A production of South Carolina ETV in association with the South Carolina Department of Parks and Tourism ♪ (male singer) ♪ Oh, I have found the sweetest place ♪ ♪ where people smile and know my name.

♪ ♪ Oh, I have found the sweetest land ♪ ♪ as warm as sun and cool as rain.

♪ ♪ A place so faaarrr... from all we had, ♪ ♪ a place so far from all we've known, ♪ ♪ a quiet place that we can love ♪ ♪ and call our home.

♪♪♪ ♪ ♪ (Joanna Angle) In 1817, a young man named Thomas Edwards Hart acquired a large tract along Black Creek in Darlington County.

About three years later he built this house on a bluff overlooking the creek's floodplain.

The original farmhouse was simple in style, one room deep with center halls up and down.

This plan provided excellent cross ventilation.

Hart was joined here by his wife, Hannah Lide Hart, and as their family grew to include eight children, the plantation expanded to thousands of acres.

In addition to being a farmer, Thomas Hart was also a merchant, a justice of the peace, the first postmaster here, and captain of the local militia.

It's easy to understand why this settlement came to be known as Hartsville.

Welcome to "Palmetto Places," a series that explores and celebrates South Carolina's small towns and countryside.

I'm Joanna Angle.

Unhappily, Thomas Hart suffered great financial losses during the panic of 1837 and '38.

He died a few years later at the age of 46.

A son of Thomas and Hannah Hart, John Lide Hart, recovered some of his family's landholdings and proceeded to build a carriage factory, a gristmill, a sawmill, a post office, a school, and a store.

These were the beginning of what is now downtown Hartsville.

John Hart died in Virginia during the War Between the States.

By the 1920s, the Hart plantation had passed through many hands and had become literally a site for dumping trash.

A botanist related to the Harts by marriage, Dr. William Chambers Coker, bought the property and gave it to his sister-in-law, May Coker, an avid gardener.

Though she was greatly loved in the community and affectionately referred to as "Miss May," her plan to turn this pitiful wasteland into a public garden was met with skepticism.

The project became known as "Miss May's Folly."

Undaunted, she enlisted several strong men and a mule and began making trails which were gradually lined with azaleas, wisterias, tea olives, and Miss May's favorite... camellias.

Camellias even grace the wrought iron gates at the entrance to the gardens.

Since 1935, these gardens have been open to the public, free of charge, every day, dawn to dusk.

They are called Kalmia Gardens for the mountain laurel Kalmia latifolia that covers the bluff over Black Creek.

Today, the 30-acre garden is owned and maintained by Coker College.

♪ ♪ In nearby Bishopville a contemporary garden puts a new twist on a classical form.

♪ Come and get to know South Carolina's wizard of topiary, Pearl Fryer.

This is the plant that my topiary began with.

This plant is originally with two tiers.

Over a period of about four years I decided I wanted it to grow taller.

I allowed a shoot to come from the center.

I worked with the shoot over a period of about two or three years, and it became another three or four foot tall.

Then I added to that shoot from the side plants, which at one time were one-gallon containers.

After a period of four or five years, it was tall enough that I could connect the two.

I took wire and ran it from the center plant to the plants on the side.

As the shoot grew I tied them to the wire.

Then, after letting them grow, I cut and cut until I got a shape.

After a period of about two years, I removed the wire and had this form.

When we first came here, this was a cornfield.

It also had a hedgerow going across the property exactly where the house is.

I knew at that time I really wanted-- I wasn't familiar with topiary, but I knew I wanted a somewhat outstanding garden, so I removed all the trees.

My idea was to make sure that all the plants on this piece of property, that I put them there where I wanted them.

I decided I would create around my property what we would consider a picture frame... hedgerows which would create a picture frame, and my house would be the center of the painting... as a painting.

In this picture would be my touch of art, with the plants and what I do with the plants and the idea of expressing myself with plants.

This is exactly how it came about.

After five years of working with this type of thing, I found out it was called topiary.

I took it and took it to the level of personal things, personal feelings, and was able to create a lot of the feeling that I felt in the '60s, because I came out of the '60s.

In my garden you will find hearts, love, and all signs that relates to personal feelings and personal feeling between people and my friends.

My garden is not basically all my feeling, but feelings from my friends and the feelings that my friends created within me.

The object here is basically to create a shape that looks like a doughnut and with a saucer effect.

Over a period of three to five years, I created the three tiers.

Then I decided to add more to the plant in order to create height.

To do that I left two, three little shoots.

These three shoots grew into all of this.

This is formed with a piece of wire by attaching it to the main stem of the plant.

After attaching this to the main stem and the two shoots growing around, I created a lead shoot that grew straight up that created the top and the pom-pom top of this plant.

This also created the "S" shape from this shoot.

This plant was-- from the third tier, all above it was created from three lead shoots that were left unpruned.

Everything within my garden is creative.

I would consider it creative topiary.

Basically all other topiary is either geometric figures or some type of animal.

What I wanted to do was more self-expression.

And self-expression, I mean... just do something creative from the top of my head, something that I just wanted to think about and then create it and it'd be different from anything else anyone had seen.

What I really would like to accomplish... what I would like to know that I did was reach the people that people have forgotten about.

It's basically because I came from that type of environment where you're trying to pull yourself up by your bootstraps.

The statement I hope I've made, or that I'm making, is that if you only have one thing to offer and that's hard work, give it your best shot.

Pick something you're good at and do your best.

That's exactly what I've done.

It took me 10 years to come to that conclusion, but the moment I started dealing with the plants, the response I got from people was what I needed and was exactly what I was looking for.

Now I would love to know that I could reach some of the younger kids, some of the students that feel they cannot accomplish what they want to accomplish because they don't have the financial resources that kids have that come from the right side of the track.

That's my whole idea and my goal... to use this as a tool to make a statement to that person that says, Well, I don't have that means to do that.

[birds chirping] The object here is to create an arch.

To create the arch, I attached a wire from Holly Number 1 to Holly Number 2.

Then in the process I create what we consider lead shoot by tying three or four shoots together and attach them to the wire.

Over a couple of years, they will connect at the top of the wire.

Then I create another shoot, which create the pom-pom above that.

After I get the lead shoot together and get my arch formed, I remove the wire.

Once I remove the wire, this is what we're looking at.

[leaves rustling] These two plants are called compactor holly.

When I was in the military, in "Stars and Stripes" every day they ran a quotation.

I religiously-- in the morning, that was the first thing I read because that made my day.

This particular quotation... "He that does no more than the average will never rise above the average."

To me that means that... don't be complacent.

Don't be satisfied with just getting by just because your friends say, This is all you need to do... this is good enough.

The people that is successful are people that made one step above what the average person feel is okay.

If you look in my garden, that is the basis for my garden.

[no audio] This is my favorite piece.

This is me.

I was able to express my real feelings in this plant.

This is a Leyland cypress.

It was put here after Hugo.

I created this by using PVC pipe to create an arch effect around the center part of the plant.

This is one plant, not two.

Over a period of two to three years, it was approximately five to six feet tall.

Then I proceed to work with the upper portion by twisting it because I wanted it to grow into a twist and to expose the twist.

After a couple more years, I was able to create the pom-pom above the twist.

Approximately another year, it should be completed with a large pom-pom at the top with the fish bone effect between the third pom-pom and the top pom-pom.

♪ What I would like for them to say about me a hundred years from now... is that I was a person that made my little mark in my own little way.

I think everyone would like to be able to say that.

If everyone would feel that way, I think we'll solve a lot of problems we have today.

I mean by "in my own little way" is the way that people feel about me and the way I feel about people.

I think each person is responsible for that.

Once we are concerned enough about that, then we have a tendency to affect other peoples around us and make everyone feel good, and they make you feel good in return.

♪ ♪ In 1908, Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Company built this passenger station to accommodate the growing number of Hartsville citizens who used trains as a primary method of transportation.

Forty years later a Hartsville resident, Mr. A. L. M. Wiggins, was named Atlantic Coast Line's chairman of the board.

He moved his headquarters into this building, parking his personal railroad car just outside the door.

This station is typical of those built in the early 20th century.

Its roof is slate with dormers, and wide, sheltering eaves overhang the sides.

Today, Mr. Wiggins' office is a conference and meeting room.

The remainder of the building houses galleries.

[no audio] The changing gallery features new exhibits monthly, with shows by artists, craftspeople, collectors, and other museums.

The prize centerpiece of the permanent collection is this shiny 1899 Locomobile.

According to museum documents, this was the first automobile to arrive in South Carolina.

The Locomobile was powered by kerosene-generated steam, which produced a smooth and quiet, if somewhat risky, ride.

The boiler, which generated the steam, was just under the seat, and occasionally high pressure would cause a boiler to explode.

[no audio] One of the most popular exhibits is this collection of silver hollowware, which was made by the short-lived Eastern Carolina Silver Company.

The pieces are classic forms with motifs featuring Southern flowers, grapevines, and cotton bolls.

The 1908 catalog lists 150 pieces which were available.

Each piece of the silver is marked on the bottom with a small palmetto tree and the words, "E. Carolina Silver Company, Hartsville, S. C." ♪ ♪ A favorite of local museum goers is an occasional exhibit of whimsical animal sculptures.

Enter the wacky, happy world of Patz Fowle.

(Patz Fowle) I started making animals in clay when I wanted something to do at home so I could be a working mother and be with my daughter and not leave her with daycare.

I started making little-- it was back in the hippie days, and I was about 20.

I made little incense burners.

They were just little animals, a little egg-shaped.

They had their little hands out, and you put stick incense in their hands.

When I sold my first one, I made 12 more and was on a roll.

I got to stay with my daughter, raise my family, cook, clean.

So it was nice to do.

My favorite animal might be the elephant because it's got so much expression.

It's very expressive.

It can do a lot with its trunk.

A lot of ear action, a lot of body motion.

They say a lot with their trunk.

Giraffes are good... they're graceful.

They look delicate, but I think they're not as delicate as they look.

I think all animals are expressive.

I have a lot of ideas.

To me the animals are more... not so much animallike, but... humanlike.

I imagine them in human situations.

They're doing the things that people do.

I don't know.

The more zany, the better it is for me.

I like to expand the limits, expand the limits on what I think an animal could do or what a person could do or anything like that.

Just funny situations.

I only think funny things, so that's how the work comes out.

On my porkpie piece, this piece right here.

I had a friend in New York, and she came over and told me about her father's porkpie hat.

So in my mind I'm going, Porkpie...that's pretty cool!

I started sculpting in my mind, thinking what I would do with that little phrase or little word and twist it around and make something kind of cool out of it.

This is the porkpie that I had.

This guy right here, this is called, "A Brave, Energetic, Got-the-Bull-by-the-Horns Kind of Guy."

I had always heard "got the bull by the horns."

When I hear something like that, I imagine this piece, so I had to make it.

When people look at my work, I need some reaction.

They can either think that it's... silly--that's cool--or they can think that it's strange or weird or wonderful.

A lot of people just stand and laugh.

They get real good feelings from my work.

That's the best feeling.

So I know that what I wanted to accomplish, I've accomplished.

They feel real good about it.

I feel real good about it.

Art should give you some emotion.

If you look at a piece of art and it says nothing to you, I don't feel that is art.

Art should make you feel something or make you see something you haven't seen before or see something in a new light or experience something that you haven't before.

But it should make an emotion either happen or happen later.

To be an artist is... funny!

It's funny because it's every emotion known to mankind put in one person.

You do a lot of wondering about if you're doing the right thing.

Something inside you makes you want to do this and you have little control over it.

It insists that you do this, and so you have to do it.

You say, "Well, I should be cooking," or, "I should be cleaning," or something.

But the art says, "No, you're going to do this right here."

In order to just keep peace with yourself, you have to just go ahead and do it.

You're not done until you feel good about it.

♪ ♪ Just outside of Hartsville, you'll find the Jacob Kelly House.

This is an excellent example of how houses grow.

It began as a one-story log house built around 1820 and gradually evolved into the plantation house so typical of the Pee Dee region.

Jacob Kelly was an early settler and one of the founders of this small farming community known as Kellytown.

His house's historic significance stems from its role in the War Between the States.

As General Sherman's army completed its march across Georgia, it turned northward into South Carolina, with many units entering Darlington District.

[footfalls on floor] Union General John E. Smith's 15th Army Corps used the Kelly House as headquarters in March of 1865.

From here they commandeered the nearby Kelly Mills and ransacked the surrounding area.

Local tradition has it that the community brought its gold and silver to Jacob Kelly for safekeeping.

Although he was 85 years old at the time, he endured the cold March weather and made his way to a nearby island.

He saved his neighbors' possessions but returned home to find his own destroyed.

[no audio] [footfalls on steps] Like many Southern houses, the kitchen of the Kelly House was detached to reduce the danger of fire.

Several times a year there are cooking demonstrations here by Thelma McKay Dudley.

Mrs. Dudley, what are you cooking?

(Thelma Dudley) Hoecakes.

They're made of flour and milk.

I just put it in the pan.

You want me to show you?

I'd love to see it.

Okay...I just put it on my coals down here, and I spoon it out in little... drops like this.

[fire crackling] The thing doesn't look hot, but it is!

It's about to scorch me.

Then I take--I've got some grease in this pot.

Smooth it out with this... something everybody ought to be able to do.

They wouldn't have to eat light bread when they'd make these hoecakes.

They're a lot better.

I'll let them be cooking.

I've got some fresh pork-- hog meat-- over there that I've just cooked.

These are hoecakes I've already cooked.

I want to sample those!

All right.

Could I taste one?

Sure!

That's hot...you want me to hand it to you?

All right, just hand me one.

How about a piece of meat?

I want to taste this hoecake first.

This is just flour and milk?

Right.

Mmm... that's good.

I've got grape jam if you want.

It's good the way it is.

What other things can you cook on the hearth?

We used to do all of our cooking on the hearth.

We'd usually cook it all in one pot if we could.

You could fry taters... or either boil chicken... make dumplings.

You could just cook anything on it that you can cook on a stove.

These are ready to turn.

[fire crackling] Not quite brown enough yet.

I've got a little bit more grease than I need to have.

Those are a pretty, golden brown.

I'll let the other side brown a little more.

Ooh, it's so hot!

Families would eat these several times a day?

Yes...anytime they needed bread they could eat a hoecake.

You can also make cornbread.

I make some called lace cornbread.

It's real thin and lacy looking.

Could do the same thing there just by mixing meal, little bit of milk, and mostly water.

Make it real soupy and put it in the pan just like I did this.

We're so glad you let us come.

We'd like to come have a whole meal.

All right...

I would love for you to!

Thanks.

♪ Wherever you are in South Carolina, you're not far from a great state park.

This is Lee State Park between Hartsville and Bishopville.

It was named for Lee County, which was named to honor General Robert E. Lee.

This park covers nearly 3,000 acres.

It was developed by the CCC, the Civilian Conservation Corps, during the 1930s.

This sturdy cabin behind me, which sits beside an artesian well, is a reminder of the CCC craftsmen.

The park is bordered by the Lynches River and includes a sandhill natural area.

It offers many picturesque spots for hiking, picnicking, nature study, and photography.

We're glad you could be with us on this visit to Hartsville and the surrounding countryside and hope that you can join us again on "Palmetto Places."

Until then, I'm Joanna Angle, inviting you to discover South Carolina... smiling faces, beautiful places.

♪ ♪ (female singer) ♪ And here we live, ♪ ♪ within this land ♪ ♪ of mountains' edge and ocean's shore.

♪ ♪ A land of strength, a land of grace, ♪ ♪ of men and women gone before.

♪ ♪ So many smiling faces here, ♪ ♪ so many memories still to come.

♪ ♪ Beautiful places we hold dear ♪ ♪ in this our home.

♪ (choir joins) ♪ South Carolina, always near... ♪ ♪ and always hooommmme.... ♪♪♪ ♪