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It was love at fi rst sight for Bill Kreml when he fi rst set foot on the Horseshoe.
Now a distinguished professor emeritus in political science, Kreml was in the Army in 1959 when he visited the campus for the fi rst time and was impressed with the Horseshoe’s verdant beauty. Years later, he joined USC’s faculty and was able to enjoy the historic vista and green expanse on a regular basis.
“I’m from Chicago and have always loved architecture,” Kreml said. “A neighbor of mine there was a protégé of Frank Lloyd Wright, and that just fed my appreciation for historic buildings such as those we have on the Horseshoe.”
Kreml has expressed his appreciation for the Horseshoe in recent years by contributing funds and conducting historical research for bronze information plaques in front of several Horseshoe buildings. The most recent plaque was installed in front of Pinckney in the past few weeks.
“I had always noticed that some buildings had historical plaques while others did not,” he said. “That bothered me because it didn’t seem as though the Horseshoe was complete without all of the buildings being represented.”
Kreml’s fi rst plaque project involved researching
the exact location of the original President’s House in front of McKissick. With help from art history professor John Bryan, the front cornerstones of the now-demolished 19th-century house were marked. A plaque now stands next to the site.
“The single most important plaque is the one that marks where the old president’s house was located,” said Peter Sederberg, dean of the Honors College and chair of the Horseshoe Historical Restoration Committee. “Everyone knew McKissick was not a pre –Civil War building, but we didn’t know what was there previously.
“These plaques were not a major restoration
project, but this is the historic heart of the campus, and it is a destination for tourists, prospective students, and grade-school classes. There is a kind of closure now that each of the buildings has a plaque to convey a sense of its history to visitors.”
The plaque in front of Pinckney makes note of Elizabeth Lucas Pinckney, mother of Charles Pinckney, for whom the building is named, and developer of several improved strains of indigo, which once was an important cash crop in South Carolina.
The South Caroliniana Library recently added a new bronze plaque, completing the array of historical markers on the historic core of campus.
“I feel very gratifi ed—I feel like the Horseshoe is complete,” Kreml said.
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