December 22, 2017

Ridge Spring News

Harriet Householder

Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year

Library News!!! The Ridge Spring Library will be closed from Dec 12th, 2017 until January 8th, 2018. When it reopens it will be reopening at its new location in the Art Center Building behind the Civic Center. We are excited about having these two organizations work together. New Library Hours will be Monday - Tuesday 9:00 -12:00, closed on Wednesday and Thursday, open Friday 10:00 - 4:00, Open Saturday 10:00 - 1:00.

Chef Brandon was on WLTX TV Tuesday or Wednesday Morning this past week showing simple last minute holiday appetizers.

" Columbia, SC (WLTX) - Brandon Velie, owner and chef at Juniper in Ridge Spring says small foods like appetizers are fun and easy for kids. He says the secret to a holiday hors d'oeuvre is the sauce. He suggests maple-soy glazed pork meatballs. This creates an Asian-style meatball that you can dress up with small forks or toothpicks so that guests can grab a treat and still mingle. Next, Chef Brandon loves to make miniature sandwiches such as the mini Reuben, but says pastrami or other hoagie meats make a great sandwich as well. For a different take on a seafood favorite, he says you can make miniature crab cakes and top them with some avocado. If you want a holiday-themed dessert, Chef Brandon suggests eggnog crème brûlée." 

The newspapers have an early deadline for the news this week so I wish you the best of all and lets continue with Miss. Elise Carwile's Short History of Ridge Spring.  Enjoy.

In 1770 a public road was opened from Orangeburg to the Ridge , from the Ridge to Ninety-Six and from the Ridge To Augusta.  The Augusta road joined the Columbia road or as it was called in pre-Revolutionary times the road to the Congaree, very near where Col. R. B. Watson's house stands, and the Orangeburg road branched off from the Columbia road approximately where Mr. Watson Sweeny lives.  The road to Ninety-six passed across the field back from Mr. Clifford Boatwright's and behind our house and thence an almost straight line due northwest to Cambridge (I will speak to Joe Watson to help me identify where these homes were at that time.  I hope he will know where Mr. Sweeney and Col Watson's house stand. Also where is Cambridge?)

In 1805 William Butler made a deed to Stanmore Butler of a "Tract or parcel of land being a tract originally granted to William Stent. The said mostly or part lying on the east side of a branch known as the old Ridge Spring Branch" is found to contain 76 ¾ acres, this land is bounded on the north by Benjamin Harry's land, on the east by lands of Mrs. Odom and Jacob Read, on the south by S.M. Cutler and the old Ridge tract.  This is the land, of course just back of the spring. (The spring is located behind the present day Ridge Spring Baptist Church.) 

The hill above the Spring, the ground on which the Baptist Church stands and how much I do not know , was the Old Ridge Tract.  I have not been able to find to whom it was originally granted. It is very interesting to trace how Jacob Read came into possession of land at the Ridge.

In 1763 Barnaby Pope received a grant of 200 acres, bordered on the east by Moses Powell's grant of 100 acres, to the east of Moses Powell grant lay the Lamar Grant of 250 acres, the last grants already have been mentioned;  From a deed dated June1, 1812, we learn that Jacob Read of Charleston, barrister of law, eldest son and heir at law of the Hon. James Read, late of Savannah, in the State of Georgia.  James Read had acquired the Barnaby Pope, Moses Powell, and half of the Lamar grants in the following manner: "Four hundred and 25 acres be the same, more or less, were by divers mense conveyances vested by Benjamin Tutt, formerly of the Ridge merchant and were by him sold and conveyed to David Lubly formerly of ridge merchant  and who becoming an Insolvent debtor were by him surrendered and assigned in due form on payment of his just debts to the said James Read the ancestor of the said Jacob Read."  The deed states that Jacob Read  has been in possession since December 11, 1777.  From this it seems that Benjamin Tutt and David Lubly must have been the pioneer merchants of the Ridge.

On June 1, 1812 Jacob Read sold the above mentioned 425 acres to Jesse Simpkins and Whitfield Brooks for $900.00.

From Harriet:  I noticed some new word for me from this text such as "divers mense".  Back when she wrote this history there were no computers that help make corrections easy.  Sometime the computer makes corrections without any prompting.  To copy a letter or a poem had to be done by hand.  I have a book of poems my great aunt Martha McBee Brunson copied and it is the only copy of these poems.  I have since added them to a collection of poems done by the family members.   Here is one done by my Aunt.

CLOUDS

Oh, frowning clouds up in the sky

You look as if you want to cry

Has something terrible happened today?

To make you look this doleful way.

Sometimes I listen to you and wonder

What you are saying in your grumbling thunder

You sound so gruff and scary, too

As if there wee a pain in you.

But when you are crying and all upset

Somebody is happy cause their fields are wet

Farmers rejoice in your strengthening tears

Often say they are an answer to prayers

So go ahead and weep for a little while

And cry your blues away

Then show me your beautiful rainbow smile

And I’ll call this a perfect day.

                        By Jane Brunson Smith, 1930s

                        (about eighth or ninth grade)

Harriet's Garden Tips: This is a good month for planning.  The catalogs are full of beautiful plants.  One year I ordered these amazing plants I had never heard of but they were so beautiful.  They were shipped all the way from Wisconsin I think.  This was a long time ago.  They did not do well in our southern heat.  Make sure your dream plant is suited for our heat.  Some survive anything and then there are those others.  Gerbera Daisies do not like me but Tithonia  plants do.  Just enjoy.

REMINDERS

Ridge Spring Library hours: Reopen January 8th

Ridge Spring Post Office hours:  Mon-Fri. 7:30 am – 11:30 am; Sat 9 – 10 am

Recycling Center Hours: Mon/Wed/Fri 1-7; Sat 7-7; Sun 3-7; Tues/Thurs closed

First Thursday of the Month:  AARS meets at 6:30, 685-5783

Every Friday & Saturday:  AARS hours 10 – 4 or by appt, free admission

January 18: FORS meeting at Town Hall 5:00