Category Archives: News
Local athletes compete in US Olympic Trials
By Bru Nimmons
Staff Reporter
bnimmons@thepccourier.com
EUGENE, Ore. — Two of Pickens County’s finest athletes are competing among the nation’s best at the United States Olympic Trials this week.
Laurie Barton, a 2016 graduate of Daniel High School, will compete in the 800-meter run later this week, while Keyshawn King, a 2018 Liberty High School graduate, finished competition in the triple jump on Monday.
King began his run at the Olympic Trials on Saturday as one of
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Built with pride in Pickens
Bridge Brothers of Pickens built and transported the first of three bridges designed for Greenville’s
Unity Park on June 16. The bridge was set in place over the Reedy River, upstream of the crossing at Hudson Street. The bridge will open on July 9 along with a new Swamp Rabbit Trail connection on the north side of the river. At right, from left, Rep. Davey Hiott, Bridge Brothers operation manager Nic Salis and Pickens Mayor Fletcher Perry were on site at Bridge Brothers, located at Empire Properties (the old Ryobi site), to watch the bridge loaded up to head out to its new home. Pat Mulkey/photos
Does Cherokee history hint at the nature of man?
Does Cherokee history hint at the nature of man?
By Dr. Thomas Cloer, Jr.
Special to The Courier
I love the “Blue Ridge” or “Blue Wall” named by the Cherokee for our escarpment here in Pickens County, where the mountains give way to flatter lands. These escarpments cause the Twin Falls on Reedy Cove Creek to tumble and then
join the Eastatoe River.
I am enthralled as I go to such places and feel the sense of history that has taken place in our Upstate South Carolina. For the last two weeks, I have focused on the Cherokee of Keowee. Eastatoe was one of the most important lower towns of the Cherokees. Because the Eastatoe Valley has been kept from total development, I feel that sense of history more there than
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Pickens Chamber June member of the month
AnMed Health Cannon Hospital, located at 123 W.G. Acker Drive in Pickens, was recently named the Greater Pickens Chamber of Commerce Member of the Month for June. AnMed Health Cannon is a 55-bed hospital proudly serving Pickens County. As part of the AnMed Health network, the hospital brings cutting-edge health care to the local community. The hospital offers a full range of radiology services, including CT Scans, MRIs and digital mammography, general surgery and emergency and critical care. In 2019, the South Carolina Office of Rural Health named AnMed Health Cannon the Rural Health Provider of the Year. In addition, the hospital has been the recipient of dozens of Zero Harm Awards given by the South Carolina Hospital Association. Pictured are, front row, from left, Bryan Owens, Interim CEO Michael Cunningham, Russell Crumley, Stacie Andersen, Angel Myers, Liza Holder and Rebekah Hemphill. In the middle row are Elizabeth Black, Chris Hendrix, Mark Necessary, Kimberly Fant and Anna Chastain, and in back is Dr. Peter Schriver.
Locals arrested in double homicide
Pickens, Easley men facing murder charges in Myrtle Beach killings
By Jason Evans
Staff Reporter
jevans@thepccourier.com
MYRTLE BEACH — Three Pickens County men are charged with murder following what Myrtle Beach police describe as a drug deal gone wrong.
Brandon Ezekiel Hembree, 21, and Daniel Alexander Hembree, 20, both of Easley, and Brady Gilcrease, 20, of Pickens,
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Former Korean POW, purple heart recipient Funchess dies at 93
By Jason Evans
Staff Reporter
jevans@thepccourier.com
CLEMSON — A Pickens County man who spent nearly three years in captivity as a prisoner of war in North Korea died
last week.
William H. Funchess Jr. died Thursday at his home in Clemson. He was 93.
Funchess served as a 1st Lieutenant with the 24th Infantry Division. His story was shared during a 2018 POW/MIA recognition ceremony sponsored by Clemson University’s Air Force ROTC.
After a scout reported the Chinese Army was crossing a nearby river, Funchess and his platoon held their position long enough for nearly 700
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DHEC marks COVID-19 Vaccine Action Week
COLUMBIA — Sunday kicked off COVID-19 Vaccine Action Week in South Carolina, as state officials continue to urge residents to get vaccinated.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) is reporting the state “has seen a decline in vaccine demand since mid-April.” In a release from the agency, DHEC said more than 45 percent of vaccine-eligible South Carolinians have received at least one shot, and more than 38 percent are fully vaccinated. That figure falls well short of the goal to hit vaccination rates of 70 percent or higher.
“We have a lot to be proud of and, at the same time, it’s fair to say we have a lot more work to do,” DHEC public health
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Dacusville Community Center hosts first national art exhibit
By Olivia Fowler
For the Courier
ofowler@thepccourier.com
DACUSVILLE — There were nearly 300 pieces of art by 96 artists from 36 states and three Canadian provinces on display at the Dacusville Community Center last Friday, Saturday and Sunday, at the first-ever Mountain View Americana Art 
Show and Competition.
A total of $7,000 in prize money was awarded, and an online auction was held Saturday night.
The exhibit included a vast array of subject matter and media, all focused on the animals, people and landscapes of the American West,
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Chamber plans job fair next week
PICKENS — The Greater Pickens Chamber of Commerce has partnered with local businesses for an event next week to help connect the unemployed with job opportunities.
The job fair is planned from 9 a.m.-noon Monday, June 21, under the covered AnMed Health Cannon Pavilion at Doodle Park, located at 409 E. Cedar Rock St. in Pickens.
“We wanted to do something to help our chamber members who are seeking employees during these unprecedented
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