Adopt-an-Artifact

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Conservation in Action

Support the professional care and conservation of the artifacts that bring Columbia’s history to life.

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Historic Columbia’s collection of over 4,000 objects plays an important role in telling our city’s rich history. Encompassing paintings, sculptures, textiles, metalwork, ceramics, furniture, and photography, these artifacts bring five museums to life.

Why Adopt an Artifact?

As objects age, they require careful cleaning and conservation to prevent paint loss, discoloration, erosion, and decay. Often, these efforts require the attention of professional conservators who spend months preserving the artifacts our visitors see on tour almost every day.

After over sixty years of collecting, nearly a quarter of Historic Columbia’s object collection requires conservation. As a result, Historic Columbia’s Adopt-an-Artifact program offers a tangible opportunity to support the objects in our care. By adopting a work of art listed below, your financial contribution will ensure these pieces of history are preserved for future generations.

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#available-artifacts

Artifacts Available for Adoption

Attributed to James DeVeaux (1812–1844), Portrait of Ann Wyche Taylor
Oil on canvas, ca. 1830, Gift from the Columbia Museum of Art, HCF 2008.14.2
Artifact Significance
Commissioned by her son, Governor John Taylor (1770–1832), this portrait depicts Ann Wyche Taylor (1749–1834) in her early eighties. Born to a prominent Virginian family, she married Colonel Thomas Taylor (1743–1833) two days before her eighteenth birthday. Following their marriage, the Taylors forced enslaved laborers to build "The Plains," a plantation that sprawled outwards from the present-day intersection of Barnwell and Richland streets.
After her husband joined the Revolutionary War around 1780, Ann weathered a smallpox outbreak while raising their six eldest children and overseeing the many individuals the Taylors enslaved. Ann had at least six more children between 1782 and 1795, giving birth to her youngest son at age forty-five. When Thomas Taylor died in November 1833, the Taylors enslaved over 200 women, men, and children in the Midlands.
Conservation Plan
- Clean canvas surface
- Secure keys
- Treat canvas distortions
- Remove varnish and overpaint
- Fill and retouch paint losses
- Apply new varnish layers
- Clean frame surface
- Consolidate and fill frame losses
- Deepen frame edge and add fillet to the reverse
- Add new backing materials and frame hardware
Estimated Cost
$4,500
Inquire about Adopting Artifact

Attributed to James DeVeaux (1812–1844), Portrait of Colonel Thomas Taylor
Oil on canvas, ca. 1830, Gift from the Columbia Museum of Art, HCF 2008.14.1
Adopted by Bettyann Walters and the Richard Hampton Jenrette Foundation
Artifact Significance
Commissioned by his son, Governor John Taylor (1770–1832), this portrait depicts Colonel Thomas Taylor (1743–1833) in his early eighties. Born in Amelia County, Virginia, Thomas moved to South Carolina around 1753 and married Ann Wyche (1749–1834) in 1767. Following their marriage, the Taylors forced enslaved laborers to build "The Plains," a plantation that sprawled outwards from the present-day intersection of Barnwell and Richland streets. By 1833, they enslaved over 200 women, men, and children in the Midlands.
As an advocate for American independence, Thomas joined the Second Provincial Congress of South Carolina in 1775 and fought in the Revolutionary War. In 1786, Thomas Taylor sold a portion of his sprawling plantation to the state for the creation of the capital city, earning him the title: “patriarch of Columbia.”
Conservation Plan
- Clean canvas surface
- Secure keys
- Treat canvas distortions
- Remove varnish and overpaint
- Consolidate and fill canvas losses
- Fill and retouch paint losses
- Apply new varnish layers
- Clean frame surface
- Consolidate and fill frame losses
- Deepen frame edge and add fillet to the reverse
- Add new backing materials and frame hardware
Estimated Cost
$4,100
Inquire about Adopting Artifact

William Harrison Scarborough (1812–1871), Crossing the French Broad
Oil on canvas, 1839, 36.5" x 33.5", gift from the Estate of Sarah Barnwell Gregorie Sturm, HCF2022.1.2
Adopted by the collective donors who gave on Giving Tuesday and the generous support of the family of Sarah Barnwell Gregorie Sturm
Artifact Significance
Now one of South Carolina’s most famous painters, William Harrison Scarborough (1812–1871) moved from Tennessee to the Palmetto State in 1836 and settled in Columbia in 1843. In the decades to follow, he produced over 350 portraits illustrating the state’s most prominent members of society, including John C. Calhoun, James Chesnut, and Wade Hampton. Contrasting Scarborough’s prolific output of portraiture, this rare painting is one of approximately ten known landscape paintings by the artist.

Passed down through the Scarborough-DuBose family, this scene depicts the early Buncombe Turnpike and the French Broad River near Asheville, North Carolina—a route Scarborough likely took to visit his son, John Gaines Scarborough (1835–1913), while he lived with his grandparents in Edens Ridge, Tennessee.
Conservation Plan
- Remove superficial grime and deep clean the reverse of the canvas
- Remove old repairs, accretions, aged lining, tissue facing, and varnish, if possible
- Deacidify, relax, and flatten the canvas
- Line painting and reattach it to a new stretcher
- Consolidate the paint layer
- Apply protective varnish
- Purchase a period-appropriate reproduction frame
Estimated Cost
$4,100

William Harrison Scarborough (1812–1871), Portrait of Margaret Ann Boyd DuBose
Oil on canvas, ca. 1840, 32" x 37", gift from the Estate of Sarah Barnwell Gregorie Sturm, HCF2022.1.
Adopted by the collective donors who gave on Giving Tuesday and the generous support of the family of Sarah Barnwell Gregorie Sturm
Artifact Significance
One of the many portraits produced by esteemed South Carolina painter William Harrison Scarborough (1812–1871), this image depicts Margaret Ann Boyd Johnson DuBose (1804–1880). Previously widowed in 1825, Margaret Boyd married David St. Pierre DuBose III (1806–1879) in 1831 and brought considerable wealth to her second union, including a plantation in present-day Clarendon County. In 1840, around the time she sat for this portrait, Boyd DuBose and her family welcomed their fifth child, John Boyd DuBose (1840–1895); they also enslaved 129 people—forty-nine of which were children under the age of ten.
In 1863, John DuBose married the painter’s daughter, Sarah “Sissy” Elizabeth Scarborough (1842–1886), and it is through their descendants that this portrait was subsequently passed down and donated to Historic Columbia.
Conservation Plan
- Remove superficial grime and lightly clean the reverse of the canvas
- Remove accretions, tissue facing, old retouching, and varnish on the canvas, if possible
- Relax deformations in the canvas
- Line painting and reattach it to a new stretcher
- Consolidate the paint layer, fill losses, and inpaint
- Apply protective varnish to the painting
- Clean the surface of the frame
- Attach and consolidate insecure elements, remove late additions and overpainting, and reduce scratches and cracks on the frame
- Reconstruct, fill, and gild missing frame elements
- Apply protective coating to the frame
Estimated Cost
$3,050

Hiram Powers (1805–1873), Bust of Sarah Buchanan Campbell Preston
Carrara marble, ca. 1858–1860, 26 3/4" x 19", gift from Caroline Mullally Ladue, HCF1972.186.1

Adopted by Joseph Bruce
Artifact Significance
This bust was sculpted by Hiram Powers (1805–1873), arguably the most influential and famous American sculptor of the nineteenth century. Best known for his depictions of George Washington, the so-called Greek Slave, and figures from Classical mythology, Powers permanently relocated to Italy with funds advanced by John Smith Preston (1809–1881) in 1837.
Approximately twenty years later, Powers sculpted this bust of Preston’s daughter, Sarah Buchanan "Buckie" Campbell Preston (1842–1880). Born into wealth in the Hampton-Preston Mansion in Columbia, Buckie Preston was educated in Paris and known for both her beauty and equestrian prowess. In 1868, she married Colonel Rawlins Lowndes (1838–1919) and moved to Charleston, where she and Lowndes maintained residences at Oaklands Plantation and 51 East Bay Street. After Preston Lowndes died at age thirty-eight, this bust was installed on her grave at Magnolia Cemetery. Following acts of vandalism, it was removed and donated to Historic Columbia in 1972.
Conservation Plan
- Clean to minimize accretions and stains throughout
- Consolidate surface losses around the ears and hair
- Reconstruct the missing nose
- Stabilize the cracks along the base as needed
- Reduce dents, scratches, and abrasions
- Reapply the patina
- Apply a protective coating
"I believe those of us who care about history have a responsibility to safeguard it. By adopting the Hiram Powers bust of Sarah Buchanan Campbell Preston, I’m proud to help ensure that a remarkable South Carolinian—and a significant work of American sculpture—remains accessible and alive for future generations. Supporting artifact conservation at Historic Columbia is a powerful way to nurture our community’s understanding of who we are and where we come from."

-Joseph Bruce

#collections-fund

Support Our Collections Fund

Not ready to adopt? Consider donating to our Collections Fund, which supports the routine care and maintenance of our collection. The revenue generated from this program enables our staff to conserve objects, install updated UV window protection, and purchase the archival boxes and acid-free tissue paper needed to safely store and transport our collection. Whether you choose to adopt an artifact or donate to our Collections Fund, your support makes a lasting impact.

Make a Donation

Donation Levels and Benefits

Artifact Ally | $50+
- Acknowledgment letter
Collections Friend | $125+
- Acknowledgment letter
- $5 HC coupon
- Two free historic house museum tour tickets, valid for six months
Collections Advocate | $250+
All previous perks, plus:
- Historic Columbia swag
Collections Steward | $500+
All previous perks, plus:
- Recognition in Historic Columbia’s member newsletter, Historically Speaking
Collections Benefactor | $1,000+
All previous perks, plus:
- Two more free historic house museum tour tickets (for a total of four tickets), valid for six months
- Recognition on Historic Columbia’s Adopt-An-Artifact webpage
Collections Patron | $2,500+
All previous perks, plus:
- Recognition on Historic Columbia’s Welcome Center plaque for at least one year
- Private conservation progress update
- Private one hour behind-the-scenes tour with curatorial staff for a group of four, valid within six months of conservation completion

Collections Sustaining Supporter | $5,000+
All previous perks for $1,000+, plus:
- Two more free public tour tickets (for a total of six tickets), valid for six months
- Private one hour behind-the-scenes tour and collection storage highlights with curatorial staff for a group of eight, valid within six months of conservation completion

#donors

Make a Donation

Current Donors

Collections Sustaining Supporters

The Family of Sarah Barnwell Gregorie Sturm

Collections Patron

Richard Hampton Jenrette Foundation

Collections Advocate

Joseph Bruce
Bettyann Walters

#recentRecent Conservation Projects

Mills Building, oil on canvas, ca. 1900, 32.75” x 23.75”, gift from South Carolina Department of Mental Health, HCF2006.9.1. Conserved by Veronica Davis of Felini Art Conservators, 2024–2025

Detail from Portrait of Kate Hampton, oil on canvas, ca. 1845, 31” x 27.75”, gift from the Bostick Estate, HCF1972.147.1. Conserved by Craig Crawford of Crawford Conservation, Inc., 2017–2018.

Detail from Gown with Detachable Sleeves, cotton, silk, and metal, ca. 1830–1840, 56.5” x 38.5”, gift from Katharine Williams Herbert. Conserved by Kathleen Staples & Associates, LLC., 2018, with funding from the Columbia Town Committee of The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America in the State of South Carolina.

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