This Place Matters: Press Release
Dead Horse Productions, in association with the Anderson County Museum, will premiere its documentary “This Place Matters” on Feb. 22, as part of the museum’s celebration of Black History Month.
The documentary follows historic re-enactor Joe McGill as he spends the night in one of Anderson County’s last remaining slave cabins, while offering insight into what life was like in Anderson County for slaves prior to the Civil War. McGill visited Anderson in August 2010 as part of his effort to bring attention to slave cabins throughout the South.
“All slave dwellings should be preserved so that they can help interpret the African American story as it relates to American history,” said McGill, an officer with the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Purchased by the Palmetto Trust in 2010, the cabins were subject to demolition by the city until the Trust stepped in. According to Palmetto Trust’s research, it is thought that they served as slave cabins for an estate off Morris Street in downtown Anderson, or possibly as cabins for slaves owned by a local merchant, but leased out to others for labor. After the Civil War, the then-freed slaves were allowed to live in the cabins. Eventually, the cabins became rental property for several decades, before being condemned by the city of Anderson.
“These houses represent an historical picture of the lives of slaves and free black men in Anderson County,” said Vic Aviles, Chief Creative Officer for Dead Horse Productions. “Working in conjunction with the Palmetto Trust, historians and the Anderson County Museum, we’ve been able to document what that history was, as well as Joe McGill’s passion to bring that hidden history to the surface.”
During the month of February, a companion exhibit about the buildings and their history will be
on display in the museum.
The documentary will also be shown at the March meeting of the Palmetto Historic Trust.