Civic League Led the Way on Beautification, Other Improvements

At the recent training session for Main Street, Kingstree's Organization Committee, discussion centered for awhile on the possibility of the group's getting permission from property owners in the designated area downtown to clean and beautify some neglected spaces. Main Street Committee Members Deanne Russo and Rod McCants recently walked the area, noting places that could use a little more love. They suggested that if all members of the committee pitched it, it would be possible to draw one each month from those selected and spend a few hours sprucing it up. I suspect that when the ladies of Kingstree were forming the Civic League in 1908, they engaged in similar discussions.

The Williamsburg County Courthouse when azalea were banked on the Courthouse Square.

The ladies, frustrated with the way the town looked, set as their mission beautifying the streets and public places, with the long-term goal of establishing a playground for the town's babies and young children. Their first act was to write the Grand Jury, asking that it order the removal of a stairway attached to a building on the eastern boundary of the courthouse grounds as it was situated on county property, and the League had set its sights on the courthouse square.

Although it was a ladies' organization, they offered Kingstree's male population honorary membership for $1 per year. They quickly collected $80 to give them funds to begin landscaping the downtown streets and make plans for the courthouse square. 

In March 1909, The County Record noted, "The work of the Civic League is beginning to show to advantage on the sidewalks and especially is it noticeable on the courthouse square. Recently a macadamized driveway has been completed around the square, and the entire area has been broken up preparatory to arranging the ground in parterres in which will be planted flowers and grasses. The work of these ladies in transforming an unsightly place, grown up in ragged weeds, into a verdant and beauteous park, should be appreciated by the public in a substantial way... ."

By summer 1909 the courthouse square sported green stretches of lawn, cement walks, gravel drives, and beds of bright flowers. And although the ladies faced difficulties in getting permission from the Atlantic Coast Line to work on areas around the depot, they planted evergreens and canna lilies there anyway.

In 1910, the group hired a man to clean the sidewalks on Academy and Main streets, as well as pick up trash that blew into those streets. They also placed trash cans on Main and Academy. But by October 1911, the newspaper stated, "Lately it seems that the League has relaxed its efforts in keeping downtown clean." The League responded quickly, informing Editor Charles Wolfe that they had fired their hired hand because he did not do satisfactory work "and the League does not have funds to squander on substandard work, particularly work that should have been handled by town council." They reiterated that they had hired someone to clean the sidewalks because it was apparent to them that unless they did the work, it would not get done at all. They had appealed to newly-elected Mayor Percy Kinder and were waiting to see if the town council would act.

I presume the grassy space in front of the depot was the spot the ACL agreed to pave.

The same side of the depot in summer 2017.

The ACL finally agreed to cement an area at the depot, leaving a flower bed in the center of it to be planted and cared for by the League. The ladies were grateful and expressed hope that the ACL would eventually agree to their dream of putting a fountain at the depot. Also, in late 1911, they formed a committee, chaired by Freda Jacobs, to look into beautifying the space between the two roads leading to the river. The town looked with favor on beautifying what has become the median between the lanes on Main Street toward the river, and the ladies soon set to work clearing the property.

The League regularly sponsored "Clean-Up Days" for the entire town, urging all residents to clean their property and their neighborhoods. In June 1911, the ladies expressed gratitude to African-American residents who had turned out in far greater numbers to clean their neighborhoods than had their white counterparts. In 1912, the League cooperated with the town in "Fly Killing Day." Also, in 1912, when they noticed that an infestation of mistletoe had killed a number of trees in town, they commissioned a hook to be made to enable them to have the mistletoe removed from trees. They told the town they would provide the hook and supervise the work if the town paid for the labor.

In 1912, their dream of a playground appeared to be coming true. R.H. Kellahan donated property on the corner of Kelley and Epps (now Live Oak Ave.) streets for use as a park during his lifetime. The League quickly began to clear underbrush and put in benches and swings. Less than a year later, Kellahan deeded the property to the town, with the stipulation that if the town ever ceased using it as a public park, it would revert to his estate.

A recent view of Kellahan Park.

As time went by, the ladies got involved in other civic ventures, which also served as innovative fundraisers for the League. They set up an exchange in a corner of M.L. Allen's Drugstore which enabled local women to sell handmade apparel, fancywork, cakes, and other goods each Saturday. The women could keep the proceeds, but were asked to contribute $1 a year to the Civic League for the privilege of using the space. In March 1912, they partnered with the N.K. Fairbanks Company to sponsor a cooking contest at Jacobs & Scott's grocery store. All ladies in Kingstree and surrounding areas were eligible, but they were restricted to using Cottonlene, a vegetable shortening product of the Fairbanks Co., in their entries. After the judging, all the entries were auctioned with proceeds going to the Civic League. 

In April 1915, they sponsored a Better Baby Contest at the Central Warehouse. This was a unique contest in that the winners were scored on their good health. Each of the 25 entrants was examined by doctors and a dentist and ranked according to their health. The top five babies were A.C. Swails, Jr., Robert Claude McCabe, Emory Clifton Kinder, Margaret Florence Kelley, and John F. McFadden, Jr.

In 1916, the Civic League joined forces with the Library Commission to form the Civic and Library Commission which worked tirelessly on the building and stocking of the new Carnegie Library.

The Williamsburgh Museum is part of the Civic League's legacy to us.

We certainly don't know the names of all the ladies who participated in the Civic League. Some who were officers were Cornelia Gamble, Eva Lee, Nell Gilland, Maud Logan, Marie Thorn, Jimmye Britton, Julia Fairy, Freda Jacobs, and Eleanor McCabe. We owe all of them much gratitude that so much of their work remains with us today. This summer hydrangeas brought bright splashes of color to the median between the lanes on Main Street. Kellahan Park still rings with the laughter of children, and although the library has moved to newer facilities, the building they worked toward now serves as a repository for the area's history as the Williamsburgh Museum.