May 22, 2026
In this ETV Classic, Tom Fowler, host of Carolina Journal, presents a viewing of the film Columbia: Memories of a City that commemorated and celebrated the founding of Columbia, South Carolina. Before airing the thirty-two minute Bicentennial film, we view a nine-minute clip from footage that did not fit into the film, as well as some additional highlights of the city, including an outing to the St. Patrick's Day celebration in Five Points.
Our host met with Benjamin Dunlap, writer of the film, producer Susan Alexander, and O. Stanley Smith, Jr., Chairman of the Columbia Bicentennial Steering Committee, and they discussed the year-long bicentennial celebration and the making of the film.
This thoughtfully crafted ETV Classics paints a picture of Columbia's beginnings, the struggles, and where a more unified city is heading in days ahead. As producer Susan Alexander observed, the material in this film is timeless and provides a priceless historical reference for South Carolina. Well-researched, the film is supported by archival photography, and film footage, as well as narrations of the writings of historical persons of the times. To learn more about them, see Side Notes below.
We hope that you will enjoy viewing Columbia: Memories of a City as much as we did!
Side Notes
- William Price Fox (1926-2015) William Price Fox was born in Waukegan, Illinois, the son of Annette (Fanta) Fox, and grew up in Columbia, South Carolina. Fox taught graduate-level creative writing at the University of Iowa, article writing at the University of Iowa School of Journalism, and joined the faculty of the English department at the University of South Carolina as writer-in-residence.
- James Dickey - James Dickey as a Southern Visionary.
- Johnny Popwell is an actor, known for Deliverance (1972), Freejack (1992) and The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968).
- Ed Grady (1923-2012) He was an actor, known for The Notebook (2004), Lolita (1997) and A Simple Twist of Fate (1994). He died on December 10, 2012 in Columbia, South Carolina, USA.
- The Big Apple Columbia - Historic venue. Birthplace of "The Big Apple Dance" 1937. Built in 1915 as the “House of Peace”.
- Emma LeConte - was only seventeen years old when she recorded in her diary the systematic burning of Columbia, SC, during General Sherman’s Carolinas Campaign. During the war, Emma remained in the city with her mother, while her father Joseph LeConte, a former professor at South Carolina College, worked as a chemist in the Confederate States Nitre and Mining Bureau, attempting to make gunpowder for the Confederate army.
- Jacob Stroyer (1849 - 1908) was an American former slave who became a preacher in Massachusetts. He is best known for his autobiography, My Life in the South.
- Thomas Taylor, whose family gave their name to Taylor St., served in both the 1st and 2nd Provincial Congress and escorted George Washington into Columbia when he later visited in 1791.
- Augustus (Gus) Graydon historian - Graydon was one of the founders of the Historic Columbia Foundation and served as building chair of the Richland County Public Library from 1947–1952. He was a long-time member of the Governor’s Mansion Commission, and beginning in 1971, served under four governors: John West, Jim Edwards, Dick Riley and Carroll Campbell. He worked diligently to save the Lace House and the Boylston House and Gardens, all now a part of the Governor’s Mansion complex. He served on the Vestry as senior warden. Under his leadership, the House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church met in Columbia in 1962. Their special guest was the Archbishop of Canterbury, Michael Ramsey. Graydon was a historian in charge of the Trinity Cemetery and historiographer for the Episcopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina.
- Modjeska Simkins (1899 - 1992) Modjeska Montieth Simkins passed away on April 5, 1992 in Columbia, South Carolina. Speaking at her funeral, Judge Matthew J. Perry stated: “She probably will be remembered as a woman who challenged everyone. She challenged the white political leadership of the state to do what was fair and equitable among all people, and she challenged Black citizens to stand up and demand their rightful place in the state and the nation." Simkins is associated with the Modjeska Monteith Simkins House in Columbia, South Carolina. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 25, 1994. It is not open to the public.
- John Montgomery - Historian.
- Bill McDonald former longtime The State columnist and author, dies at 85.
- Blue Sky and Tunnel Vision.
- Rick Sebak. This complete collection of Rick Sebak's WQED documentaries spans his entire tenure, offering an entertaining and insightful look at Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania. These popular programs showcase regional history, quirky local tales, surprising everyday stories, and unique businesses that make the area special, all through Rick's signature style.
- Russell Green (1923 - 2010) Russell was the founder and chair of the USC MFA drama department, where he directed numerous plays and went on to become professor emeritus. Russell was also an actor, teacher, and playwright.
- Singleton Family and Kensington Mansion. Kensington’s owners, Colonel Richard Singleton and later his son Matthew R. Singleton, enslaved several hundred people across a network of plantations in Richland, Orangeburg, and Sumter districts at the time of the mansion’s construction. Much of what is known about Kensington Mansion and Headquarters Plantation on topics ranging from indoor plumbing to horse training, to the heart-wrenching separation of enslaved families, comes from letters written by the Singleton family, the memoir of Jacob Stroyer, who was enslaved at the site as a child, and the inventory and appraisals of both Richard and Matthew R. Singleton, who died at the beginning and end of the mansion’s construction, respectively.
- Marie Van Vorst - Books. The Woman Who Toils by Mrs. John Van Vorst and Marie Van Vorst is a social commentary written in the early 20th century. This work is a detailed account of the experiences of two educated women who take on factory jobs in order to better understand the lives of working women of their time.
- Rebecca Koon - Actress. Member of Actors' Equity and SAG-AFTRA, Rebecca Koon has appeared in over 200 plays, features, TV movies and series.
- Joseph S. Dillard. (1923 - 2004) Obituary.
- Bill Mould - Actor known for Modern Love (1990).
- James Eric - Actor is known for Raw Deal (1986), Mississippi Burning (1988) and Kid (1990).
- Eddie King - Actor and a graduate of Carnegie-Mellon University, Eddie has been acting for over forty years. Early years were spent primarily in his hometown of Atlanta, Georgia. The Alliance Theatre, Theatrical Outfit, Horizon Theatre, Seven Stages and The Theatre on the Square were his stomping grounds. Eddie King recently wrapped shooting Lilly, starring the incomparable Patricia Clarkson, directed by Rachel Feldman for a 2023 release.
- Beth Spanier - is known for Invasion U.S.A. (1985), In the Heat of the Night (1988) and After the Game (1997).
- John Lewis Gervais (1741–1798) was an American planter and statesman from South Carolina. He served as a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1782 and 1783. In 1784, he returned to the State Senate. In 1786, Senator Gervais led the efforts in the legislature to establish a new state capital. The result was the founding of Columbia, South Carolina.
- George Washington in April 179, Begins Tour of Southern States.
- James H. Hammond (1807-1864) was an American attorney, politician, and planter. He served as a United States representative from 1835 to 1836, the 60th Governor of South Carolina from 1842 to 1844, and a United States senator from 1857 to 1860.
- Marquis de Lafayette and his relationship with George Washington.
- Thomas Cooper (1759-1839) Biography. In South Carolina, Cooper completed his philosophical journey and became an ardent proponent of states’ rights. He was appointed the second president of South Carolina College in May 1820 and taught courses in chemistry, mineralogy, and political economy.
- Unintended Consequences Of Secession | Walter Edgar's Journal - Episode 1.
- General William Tecumseh Sherman - Sherman's March Through the South (1994) | ETV Classics.
- Christian Hesler (1956 -1989) was an actor, known for Mad Jake (1990) and Funland (1987).
