Join us on March 23 at 6:00 pm.
On a dirt trail though the Metcalf Valley, densely wooded on both sides, James Metcalf can point into the tangled foliage and note, “My great, great, great grandfather William Metcalf, son of a Revolutionary War veteran, lived in a cabin in the holler down there built some time before 1810. This used to be the main road from Greenville County to Saluda. Our family cemetery is ahead to the right, and straight on, lost in the woods, are
the sites of the old Metcalf stills.”
66 headstones in the cemetery stand at random angles with varying wear and legibility. James can tell tales and histories about many of them. For example, “In the Civil War, six Metcalfs enlisted in the 54th North Carolina Regiment. I know only the fates of four. In 1918, Mary Rhodes, an in-law, walked down the mountain to sell her eggs at Melrose. She was deaf and didn’t hear a train coming on the Saluda Grade and was struck and
killed. In 1945, Woodrow Metcalf was hunting in the cemetery when he shot off his toe. Relatives at the time said a ghost must have spooked him. I don’t think that’s likely but it is strange that his daughter Wilma was born in 1946 with six toes.”
Of more recent times, James remembers playing as a child with cousins on the banks of Colt Creek, knowing that the water would soon drop over Pearson’s Falls. James has loved history since childhood and is a long-time Chief Docent at the Polk County History Museum and Genealogy Center. He is also a two-time award-winning gospel DJ and a singer/guitarist/songwriter of gospel and bluegrass music with 9 CDs to
his credit. One of his compositions was recorded by eight different artists and in the top 20 of the Southern Gospel Music Charts for a year.
FIND YOUR SEAT OF CALM
Follow along with Nancy Nicholson at Lanier Library, Thursday, March 2, at 3 PM. A 25-year teacher of yoga, Nancy will lead you and eleven others, each in a chair, to
practice Kripalu Yoga. This “meditation in motion” focuses on sensations in your body and breath while seated and also, if you feel able, while standing by your chair.
Women and men of all ages practice yoga for flexibility, improved balance, calmness, focus, and other physical and mental benefits. Nancy’s goal is to help you “feel the union of mind, body, and spirit” through poses and gentle exercises you can repeat easily at home. Dress comfortably.
Seating is limited so reserve now in-person, or call 828-859-9535, or register online at Yoga Workshop Registration
This free workshop is made possible by the generous support of the Kirby Endowment Fund at PCCF.
All Lanier Library programs are free and open to the public unless otherwise stated.
In our February Display Case : Donna Wise filled the case with treasures of the natural world to celebrate the Gardening for Life Project’s event on March 4 with speaker Doug Tallamy.