Get Involved

Preservation has always been catalyzed by individuals. For the continued preservation of Columbia's built history, we constantly need the help of motivated citizens. There are several great ways to get involved with Historic Columbia's preservation efforts:

Volunteer
HCF always welcomes new volunteers to our organization. A big responsibility of our volunteers is giving tours of the buildings we have already restored. As HCF moves into more fields of preservation, keep in touch for volunteer-oriented projects.

Other great places to volunteer are: South Carolina State Museum, Columbia Museum of Art and Palmetto Trust for Historic Preservation.

Attend
Make sure you take advantage of all Columbia's cultural delights. Frequently museums have exhibit openings or special events. Attending these helps you get involved with the preservation community and lets you have a wonderful evening at the same time! HCF sponsors several walking tours, such as one of Main Street, which highlights the architecture as well as the preservation efforts that have succeeded in the area.

You may also be interested in attending meetings of the Design/Development Review Committee (D/DRC), which is an active preservation arm of the city government. They make sure protected historic districts in the area remain true to their appearance by deciding on any exterior changes in the buildings. These are every first Tuesday of the month at the City Council Chambers, 3rd floor of City Hall, at 4:00.

Please enjoy the many restaurants and art galleries available on Gervais Street in the Vista. Many of the buildings here have been adaptively reused. Some former railroad stations are now fabulous restaurants! Treat yourself to dinner and see preservation in action. Other great restaurants include: Villa Tronco, in an early 1900s fire station, the Hunter-Gather pub, housed in a 1913 building on lower Main Street, Cool Beans and Immaculate Consumption, all of which have been highlighted by Historic Columbia for their unique use of historic structures.

Investigate
There are lots of tools available for preservation-minded individuals. Great resources include:

• The Local History room at the Richland County Public Library, which has city directories on the shelf. These are great for finding out who lived at an address, and early editions have people's occupations and race. Also, it is helpful in identifying former commercial tenants of buildings.
• Take advantage of preserved and conserved areas of the city, such as the Vista, Main Street, Old Shandon residential neighborhood, Riverfront Park and Finlay Park. For information on preserving your neighborhood, contact the Columbia Council of Neighborhoods or the city historic preservation officer. Their contact information is available on the city's website at www.columbiasc.org.
• The South Caroliniana Library located on the horseshoe at the University of South Carolina is a repository for anything associated with the state's history.
• The South Carolina Department of Archives and History also holds items from the state's history and is also the site of the State Historic Preservation Office.

If you have a specific question about preservation or history, contact the staff at Historic Columbia, the State Museum, the libraries, or the State Archives. People can often direct you in paths that catalogs cannot!