The country is lyric,--the town dramatic. When mingled, they make the most perfect musical drama.- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Kavanagh (ch. XIII)
Vintage Photo Courtesy of the South Caroliniana Library
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Southern Lodge in Orangeburg County SC ...Orangeburg Heritage
Prevails at Southern Lodge
with Orangeburg
County SC Hospitality.
The easy rhythm of the South includes caring, smiling, helpful people always ready to welcome our visitors with a “Hey Y’all.” Halfway between Florida and New York, the perfect over-night stop for weary travelers is at Southern Lodge, in the heart of the South Carolina midlands of Orangeburg County. One of five South Carolina counties surrounding Lake Marion and Lake Moultrie, a congenial stop at Southern Lodge in Orangeburg (located a few minutes off I-95 on Interstate 26, Exit 145A) offers a unique opportunity to enjoy a colorful, scenic environment and rich history.
"Rowing Not Drifting” (1)
Orangeburg … A small town with
a big history.
A most important interior commercial center of the pre-Revolutionary period, agricultural stories, antiques, BBQ, great outdoors, Edisto Memorial Gardens, festivals, golf, history and theater are all part of Orangeburg County’s rich diversity. 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. It transported agricultural products, such as cotton, to the port city of Charleston to be sent out on ships headed around the world.
History highlights include plantation homes with the grace of yesteryear, original cotton mills, and churches of the past. The center of the original Orangeburg village was near what is now Broughton and Henley Streets, according to the marker there.
In 2005, Orangeburg County was named an “All American City” with its “One Team, One Dream” All-America Team Spirit -Less
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- During the Civil War, the Dixie Library was a residence for refugees from Charleston.
- In 1865 General Sherman used the Orangeburg County Jail, now called “Pink Palace,” for his headquarters while in Orangeburg and burned it when he left. The partially destroyed jail was rebuilt in 1867 by it designer, Jonathan Lucas.
- Annie Oakley visited in the early 1890s, having been invited by the Smoak family, who owned a hardware store on Russell Street. Annie put on a shooting demonstration for the townspeople.
- President William Howard Taft brought excitement to Orangeburg in 1909 when he made a whistle stop at the corner of Russell and Boulevard.
- Built in 1910, South Church Street, known as “Brick Street,” is the only brick street in the City. It is a great example of how the city streets of Orangeburg used to be.
- In 1926, the land along the Edisto River in downtown Orangeburg was cleared, filled in, and the first azaleas planted.
- In the 1950s, 3,500 rose bushes were planted in the Edisto Memorial Gardens.
- In 1972, the first South Carolina Festival of Roses was held in Orangeburg, SC
(1) Title is from Orangeburg Graded School, 1903, Original Graduation Program
Orangeburg was first settled in 1704 by an Indian trader, George Sterling. To encourage settlement, the General Assembly of the Province of South Carolina in 1730 made the area into a township in the shape of a parallelogram 15 x 5 miles. In 1735, a colony of 200 Swiss, German and Dutch immigrants formed a community near the banks of the North Edisto River. The site was attractive because of the fertile soil and the abundance of wildlife. The river provided an outlet to the port of Charleston for the agriculture and lumber products. The town soon became a well-established and successful colony, composed chiefly of small farmers.
One specific aspiration for leaders of the South Carolina colony was “that the settlement of Orangeburg has indeed become a valuable source of food.” They realized and exceeded their hopeful dreams for the colonization of Orangeburg South Carolina, settled in 1735 by 250 Swiss, German, and Dutch immigrants and by 1760 swelling to nearly 800 residents. With ingenuity, Orangeburg residents have achieved much more, not only for its originally intended Charleston beneficiary but also for South Carolina and the nation.
The church played an important role in the early life of Orangeburg. The first church was of Lutheran denomination but was later the Episcopal Church. The church building was erected prior to 1763 in the center of the village and was destroyed at the time of the Revolutionary War. A subsequent church building was used as a smallpox hospital by General William Tecumseh Sherman during the Civil War.
Did you know? Not so far from Southern Lodge motor inn in Orangeburg SC (just north of Branchville) is Hawthorne Field. From Hawthorne Field (33.42 North / 80.85 West (South of Columbia, SC) the training of thousands of aviation cadets for flight operations throughout WWII. -Less
The school was in operation from October 4, 1941, through October 12, 1945, ending with the French class 46b. Each cadet class spent two months in training six days a week and the graduates logged 65 hours of flight time by the end of the course. Hawthorne Field was the last contract school to be closed after VJ Day.
Hawthorne also ran a Navy Primary Flight Training school in Columbia, SC as well that trained naval aviators using Piper Cubs rather then the Stearmans that were used in Orangeburg.
Orangeburg County Chamber of Commerce
155 Riverside Drive
Orangeburg, SC 29115
(800) 545-6153
www.orangeburgechamber.com.
Southern Lodge | Exit 145A
Hotel Reservations
803/531-7333
email info@southernlodge.com
3616 St. Matthews Road
Highway 601
Orangeburg, South Carolina
USA 29118-8214
