Puppy Dog EyesOriginally bred in Kershaw County and now S.C.’s official state dog, the Boykin Spaniel is a perfect combination of hunter and family pet

HISTORY • HORSES • EVENTS • ATTRACTIONS • SHOPPING

DISCOVERCamden-KershawCounty2015-2016 Official Visitor/Relocation Guide

DINING • COMMUNITIES • RECREATION • HOSPITALITY

1 / Discover Camden-Kershaw County / 2015/2016

PublisherMichael Mischner

Editor/DesignerMartha Bruce

General ManagerBetsy Greenway

Production DirectorBarbara Stevens

Feature WritersTenell FelderGary PhillipsJim Tatum

PhotographyChristian Viera Photography

Catherine FrenchCharles Thompson

Bow Tie Photography P.E. Spivey Photography Boykin Spaniel Society

Kershaw County Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Center

Kershaw County Economic Development

Kershaw County School District Camden Media Co.

Discover Camden-Kershaw County is a publication

of Camden Media Co. in cooperation with the

Kershaw County Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Center and the City of

Camden Tourism Development Office

TThis place that we call home radiates Southern charm and all things “Classical-ly Carolina.” As you will see in this maga-zine, Camden and Kershaw County have a myriad of special things to offer that truly make our area such a unique place.

Look at the cute puppy on our cover. Did you know that the Boykin Spaniel, South Carolina’s official state dog, was first bred here? You will learn all about this small, rugged dog in these pages.

For history and sports buffs, Camden is the hometown of Baseball Hall of Famer Larry Doby, the first African-American to play on an American League major league baseball team. Are you fascinated by all things military or gee-whiz gad-gets of mid-20th century spycraft? Then plan to see the Ross Beard Jr. Collection at the Camden Archives and Museum. It is the same venue where you can see the bronze life-size sculptures of Larry Doby in conversation with Bernard Baruch, the famous statesman, who also grew up here.

Whether you like to fish, go boating or sim-ply have a beautiful view from your kitchen window, spend some time up at Lake Water-ee, our local 13,700-acre reservoir.

For a glimpse into the horse world, Ker-shaw County offers both the Carolina and Colonial Cups, two of steeplechasing’s pre-miere events. Come view the Springdale Race Course and tour the only National Steeplechase Museum in the country dedi-cated to all things jump-racing. Join us for Aberdeen Polo played here in the late spring, usually on the second Sunday in May, upon the second oldest polo field in the country. Many of you may want to travel to the S.C. Equine Park, located off I-20 at Exit 101, in Camden. Our 60-acre equine center provides for 250 padded horse stalls and two covered arenas for hosting a full range of horse eventing activities weekly and draws participants to this area from all across the Southern region. We are also renown for the training of young Thoroughbred race horses here in Kershaw County.

The LeMons races are just one variety of automobile races held at the Carolina Mo-torsports Park. Ferrari club meeting en-thusiasts head this way on a regular basis.

Kershaw County would be a wise choice for those businesses searching for a geo-

graphically central site for a new plant or distribution center. We would invite you to look no further than the 1,400-acre Central South Carolina Megasite in Lugoff, so close to I-20 and the capital city of Columbia and exceedingly well positioned to access all in-terstate commerce traffic patterns.

In addition, Discover Camden-Kershaw County magazine offers you a number of resources to learn more about this commu-nity via a chamber membership directory and listings of local restaurants, hotels and festivals.

Camden touts be-ing the oldest inland township in South Carolina, established back in 1732 after Charleston was first settled on the coast in 1670. Our townsfolk and the local mer-chant Joseph Ker-shaw banded togeth-er with the Catawba Indians and their leader, King Haigler, to make a friendly co-alition. This alliance is depicted in statu-ary today erected in our Town Green on Rut-ledge Street near the old Clock Tower amid upscale art galleries and antique shops now in abundance. We still exhibit a reverence for our preserved historic places and we en-courage you to take a drive or stroll through our Historic District.

The city of Camden maintains more than 16 municipal parks and recreational areas. We invite you to take time to explore our local venues and revel in our friendly atmosphere.

As I think you will learn, Camden and Kershaw County are home to a wide selec-tion of attractions. Browse this magazine to let us whet YOUR appetite to spend some time here.

Our hope is that, through this maga-zine, you will discover what so many of us have already found: that here in Camden and Kershaw County are wonderful places to visit, work, play and raise a family.

And bring your puppy dogs, too -- we love ‘em!

DISCOVERCamden-KershawCounty

COME SPEND SOMETIME WITH US...

Mike Mischner Publisher

Camden Media Co.

Liz Horton Executive director

Kershaw County Chamberof Commerce & Visitors Center

WF

We welcome you to discover the place we call home. Be mindful, however. You just might fall in love with the quality of life we have here and decide to make Camden-Kershaw your home. Within the pages of this magazine you will dis-cover that we are passionate about all the things that make life well-lived for everyone.

And don’t be surprised if you decide to move your business or launch a new enterprise here. Historically Camden-Kershaw’s geographic lo-cation has positioned us an advantageous cross-roads and trading center. Today, with our excel-lent sites, resources and global connections via Interstate, Port and Air, we continue to court growth, and we’d love to have you here. Visit us at www.kershawcountychamber.org and let us help you make the right connections.

For centuries, visitors have traveled to Camden, South Caro-lina in search of what they love. Consider Agnes of Glasgow. More than 230 years ago, she secretly boarded a Charles Towne-bound ship from Scotland intent on finding her betrothed, Lieu-tenant Angus McPherson, who was serving the British during the American Revolution. From the coast, she wandered up through the inland wil-derness for days, de-t e r m i n e d to find her love. She discovered Camden.

Today, we believe you will find what you love here, too. Whether its history, heritage touring and research, horse racing or horse showing, antebel-lum homes, antiques and art, fishing, shooting sports, cycling, motorsports, or simply strolling our tree-lined city-center or en-joying one of more than 20 parks and lush green spaces, there is a place where you can live your own special story.

We welcome you to Discover Camden-Kershaw County. We believe you will be sufficiently captivated by what we have to offer that you will come to find what you love. Visit us at www.classicallycarolina.com to plan your visit.

Suzi Sale Tourism development director

City of Camden TourismDevelopment Office

2 / Discover Camden-Kershaw County / 2015/2016

WELCOME!

3 / Discover Camden-Kershaw County / 2015/2016

About the Historic Robert Mills Courthouse and Home of the Camden/Kershaw County Visitors Center

where to go ... what to do

467,181Visits to the Online

Community Calendar

308,205 Searches within the Online

Community Calendar

69,498 Event Page Views from the Online Community

Calendar

20,000 Visitor inquiries responded to via mail, email, walk-in

and phone

12,021 Visitors coming through

the Visitors’ Center

5,000 Visitors Guides distributed

500 Visitor Information

Packets assembled for Tourism-Related Events

6,740 Visitor Information Mailings

2014At a glance:

DDesigned in 1825 by “South Carolina’s Architect,” Robert Mills, and completed in 1827, the courthouse features a copper roof, brick floors, vaulted central hallway, double arched ceilings downstairs and vestiges of its original radiant heat systems. Built to be fireproof, the walls of the structure are 22 inches thick masonry at the base cov-ered by plaster, tapering to about 15 inches thick at the second floor. The courtroom is restored to conform to an 1845 renovation, when wide pine plank floors were installed to cover the second story brick floor. The judge’s bench and witness stand are as Mills designed them. The original ornate woodwork is visible above period silk and damask window treatments. The court-house also features:

• Barrel vaulted ceilings on lower level.• Original headstone of Baron DeKalb,

Revolutionary War hero.• The Sporting Life Gallery, a museum

with exhibits from equine, canine, and shooting sports that sustained the area for over a century.

• Robert Mills, America’s first archi-tect, who studied under Thomas Jefferson, Pierre L’ Enfant, and James Hoban, also designed the Washington Monument and the U.S. Treasury Building in Washington, D.C.

Home to the Kershaw County Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Center, the building is handicap accessible and is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sat-urday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Sunday from 1:30 to 5 p.m. It is closed on major holidays. Enter through the visitors center entrance, downstairs on the south side of the building. Tours are free and available during business hours. Access may be lim-ited when special events are being held in the building.

The Historic Robert Mills Courthouse is also available for rental as a special event venue and will make the perfect location for your wedding, reception, family reunion, birthday party, corporate meeting and more!