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The purpose of the South Carolina Picture Project is to celebrate the beauty of the Palmetto State while preserving some of its vanishing landscapes.

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Marion County Museum

SC PICTURE PROJECT 2 Comments

SC Picture Project / Marion County / Marion County Museum

This historic building served as a school long before it became the Marion County Museum. Located at 101 Wilcox Avenue in Marion, the building was constructed in 1886 by the Marion Academy Society, which ran a private school here for about 70 years. The Society eventually gave the school to Marion County, and it became the first public school to operate in this rural county.

Marion Academy

Harry A. White, Jr. of Centenary, 2011 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

The school was named Marion Graded School, and it served students for 90 years before closing in 1976. The old school bell still hangs in the cupola, and the rope that rings it drops down to the main level of the museum!

Marion County Museum

Marion Academy ca. 1890, National Register of Historic Places

The Marion County Museum opened in 1981 and houses a variety of exhibits ranging from local interest to traveling exhibits. Their permanent collection includes antiques from the Aiken-Rhett House in Charleston, an old classroom, a farm room, and lots of Marion County history and artifacts.

Plan Your Trip: Marion County Museum

Where is Marion County Museum located?
Address: 101 Wilcox Avenue, Marion, SC 29571
GPS Coordinates: 34.178974,-79.403464
Website: http://www.marionsc.org/Musem
What else should I see?
Marion County Courthouse 0.3 mile
Durham House 0.3 mile
Marion County Library 0.4 mile
Church of the Advent 0.5 mile
Show me more like this!
  • Marion Historic Sites
  • See other South Carolina National Register
  • See other South Carolina Schools
    Marion County Museum Map

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Judy Thompson says

      October 3, 2018 at 11:16 AM

      Lovely picture! This is where I had 2nd grade with Mrs. Sarah Cantey. There was a wooden staircase outside our upstairs window. We would practice “fire drillS” by going through the open window, down to the ground. We were always quiet, orderly, quick. Mrs. Cantey would have it no other way. I don’t think it would be allowed today because it would be considered “too dangerous” to take 30 children, 7 years old, out an enlarged window to a wooden stairs to the ground. Mrs. Cantey descended last.

      Reply
    2. Bruce Bailey says

      April 29, 2016 at 9:39 PM

      Even though it's not TBT, I came across a picture of my first school online… now a museum. I'm starting to feel old.

      Reply

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