Can you name your great-grandparents? What about your great-great-grandparents?
That question — posed by Fort Motte historian Jackie Whitmore during a guest visit to my Dutch Fork High School classroom—sparked more than just curiosity. It launched a four-year journey of community preservation, student engagement, and uncovering the hidden stories of a place that once thrived with general stores, schools, a juke joint, and the steady rhythm of life in a small but vibrant community.
That journey reached a major milestone July 5, when hundreds gathered at the Fort Motte Town Square for the Fort Motte Community Festival and the much-anticipated unveiling of new historical exhibits at the Ben Hanes Community Center.
Unlike any museum exhibit Fort Motte has seen before, the display tells the story of real people—those who lived in modest clapboard homes, worked in the cotton oil company, gathered at the juke joint, worshiped in nearby churches, or swept the barbershop floor. Through a combination of oral history, land genealogy, and community memory, the exhibit captures not just who owned the land—but who actually lived on it.
The museum’s centerpiece is a growing map unlike any previous record. Rather than showing deeds or boundaries, this map documents where families lived in downtown Fort Motte over multiple generations. Many of these homes no longer exist—sharecropper houses, tenant dwellings, and other small structures collapsed under the weight of time. But the memories remain.
The map also marks once-prominent buildings: the old Bank of Fort Motte, the Cotton Oil Company, a veneer mill, several general stores, the old train depot (which no longer stands), a barbershop, a social club, an icehouse, the local armory, and the South Carolina Dispensary warehouse. These were the heartbeats of daily life—and now, they are etched into community memory once again.
As a history teacher at Dutch Fork High School, located in Irmo and part of Lexington-Richland School District Five, I’ve had the privilege of working with Jackie Whitmore on this effort for the past four years. My students have cleared overgrown cemeteries, helped restore the Old Lang Syne Schoolhouse, and collected artifacts now featured in the museum exhibit. Jackie has not only welcomed them into this work—he has inspired them with his passion for telling Fort Motte’s story.
Two of my students made lasting artistic contributions:
Princess Johnson painted a vivid portrait of an African American Revolutionary War soldier, along with a swamp scene representing the maroons who once sought refuge in the area.
Jayden Kempfer designed a powerful digital collage honoring Ben Hanes, the man who built the community center that now houses these exhibits.
Throughout the day, the Ben Hanes Community Center was filled with stories—residents pointing out where their grandparents lived, where stores once stood, and where memories were made. It was more than a festival. It was a homecoming of history.
“This is about more than preserving buildings,” said Jackie Whitmore. “It’s about honoring the people who lived here and making sure their lives are remembered.”
We are inviting the public to join this effort. Old photographs are especially needed—images of homes, churches, stores, or schools in Fort Motte that can help us complete the picture. Anyone with photos to share, please contact [email protected]. We would love to scan and preserve them as part of this living collection.
Thanks to Jackie Whitmore’s leadership, the vision of Ben Hanes, the talents of students, and the voices of the Fort Motte community, the Ben Hanes Community Center is no longer just a building—it’s an inspiring museum. And this is only the beginning.
Kelly Eckstrom
History Teacher
Dutch Fork High School
