Musician, educator, and community leader Lonnie Hamilton III was born in Charleston in 1927. He is a graduate of South Carolina State College and VanderCook College of Music in Chicago. In the interview, Hamilton reflects about growing up and developing his career in the segregated South since his beginnings at Burke High and the Jenkins Orphanage Band. He speaks about his long and gratifying career as an educator teaching music at Sims High School in Union, South Carolina and at Bonds-Wilson High School at North Charleston, South Carolina, and the many relationships he forged with his students over the years. He talks about the highlights of his performing career, playing daily on Channel 2, attaining the dream to have his own club, Lonnie's, his successful years playing at Henry's on North Market Street, and having the opportunity to compose an original song, "Ugly Way Blues" that he performed on the movie Rich in Love. Hamilton recalls the excitement he felt when he listened to jazz music for the first time in a show called Silas Green Minstrel in downtown Charleston and describes playing at Mosquito Beach as a unique and wonderful experience. Hamilton takes pride in his accomplishments, as an educator, as a musician, as a businessperson, and as a City Council member. He affirms he was able to break Charleston's racial and economic barriers thanks to his saxophone.
Mary Ann Sullivan (b. 1944) was born and raised in Charleston, South Carolina. She attended the College of Charleston and then the University of Georgia where she graduated with an M.A in Classics. Sullivan worked as a teacher for a few years and in 1976 joined the Mayor’s Office of the City of Charleston as a grant writer. She became Mayor Joseph P. Riley executive assistant and continued working with him until his retirement in 2016. In the interview, Sullivan remembers growing up in Charleston and the events that contributed to her early political interests. She also talks about her experiences working with Mayor Riley through critical moments in the history of the city such as the development of the Charleston Place, Hurricane Hugo, the annexations of Daniel Island and James Island, the Sofa Super Store fire and the Mother Emanuel massacre. Sullivan reflects about Riley’s leadership style and his inclusion of minorities in government. Finally, she talks about her decision to retire and her plans for the future.
Musician and educator Mervin Antonio Jenkins, also known as Spec the Spectacular for his talent at rhyming and freestyle, was born in Eutawville, South Carolina in 1972. He is the first child of Mary, a schoolteacher and Melvin Jenkins, an auto mechanic worker. It was on his father's garage that Jenkins listened to Run DMC, "Sucker MC's" for the first time. Then, he would learn more about rap music and culture with his cousin from New York. In the interview, Jenkins reflects on his career as a musician and as an educator that uses rap to engage young people. He shares the challenges and rewards of his career, stating that recording with Big Daddy Cane was one of his proudest moments. He discusses the evolution of rap music and its styles and names his favorite artists. When asked about a particular Charleston/Carolinas sound, he argues that the Carolinas never developed their own rap sound and style because it was not functional for the music industry. At the end of the interview, he performs "War of the Worlds" and freestyles responding to the audience prompts.
Pearl James Hill was born in 1925, in Aynor, South Carolina. One of fourteen children, she was orphaned at age thirteen, and lived with various family members until she turned sixteen and moved to Charleston. Hill worked at the munitions factory manufacturing hand grenades. Later, she became a ship welder, and worked at the Naval Shipyard until WWII ended in 1945. She then briefly worked at American Tobacco. In this interview with Rebecca Michaud, Hill reflects on her childhood, work at the munitions factory and the ship yard, and the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
In this interview, Thomas A. Dixon (b. September 1952) focuses on the first years of his community and political work in Charleston, South Carolina. As an ex-felon, he encountered many barriers to find employment and assert his rights as a worker. Dixon reflects on his life experiences and how they informed his activism. He states why he joined organizations that focused on decreasing recidivism, addressing gun violence, and promoting workers' rights. He explains why he left the pulpit to take his social work activism to the streets. He talks about his church ministry and his work with South Carolina Crime Reduction, Brady United Against Gun Violence, The Coalition to Take Back Our Community, and CAFE.
Carolina Angel Mascarin was born in Bogota, Colombia in 1979. She studied journalism at Los Libertadores University. After graduation, Mascarin moved to New Hampshire to continue her studies. Six months later, she relocated to Charleston, South Carolina to work with Azteca America TV. Working in this Hispanic media outlet, she met her husband. The economic crisis of 2008 affected the TV Channel, and she lost her job. She joined the staff of Trident Urban League and started a photography and videography business with her father. In the interview, Mascarin talks about her experiences growing up in Colombia, the challenges of balancing work and motherhood, and how COVID has impacted her family and her business. She also reflects on her identity as an immigrant and her love for her motherland and the USA.
The former Charleston mayor discusses family storytelling. He considers himself and his mother's side of the family to be introverted. His father's side are talkative, "Irish" storytellers. Riley shares family lore he received as a child. These include impressions of his father and his political associates, including Senators James F. Byrnes and Fritz Hollings. He also shares family stories and impressions of memorable relatives, including his grandfather J. Edwin Schachte's involvement with the Knights of Columbus, his uncle Lawrence G. Riley's life in the merchant marine, and pranks with his uncle John E. Riley. Riley lore also ties the family to the Civil War through his great grandfather Henry Oliver, a Confederate veteran. After the Civil War, Oliver walked home from Richmond, Virginia. The interview concludes with Rileys childhood memories of World War Two.
Iris was born in the city of Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas, Mexico. Her grandmother served as her main caregiver because her mother worked full time and studied on the weekends. She suffered the absence of her mother, but from her she learned to strive for her goals. As a teenager, she was sent to Mexico City to study cosmetology. When she returned to her town, she fell in love and had her first child at seventeen. She had her own hairdressing and beauty business, but she aspired to a better quality of life for herself and her child. Excited by the stories of prosperity coming from the north, she decided to emigrate. She left her nine-year-old son with her sister and embarked on the difficult journey to cross the border. The crossing was plagued by situations of danger and abuse. Life in the United States was more difficult than she had anticipated, and her plans to reunite with her child took six years to complete. The reunion was fraught with difficulties and the family needed a lot of time and determination to heal their wounds. Iris’s son was at risk of deportation but, fortunately, he was able to apply for DACA and receive approval. Iris worked as a promoter in the PASOs program and currently continues to volunteer in the community and her parish.Nació en la ciudad de Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas, México en el año de 1972. Siendo niña estuvo al cuidado de su abuelita porque su madre trabajaba a tiempo completo y estudiaba los fines de semana. Sufrió la ausencia de su madre, pero de ella aprendió a luchar por superarse y lograr sus metas. Siendo adolescente se fue a vivir a la Ciudad de México para estudiar cosmetología. Cuando a volvió a su pueblo se enamoró y a los diecisiete años tuvo a su primer hijo. Tenía su propio negocio de peluquería y belleza, pero aspiraba a una mejor calidad de vida para ella y su niño. Entusiasmada con las historias de prosperidad que le llegaban del norte decidió emigrar. Dejó a su hijo de nueve años con su hermana y emprendió el difícil viaje para cruzar la frontera. El cruce estuvo plagado de situaciones de peligro y abuso. En Estados Unidos las cosas fueron más difíciles de lo que había anticipado y sus planes de reunirse con su niño demoraron seis años en cumplirse. El reencuentro estuvo plagado de dificultades y la familia necesitó mucho tiempo y trabajo para reparar las heridas. El joven estuvo a punto de ser deportado, pero afortunadamente pudo acogerse a los beneficios de DACA. Lopez trabajó como promotora en el programa PASOs, y actualmente sigue ofreciendo su trabajo voluntario en la comunidad y su parroquia.
Michael Veeck was born in Tucson, Arizona in 1951 and is co-owner of the Charleston Riverdogs baseball team. He is the son of Bill Veeck (1914-1986), the colorful if not always successful owner of the St. Louis Browns, the Chicago White Sox, and the World Series champion Cleveland Indians (1948). Michael Veeck inherited his family’s love of baseball, but may be best known as the originator of one of baseball’s most infamous promotions—“Disco Demolition.” What began as a light-hearted gag to blow up disco records symbolizing the death of the 1970s dance craze, ended in a riot at Chicago’s Comiskey Park and considerable damage to the stadium and playing field. In this interview excerpt, Veeck details the planning of “Disco Demolition,” and boasts of his role in hastening disco’s demise. The interview took place during a “US Since 1945” course at The Citadel.
Fleming was born in Charleston, South Carolina on 8 January 1922. To help support his family following the death of his father, Fleming joined the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1939 through which he worked on Bull’s Island. He recalls the Charleston of his childhood: “We didn't have but one street, Spring Street, to go across the old Ashley River Bridge . . . . right back where the stadium is at, all that was the river.” Fleming married and was drafted in 1942. He attended basic training at Camp Sibert, Alabama, where he “learned how to take care of myself through that army life, I learned a lot because when you hit them beach head, there ain’t nobody there to help you, you got to help yourself.” In Hawaii, he received training that prepared him for work as a medic on ship hospitals and in field hospitals in the Pacific. He recalls many harrowing scenes of battle and details life in foxholes during Japanese air attacks. Returning to Charleston after the war, Fleming worked in carpentry and construction, and played baseball for the Avco Corporation team. He concludes by reflecting on the September 2011 death of his wife of 69 years, Dorothy Buckingham Fleming, whose grave he visits weekly: “I go up there and look at the grave, and I got a little clipper, you know, like the stone, and I cut around it and take the brush and brush it all off.”
Treva Williams was born in Lyons, Kansas. She was the lead organizer of the Charleston Area Justice Ministry (CAJM), a faith-based community organizing group, from 2012-2022. In this interview recorded right after the end of her tenure with the organization, Williams remembers and reflects on the life experiences that shaped her leadership values and vision. The interview's first part delves on Williams’ experiences from childhood to her moving to Charleston. The second part focuses on Williams’ involvement with CAJM. Williams grew up in a conservative Christian family. She has a twin sister and a younger brother. When she was a child, her family relocated for health and economic reasons to Tucson, Arizona. Later they moved to California, where her father went to the seminary and became a pastor. Williams reflects on the importance of these early years that brought to her life a diversity that was absent in her native Kansas. The family returned to Kansas in time for her middle school years. Then, sports became a central part of the Williams sisters’ life. They played basketball, volleyball, and track and kept playing through high school. Williams attended Sterling College and received scholarships for sports, music, and theater. She married when she was twenty years old, and her first child was born the next year. After having her second child, Williams and her husband decided he would stay at home with the kids, and she would be the breadwinner. She joined a Presbyterian Church in Fort Scott, Kansas as youth minister. She stayed in the job for nine years. These years were transformational and shaped her understanding of the world and the role of faith in it. She realized the church was mostly focusing on helping people instead of on changing the structures that oppressed them. She decided to shift her focus and change jobs. She applied to join DART (Direct Action and Research Training) and soon she became the lead organizer for the social justice ministry that was forming in Charleston, SC (South Carolina). Williams remembers the day of her interview and her first impressions in Charleston. Talks about the challenges and thrills of organizing CAJM and building power. She names the organizers that were part of the process and discusses the need for a better model to support and retain these crucial social justice workers. She remembers some critical moments in CAJM’s history such as the first massive and successful Nehemiah Action, the controversy with Major Riley related to jobs with the city of Charleston, and the lengthy process to secure policing racial bias audits in Charleston and North Charleston, among others. Williams also reflects on missed opportunities, regrets, and lessons learned. Finally, she takes pride in CAJM's lasting contributions to building a more just and loving community in Charleston.
Wilson Thrower was born in Charlotte, North Carolina in 1922. He worked as an electrician at the Charleston Navy Yard before being drafted in 1943 and entering the Navy as an Apprentice Seaman on the USS Jenks. After demonstrating his knowledge of the destroyer escort's communications system, Jenks became an Electrician, Third Class. In this interview, Thrower recounts the capture of the German U-505, which proved vital to Allied code breaking operations. For serving in the submarine task force that captured the German U-boat, Thrower received a Presidential Unit Citation. After the War, he served in law enforcement and ran a series of businesses.
Civil rights activist and educator Dr. Luther Seabrook was born in Charleston, South Carolina on December 5, 1928. He spent his childhood in downtown Charleston until his parents enrolled him at Lincoln Academy, a boarding school for black children in North Carolina. After finishing high school, he went to West Virginia for his undergraduate studies, obtained a master’s degree in education at Columbia University, and later earned a doctorate in education administration from the University of Massachusetts. In his interview, Seabrook remembers his experiences with the civil rights movement in the 1960s. He explains that, after facing the pervasiveness of racism and discrimination at Columbia University and from New York City officials, he joined the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). With CORE, Seabrook worked to bring about change primarily through the housing and education initiatives. In the summer of 1964, he volunteered to go to Mississippi and collaborate with the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), despite the disappearance of three civil rights activists. SNCC leaders sent him to Hattiesburg, where he remained and worked with the Freedom Schools until the end of the summer. Seabrook also recalls his other activities, such as his participation in the Democratic Convention in Atlantic City, attendance of the Selma march, and involvement in a march on Washington. But Seabrook’s impact didn’t stop at civil rights; he also had a successful career in education. In his roles as both a principal and a superintendent, Seabrook was a central figure in the development of the New York and Boston school systems. For his work, he received numerous accolades and awards from various parties. Though Seabrook worked mostly in the North, he returned to South Carolina and worked at the State Department of Education with Dr. Barbara Nielsen in the 1990s.
Riley discusses his successful campaign for Mayor of Charleston in 1975. Charleston's long-serving mayor, J. Palmer Gaillard had resigned in April 1975 to accept President Ford's nomination to serve as Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Reserve Affairs. State Representative Robert R. Woods endorsed Riley after considering his own bid for the mayor's office. Riley also discusses transitioning from state to municipal politics and asserts that he had only intended to serve one term. Rileys involvement in Charles "Pug" Ravenel's unsuccessful gubernatorial run the previous year introduced him to David Rawle, a New York-based media consultant. Rawle agreed to work on the Riley campaign and remained among the mayor's closest associates over the course of his forty years in office. Riley also shares his memories of businessman and civil rights leader Esau Jenkins as well as his first serious political opponent, Nancy Hawk. He concludes with reflections on his family's involvement in the campaign.
Brandon K. Brezeale, Citadel Class of 2007, was born in Charleston, South Carolina in 1985 and grew up in Moncks Corner. In this interview, Brezeale, who attended the Citadel with a full scholarship as a baseball player, discusses his experiences as a young man, questioning and exploring his sexual orientation in the context of the ambiguous homophobic-homoerotic culture of a military college. In his junior year, outside of school, he met two other gay men associated with the Citadel that supported him and introduced him to a larger gay-friendly community. He came out to his family during his senior year but waited after graduation to come out to his Citadel friends. He states his old classmates accept him and his boyfriend, but he is skeptical about The Citadel's readiness to openly embrace the gay cadets. He is grateful for the large Citadel alumni community and the doors it opened for him after graduating with an engineering degree. At the time of the interview, Brezeale was living in Washington, D.C. with his partner and working in an engineering firm while preparing to get married in the coming spring.
Delia Chariker was born in born in Kingsville, Texas and when she was two moved to Clover, South Carolina where she grew up. Her earliest musical memories relate to her mother's big playful and musical family. She learned to play guitar when she was in High school. She attended college in North Carolina and after that she moved around the country playing in Nashville and California. However, making a living as a musician proved to be a struggle and she returned to school to obtain a Masters in Music therapy. She reflects about being a working musician and states this is one of the most rewarding times of her career: She is able to make a living creating music with her veteran clients and plays around town with her musician friends. Animas, her solo album reflects Chariker's deep connection with her Native American spirituality roots. At the time of the interview, Chariker was employed at the Ralph H. Johnson Veterans Affair Medical Center and was the Music Director at Unitarian Church in Mount Pleasant.
Guitarist and entrepreneur Clelia Hand Reardon was born in Huntsville, Alabama. She recalls her beginnings: taking piano lessons when she was in first grade and knowing when she was only thirteen that she wanted to be a classical guitarist. Reardon talks about her mentor and friend, Mr. Fred Sabback, and states he was the biggest influence in her career. In the interview, Reardon reflects about her prolific career as a performer and as a teacher. She remembers her experiences playing in many shows in Charleston; included Man of the Mancha, Porgy and Bess, and Jesus Christ Superstar; touring Europe twice with a jazz band, and participating in the organization of the Guitar Foundation of America international conventions and competitions. Finally, she reflects about the rewards of her teaching career.
Ernest F. Hollings was born on January 1, 1922. A Charleston native and World War II veteran, Hollings graduated from The Citadel in 1942. He served as Governor of South Carolina (1959-1963) and represented the state in the United States Senate (1966-2005). He is credited with enhancing the state’s system of public education and expanding its industrial base through the establishment a network of technical education centers and the State Development Board. During his tenure in the Senate, he was instrumental in envisioning and developing the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In this interview, Hollings credits The Citadel for preparing him for WWII and life as a politician. He recounts the state’s “embarrassing” treatment of returning African-American veterans after WWII. Hollings also asserts that the establishment of the state sales tax improved public schools. Drawing upon his life in public service, Hollings reflects on contemporary political problems, including the economy, the war in Iraq, the current state of politics, and the press. For a full account of his experiences in WWII, see Hollings’s interview with H.W. White, a transcript of which is located in The Citadel Archives.
Clarissa Lugo was born October 28, 1979 in Del Rio, Texas. Acting on a dare by one of her high school soccer teammates she decided to apply to The Citadel, which had only recently begun to admit women. After graduating in 2002 with a B.S. in education she taught sixth grade social studies for one year. In 2005 she became the first female graduate of the South Carolina Corps of Cadets to hold a position in the Citadel’s Office of Admissions. As assistant director of admissions her work focuses on recruiting female and Hispanic cadets. On April 20, 2009 she was honored for superior performance by Citadel President Lt. Gen. John W. Rosa. In this interview with graduate student Kate Gallo, Lugo explains her decision to attend The Citadel, and the support she received from family and friends. She discusses the difficulties she faced as a new cadet, both as a woman and as a Mexican-American. As part of the first wave of women, she reflects on the legacies of her cohort and the impact of the inclusion of women at The Citadel. Lugo believes it has enriched the traditional qualities of what it means to be a Citadel cadet. As a member of The Citadel’s first women’s soccer team she also discusses the differences between being a Citadel cadet versus a student-athlete. The mother of two daughters, she enjoys her work in the Admissions Office and continues to reflect fondly on her years as a cadet.
“Sugar” is a bakery located on Cannon Street in downtown Charleston, S.C. that was founded by Bouffard and Bowick in November of 2007. Bowick, a native Tennessean, and Bouffard, a native of Vermont, have replaced an old vegetable stand with a new sweet shop. Both men worked in New York as architects, but moved to Charleston twelve years ago to pursue their dream of baking. In this interview, Bowick and Bouffard discuss their career backgrounds and inspirations, and how their background in architecture relates to the process of baking. They also discuss family connections to Charleston and local cuisine, the relationship between history and Charleston history in recipes, and how customers are attracted to the historical side of certain treats. An openly gay couple, Bowick and Bouffard also comment on the warm welcome they received upon moving into the neighborhood and what it says about how Charleston has changed in the last decade.
