Father of Greenville

Vardry McBee is often called the "Father of Greenville". He was a very important person in Greenville's history. He dropped out of school at 12 to help his father work, after he lost his fortune following the Revolutionary War. When he was 18 Vardry learned saddle-making from his brother-in-law in Lincolnton, NC and by 1836 he had an entire chain of saddle shops. In 1815 he purchased 11,028 acres of land in Greenville County that now makes up much of the central part of Greenville City today. He donated land for the first four churches and first male and female academies. He was also extremely vital in bringing the city its first railroad. McBee was even involved in the relocation of Furman University to its present day location. He owned two flour mills, a cotton factory, wool and paper mills, and a store in Greenville. He was born in 1775 and died in 1864 and is buried in Christ Episcopal Church Cemetery. David and I stopped by the statue of McBee for a photo op. This was one of many virtual geocaches we found on Sunday and a good little history lesson.

David and Linda with Vardry McBee statue on Main Street in Greenville, SC

Mice on Main Street

In 2000, a local high school student came up with an idea that would inspire Greenville residents and visitors alike to feel as if, when they visited downtown they had stepped into an extrordinary place with character and individuality. Nine little bronze mice are placed up and down Main Street. Goodnight Moon is the children’s book that the mice idea came from. A bronzed sculpture of the book and one mouse are mounted on the fountain in front of the Hyatt Regency hotel and the other eight mice are installed along a nine-block stretch of Main Street between the Hyatt & the Westin Poinsett hotels. You can pick up a hint sheet and go in search of all nine of the little mice that are somewhere along Main Street. We had been wanting to do this since we first arrived here 2 years ago so today we set out with a our friends Cheryl and Jay, in search of the mice and found them all. What fun! We ran into numerous other people who were also searching. Most are fairly easy to find with the hints given but one in particular is quite difficult as it is up on a sign and peeking down on you. We got lots of exercise and had a fun day with friends. We also did a lot of geocaching today and I will be posting about some of those in the next few posts.

I am sitting by the first mouse and plaque that are shown in the previous two photos

this is mouse #5, she is up high and looking down on you making her more difficult to spot

Chairmen of the Board

As I have mentioned before, David and I, along with a couple of our friends go to Larkin's Rhythm on the River every Thursday night. It is a park in downtown Greenville, SC right along the banks of the Reedy River where a stage is set up and each week a different group is there to entertain us. This past Thursday it was General Johnson and the Chairmen of the Board. We have seen them perform in the past at the Apple Festival in Hendersonville, NC. The show was great. It was the largest crowd so far for the shows there. Usually there is a grassy area in front of the stage for people to dance but this week as soon as the band was introduced there was an onslaught of fans who rushed to the stage and filled in the grassy area. They remained there for the entire show so there was no room for the dancers. Below are a few photos from the night. David ran into an old school buddy of his, Bill, during intermission. How cool! There were in the master's program together and had not seen each other in nine years.

I had to have my picture taken with this sign. There is a Donovan song called Lord of the Reedy River and I have wanted my picture taken with this sign ever since I first saw it.

David and Bill, long time no see

General Johnson sings to the crowds

General Johnson and the Chairmen of the Board perform

4th of July

We had a rather quiet but fun holiday. A couple of our neighbors, Arlene and Robert, came by and brought steaks and we grilled them and had a big picnic lunch at our site on the lake. We taught them how to play Mexican Train so we spent several hours playing and having fun. Last night we sat outside and watched fireworks in all directions right from out site. It was really nice. Sometimes we could see the reflection of fireworks in the water making it doubly beautiful. We were amazed at how many different areas were shooting fireworks as we could see them from the north, south, east and west. Especially nice since we never had to leave the comforts of home or fight the crowds and traffic and still had a wonderful show.