The first was the Piedmont YWCA Building which was celebrated on June 7th, in the Piedmont Community Building at 11 am. The YWCA was constructed by President Beattie of Piedmont Manufacturing Company for the women of the mill in 1908.  He chose to make the vacant Union Church the foundation of the structure and remodeled it to fit the needs of the Young Women’s Christian Association.  It opened in

December of 1908 as the first structure built for a YWCA in the state. Currently being restored to its 1908 beauty, it is now owned by the Piedmont Historic Preservation Society and will soon become the Piedmont Textile History Museum.  Speakers included State President Candie Morgan, Past President Nancy Neas, Dr. Anne Peden, and County Council Vice Chair Rick Bradley.

The second celebration was held on Sunday, September 28th, at 2 pm, at Holly Spring Baptist Church near Ware Place.  Holly Spring Colored School, established in 1891, is the second oldest African American school still standing in South Carolina.  It was restored in 2019 and is honored to be on the National Register of Historic Places in the same year.  The marker stands in the shade of a mighty oak near the school building where the ladies and the church members, as well as students and their families who attended the school gathered to hear the text on the marker read to all.  The reunion-like remembrance was led by Rev. James Massey, Dames State President Candie Morgan, and Chapter President Allegra Campbell, with local historian speakers,Truman Humbert and Dr. Anne Peden.

Two of the missions that Piedmont Historical Preservation Society, Holly Spring Church, and Reedy River Falls Colonial Dames have in common are to promote education and to recognize the work of our ancestors who led us all to these efforts.  We celebrate the historical society for preserving historical documents, sharing the history they collect, and restoring the YWCA.  We celebrate the church for preserving a small clapboard one-room school reminding us of their dedication to the education of our children for over 130 years.  And we celebrate the chapter of a national women’s group who united us in this work.  

As Robert Frost relates in one of his lesser-known poems, The Tuft of Flowers, “Men work together, whether they work together or apart.”

Anne Peden, PhD Greenville County Historic Preservation Commission
Fork Shoals Historical Society
Piedmont Historical Preservation Society●