Behind-theScenes Tours at dynamic commercial works-in-progress and Renovation Rodeos at recently renovated residential properties. We invite the community to walk with us through historic neighborhoods and districts. And we spend a lot of time promoting the positive economic impact on communities that choose adaptive use and rehabilitation over demolition. Historically, May is a time that we gather over food and drink with friends and colleagues in Columbia’s most interesting historic places. This was not the case in 2020. In March, in response to rising concerns about COVID-19, we closed the historic house museums and canceled in-person activities. At that time, we shifted all audience and member engagement to virtual platforms. We encouraged you to explore the neighborhoods and districts through our online tour series. Our staff provided virtual tours of the historic house museums. We invited people to share their own stories about “why preservation matters.” Having built an organizational culture that thrives on person-to-person connections (as well as funds generated from on-site programs!), the transition has been difficult, but also meaningful in surprising ways. As we continue to navigate this new terrain, we invite you to dig more deeply into our website, engage in e-learning, and reach out to us with questions and to share ideas. In what may be a new normal, we remain committed to our founding tenets — the preservation of our built history and using the past as a robust and dynamic educational tool. We continue to strive to utilize local history to help people connect to place and to each other. In addition, we are committed to using the vast well of research and interpretation that is accessible online and through our historic sites to better understand our past AND work toward a more just and equitable future. The sites and people we recognize with the 2020 preservation awards, which you will learn more about in this special issue of Historically Speaking, represent the best projects of 2019. And, it is important to acknowledge, that there is not a project among them that represents a site associated with Black citizens in Columbia and Richland County. While the places that Historic Columbia stewards are inclusive of communities of color, we must do a better job advocating for the preservation and adaptive use of sites beyond our direct management. This can ensure our future Preservation Month celebrations — in whatever form they take — represent all that this community has to offer.
Robin Waites Executive Director
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HISTORIC COLUMBIA | NEWSLETTER
Historically Speaking Special Preservation Issue Summer 2020 President Gina Lesslie 1st Vice President Mark Jones 2nd Vice President Kim Jamieson Treasurer Jamie Keller Secretary Jeff Payne The mission of Historic Columbia is to nurture, support and protect the historical and cultural heritage of Columbia and Richland County through programs of advocacy, education and preservation.
In This Issue 3 4-6 7 8
HC’s Preservation Services Preservation Awards Preservation Honorees Patti Marinelli, Dan Elswick 2020 Preservation Award Sponsors
On the cover Image courtesy of Gilbane Building Company
Visit us on the web: www.historiccolumbia.org
A Passion for
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reservation has run in Historic Columbia’s DNA since 1961, when activists intent on saving the Ainsley Hall House (today’s Robert Mills House) from the wrecking ball founded the organization. Nearly six decades later, those strands continue to shape the philosophies and endeavors of its personnel and supporters who strive to retain tangible connections to Columbia and Richland County’s past. While true, the Historic Columbia of 2020 is not the same entity whose nascent years evoke memories of JFK’s Camelot and the days in which urban renewal flattened neighborhoods and landmark properties in the name of progress. Rather, our 21stcentury self reflects a national maturation in preservation policies and practices as well as an organizational capacity that far exceeds that of previous decades thanks to increased support, newer technologies, and increasingly professionalized staff. For Historic Columbia members, supporters, and strategic partners this means exciting opportunities. Like no time before, preservation-minded people can benefit from the resources staff brings to bear in research, consultation, and advocacy, and in harnessing the power of financial incentives for the rehabilitation of historic properties as the following case studies exemplify. We are pleased
John Sherrer, Historic Columbia’s Director of Cultural Resources, oversees a preservation project. Historic Columbia collection
Columbia preservationist Jennie Dreher and architect Albert Simmons review plans on the south side of the Robert Mills House during its rehabilitation in 1966. Historic Columbia collection
to launch a new fee-for-service program that makes these resources available to members of Historic Columbia.
Historic Site Briefs
Interested in learning about your vintage residence or commercial building? Let us create an historic site brief customized to your needs. Such a document chronicled the amazing evolution of 1621 Main Street, today home of The Grand boutique bowling alley and restaurant. For Shandon resident Mark Jones, our research on 2424 Terrace Way resulted in a treasure he could share with family and friends. Site research and detailed architectural descriptions can be financially appealing, too, particularly for people who pursue tax credits through local and federal channels that allow owners to freeze the taxable value of their properties are their pre-rehabilitation rate for decades — provided they adhere to nationally mandated guidelines. Such incentives lie behind successful preservation efforts in downtown Columbia, particularly along Main Street or nearby, where historic buildings now accommodate such destinations as Lula Drake Wine Parlour, Mast General Store, and Hotel Trundle.
National Register of Historic Places
Through research-driven advocacy Historic Columbia has partnered with areas such as the Columbia Historic Commercial District and neighborhoods like Melrose Heights-Oak Lawn and Earlewood to achieve listings in the National Register of Historic Places — designations that have promoted community pride while offering potential financial assistance for rehabilitation work. In other instances, personnel from our Cultural Resources department have provided foundational information through research, oral histories, and site inspection and documentation used by investors, developers, and preservation consultants and architects, whose efforts have resulted in brilliant examples of adaptive use, such as the Hunter-Gatherer Brewery located in the historic Curtiss-
Wright Hangar, and the inclusion of historic buildings in the BullStreet District.
Preservation Awards
Each May, Historic Columbia celebrates the passion that lies behind achievements in preservation, adaptive use, and new construction in historic contexts through its Preservation Month awards, which spotlight individuals, groups, businesses, and neighborhood success stories. Even when preservation opportunities founder amid economic downturns (or upswings) and important sites are razed — such as in the case of the Woman’s Club Building on Blossom Street — Historic Columbia personnel have carefully documented historically or culturally important resources before their demolition.
Education
Behind these efforts lies the other strand in Historic Columbia’s DNA chain — education. Through www. historiccolumbia.org, we provide free public access to online neighborhood tours whose architectural descriptions and social histories sharpen users’ appreciation for landmark properties and significant neighborhoods. Additionally, our website’s preservation pages browsers may learn about advocacy efforts, resources, recent issues in which our staff have participated in hopes of shaping the futures of Columbia and Richland County while preserving finite, tangible links that connect us with people, events, and issues that came before us.
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awards
ach year, Historic Columbia presents its Preservation Awards to celebrate the accomplishments of local property owners; professionals in the fields of architecture, construction, and design; and leaders who champion preservation as an opportunity to support the economy and culture of Richland County. These awards recognize local projects that have maintained or added to the historical, architectural, and cultural richness of the Midlands in the categories of Adaptive Use, Preservation/ Restoration, and New Construction in an Historic Context. In addition, Historic
employees’ prowess in repairs kept patrons moving in the right direction. Today, through creative adaptive use, this former warehouse is again a destination for clientele intent on moving forward! Though progressive in their respective fields of real estate development, architecture, and consultative sales training, the property’s contemporary tenants — Cason Development, Seed Architecture, No BS Sales School, and Stirling Clark, LLC — nonetheless draw inspiration from the past. Members of these businesses trod on the “ghosts” of past entrepreneurial success upon the building’s concrete floors. Shadows of
Columbia presents the Preservation Leadership Award to those who contribute to the advancement of historic preservation in the region.
gears, clutch plates, housings, and pans remain as a testament to the engineering involved in combining the right parts to achieve the greatest output.
Historic Columbia would like to thank this year’s Preservation Awards committee: Esther Maldonado, Luke McCary, Adrienne Montare, Doug Quackenbush, Michael Ritchie, and Tiara Williams.
Through an inspired plan by SEED Architects, 2144 Sumter Street’s bespoken industrial past meshes seamlessly with a contemporary, funky vibe that results in a premium office space environment nestled in a dynamic section of Cottontown’s commercial district. This effect is achieved by celebrating the once-austere building’s character-defining, historic features such as concrete block walls, poured concrete floors, steel bow truss construction, and the revealed decking of a barrel-vaulted ceiling with modern garage doors. Unprecedented additions — particularly the use of storefront windows, garage roller doors, and interior glazed barndoors — provide ambient light for all
ADAPTIVE USE 2144 Sumter Street For nearly 50 years, 2144 Sumter Street stood as an important component of the three-building enterprise known as Dave’s Transmission Shop, whose
offices. A well-apportioned break room lies contiguous to an enclosed east-facing patio that affords the building’s new users a private greenspace for breaks and business gatherings.
2144 Sumter Street. Image courtesy of SEED Architecture
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Claussen’s Bakery and Boutique Studio Apartments 2001-2003 Greene Street When opened in October 1928 in Five Points, Claussen’s Bakery boasted “one of the largest and most scientifically
HISTORIC COLUMBIA | NEWSLETTER
Claussen’s Boutique and Studio Apartments. Image courtesy of Kylie Anne Photography
equipped bakeries in the entire South,” according to The State newspaper. Beautiful for its modern machinery inside, the facility found equal favor outside, where its façade of “red brick, relieved by handsome trimmings of Indiana limestone” set an aesthetic standard for new structures in the district. Located at 2003 Greene Street, Claussen’s at the time was one of Five Points’ most prominent businesses and substantial structures. In March 1963, after 35 years of producing 2,200 loaves of bread daily, Claussen’s closed. The distinctive landmark would go on to survive for years as a warehouse that accommodated several T-shirt companies before becoming a boutique hotel from 1986 until 2017. The 26,000-square-foot building’s architectural significance and layout that featured 29 boutique rooms caught the eye of current owners Julie and David Tuttle and Ryan Hyler of Styx Claussen’s LLC, which harnessed the financial benefits of federal historic tax credits. Their vision, solidified by the architectural firm of 1X1 Design and implemented by Cohn Construction with oversight from preservation consultation firm RogersLewis, sought to amplify the structure’s historic architectural details of enameled interior brick, hardwood, and concrete floors, metal-framed hopper windows, and steel trusses that defined its lofts and patio rooms. Employing design and finishes that met Department of the Interior Standards for the Rehabilitation of historic buildings, Claussen’s successfully blends old and new in a manner that pays tribute to the site’s industrial past while providing distinctively modern residential amenities in the capital city’s funky early20th century commercial village.
NEW CONSTRUCTION IN AN HISTORIC CONTEXT USC’s Chemistry Lab 1112 Greene Street Today a state-of-the-art science facility, 1112 Greene Street has a past rooted in the mid-1960s, a time when the University of South Carolina dramatically grew during a construction boom that lasted into the 1970s. At the helm of this change stood Harold W. Brunton, Jr., VP of Business Affairs at USC, who, in overseeing the institution’s strategic growth, created a master plan of development for the 1970s. Prioritized, construction of a new law school as a replacement for the university’s earlier, obsolete facility assumed a three-phase approach, the collective of which swept houses and stores from the south half of the block. Like much of the construction altering the state capital’s skyline at the time, the new USC Law Center, built between 1971 and 1974, reflected contemporary interest in modern architecture. The gravity of the university’s accomplishment became apparent in May 1974 as Vice President — and near-future POTUS — Gerald Ford, Senator Strom Thurmond, Governor C. West, and Chief Associate Justice of SCOTUS Lewis F. Powell, Jr. all attended the center’s debut. For the next generation, thousands of budding lawyers would spend countless hours at
USC Chemistry Lab. Image courtesy of Gilbane Building Company
the sprawling facility that lay south of the State House. Completion of the current USC Law Center on Gervais Street in 2017 placed 1112 Greene Street, a then-aged building, on a course for new use. Appreciating the 194,000-square-foot, precast building’s potential, Watson Tate Savory Architects used the robust modernist structure as the shell for a dramatic redesign that resulted in extensive new construction in this historic, mid-century modern context. Replacing the building’s original underwhelming north entrance, a dramatic three-story atrium incorporating former exterior walls today creates a welcoming communal gathering space. This feature, coupled with new glazed curtainwall systems installed on the north, south, and west elevations, transform the building into a well-illuminated facility reborn as the USC Chemistry Lab. Through Watson Tate Savory’s design savvy, this formerly obsolete, mid-century academic building stands as testament to the creative reuse of an historic building that activates the Greene Street-Assembly Street intersection.
PRESERVATION/ RESTORATION 819 Maple Street Once tethered to Columbia via unpaved roads and an electric streetcar line, the
819 Maple Street. Image courtesy of Sarah and Hoyt Burnett
former home of Walter E. and Sophie B. McNulty today offers other connections — both to Shandon’s earliest years of development and to the desirable suburb’s tapestry of architecturally significant residences that contribute to the National Register of Historic Places district. Later, owners, including the Bailey family, rented a room within the cottage, as well as the former servant’s quarters to cope with the financial strains of the Great Depression. This practice continued through the decades with potential renters — specifically “quiet lad[ies]” during the 1960s staying in the house’s “nice furnished front corner room” who enjoyed “kitchen privileges” for the sum of $10 a week. In 2015, longtime Old Shandon residents Hoyt and Sarah Burnett desired to return the home to its original, single-family format. While the Burnetts’ physical journey involved little more than crossing the street from their own home, the intrepid couple’s renovation journey would prove far longer. They chose a phased approach, with some renovations being completed in 2016, following six months of work, and the second phase of renovations being completed in March 2019. This project was a combination of efforts from the Burnetts, who handled all demolition and finish work, and Indigo Builders, which performed all major structural and carpentry work. The result, with its eye for detail and respect for character-defining elements, was a property worthy of the neighborhood’s National Register of Historic Places designation and yet another example of the couple’s commitment to historic preservation.
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exterior and interior terracotta tile repair, restoration of interior storefronts, and exterior windows, and the installation of new plumbing and electrical systems. Afterward, the LLC established an easement with Historic Columbia in order to ensure the future of its efforts and the architectural integrity of the building in perpetuity.
The Ebenezer Lutheran Chapel Restoration and Cupola Installation 1301 Richland Street
The Arcade Building. Image courtesy of Peach Properties
PRESERVATION/ RESTORATION The Arcade Building 1332 Main Street/ 1208 Washington Visionaries intent on creating a vital center of diversified commerce stand behind Columbia’s Equitable Arcade Mall. Debuting in May 1912, the Renaissance Revival style property became an instant destination. While the ground floor accommodated dozens of stores and the second story housed 37 offices, the basement level offered storage space and ice boxes. With its double-street exposure offering access to both Main and Washington streets, the structure became a unique experience in Columbia and one of only three similartype malls in the South at that time. In the early 1970s, Keenan and Kittrell, Inc., undertook a $300,000 renovation to the then-tired building that introduced new storefronts, fixtures, and signage. In 2015, Ron Swinson and Brad Shell of Peach Properties through DownUnder Columbia, LLC, sought to resurrect the Arcade Mall’s original allure as a downtown destination. The building’s inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places allowed the team through historic tax credit to offset expenses involved in reversing Kittrell’s updates while addressing infrastructural and cosmetic issues. The restoration involved extensive
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Like other buildings throughout downtown Columbia on February 17, 1865, the Ebenezer Lutheran Church was consumed in the fires that raged as Union forces briefly occupied the city. The sanctuary’s rebuild, true to the vision of Gustavus Theodore Berg, was completed in 1870. Modified in 1900 by the local architectural firm of Wilson and Edwards, the church’s renovation involved adding two square towers, art glass, and decorative brickwork to embellish the façade. Inside, a decorative pressed metal ceiling updated the sanctuary to reflect current interests. Although the ca.-1870 building ceased to be used as the primary place of worship after the construction of a Neo-Gothic church in 1930, this earlier, physical expression of the congregation’s faith remained a Richland Street landmark. Commitment to preserve this tangible link to past congregations prompted current members to secure grant funding to reconstruct missing elements and restore character-defining details previously obscured by earlier renovations. Referencing historic photographs, artisans reconstructed the twin towers’ missing cupolas, thus returning the building’s most notable exterior feature to its turn-of-the-century appearance. Inside, painters restored the sanctuary’s original four-color ceiling scheme. Thanks to these improvements, Ebenezer Chapel again inspires congregants and visitors who attend special services and events in this historic setting.
HISTORIC COLUMBIA | NEWSLETTER
Ebenezer Lutheran Chapel. Image courtesy of Ebenezer Church
1701 Pendleton Street. Historic Columbia collection
1701 Pendleton Street Situated at the northeast corner of the intersection of Henderson and Pendleton streets, this two-story wood frame dwelling likely was built in late 1901. The house, an eight-room residence described in 1964 as a “fine home” in the “best” area of town, had a variety of residents throughout the 20th century. Sometime, most likely during the 1970s, the structure was clad in aluminum siding, which obscured the original clapboards. Current owners Katie and Matt Bogan appreciated the benefits of this desirable downtown district. They also valued the University Hill Neighborhood’s special designation as an architectural conservation district. Wanting their new home to more fully represent its original self while meeting their family’s contemporary needs, the couple embarked on a transformational restoration journey. Clapboards and trim shed of their decades-old aluminum skin, the house received a sympathetic addition that replaced a former garage and other additions. Turning their attention from their architecturally sensitive exterior work, the Bogans beautifully restored the home’s interior, keeping fireplaces and floors and choosing interior colors which highlight the architecture of the home, including the very high ceilings.
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honorees
Patti Marinelli. Image courtesy of University of South Carolina
Preservation Leadership Award Patti Marinelli
Cottontown’s ‘go-to person’ For 39 years, Professor Patti Marinelli taught Spanish at the University of South Carolina. That was her career. But her passions weren’t limited to the classroom. Just ask her neighbors. Marinelli is receiving Historic Columbia’s Preservation Leadership Award for her tireless work in the historic Cottontown neighborhood. As a longtime resident, Marinelli has championed the importance of preservation for the area she cherishes most. “She’s just shown a dedication to preserving the historic integrity of the neighborhood,” said Will Thrift, president of the Cottontown Neighborhood Association, “and the homes in the neighborhood.” While she served as chairperson for Cottontown’s historic preservation committee, Marinelli proposed the inclusion of literature and website links on historic preservation in the “new resident notebook.” This was done to allow new neighbors to gain a deeper understanding of the importance of preservation. Links, contacts, and other educational information on historic preservation are regularly added by Marinelli to the Cottontown neighborhood Facebook page. She used to hold “window workshops” with Cottontown residents to teach them about repair and restoration. “She’s very invested,” said Amy Moore, Principal Preservation Planner for
the City of Columbia. “I think it’s an appreciation for not just the architecture, but there’s a community and a sense of place that form around architecture, especially as concentrated as it is in places like Cottontown. She values that. It creates a community. I think that’s what a lot of people respond to. “She enjoys her neighborhood. There’s so much about it that she appreciates and wants to see it preserved.” One Cottontown neighborhood meeting saw Marinelli make a presentation to help residents learn about restoration processes such as Design/Development Review Commission reviews and tax credits through the Bailey Bill.
their buildings to talk about what needed repairing and how to best go about it.” “He gave them good, basic information. It was very beneficial.” The Building Doctor era of Elswick’s career lasted nearly a decade — a small, fun part of a big, impactful career. Elswick is receiving Historic Columbia’s Lifetime Achievement Award for a variety of reasons. A historic architecture consultant with SHPO since 1986, Elswick has been a constant presence in the support of preservation. His leadership and dedication to providing thoughtful reviews and assistance through SHPO programs have helped the owners and stewards of Columbia’s historic properties complete hundreds of projects, including a federal historic income tax credit program for income-producing buildings, state income tax credit for historic homeowners, and local property tax special assessment.
“She is very knowledgeable about historic homes,” Thrift said. “She is very knowledgeable about how the planning department works and how approvals can be done and what’s allowed and what’s not allowed.
“Dan has been involved in most highprofile preservation projects in Columbia over the past 30 years,” Johnson said. “It’s more than these tax credit projects. There’s so many buildings in Columbia, National Register listed buildings, that at some point Dan has given advice to.”
“She’s the go-to person for anybody in the neighborhood who has a question about historic preservation or renovating your home.”
Amy Moore, Principal Preservation Planner for the City of Columbia, refers to Elswick as her “touchstone” because “he’s got such a breadth and depth of experience.”
Lifetime Achievement Award
“He knows so much,” Moore said. “Things go through waves in organizations and he’s been there so long, he understands everything. He can help people get their projects done.”
Dan Elswick
A career worth honoring For Dan Elswick, it wasn’t just a character. It was confirmation of his status as a community leader in preservation. Elizabeth Johnson has worked with Elswick for more than 20 years at the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO). She’s seen him played a vital role in projects and programs around Columbia, perhaps none more memorable than his run as the Building Doctor. Building Doctor? “He would literally dress up in a white coat and go and do these presentations at night in historic buildings,” Johnson said. “He’d wear his white coat and stethoscope. He’d go and meet with individual owners and tour
A sampling of buildings Elswick has helped preserve include Tapp’s on Main, Olympia Cotton Mills, the Brennen Building, the Curtiss-Wright Hangar, and the Palmetto Compress and Warehouse.
Dan Elswick has had an awardworthy career. Image courtesy of Elizabeth Johnson
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