A Capital Blog

Love Letters at SCPC

Posted on February 20, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

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New items for our collections

Posted on February 17, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

Collection donors and their family members, colleagues, and friends bring us wonderful items all the time to add to our collections. We often put them on display in our gallery or our processing room for a time. Below are some of the things we’ve received lately. [One has a baseball theme, so I present them to the blog today in honor of Gamecock baseball which starts its defense this afternoon of back-to-back national championship titles!]

Caitlin and Virginia show off a dress and scarf donated recently by the family of Barbara Moxon. She was active in the League of Women Voters and wore the dress on election days in the 1960s and 1970s. All the ladies here think it’s adorable!! (and marvel at its petite size)

Children of Olin and Gladys Johnston and Alex and Cathy Harvin donated these pictures (and more) to us recently. They helped to enhance an exhibit we put up earlier this month, Public Figures/Private Lives: A Valentine’s Exhibit. The couples are two of six couples featured in the exhibit.

Bob Ariail drew this cartoon in honor of Fritz Hollings‘ retirement from the U.S. Senate in Jan. 2005. We received this at the end of 2011 along with some campaign items.

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Paid Summer Internship

Posted on February 15, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

Are you looking for a PAID archival summer internship?
Do you want an internship where you’ll complete a meaningful project?
Are you a grad student enrolled in an archival program NOT located in South Carolina?

If you answered yes to all 3, you’re in luck!

SCPC is offering an summer internship with a stipend of $2,250. We try to find a project that matches the intern’s interests. Past projects have been either digitization or processing of a collection or large series but could include other types of archival work. Please check out our Student Assistants and Interns page for more information, application instructions, and links to blog entries by past interns.

Deadline is April 1st!

The internship is funded by the Schuyler L. and Yvonne Moore Endowment.

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Politics on Film Festival — All the President’s Men

Posted on February 10, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

Join us in the Hollings Library next Tuesday evening, Feb. 14th, at 5:30 for the next installment in our Politics on Film festival! Yes, we know it’s Valentine’s Day but that’s all the more reason to join us. Whether you don’t want to be alone Tuesday night or you need a low-cost (FREE!) destination for your date, the Hollings Library is the place to be.

As always, free Pizza and Soda!!

Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman star in All the President’s Men, a 1976 Academy Award winning film about the Watergate investigation. The DVD cover teases it like this: At times it looked like it might cost them their jobs, their reputation, and maybe even their lives. Doesn’t this film sound too good to pass up?

Enter to win a $25 gift card to Barnes and Noble (awarded at our last film in March but winner is chosen from all spring entries)

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In Memoriam: Philip G. Grose (1938-2012)

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Kate Moore

Phil Grose speaking at a book-signing event

One of SCPC’s great friends, Phil Grose, passed away last week. Unbeknownst to many of his friends, he had been diagnosed with leukemia three years ago, but Phil lived a rich life until the cancer returned recently.

In that three year period, Phil completed his biography of his good friend, John Carl West — Looking For Utopia. Grose spoke at a number of signing events celebrating the book’s publication, including ones at SCPC, The Carter Presidential Library, and The Citadel. The biography showcased Phil’s elegant writing, solid scholarship, and intimate knowledge of Governor West, gained while working in the West administration.

Phil was not trained as a historian; he learned the craft in writing his first book, South Carolina at the Brink, a biography of Governor Robert McNair, in whose administration Phil had also worked.

We came to know Phil through his work on the McNair book, and he quickly became a close friend and then a donor, contributing his research notes from the McNair book. Phil was a grand gentleman and will be missed by all who were fortunate to know him.

Gov. Robert McNair and author Phil Grose sign copies of the biography, South Carolina at the Brink, at USC's Thomas Cooper Library, 2006.

Contributed by Herb Hartsook

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Harvin Collection Now Open For Research

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

“Harvin was a true public servant. He worked tirelessly for the people of his beloved Clarendon County. He knew every last person in the district and would be the first person they’d hear from on birthdays, anniversaries, and just about any significant event.” - State Democratic Party Chairman Joe Erwin, upon Harvin’s death in 2005

Harvin in 1976

This quote perfectly sums up Alex Harvin. He was active in politics at a young age, serving as president of the Young Democrats at Baptist College. In 1976, he won his first election to the SC House of Representatives only four days before graduating from Augusta Law School.

In his 29 years of service to the people of District 64, he served as Majority Whip, Majority Leader, and then became Majority Leader Emeritus. Harvin also sat on the Joint Agriculture Study Committee, the Labor, Commerce, & Economic Development Committee, and the House Subcommittee on Higher Education.

He was given the “Freshman Legislator of the Year” award by the Young Democrats of the University of South Carolina in 1977 and received a Distinguished Service Award from the South Carolina Democratic Party in 1981. Harvin was given the Order of the Palmetto, South Carolina’s highest civilian honor, by Governor Mark Sanford in July, 2005.

In October, 2005, at the age of 55, Harvin passed away from a long illness. In a special election on February 14, 2006, his wife Cathy took over his seat.

The Harvin Collection includes correspondence from his constituents, agendas and minutes from committee meetings, articles he wrote for local newspapers, and papers from his personal life and family.

Find out about the journey this collection has taken since it arrived at SCPC and my role in getting it ready for its public debut.

-Virginia W. Blake

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How I stopped worrying and broke the jinx!

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

From the time I started at SCPC as a Grad Assistant in 2009, I had heard about a so-called “cursed” collection. It was considered to be a great collection that researchers would find useful but everyone who worked on processing it would leave for one reason or another before they finished.* So, back in July, when Dorothy said that the Harvin collection was going to be my next project, I wasn’t quite sure what I was getting myself into.

Harvin boxes wait patiently for attention during processing.

As I started going through the boxes to figure out my plan of action, what stood out was that Harvin loved the state of South Carolina and its people. These boxes held 29 years of constituent correspondence, legislation, committee agendas, clippings, and photographs. He had a great relationship with the people of Clarendon and Williamsburg counties and it is reflected in this material.

This was by far the most detailed collection that I have worked on at SCPC. Having to navigate through notes left by former assistants was difficult at times. Luckily, I had the help of Katharine, a second year assistant on this project. With her assistance, we were able to get this collection finished and ready to open.

-Virginia W. Blake

Check out this post for more details on Rep. Harvin and his collection.

*Editorial note from Herb Hartsook, SCPC Director: In 1992, when Alex Harvin agreed to donate his papers to SCPC, he was only 42 years old but had already served 16 years in the South Carolina General Assembly. He had amassed over 100 feet of materials which formed the basis of the collection, and added to this regularly over the years. Harvin’s immediately became the largest collection donated by a state legislator in South Carolina. And, since state legislators rarely have a large staff to help them manage their files, the records, while rich, were in poor order, included a great deal of extraneous materials, and required a herculean effort to arrange and describe. Processing began in 1992 and wasn’t completed until just this year.

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Public Figures/Private Lives: A Valentine’s Exhibit

Posted on January 26, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

Please visit the SCPC Gallery in the Hollings Library before the end of April to see Public Figures/Private Lives: A Valentine’s Exhibit. Across four cases, you’ll find letters, photos and other mementos from six couples that offer a personal glimpse into the lives of South Carolina political figures whose collections are held by USC.

On display are:

valentine exhibit sign and first exhibit case

Sign for the exhibit and a glimpse at the first case--look closely and you'll see Fritz and Peatsy Hollings

**romantic letters between former South Carolina Governor and U.S. Senator Olin D. Johnston and Gladys that chronicle the couple’s courtship and early years of marriage in the 1920s

**a series of sweet and playful letters between politician and journalist Bill Workman, Jr., and Rhea “Tommy” Thomas during their courtship and then early years of marriage while he was off serving in Europe, North Africa, and the Pacific in World War II

**photos of former U.S. Senator Fritz Hollings and his wife of forty years, Peatsy

**the story of how longtime state legislator Alex Harvin proposed to his wife and a sweet note written to her during an all-night legislative session in 1981

**letters and a photo from the courtship of U.S. Reps Thomas and Clara McMillan in 1915 and 1916, our oldest set of personal, romantic letters

**and more…

the 1st case with the stories of Fritz and Peatsy Hollings and Bob and Isabelle Hemphill

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Who Owns Democracy? A Forum on Money and Politics

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Kate Moore

Who Owns Democracy: A Forum on Money and Politics

6:30 p.m. • January 23, 2012

South Carolina Political Collections, in partnership with the Association of Centers for the Study of Congress, The Kettering Foundation, and the National Issues Forums Institute, is hosting a series of public forums during 2011-2013. We invite you to join us Monday, January 23, 2012 for our forum Money & Politics: Who Owns Democracy?

The Forum will be held in the Hollings Special Collections Library. It will begin promptly at 6:30pm and last approximately two hours. Pizza and drinks will be provided.

If you would like to attend, please RSVP to 803-777-0578 to reserve your seat.

Herb Hartsook, SCPC Director, will moderate the forum, and lead discussion of this issue. Many feel that the influence of big money in political campaigns corrupts our system of government and results in the rich and powerful receiving preferential treatment . During the Forum, participants will discuss campaign finance reform, restrictions on lobbyists, and other matters.

The results of the Forum will be aggregated with those of similar forums held across the country and shared with leaders in our government.

If you represent a group which would like to participate please call Herb Hartsook at 777-0577 or email him at herb@sc.edu.

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Announcing National Cheese Day celebration, Jan. 27, 2012

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

SCPC is thrilled to announce that the 9th annual celebration of National Cheese Day will take place on Friday, Jan. 27th, from noon – 1:30 in the Hollings Library.

Library Faculty, Staff, and Students are invited to join us. We always have visitors for this event and love welcoming new-comers. Participants are asked to contribute a food that contains a cheese element but this isn’t required! We always have plenty. The celebration will include lunch, of course, but also the “The Big Cheese” game, cheese trivia, an exhibit of cheese and dairy-related items in our collections, and general merriment. You may drop in for as little or as long as you like.

If you think you might come, please let Lori Schwartz know (schwartl) so we can have enough seating, plates, etc.

Banner created in 2004; we try to add something to it every year

In past years, we’ve had almost every cheese dish imaginable, like cheese grits, mac & cheese, salad with cheese, exotic cheese and crackers, cheese soup, lasagna, pizza, and fondue (I’m leaving off about 100 things). Our boss, Herb, is always looking for an elusive “cheese drink” contribution, so if you can pull that off he’ll be your friend for life. If you want to know the dishes already on our food sign-up sheet or want help brain-storming ideas, contact Lori.

The aforementioned “The Big Cheese” is a bocce-like game created by a former student especially for us. It’s an easy game to learn. If you have a talent for bowling, bocce, or you can throw things, this is the game for you.

Merriment from earlier Cheese Days, including pics of us playing “The Big Cheese” if you can’t quite picture it: 2009, 2010

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