Happy New Year SCGenWeb,

I know that some of you probably already know, but in case you didn't,
today is Sumter's Bicentennial. Big plans are afoot in Sumter. Yesterday
the very first event took place with the first distribution envelopes
that the post office had done up to help celebrate. There are scenes
depicting Thomas Sumter, our Opera House, a fighter jet (Shaw Air Force
Base you know), and other Sumter memorabilia.

There will be big excitement a week from today on Saturday, January 8,
2000. My friend, Ginny Safford, whom you may have seen mentioned in the
forward of my new book (and only so far) will be one of the reinactors.
(She works for the museum as assistant archivist.) She says that she has
to be  at the museum on Washington  Street at 10:00 that day. This is
where all of the re-enactors are meeting. They will all be dressed in
colonial era
outfits. (Wish that I had a colonial outfit. Mine is ante-bellum.) They
just had the back country country exhibit in early December for
Christmas, but our wonderful Sumter County Museum staff will be there
again on the 8th showing their marvelous talent in depicting what life
was like here in Sumter County, 200 years ago.

Then at 12:30 p.m. the reinactors will march in a parade  to the Court
House grounds. The parade will be led by Thomas Sumter, on horseback.
(Chuck Fienning, who has been a county councilman here in Sumter will be
Thomas
Sumter.)

Then at 1:00 the statue of the Gamecock, Revolutionary War General
Thomas Sumter will be unveiled. (There was  a picture in the Item the
other day, showing a peek of his boots, as the statue was being set it
place. Maybe you could still find it on their web page:
http://www.TheItem.com)

It's all going to be grand fun. I will be coming back from the beach, to
make sure that I am here. I have to go to a math conference at Coastal
Carolina University (where I received my B.A. in Education and haven't
been back since) and be there very early on Friday morning, so the plan
is (with a couple of other teachers from Sumter Dist. #17 going with me)
that we leave on Thursday, after school, spend the night at my inlaw's
beach house and that we we don't have to get up so early and drive all
that way on Friday morning. We had sort of planned, a few months ago to
stay the weekend, but now with this event happening in Sumter, I will be

coming home.

So folks, if you are within driving distance of Sumter, or if you want
to come for a weekend and research, here's a chance to see something
here that is historical for those of us with Old Sumter District roots.
I hope to see some of you there. Let me know if you plan to come and
we'll get together. (803-481-4109)

Much Love From Sumter, South Carolina on the day of our 200th
anniversary,
Cindy Ridgeway Parker

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