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Digital Traditions

Home to a wealth of folk traditions, South Carolina is culturally and geographically diverse. 

General - Traditional Arts

Home to a wealth of folk traditions, South Carolina is culturally and geographically diverse.  From the Appalachian Mountains to the Sea Islands and from rural crossroads to urban centers, the state boasts rich sources of traditional culture and folklore. Rooted in family and community activities, folklife involves expressive forms of many kinds that are communicated verbally and by observation or imitation.  Folk artists can learn through apprenticeships, but most often are taught informally by family members or close friends. This sharing of information can occur in many different group settings - familial, occupational, religious, social, and educational. Folklife is dynamic by nature, a part of a community's history that continues to develop every day, with every generation.  

Digital Traditions was developed to provide access to the Folklife Resource Center (FRC) at McKissick Museum.  For thirty years, deeply rooted traditions like quilting, pottery, basketry, communal foodways, and folk music have been documented through audio, video, and photography. For further information about any of the artists featured on Digital Traditions, send your questions and comments to hallagan@mailbox.sc.edu.

Resource Type
Fernando Costro Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Fernando Costro Photos | Digital Traditions
Fernando Costro is a musician from Mexico, currently residing in Newberry County. He plays guitar and mariachi music with a local band, Mariachi Cabos. He learned how to play violin and guitar from...
Casey Claude Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Casey Claude Photos | Digital Traditions
This native of Enoree claimed to have “been born with music in my blood.” He formed his first band at the age of 18 - “Claude Casey and The Pine State Playboys.” By 1938 they had recorded 10 songs for...
Charles Creswell Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Charles Creswell Photos | Digital Traditions
Fiddler from Troy, SC (Greenwood County). Many of the songs he plays are short, so several are included here in their entirety. He is accompanied by Fred Watson on guitar and sister Fannie Creswell...
Ashley Carder Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Ashley Carder Photos | Digital Traditions
Ashley Carder grew up in a home surrounded by music. His mother Shirley is a talented country singer and guitar player who performed often on regional radio in the 1960s and -70s. Carder’s extended...
Maria Rosa-Garcia Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Maria Rosa-Garcia Photos | Digital Traditions
Ms. Maria Rosa-Garcia is a traditional folk dancer from Mexico. She learned the art as a child from her family and currently teaches young children how to dance at a church in Saluda County, South...
Maria de Jesus de Santiago Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Maria de Jesus de Santiago Photos | Digital Traditions
Maria de Jesus de Santiago was born in Jalisco, Mexico. She moved to South Carolina in the late 1990s and brought with her a love of folkloric Mexican dance. She began learning the art when she was a...
Alda Smith Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Alda Smith Photos | Digital Traditions
The South Carolina Piedmont has often been referred to as “The textile center of the world.” Alda Smith’s musical heritage is woven from the influences that migrated throughout the Piedmont during...
Phillip Simmons Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Phillip Simmons Photos | Digital Traditions
Philip Simmons exemplified the Charleston blacksmithing tradition as a master craftsman, passing his knowledge and skills to several generations of apprentices. His specialty was creating decorative...
George Herron Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
George Herron Photos | Digital Traditions
According to Art Carter of The Sporting Craftsmen, George Herron was widely regarded as the “Grandaddy of South Carolina knifemakers.” Herron certainly maintained his place as one of the standard...
Bobby Branton Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Bobby Branton Photos | Digital Traditions
For over twenty years, Bobby Branton has honed a skill that is still practiced by very few people across the United States. He is a bladesmith who hand-forges blades for knives in the traditional way...
Billy Henson Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Billy Henson Photos | Digital Traditions
Episode 9
A native of Lyman in Spartanburg County, Henson came from a long line of traditional potters. Both his grandfather, Jesse Vardry Henson, and his great-uncle, David Carr Henson, were folk potters in...
Face Jugs | Digital Traditions - Episode 2 Dr. Charles Zug on Burlon Craig | Digital Traditions

Audio

Grades

  • Higher Education
Dr. Charles Zug on Burlon Craig | Digital Traditions
Dr. Charles Zug describes the chaos that occurs when Burlon Craig sells his pottery. Burlon Craig (1914-2002), Craig Pottery, Vale, Lincoln County, North Carolina. Craig is an example of the migration...
Burlon Craig Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Burlon Craig Photos | Digital Traditions
Burlon Craig (1914-2002), Craig Pottery, Vale, Lincoln County, North Carolina. Craig is an example of the migration of the alkaline-glaze tradition that originated in the Edgefield District of South...
Walter Lee Cornelison Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
Walter Lee Cornelison Photos | Digital Traditions
Walter Lee Cornelison is a fifth-generation potter, turning wares in Bybee Pottery - Kentucky’s sole surviving traditional pottery. Cornelison turns on a wheel set up inside the old log pot shop while...
The James Brothers Photos | Digital Traditions

Photo

Grades

  • Higher Education
The James Brothers Photos | Digital Traditions
Marshall and Leon James began singing gospel music at an early age. Their father, AB James, formed a family singing group that included their older brother Albert. He taught them to sing harmony by...
Walter Lee Cornelison: Family Origins | Digital Traditions

Audio

Grades

  • Higher Education
Walter Lee Cornelison: Family Origins | Digital Traditions
Bybee Pottery, Waco, Madison County. Interview recorded August 1981. Walter Lee Cornelison is a fifth-generation potter, turning wares in Bybee Pottery - Kentucky’s sole surviving traditional pottery...
Howard Connor: Earliest Days | Digital Traditions

Audio

Grades

  • Higher Education
Howard Connor: Earliest Days | Digital Traditions
Connor Pottery, Ashland, Benton County. Interview recorded in October 1981. Connor was born in Wickliffe, Kentucky, the son of journeyman potter Charles Tipton Connor. C. T. Connor established a...
Howard Connor: Learning to Turn | Digital Traditions

Audio

Grades

  • Higher Education
Howard Connor: Learning to Turn | Digital Traditions
Connor Pottery, Ashland, Benton County. Interview recorded in October 1981. Connor was born in Wickliffe, Kentucky, the son of journeyman potter Charles Tipton Connor. C. T. Connor established a...