SC Archives and History Foundation announces new president

J. Walker Clarke of Columbia, cotton broker by trade, photographer and artist by avocation, officially assumed the presidency of the SC Archives and History Foundation at its regular board meeting July 27 at the SC Archives and History Center.

Clarke accepted the gavel from outgoing president Robert G. Davidson, now retired from the trust department of Wachovia Bank, working on his tennis game and spoiling his grandchildren. Prior to Davidson’s tenure with the foundation, he had been actively involved with Historic Columbia Foundation, serving as its president. He and Clarke were classmates at Davidson College where Davidson’s father was on faculty.

In accepting the presidential gavel from Davidson, Clarke told board members the journey they are sharing is a rewarding one.

“We are given the opportunity to serve the people of our state, and even the nation, in the preservation and extension of history, both personal and public. We have the opportunity to literally touch the past and put pieces together that explain who we are, where we are, and why we are.

Clarke called it a privilege “to care for our fellowman thus building better citizens, by instilling in them a sense of place, a sense of self, and a sense of destiny.”

During his term in office, Clarke expects the Foundation to reach out. “We are going to partner with every area of our state… the gorgeous mountains on our northern border, the red hills of the Upcountry, the crossroads of the Midlands, Revolutionary and Confederate battlefields that are the cradle of freedom, the cotton fields of Cameron, Bishopville, St. Matthews, Bennettsville, the decaying tobacco barns of the Pee Dee, the warm surf of Pawleys Island, the soft voices of McClellanville, Charles-ton, Edisto, the glitz of Hilton Head.”

Clarke said he viewed his responsibilities as “helping the board and the agency open up to the world the rich treasures of our state.”

The SC Archives and History Foundation supports the programming and educational mission of the SC Department of Archives and History, headquartered at the History Center on Parklane Road.