Historical and Architectural Inventory, Olympia Mill and Village, Upper Richland County, South Carolina, June 2002

Edwards-Pitman Environmental, Inc.

From introduction: "In July 2001, the Richland County Conservation Commission and the South Carolina State Historic Preservation Office (SCSHPO) engaged Edwards-Pitman Environmental, Inc. to conduct an intensive architectural survey of upper Richland County and the Olympia Mill village. Because the Olympia Survey covers a specific area with a common history dating to a particular era, that survey report is under a separate cover. All information relating to the boundaries of the survey area, survey methodology and the number of properties documented that follows pertains specifically to the survey of Upper Richland County, South Carolina. Boundaries of Survey Area: Located just south of downtown Columbia, the survey area includes the original Olympia Mill property, based on plat maps from 1940. The area is bounded on the northeast by Bluff Road, by Granby Lane on the southeast, by the Vulcan Materials quarry property and a portion of Olympia Avenue on the southwest, and by Heyward Street on the north. Project Objectives: The survey of the Olympia Mill Village will allow the State Historic Preservation Office to evaluate the potential for including the village in the National Register of Historic Places, which is the nation’s list of historic resources worth of preservation. Listing in the National Register of Historic Places is primarily honorary, but does provide the opportunity for some property owners to take advantage of tax incentives. The National Register also helps create awareness of the neighborhood’s existence and importance when reviews of federally funded or licensed projects are slated to occur in the area. The survey will also raise the village’s historical value among the residents as well as provide a history of the mill and the village and a list or inventory of all the structures and buildings extant in the village. The survey will provide village residents with access to their history, inspiring future preservation efforts. Beyond the village, the survey will gather the information needed by local officials when they are asked to make sound planning decisions. Awareness of Olympia’s history will also be raised among the broader population of Columbia and Richland County, which will, in turn, help citizens appreciate, understand, preserve, and remember its whole history." Funding was provided in part by a 2001 Historic Preservation Fund grant to the Richland County Conservation Commission (project number SC-01-010) administered by the South Carolina State Historic Preservation Office and the State, Tribal, and Local Plans and Grants Division, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Historical and Architectural Inventory, Olympia Mill and Village, Upper Richland County, South Carolina, June 2002

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