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Hand Middle
School
- Ms. Schell's 6th Grade World History Class - The Arthurtown Community |
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Book
Selections |
Arthurtown:
A Neglected Community Comes to Life By Ms. Georgianna Puckett Arthurtown
is a very close-knit community that is located off of Bluff Road in
southeast Columbia. At one
time it was made up of farming tracts, some of which were passed on to
slaves by the landholders after the slaves were freed following the
Civil War. Some of those
families remain in the community and have seen generation after
generation settle in Arthurtown. It
went from a neat little community to one of poverty, disrepair and
neglect. The residents
struggled to call attention to the need for public water and sewer
systems, but the cries were not heard for decades.
Although industry was building up all around this neighborhood,
most the residents of Arthurtown were using outdated septic tanks, which
overran when it rained, filling the community with unsanitary conditions
and smells of raw sewage. A
number of the residents were still using outhouses.
Other problems plagued this community.
The roads would be almost unusable when big rains came and yards
would fill up with water, because of inadequate drainage.
Residents had difficulty securing loans to make repairs on their
homes, because the banks and lending institutions felt it a bad risk
under these circumstances. Drugs
and crime also became a source of great concern in this community.
With all these obstacles facing them, the people remained close
to each other and banned together to call attention to their plight and
demand that something be done for this community they loved so much. The Revitalization of Arthurtown
After
20 years of pleading, Arthurtown
was finally notified that federal, state and county grants had been
secured and their community would have public sewer service. There was more exciting news.
It was projected that there would even be money left over for
home improvements for some existing houses and that some of the worst
houses there would be torn down and replaced with manufactured housing. A
Community Action Team, led by Richland County Sheriff’s Lt. Randy
Scott, helped to clean up the drug and crime problem.
At the same time this policing program was designed to help bring
law enforcement close to the people of the community by having cookouts
with them, through in-home visits with senior citizens and hosting
special events. CAT informs
the residents how to help take care of the safety and environment of
their neighborhood. They
strive to empower the community to help themselves.
Federal funding was secured for this program. Habitat
for Humanity bought nine acres of land in Arthurtown and with the help
from corporations, churches, agencies and community volunteers, built 40
Habitat houses. These
houses are affordable for low-income families and would help revitalize
the neighborhood, bringing in new blood and new life.
The home loans are interest free; however, the applicant is
required to put in 300 sweat equity hours on their house and other
Habitat houses. This
empowered people, who would otherwise not be able to afford it, to make
their dream of becoming a homeowner a reality.
Another benefit from this project is that it gave the existing
homeowners in the neighborhood a desire to clean up around their yards
and houses. Still
other community improvements followed.
A new senior wellness center was opened in the educational
building at Brown Chapel AME Church.
The activities at the center include wellness and health, arts
and crafts, recreation, quilting, cooking, gardening, safety, and other
skill and social programs to interest and help the elderly.
A grant from the Elder Care Trust Fund will pay to operate the
program. Another
landmark in this revival came with the opening of the Arthurtown
Community Center on Riley Street, which provides a fully-staffed child
development center, after-school programs, a part-time health clinic,
employment skill training and a parent-family literacy program.
Charges are on a sliding scale, based on the ability to pay.
United Parcel Service, Knight Foundation, Policy Management
Systems Corp., United Way and many other organizations helped fund this
new community asset. Columbia
Green furnished an 18 foot tree planted near the center.
Bovis Lend Lease employees built a new storage shelter at the day
care center and also installed two park benches, spruced up the
landscaping and planted two trees donated by one of its employees.
The Urban League will run the child-care programs, and the Eau
Claire Cooperative Health Center will run the clinic.
Although the neighborhood is still not a perfect one, the residents and those who helped give Arthurtown a facelift should certainly be proud. There is a lesson here…when people work together for the betterment of a neighborhood or humanity in general, everyone wins. The motto is never give up. This community was certainly touched by many angels and the future holds no boundaries for its people. |