Elmwood Park, Columbia, SC
Encyclopedia
Elmwood Park is a residential neighborhood and historic district
in what is now the center of Columbia
, South Carolina
. Founded in the early 1900s, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places
as Elmwood Park Historic District on May 3, 1991.
's Williams-Brice Stadium
, the various original owners of the area began selling the parcels for real estate development, as well as at least one owner leaving a bequeath in his will for local school development. Eventually, the lots were subdivided and offered to the public at a public auction sale in 1905. This auction date is generally recognized as the establishment of Elmwood Park. As the neighborhood quickly developed, it was annexed by the City of Columbia in 1907. This created the first suburb and the first expansion of the city outside its original planned boundaries.
, gable-front houses, and Colonial Revival houses, to the smaller one-story structures that are predominantly American Craftsman
influenced. Brick bungalows are also present, largely later-built from the 1920s and 1930s. A number of shotgun houses still stand in the earliest developed part of the neighborhood.
Two historic schools are located in the neighborhood, the still-functioning Logan Elementary, and the former Wardlaw Junior High, which is now a residential senior facility known as Wardlaw Apartments. Logan School is the work of a local architect, J. Carroll Johnson. James Burwell Urquhart, another prominent Columbia architect, designed Wardlaw Junior High School. Logan was built in 1913 and added to the National Register in 1979. Wardlaw was built in 1927 and added to the National Register in 1984.
Historic district (United States)
In the United States, a historic district is a group of buildings, properties, or sites that have been designated by one of several entities on different levels as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, structures, objects and sites within a historic district are normally divided...
in what is now the center of Columbia
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...
, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
. Founded in the early 1900s, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
as Elmwood Park Historic District on May 3, 1991.
History
The land in the neighborhood was originally the State Fair Grounds, beyond the city limits. The area that is now between Park Street and Wayne Street was used for fair grounds and a race track. After the state fair moved to its current location adjacent to the University of South CarolinaUniversity of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
's Williams-Brice Stadium
Williams-Brice Stadium
Williams-Brice Stadium is the home football stadium for the South Carolina Gamecocks, the college football team representing the University of South Carolina in Columbia, South Carolina...
, the various original owners of the area began selling the parcels for real estate development, as well as at least one owner leaving a bequeath in his will for local school development. Eventually, the lots were subdivided and offered to the public at a public auction sale in 1905. This auction date is generally recognized as the establishment of Elmwood Park. As the neighborhood quickly developed, it was annexed by the City of Columbia in 1907. This created the first suburb and the first expansion of the city outside its original planned boundaries.
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register lists 279 homes in the neighborhood, with 219 homes contributing. The housing styles range from Queen Anne style, American FoursquareAmerican Foursquare
The American Foursquare or American Four Square is an American house style popular from the mid-1890s to the late 1930s. A reaction to the ornate and mass produced elements of the Victorian and other Revival styles popular throughout the last half of the 19th century, the American Foursquare was...
, gable-front houses, and Colonial Revival houses, to the smaller one-story structures that are predominantly American Craftsman
American Craftsman
The American Craftsman Style, or the American Arts and Crafts Movement, is an American domestic architectural, interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts style and lifestyle philosophy that began in the last years of the 19th century. As a comprehensive design and art...
influenced. Brick bungalows are also present, largely later-built from the 1920s and 1930s. A number of shotgun houses still stand in the earliest developed part of the neighborhood.
Two historic schools are located in the neighborhood, the still-functioning Logan Elementary, and the former Wardlaw Junior High, which is now a residential senior facility known as Wardlaw Apartments. Logan School is the work of a local architect, J. Carroll Johnson. James Burwell Urquhart, another prominent Columbia architect, designed Wardlaw Junior High School. Logan was built in 1913 and added to the National Register in 1979. Wardlaw was built in 1927 and added to the National Register in 1984.