Since last week’s close-up mystery was perplexing to so many readers, we thought we’d give you another similar photo this week. If you live in Charleston (hint, hint), you’ve probably seen this place before. So what is it? Send your guess to: feedback@statehousereport.com. And don’t forget to include your name and the town in which you live.
Our previous Mystery Photo
Our July 20 mystery was tough, especially for anyone who had not physically seen the intricate brickwork of the building. The image, provided by photographer Bill Segars of Hartsville, was a close-up of the old Anderson County courthouse in Anderson.
State Public Service Commissioner Tom Ervin of Greenville, a former state circuit judge, remembers well the building. It’s “not to be confused with the new Anderson County Courthouse (circa 1999) across the square,” he wrote in a note identifying the Mystery Photo. “The he historic courthouse was built using architectural plans from Washington County, Georgia, as the Anderson County commissioners liked it and also wanted to save taxpayers some money. The original version had turrets on the four corners which were later removed. The old courthouse now hosts county council chambers in what was formerly the courtroom and administrative county offices.”
Hats off to two more photo sleuths who identified the courthouse: Faith Line of Anderson and George Graf of Palmyra, Va.
Graf said the photo posed a difficult challenge and provided more background: “According to courthouses.co, Anderson County is named for Robert Anderson, who was a soldier in the American Revolutionary War. The old courthouse was built in 1896-1897. The architect was Frank Pierce Milburn who according to Wikipedia was also the architect for many other government buildings and courthouses. Some of these include the City Hall and Theater for both Darlington and Columbia, the Statehouse dome, the designs for Charleston’s City Hall and the Governor’s Columbia mansion, Gibbes Museum of Art, Union Station in Columbia, Southern Railway Stations in Summerville and Aiken, and the Newberry Courthouse.”
- Send us a mystery: If you have a photo that you believe will stump readers, send it along (but make sure to tell us what it is because it may stump us too!) Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com and mark it as a photo submission. Thanks.
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