Discover South Carolina presents The Palmetto Porch Podcast, a series hosted by Devyn Whitmire. Hear about some of South Carolina’s most charming towns and what makes them so special, as well as the people who make them feel like home.
The People and Places of The Palmetto Porch Podcast
Brian Latimer
Living in a small town just outside Anderson, Brian Latimer has seemingly endless access to incredible fishing—such as lakes Hartwell, Keowee, and Greenwood, among others. “When I think about fishing, it’s almost always through the lens of competition,” he says. “You’re learning every time you go fishing. You learn a little more about your opponent. How are you going to apply this in the future?” Since his childhood, the Anderson area has become a magnet to other anglers and has become the host of high-profile tournaments, such as the Bassmaster Classic.
Robin Waites
Executive Director of Historic Columbia
Born and raised in Columbia, Robin Waites is deeply invested in the city’s historic properties and the personal narratives of early residents. One of her favorites is the story of Celia Mann, the matriarch of a prominent African American family that settled in Columbia in the early 1840s. “She was able to navigate this very challenging social structure with what appears to have been a lot of grace but also a lot of might,” says Waites. The history of this entrepreneurial family—and of the rise of Columbia’s Black community—is preserved at the Mann-Simons Site.
Nat Bradford
Farmer and Landscape Architect
A distant descendant of Nathaniel Bradford, who first farmed the highly prized Bradford watermelon in South Carolina, farmer Nat Bradford is carrying on the family legacy, bringing back the near-extinct Bradford watermelon from obscurity and into the hands of local chefs, gardeners and foodies. “The Bradford watermelon has a really thick, tender rind—which is great for pickling or preserves—and then the flesh is super tender,” explains Bradford. “We’re trying to preserve the end result (the quality, flavor, texture) of the crops that we grow, but bring some modernization to the process.”
Jamison Mady Kerr
Director for ArtFields
A community arts nonprofit by Lake City Creative Alliance, ArtFields is perhaps best known for its annual flagship event: an 11-day art festival that transforms this small town into a robust gallery of works created by local artists. But Jamison Mady Kerr’s vision is to make Lake City a year-round art town, complete with studios, residency programs, workshops and classes. She aims to foster an environment “where there are artists living and working, certainly, but where more and more people are able to find their own creativity and use that for good.”
