Two parks, one day: Pleasant Ridge and Wildcat Wayside
I haven't been able to get away a while, but with a few days off I decided to visit two popular parks off of S.C. Highway 11, Pleasant Ridge County Park and Wildcat Wayside State Park. I've been to Wildcat Wayside many times over the years, but I don't recall ever going to Pleasant Ridge. Pleasant Ridge is the nearest, so I went there first. Their colorful entrance sign makes for an eye catching advertisement. Pleasant Ridge County Park View Pleasant Ridge and Wildcat Wayside in a larger map While walking back to the parking area after taking that photo, I read over a sign about the origins of the park. I learned this park originally built for "Negroes" in the early 1950s during the segregation era. A September 1951 story in the The News and Courier concurs. Thankfully, such nonsense ended in the 1960s when the state parks were all integrated. Leroy L. Smith was the park's first superintendent and stayed until his death in 1979. Thre