Welcome to the statehouse!
Previously on Midlife Crisis Crossover:
Every year since 1999 Anne and I have taken one road trip to a different part of the United States and seen attractions, wonders, and events we didn’t have back home. From 1999 to 2003 we did so as best friends; from 2004 to the present, as husband and wife. After years of contenting ourselves with everyday life in Indianapolis and any nearby places that also had comics and toy shops, we overcame some of our self-imposed limitations and resolved as a team to leave the comforts of home for annual chances to see creative, exciting, breathtaking, outlandish, historical, and/or bewildering new sights in states beyond our own. We’re the Goldens. This is who we are and what we do.
For 2023 it was time at last to venture to the Carolinas, the only southern states we hadn’t yet visited…
…and we wrap up the South Carolina core of this trip with our last stops in its capital of Columbia, where we ventured inside the State House. Public access was limited, but we availed ourselves of the permissible exhibits.
A historical marker by the back door.
Mandatory upward rotunda view.
The lobby centerpiece is a statue of John C Calhoun, whose grave we’d just seen the other day and who reminds me of an old DC villain called the Fadeaway Man.
A second-floor landing that was off-limits held a stained-glass state seal.
Sample staircase up to a few open areas.
Hangout spot upstairs.
Historical artifacts on display include a super-sized copy of the South Carolina Declaration of Secession.
Other immortalized figures include famous statue subject Robert E. Lee.
David E. Finley, who served as a state and U.S. Congressman. I’m unsure of his significance beyond the state line.
Mandatory American Revolution painting.
Other prominent painting subjects included renowned educators Wil Lou Gray and Mary McLeod Bethune.
Our least worst shot of civil rights leader Modjeska Monteith Simkins.
We picked up a few items from their gift shop, including a jar of F.R.O.G. jam (fig, raspberry, orange, ginger) that I’d get to savor for a good while after we got home. When we asked about lunch spots, the clerk recommended a sub shop south of the statehouse called Beezer’s. It was an ideal pit stop for anyone craving something affordably priced besides corporate chains.
I welcome any alternative to my old nemesis Subway.
Their sports-themed interiors are covered with souvenirs, memorabilia, quotes, and other decorative flourishes such as the logo for USC’s Gamecocks.
No, we didn’t take photos of our subs. They were good, but you probably know what subs look like. I had their bestseller, the Godfather, topped with Genoa salami, capicola and Virginia ham, plus a cup of potato salad. Anne had the Gobblerman’s Classic, with a double helping of turkey and alfalfa sprouts, plus a jumbo kosher dill pickle on the side. Well done, no complaints, would seek out again.
We had the pleasure of chatting with them for a bit and were happily surprised to learn the family that owns it are from our own home state — all Purdue grads (like my son!) and originally from Delphi (tragically a familiar name to true-crime podcast fans, which we did not bring up). Small world!
And with that, we took our leave of the aptly nicknamed Palmetto State and headed for the border. We had one more Carolina to go.
To be continued!
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[Link enclosed here to handy checklist for other chapters and for our complete road trip history to date. Follow us on Facebook or via email sign-up for new-entry alerts, or over on BlueSky if you want to track my faint signs of life between entries. Thanks for reading!]
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