Featured in Beaufort Lifestyle Magazine
Story by Carol Lauvray Photos by Susan DeLoach
The Road Leading to Beaufort “I’m definitely a glass-half-full kind of person and believe that serendipity has been prominent in many aspects of my life,” Larry Koolkin says smiling.
Larry and his wife Lainie had been living in the Northeast for much of the past several decades when they found Beaufort by chance, while looking for someplace warmer to call home in retirement. He recalls that during the winters of 2012 and 2013, they embarked from their Vermont home on an adventure down the east coast and across to Galveston, Texas, where they had previously lived. “We were exploring to find the right place—a place that would speak to us,” he says. “We camped in South Carolina at Huntington Beach, Edisto and Hunting Island, in Georgia, and along the panhandle of Florida.” Larry says they thought about moving to Edisto or Charleston, but instead said to each other, “Let’s move to Beaufort—and that was that!”
The Path to Beaufort’s History “I’ve collected vintage books involving pirates, treasure, adventure, exploration and the Age of Discovery for the last 40 years,” says Larry. “When we moved to Beaufort in 2014, I had no idea of the depth of local history—the European exploration, pre-Colonial and Revolutionary War history, the antebellum period, the Civil War, the Reconstruction Era, and the Civil Rights history that happened right here in Beaufort.”
Larry related that shortly after arriving in Beaufort, he saw an article about the archeological discovery of the Spanish colony of Santa Elena on what is now Parris Island. “Sixteenth Century history is really my sweet spot, so I contacted Andy Beall, who was referenced in the article, to talk with him and learn more.” Larry met with Beall and Michael Marks, the former director of the Coastal Discovery Museum, to learn about the new Santa Elena Foundation and its plans. Larry says, “I left that meeting as a co-chair, along with Michael, of Santa Elena’s Building and Exhibits Committee, with the responsibility of planning and developing the exhibit for the new Santa Elena History Center.”
During the 18-month project to develop Santa Elena’s new exhibits, Larry says he worked closely with Carol Poplin from the Charleston-based exhibit design firm HW Exhibits (formerly known as The History Workshop). “During the project, I also developed a wonderful friendship with Dr. Chester DePratter, discoverer of French Charlesfort and the archaeologist who conducted extensive excavations at the Santa Elena site on Parris Island.” The grand opening of the Santa Elena History Center and its inaugural exhibit was celebrated on April 30, 2016.
Serendipity—being in the right place at the right time—and possessing the experience, skills and keen interest in 16th Century history to take on this kind of project, led Larry to this exciting volunteer opportunity in his new home town. His life experiences had prepared him to successfully manage the development of Santa Elena History Center’s project.
“I’ve had broad experience and success in applied information technology, finance, international business, and museums, as an entrepreneur who has helped to successfully launch and manage a half dozen companies,” Larry said. “Along the way, I’ve held senior positions at MIT’s Project Athena, Ernst & Young International and Ross Capital Markets (both in Bermuda), Springboard Technology Ventures in Prague, and the Boston Museum of Science—and earned graduate degrees in both Museum Studies and Applied Computer Science.” He continued, “After enjoying a 35-year entrepreneurial technology career, volunteering led to working on staff at Boston’s Museum of Science and developed into a new career when I joined their Exhibits Department.”
In September of 2015, while Larry was still in the midst of managing the development and installation of Santa Elena’s inaugural exhibit, the board of directors of Beaufort History Museum (BHM) asked him to consider joining their board. The museum manages the city of Beaufort’s collections of artifacts, photos and documents and is located in the historic Arsenal. BHM was looking for board members who possessed expertise in the areas of both technology and museum exhibits, so Larry’s background was a perfect fit and truly serendipitous for the museum. Because BHM is an all-volunteer organization, the members of its board are directly involved in all aspects of the museum’s management, projects and events.
Since joining Beaufort History Museum’s board, Larry has updated and streamlined every aspect of the museum’s technology infrastructure—from creating a new engaging website built atop an organizational membership management platform … to serving as the museum’s Webmaster … to researching, planning and installing systems to monitor the environment and security of the museum’s exhibits and collections.
Larry was also instrumental in leading the development of the museum’s exhibits over the past three years in his role of co-chairman of the museum’s Exhibits Committee. With the assistance of BHM board member Steve Guida, Larry managed the project to develop the museum’s exhibit, Reconstruction Beaufort: Islands of Hope in a Sea of Distress. That exhibit, funded by accommodations tax grants from the city of Beaufort and Beaufort County, opened at Beaufort History Museum in the summer of 2016. It was a visionary project of the museum to educate the community and visitors about the importance of the Reconstruction Era in Beaufort. The exhibit was developed in large part through the work of many of BHM’s volunteer board members, including Katherine Lang and Paul Keyserling, two members of the original board when the museum was re-formed in 2011. The museum’s Reconstruction Beaufort exhibit is now on long-term loan to the National Park Service’s Reconstruction Era National Monument visitor center, located on Craven Street across from the Arsenal. Larry explains that to promote the history of Beaufort, the museum has formed partnerships with many local history-oriented organizations. Among these are Santa Elena History Center, Historic Beaufort Foundation’s Verdier House, Fort Fremont, Penn Center, and the National Park Service’s Reconstruction Era National Monument.
As co-chair of the museum’s Exhibits Committee, Larry has also led a multi-year, phased project to completely transform Beaufort History Museum’s main exhibit gallery space, working with BHM’s committee members and HW Exhibits of Charleston. He explains that the first phase of the newly renovated exhibit hall, which opened in May 2018, features colorful and engaging exhibit panels that chronologically detail Beaufort’s pre-historic period through its dramatic 500-year history. Larry states that the second phase of the museum’s renovation project will include additional artifacts, as well as interactive technologies, to engage visitors of all ages and tell Beaufort’s story.
“I’m proud of what I’ve been involved in accomplishing these past three years at Beaufort History Museum in the realms of administration, technology, security, exhibits and collections,” he says. “We’ve achieved a great deal of success in BHM’s exhibits, reflecting our mission of educating visitors about the history of Beaufort County.” With a wry smile Larry adds, “Some visitors still remember the shrunken head and two-headed snake from the museum years ago and ask where they went!”
The Future Larry lost his wife Lainie to cancer in 2016, after 43 years together. “In 2018, I was invited to join the board of the Friends of Caroline Hospice, a cause close to my heart. I want to continue to focus my volunteering where it can have an impact,” he explains. “I’m enjoying time with friends and family and traveling again, especially visiting with my daughter Kristin, granddaughter Madeleine and son-in-law Mark, still up in Vermont—not to mention my brother Bob who moved to Beaufort last year!”
He adds, “Although I won’t be serving as a board member after my term expires in January, I look forward to continuing my active support of Beaufort History Museum as its Webmaster and to participating as a member of its Exhibits Committee, as we complete the second phase of the museum’s total exhibition hall renovation.”
BEAUFORT HISTORY MUSEUM
ANNUAL MEMBERS’ MEETING, Members and Public Invited
You are cordially invited to attend Beaufort History Museum's Annual Members' Meeting on Thursday, January 31, 2019 at 6:00 PM at Beth Israel Synagogue's Social Hall, 401 Scott Street, Beaufort, SC 29902.
After the meeting, please join us for a reception featuring hors d' oeuvres and wines in the Museum on the second floor of the Arsenal at 713 Craven Street. Come to see the Museum's newly renovated main Exhibit Hall and the special exhibit Beaufort in Films, now being presented in partnership with Ron and Rebecca Tucker of the Beaufort International Film Festival.
Click Here to see the complete agenda, program, and full financial reports.
Beaufort, SC – December 31, 2018 - Museum members and the public are invited to attend the Annual Meeting of Beaufort History Museum (BHM) on Thursday, January 31, 2018 at 6:00 PM in the Social Hall of Beth Israel Synagogue, located at 401 Scott St. (entrance at the side door), adjacent to the Arsenal. .
At the meeting, milestones of the past year will be celebrated and plans for 2019 will be revealed, including a recap of Phase I of the renovation of the Museum’s main exhibit hall, which opened to the public in May, and updates on Phase II, which is now being planned. Current Museum members also will vote on a slate of Board of Directors nominees. The slate will be presented to BHM members in advance of the annual meeting via email.
Board President Carol Lauvray announced the annual meeting and also provided a preview of events sponsored by the Museum that will take place in the coming months. Included are:
Refreshments to follow:
Following the annual meeting, a reception featuring hors d’oeuvres and wines will be held at 7:00 PM at the Museum on the second floor of the Arsenal, located at 713 Craven St.
Those who wish to renew their Museum memberships or to become new members, may do so at the meeting or via the Museum’s website at www.beauforthistorymuseum.com.
The Beaufort History Museum, which was founded in 1939, has evolved to focus specifically on the deep and rich history of the Beaufort District. It strives to manage and display artifacts and documents held by the City of Beaufort, telling the compelling stories of this area from the early 16th Century until modern times.
By Jeff Kidd
Retired University of South Carolina Beaufort Chancellor Jane Upshaw remembers well the hectic day of travel between Columbia and Beaufort in December 2002 -- arguably the most important day in the school’s history.
In the morning, she traveled to Columbia, where she had to convince the University of South Carolina Board of Trustees to endorse the Beaufort branch’s bid to award four-year baccalaureate degrees. If they agreed, that evening she would go before Beaufort County Council to sell them on a tax plan to fund construction of a new campus in Southern Beaufort County.
Fortunately, Upshaw says, she did not travel alone that day.
With her was the influential Brantley Harvey Jr., a former state legislator and lieutenant governor who played an outsized role in shaping education, roadways and the arts in Beaufort County.
Harvey died Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018, at Beaufort Memorial Hospital after a short illness. He was 88.
Recalling the pivotal day in USCB history and Harvey's role in it, Upshaw said in an interview earlier this month: “I’ll tell you this -- Brantley was the one I could always count on to come and speak when it mattered most, and the statements he made were always taken to heart because of his standing as a leader in the state of South Carolina."
County Council had made it clear that without the USC board’s support in making USCB a four-year institution, school leaders could forget about help financing a new campus. So at the meeting that morning, Harvey’s wife Helen – a power in her own right and member of the Board of Trustees – helped sway her colleagues to support USCB’s bid. Meanwhile, Harvey worked with the board to craft a resolution that would satisfy County Council’s demands.
That evening, Harvey helped sway County Council to accept a tax-increment finance plan to build the Hilton Head Island Gateway campus in Okatie. It opened in 2004.
“He was such a willing speaker, and it’s almost impossible to exaggerate the importance of Brantley and Helen Harvey in helping make USCB what it is today,” said Upshaw, who retired as chancellor in 2015.
It wasn’t merely Harvey’s political and legal experience that gave his words force: A few years before that frenetic Monday in 2002, he and his wife donated $1 million for a scholarship fund and development of the southern Beaufort County campus.
The donation was but one of Harvey’s bona fides as a civic leader. In addition to holding elective office, he served stints on state and regional boards governing education, highways and tourism. The Beaufort Marine Institute and the Beaufort Symphony Orchestra were among his many philanthropic interests. He was active in Beaufort's First Presbyterian Church.
“Brantley was a giant in every way — personally, professionally and politically,” state Sen. Tom Davis, a partner in Harvey’s law firm, said in a Facebook post Dec. 13, 2018. “He was an excellent lawyer, a fine statesman, a true and loyal friend, and a loving father and husband. I will miss him very much.”
Harvey was born in Walterboro in 1930 — Beaufort didn’t have a hospital at the time — and grew up on The Point. The neighborhood was a veritable cradle of future city leaders — Henry and Ben Chambers, Willie Scheper, Wyatt Pringle, Neal Aimar, Sherwood Harris. They grew up crabbing and fishing together. They handcrafted boats from packing crates and coated them with red lead paint to keep them from rotting. They paddled them until they fell apart, then build replacements. These childhood voyages instilled a lifetime love of the water, and Harvey grew into an accomplished sailor, competing in regattas and frequently sailing along the East Coast.
He attended public schools and was valedictorian of Beaufort High School’s 1947 class. He went on to graduate magna cum laude from The Citadel, spent two years as an officer in the U.S. Army, then earned a law degree from the University of South Carolina in 1955. He joined his father’s law firm, known today as Harvey & Battey, at a time when both the practice and the area were primed for rapid growth. Harvey’s real estate title work helped the U.S. Department of the Navy acquire land for the Laurel Bay military housing community and expand the reactivated Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, which had been mothballed for about 10 years after World War II.
Harvey followed his father into law and into politics, as well. Brantley Harvey Sr. had served in the state Senate, and Brantley Jr. was elected to the House of Representatives in 1958. A lifelong Democrat, Harvey courted the African-American vote at a time when race and segregation issues ripped at the fabric of the party, which had dominated South Carolina politics since Reconstruction.
“My father helped me because he was respected and he worked with all kinds of people,” Harvey recalled in his memoirs, published in 2015. “That was my introduction to politics. I liked the people I met, and I loved public service. It was good to feel that I was doing something for my country and my state.”
Harvey served in the House of Representatives until 1974, when he was elected lieutenant governor. In the same election cycle, Jim Edwards was elected governor, the first Republican to win that office since Reconstruction. Despite their different party affiliations, Harvey said he worked well with Edwards, who frequently sent him abroad to recruit business to South Carolina.
Harvey ran unsuccessfully for governor in 1978, garnering the most votes in the Democratic primary but losing in a runoff to Richard Riley, who went on to win the general election.
Though that marked the end of his political career, the gubernatorial election was but a midpoint of his life in public service.
As with education, Harvey’s impact on Beaufort County transportation is substantial. As a legislator, he helped remove the tolls from the bridges to Hilton Head and Fripp islands. Then, as a S.C. Department of Transportation commissioner, he was instrumental in obtaining the funding and approval for the Hilton Head Cross-Island Parkway, and the widening of U.S. 21 and U.S. 278. As organizing chairman of the Beaufort County Transportation Committee for almost eight years, he helped direct state gasoline-tax funds to improve and pave secondary roads throughout Beaufort County.
Harvey served on the Board of the Beaufort Marine Institute and, for a period, as its chairman. He held a leadership position with the Coastal Carolina Council of the Boy Scouts of America, for which he was awarded the Distinguished Service to Boyhood award. He helped create industrial parks in northern Beaufort County and in Yemassee. He has been a member of the Chamber of Commerce; the United Way; the Historic Beaufort Foundation; the Beaufort Orchestra (as a violinist); Beaufort Performing Arts Center; the Salvation Army; and Beaufort Rotary Club. He and Helen attended Beaufort's First Presbyterian Church, where he was ordained and served as an elder.
Helen Harvey passed away in 2010.
In 2012, Harvey married Alice Deforest Klatt, a longtime friend and ordained Lutheran minister who moved back to Beaufort after her husband’s death. The couple lived in Marshlands, a historic home in The Point that Harvey and Helen purchased in 1974.
Beaufort History Museum Lecture Scheduled for Thursday November 8...
TOMBEE REVISITED –MANAGING ENSLAVED LABOR ON A SEA ISLAND COTTON PLANTATION
Beaufort, SC – October 30, 2018 - Noted authority Theodore Rosengarten will present a lecture titled “Tombee Revisited – Managing Enslaved Labor on a Sea Island Cotton Plantation,” at 2:00 PM on Thursday, November 8, at the Beaufort Branch Library, located at 311 Scott Street. This is the second lecture in the Beaufort History Museum/Beaufort County Library 2018 Fall Local History Series.
Admission to the lecture is free. A donation of $5 is suggested and reservations are required. To sign up CLICK HERE. Please print out the ticket and bring to the event. Registration is currently open. (Lectures sell out. Those with tickets will be admitted first.) Funds collected will be used to support ongoing Museum programs and the ongoing renovation of the Exhibit Hall currently underway. Phase I of the renovation was recently unveiled and planning for Phase II will begin in 2019
Rosengarten received his A.B. from Amherst College and Ph.D. in the History of American Civilization from Harvard University. While his primary field of research and writing is African-American history, he has been a student of the Holocaust for more than 50 years and teaches courses on the subject at the College of Charleston and the Honors College at the University of South Carolina. He also directs workshops for middle and high school teachers and leads semi-annual study-abroad trips to Poland and Germany.
The Beaufort County Library System is a free and accessible center of ideas, information, and resources that foster learning, community, and literacy. The Library provides open and guided access to a wide variety of media and programs to inform, inspire, and empower people in their pursuit of lifelong learning, personal enrichment, and cultural understanding.
Beaufort History Museum, located in the historic Arsenal on Craven Street, has evolved to focus specifically on the history of the Beaufort District. It strives to manage and display artifacts and documents held by the City of Beaufort, telling the compelling stories of this area from the early 16th Century until modern times. The Museum’s hours of operation are 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM Monday – Saturday. Information on other events, volunteer opportunities and membership may be found on the website.
Beaufort History Museum to Host Open House
New Exhibits Featured
Beaufort, SC – October 5, 2018 - Beaufort History Museum will open its doors and welcome the public free of charge to an open house on Saturday, October 20, 2018 from 10:00 AM – 4 PM. The newly renovated Exhibit Hall, which is located in the historic Arsenal on Craven Street, will be on display and Docents will be on hand to welcome visitors and answer questions. Guests will also learn about the Museum’s volunteer opportunities and have an opportunity to obtain a Museum membership.
In addition, as part of the Museum’s partnership with the National Park Service, the Reconstruction Era National Monument Visitor’s Center, which is just across the street from the Arsenal, will also be open to welcome visitors that day. BHM’s informative exhibit Reconstruction Beaufort: Islands of hope in a Sea of Distress, is currently loaned and on display at NPS’ Visitors Center.
“We are very pleased to welcome local residents and visitors to tour the new exhibits. Telling the stories of our 500 - year history and the dramatic impact it has had on the development of this country is our most important mission,” said BHM Board President Carol Lauvray.
“Through our partnership with the National Park Service people will also have a chance to learn more about Reconstruction and experience our heritage on many different levels. We are excited to share our history in ways that everyone can enjoy.”
HW Exhibits, a Charleston-based design firm, working with members of the Museum’s Exhibit Committee, created the recently completed exhibits based on the Museum’s impressive collection of artifacts and images. BHM’s materials display the history of the Beaufort District in storyboards organized into separate subject areas such as First People, European Exploration, Rice and Cotton, the Civil War, 20th Century Tourism and more.
The principal Exhibit Hall will include three sections:
The recently redesigned exhibits comprise the first phase of a comprehensive two phase renovation of the Exhibit Hall. Plans are underway for the second phase of the renovation, which will feature additional displays and integrated technological elements. The final phase of the renovation will be underway during 2019.
Beaufort History Museum is located in the historic Arsenal at 713 Craven Street. Normal BHM hours of operation are 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM Monday – Saturday. Docents are on duty to provide information and conduct tours. Please visit beauforthistorymuseum.com or the BHM Facebook page for updates and news from the Museum.
"Take it all in at the Beaufort History Museum.There’s no better place to start reliving this area’s rich history than inside the historic, yellow-tinted Arsenal. Its roots go all the way back to 1939. Today, the museum’s new exhibit highlights the ecology, discovery, early settlement, and modernization of the small town..."
Read the full story here!
Beaufort History Museum Lecture Re-Scheduled for October 9
Learn About the Yemasee Indians and Altamaha Town
Beaufort, SC – September 25, 2018 - Beaufort History Museum, in partnership with the Beaufort County Library, will present a lecture on the Yemasee Indians and Altamaha Town by noted authority and archaeologist Dr. Eric Poplin. The lecture is scheduled for 2:00 PM on Tuesday, October 9, at the Beaufort Branch Library, located at 311 Scott Street
The Yamasee Indians, a multiethnic conglomeration of Native Americans, lived along the lower coastal plain of South Carolina between 1683 and 1715. Altamaha Town, the capital of their settlements, was occupied as early as 1685 until it was abandoned during the Yamasee War. More than 60,000 artifacts were recovered from the site. Poplin will discuss the history of the tribe and life in the village during his presentation
Poplin, who earned his PhD at the University of Calgary, is Senior Archaeologist/Vice President with Brockington and Associates, a large southeastern US Cultural Resources Management firm with offices in Atlanta and Savannah, GA and Charleston, SC. He has conducted archaeological investigations throughout coastal South Carolina for the last 28 years including some at Altamaha Town, Huspa Town and Pocotaligo Town in Beaufort District.
Admission to the lecture is free. A donation of $5 is suggested and reservations are required. Click here to register! Please print out the ticket and bring to the event. Registration opens September 25.
(Please note that this presentation was originally planned to take place in September but was rescheduled due to the hurricane evacuation order. Those who had reservations for that lecture must reschedule.)
Those with tickets will be admitted first. Funds collected will be used to support ongoing Museum programs and the ongoing renovation of the Exhibit Hall currently underway. Phase I of the renovation was recently unveiled and Phase II is slated for completion late in 2019.
Beaufort History Museum Lecture September 11
Beaufort, SC – August 21, 2018 - Beaufort History Museum, in partnership with the Beaufort County Library, will present a lecture on the Yemasee Indians and Altamaha Town by noted authority and archaeologist Dr. Eric Poplin. The lecture is scheduled for 2:00 PM on Tuesday, September 11 at the Beaufort Branch Library, located at 311 Scott Street.
The Yamasee Indians, a multiethnic conglomeration of Native Americans, lived along the lower coastal plain of South Carolina between 1683 and 1715. Altamaha Town, the capital of their settlements, was occupied as early as 1685 until it was abandoned during the Yamasee War. More than 60,000 artifacts were recovered from the site. Poplin will discuss the history of the tribe and life in the village during his presentation.
. Poplin, who earned his PhD at the University of Calgary, is Senior Archaeologist/Vice President with Brockington and Associates, a large southeastern US Cultural Resources Management firm with offices in Atlanta and Savannah, GA and Charleston, SC. He has conducted archaeological investigations throughout coastal South Carolina for the last 28 years including some at Altamaha Town, Huspa Town and Pocotaligo Town in Beaufort District.
Admission to the lecture is free. A donation of $5 is suggested and reservations are required. Registration opens August 28 - click here to register. Please print out the ticket emailed to you, and bring to the event. (Lectures sell out. Those with tickets will be admitted first.) Funds collected will be used to support ongoing Museum programs and the ongoing renovation of the Exhibit Hall currently underway. Phase I of the renovation was recently unveiled and Phase II is slated for completion late in 2019.
Beaufort, SC – May 24, 2018 - Something very old is new again at Beaufort’s famous Arsenal. Beaufort History Museum, which occupies the second floor of the historic building, has completed the renovation of its Exhibit Hall and it is now open to the public.
“Since 1939 we have been Beaufort’s history museum, “ said Larry Koolkin, a Director and Co-chairman of the Exhibits Committee. “Coming home to the Arsenal has allowed us to ‘repaint the canvas’ and present our extensive collection, telling the 500-year history of the Beaufort District, in a fresh way that engages all ages.”
HW Exhibits, a Charleston-based exhibit design firm, created the new design based on the Museum’s impressive collection of artifacts and images. The firm, headed by Carol Poplin, the HW Exhibits Director, also handled the fabrication and installation of the exhibits.
The Museum’s materials display history of the Beaufort District in storyboards organized into separate subject areas such as First People, European Exploration, Rice and Cotton, the Civil War, 20th Century Tourism and more
There are three sections:
“ This is a very exciting and important time for Beaufort and for the Museum. We have come a long way but our journey has just begun,” Koolkin said. “ The new exhibit hall represents Phase I of the renovation. Phase II, due to be completed next year, will include larger, centrally placed displays and visitor interaction enhanced with leading-edge technology. We think visitors will embrace this chance to experience the history of our area and that they will especially enjoy our ‘user friendly’ approach.”
The Arsenal address is 713 Craven Street. Normal BHM hours of operation are 10:00 am – 4:00 pm, Monday – Saturday. Docents are on duty to provide information and conduct tours. Please visit beauforthistorymuseum.com or the BHM Facebook page for updates and news from the Museum.
Beaufort History Museum Poised to Debut New Exhibit Hall
Beaufort, SC – April 18, 2018 – There is a growing sense of excitement around the historic Arsenal these days as Beaufort History Museum prepares to debut its newly renovated Exhibit Hall. The long anticipated renovation is on schedule and poised to open to the public in time for the Memorial Day weekend, according to Larry Koolkin, a BHM Director and Co-chairman of the Exhibits Committee. Koolkin says that completion of the project will mark the fruition of a dream that the Museum’s supporters have held for many years.
“The Museum, founded in 1939, has been housed at many sites, finally coming home to The Arsenal in 2014,” Koolkin said. “This is our chance to ‘repaint the canvas’ and present our extensive collection, which tells the 500-year history of the Beaufort District, in a fresh and compelling manner utilizing new technologies and a modern approach.”
HW Exhibits, a Charleston-based exhibit design firm, was hired to create a cohesive theme, developing text and graphics based on the Museum’s collection of artifacts and images. The firm, headed by Carol Poplin, the HW Exhibits Director, will also handle fabrication and installation.
The long, narrow second floor space that houses the Museum was a primary consideration as Poplin and her team conceived their plan for the renovation. “Beaufort History Museum has a certain charm but the unique configuration of the Exhibit Hall had to be considered when planning the traffic flow and the perceived usage by guests.” Poplin said. “Will they wander back and forth across the space? Can they resume the chronological order once they are drawn to another section of the displays? All of this had to be taken into consideration to make their visit enjoyable and encourage a sense of discovery.”
The Museum’s materials are organized both chronologically and thematically. The 13,000 year history of the area is displayed in storyboards and organized into discrete subject areas such as First People, European Exploration, Rice and Cotton, the Civil War, 20th Century Tourism and many more
Thematically, Poplin said there are three sections:
When the new exhibit hall opens the interpretive displays will represent Phase I of the renovation. Phase II, due to be completed next year, will include larger, centrally placed displays and visitor interaction enhanced with leading-edge technology.
Koolkin said that the Museum will remain open until the setting up of the new Exhibit in early May, when it will close for a few weeks during the installation period. The opening date will be announced once installation is complete.
The Arsenal address is 713 Craven Street. Normal BHM hours of operation are 10:00 am – 4:00 pm, Monday – Saturday. Docents are on duty to provide information and conduct tours. Please visit beauforthistorymuseum.com or the BHM Facebook page for updates and news from the Museum, including special discounted admission prices to celebrate the Renovation.
Our mission is to preserve, promote and interpret the experiences of our past that influence us now and in the future.
The Beaufort History Museum is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. 713 Craven Street, Beaufort, SC 29902
