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Historic Columbia Offers Unique Events For African-American History Month

Columbia, SC - Join Historic Columbia as we celebrate African-American History Month by offering an African-American Sites Tour Homeplaces, Workplaces and Resting Places. This trolley tour will take place on Saturday, February 21 and 28 at 2 p.m. During the hour and a half tour, visitors will explore more than 25 African-American sites such as businesses and churches important to the history of Columbia.

Those interested should call and reserve tickets at 803.252.1770 ext. 24.

Tickets are available at $8 for members of Historic Columbia and $12 general.

In addition to the African-American Sites tour, Historic Columbia will also be running historic house tours of the Mann-Simons Cottage and the Hampton-Preston Mansion, both of which have strong African-American historic elements. Tours begin at the top of the hour Tuesday-Saturday 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. and Sunday 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. Tickets are $5.

Mann-Simons Cottage
Celia Mann, an enslaved Charlestonian midwife, purchased her freedom, walked to Columbia and acquired this circa-1850 cottage before the Civil War. Her descendants occupied the home for more than one hundred years until it was restored as a house museum in the 1970s.

Hampton-Preston Mansion
This restored urban estate chronicles the early years of our new nation through the Civil War. Home to Many People, The Story of the Hampton-Preston Estate tour tells the story of not only the owners of the home but also of the more than 80 enslaved African-Americans who lived and worked on the property. While no actual structures such as slave cottages remain on the grounds, the African-American experience during the late 19th and early 20th centuries can be seen and felt.

The Historic Columbia Foundation was founded in 1961 by a group of preservationists determined to save the Ainsley Hall House, known today as the Robert Mills House. More than four decades later Historic Columbia now manages four historic house museums and their associated artifacts. Through programs of advocacy, education and preservation, Historic Columbia protects, supports and nurtures the historical and cultural heritage of Columbia, South Carolina.

CONTACT
Adam M. Roy
Public Relations Coordinator
803.252.1770 ext. 27
aroy@historiccolumbia.org

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