A Travel Guide to S.C. African American Cultural Sites

About

About the Green Book of South Carolina

The Green Book of South Carolina† is the first mobile travel guide to African American cultural sites across South Carolina. Created by the S.C. African American Heritage Commission, it provides residents and visitors from around the world a user-friendly guide to discovering and celebrating enriching cultural experiences across the state of South Carolina.

Mobile Screen with listing pages-Green Book of SC photo

This mobile travel guide showcases more than 300 attractions and sites for a diverse audience, allowing travelers to plan their ultimate, customized itineraries across South Carolina by quickly searching through categories such as historic districts, markers, churches and more to find the attractions that most suit their interests. Users can zoom in or out on the map view of the directory to find listings near them or near a town or city in S.C. to which they plan to travel. Use tags to find sites that are within the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor, on the National Register of Historic Places, part of the Civil Rights Movement, and more.

Hand Holding Mobile Screen-Green Book of SC- photo

The Green Book of South Carolina includes tourism sites and attractions from each of the 46 counties in South Carolina. Base criteria for inclusion is if a site is on National Register or has a State Historic Marker.

With an interface similar to that of a tourism app, this mobile-first, web-based guide features detailed listings of significant African American heritage and cultural destinations across S.C., each with a narrative defining the historic significance of the site, images, map points, a link to directions and more.

Rack Cards - Green Book of South Carolina - photo graphic

Why is it called the Green Book of South Carolina​?

The name of this contemporary travel-planning tool pays homage to the original Green Book.

First published in 1936 by N.Y. postman Victor Green, the original Green Book was an African American travel guide to safe harbors & welcoming establishments across the United States, printed until the mid-1960s.

This present-day homage features tourism destinations that impart a new Southern experience, sharing the compelling story of African American heritage in the Palmetto State.

The purpose of this guide is to increase awareness of the state’s African American tourism destinations and encourage travelers to become immersed in the compelling story of African Americans in South Carolina.

The project also helps expand tourism’s impact in the Palmetto State by inviting people to venture off the beaten path and increase economic impact for African American heritage sites and the municipalities in which they are located.

The Green Book of South Carolina is a valuable travel tool for travelers, tourism professionals, travel planners, wedding coordinators, meeting and event facilitators, convention organizers, church groups, tour operators, historians, road trip fans, culture vultures and more, including families coordinating family reunions in or near South Carolina.

Desktop screen-Green Book of SC photo

The S.C. African American Heritage Commission hopes that travelers will use the Green Book of South Carolina mobile travel guide and its dynamic maps to find cultural destinations surrounding event venues and cities of interest, allowing them to add tours of nearby African American heritage sites to their planned activities.

Note: The Green Book of South Carolina is a web app, a.k.a. a mobile website, that you can visit via Chrome, Safari, or any other internet browser on your mobile device, tablet, laptop or desktop computer simply by visiting the URL http://www.greenbookofsc.com. It is not a standalone app and therefore is not available for download from the Google Play or Apple App stores. Why? We wanted to make it easy for everyone to use the guide, whether they are on an iPhone, an Android, a desktop or laptop computer.

About the Family Reunion Toolkit

One of the most distinctive aspects of African American culture is the Family Reunion, the weekend gathering of extended family members who reconnect, share, update and rediscover. The Green Book of South Carolina has also created a Family Reunion Toolkit to make planning the event a stress-free experience. In addition to using The Green Book of South Carolina’s mobile travel guide, users can explore pre-planned day-trip itineraries, find suggestions on establishing a committee, creating an agenda, ways to personalize the experience and more. To get started planning your family reunion, visit the Family Reunion Toolkit here.

About the South Carolina African American Heritage Commission

S.C. African American Heritage Commission Logo - FoundationFounded in 1993 as an affiliate of the S.C. Department of Archives and History and supported by the nonprofit S.C. African American Heritage Foundation, the South Carolina African American Heritage Commission works to identify and promote the preservation of historic sites, structures, buildings, and culture of the African American experience in South Carolina. The Commission’s efforts, supported by the nonprofit S.C. African American Heritage Foundation, include preserving South Carolina African American culture through education, the arts, historic preservation and tourism.

The Commission is comprised of close to 30 volunteer professionals from the fields of historic preservation and interpretation, education, tourism marketing, business development and the arts; this group of professors, tourism professionals, activists and advocates includes representatives from all regions of the state of South Carolina. Support the Commission’s efforts by making a donation to the South Carolina African American Heritage Foundation.

Dedication

Leon LoveThe South Carolina African American Heritage Commission proudly dedicates The Green Book of South Carolina in memory of its beloved chairperson Mr. Leon Allen Love (1950-2016). Born in rural York County, Leon was a passionate and energetic champion of African American history and culture. As a leader within the African American Heritage Commission, Leon inspired citizens with his knowledgeable mind, his impassioned voice, his persistent advocacy, and his wise counsel. The Commission is eternally grateful that such a wise, caring and devoted leader and friend worked with us for so many years. This guide is a tribute to Leon Love’s remarkable life, his steadfast leadership, and his exemplary service.

Photo Credits

Bertha Lee Strickland Cultural Museum
Charleston County Parks and Recreation Commission
City of Columbia, S.C.
Eliza’s House at Middleton Place
Explore Charleston
Florence Convention and Visitors Bureau
Historic Brattonsville
Historic Columbia
Hobcaw Barony
Larry Gleason
Liana Orr
Mansfield Plantation
Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce and CVB
Penn Center
Redcliffe Plantation State Historic Site
Ron Cogswell
South Carolina African American Heritage Foundation
South Carolina Artisans Center
South Carolina Department of Archives and History
Sumter County Museum
Tabernacle Baptist Church in Beaufort, S.C.
The Aiken Standard
The Lowcountry and Resort Islands Tourism Commission
Town of Atlantic Beach

Green Book of SC mobile phone screen photo graphic

Acknowledgements

The South Carolina African American Heritage Commission would like to thank the following:
The State of South Carolina
S.C. Department of Archives and History
Dawn Dawson-House, key project adviser and member, S.C. African American Heritage Commission
Jannie Harriot, key project adviser and vice chairperson, S.C. African American Heritage Commission
Louis Venters, professional contributor and member, S.C. African American Heritage Commission
Strauss Moore Shiple, professional contributor and member, S.C. African American Heritage Commission
Michael Mann
Flock and Rally: Integrated Communications for a Brave New South
​Sherard Duvall, OTR Films
​Period Three web design studio
Jessica Boyd, The Gild Agency
Kaela Harmon

About the Green Book of South Carolina
The Green Book of South Carolina is the first mobile web travel guide to African American cultural sites across South Carolina, created by the S.C. African American Heritage Commission to offer residents and visitors from around the world a user-friendly guide to discovering and celebrating enriching cultural experiences across the state of South Carolina. 
First published in 1936 by N.Y. postman Victor Green, the original Green Book was an African American travel guide to safe harbors & welcoming establishments across the United States, printed until the mid-1960s. This contemporary homage features tourism destinations that impart a new Southern experience, sharing the compelling story of African American heritage in the Palmetto State. Follow @GreenBookofSC on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Travelers can start exploring enriching cultural experiences today via the mobile travel guide at http://www.greenbookofsc.com.

Press Information

To review press information about the Green Book of South Carolina, including our press kit with high-resolution photos, logos and graphics, fact sheets, press releases and more, visit our Press page.

Disclaimer

The contents of this travel guide were true and accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time of publishing. We recommend checking with destinations before traveling. Visitors are encouraged to travel at their own risk.

† THE GREEN BOOK OF SOUTH CAROLINA and the logomark (tree) are registered trademarks of The S.C. African American Heritage Commission.