Remembering the Days: A USC Podcast

Remembering Havilah Babcock

For nearly 40 years, Havilah Babcock inspired students in his English classes with his "I want a word" course — and entertained outdoor enthusiasts with his tales of hunting and fishing. Reminders of the beloved professor still linger on the university campus.

A natural history stroll across campus

Were there always so many squirrels on the Horseshoe? And how else has campus changed in the past 200 years in regards to insects, birds, snakes and such? Take a stroll with naturalist-in-residence Rudy Mancke to learn what's changed and still changing in the natural world of campus. 

South by southwest: USC‘s 1960s expansion

Like other universities across the nation, the University of South Carolina needed more land in the 1960s to keep up with skyrocketing student enrollment brought on by the Baby Boom. In a previous episode, we talked about the campus migration that created the east campus in the University Hill neighborhood. This episode explores the underpinnings of the campus expansion into Ward One and Wheeler Hill, which were largely obliterated by the 'urban renewal' efforts that acquired more land for the university.

Frat house blues: the 30-year ban on Greek letter organizations

In the late 19th century, students at South Carolina College who were stalwart members of the institution's two debate societies felt that their esteemed clubs were somehow threatened by the existence of fraternities on campus. So they contrived a way to boot the Greek letter organizations off campus. It was a quirky chapter in the university's history that, ultimately, ended badly for one side. 

Honeymoon suites: University Terrace Apartments

They were tiny, blazing hot in the summer and had more than their fair share of bugs, but the long-gone University Terrace Apartments were a first home for many married couples at the University of South Carolina. For Missie and Joe Walker, living at UT was the first rite of passage in their 40-plus years of marriage. 

Harry Walker: the underdog who won

When students at the University of South Carolina elected a new Student Government president in 1971, the event made national news. That's because, just eight years after the university was desegregated, an African American student won the election, riding a wave of support from white and black students who were tired of the 'establishment' and 'the system.'

If it ain't swaying, we ain't playing: the evolution of South Carolina's football field and stadium

When the Gamecocks take to the football field every fall, Williams-Brice Stadium roars with the full-throated spirit of 80,000-plus diehard fans, a battalion of marching band members, cheerleaders, baton twirlers and dancers. It’s a far cry from the first football game played on the University of South Carolina campus in 1898 when a few hundred fans huddled on simple wooden bleachers on a field situated about where the Russell House now stands on Greene Street.

What's in a name?

Since its inception more than 200 years ago, the University of South Carolina has had three different names and several nicknames. But Juliet was right — that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.

Heading East: the university's 1960s expansion

More than 50 years ago, the University of South Carolina expanded its campus eastward, building an 18-story dormitory/conference center in the middle of the University Hill neighborhood. Residents there protested the project, and students did, as well, in 1972 when a pedestrian bridge was built to link to the new east campus. 

Tales from the President's House, part 2

Patricia Moore-Pastides and her husband, Harris Pastides, lived in the President's House from 2008 to 2019 with thousands of university students as their closest neighbors. As you might imagine, there were some interesting moments in those 11 years.