Piedmont | A Natural State

The mountainous upstate transitions into the gentle, rolling hills of the Piedmont as one travels closer toward the coast of South Carolina. Piedmont farmers of the 18th and 19th centuries laid the foundation of the state's cotton farming economy, while devastating the area's thickly forested terrain in the process. Today, the Piedmont is home to one of the fastest growing economies and urban populations in the state, the Greenville-Spartanburg area. Conservation efforts to protect rivers and wildlife widen as the growing impact of urban and suburban development change the landscape.

Meet artists from the Piedmont area of South Carolina below. Please note many of the web videos include transcripts.  The artists are trained professionals who often use tools not considered safe for inexperienced users. Please review the safety disclaimer

Making a Broom
Episode 6

Video

Flattening. Brooms come in round and flat shapes. For our camera, Peter chose to create a flat , sweeping end that is more typical of a modern broom. Peter flattens the broom by jumping on it. A vice...
Making a Broom
Episode 7

Video

A Natural State: Piedmont, Peter Werner, Sewing
Making a Broom
Episode 8

Video

Cutting the Broom. The final step in creating a broom is to straighten out the sweeping end with a pair of scissors, a step Peter calls "giving the broom a haircut."
Broom Handles from Nature | A Natural State
Episode 9

Video

Peter obtains many of his broom handles by collecting driftwood from rivers. Whitewater rivers of the Piedmont and Blue Ridge may yield rhododendron and dogwood, while the flat meandering rivers of...
The Land
Episode 10

Video

The unique geology of the "Fall Line " forms rocky, whitewater rapids typical of the Blue Ridge on the Saluda River near Columbia, South Carolina. Much of the land along this section of river is...
Artifacts | A Natural State
Episode 10

Video

Artifacts are manmade objects, sometimes referred to as material remains, that are recovered during the excavation process. Pot shards, intact pots, rubbing stones and arrowheads are examples of...
Bean Pot | A Natural State
Episode 11

Video

The bean pot is a traditional form that resurfaced in the Catawba potter’s repertoire in the early 1990s. Master potters used an image from an anthropological record of the early 1900s to guide their...
Friendship | A Natural State
Episode 11

Video

Peter is a physical education professor at the University of South Carolina, where he teaches canoeing and kayaking as a healthy pursuit and a fun way to enjoy nature. In this video, we take a trip to...
Broom Types | A Natural State
Episode 12

Video

One theory suggests that the traditional American broom has its origins in Benjamin Franklin's beaver skin hat. In the late 1700s, Franklin received a whiskbroom from France, purchased by a friend who...