The Improvement of Columbia South Carolina Report to The Civic League, Columbia South Carolina, by Kelsey & Guild, Landscape Architects, Boston, Mass. COMPLIMENTS OF HARLAN P. KELSEY The Improvement of Columbia South Carolina REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE, COLUMBIA SOUTH CAROLINA, BY KELSEY &f GUILD LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS, BOSTON, MASS. CONTENTS PART I. THE DISCUSSION OF A PLAN AND OF VARIOUS DETAILS FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA PAGH i. Need o a Comprehensive Plan 7 2. What a Plan Should Be 15 3. A Civic Center or Group Plan 16 4. The Topography of Columbia and Vicinity, and its Chief Landscape Features as Related to Improvements 20 5. The Acquirement of Land for Park Purposes; Methods of Paying Therefore and for Improvements 24 6. Composition and Administration of Improvement Commissions ... 26 7. Streets and Street Trees 28 8. Overhead Wires 35 9 Columbia's City Blocks 36 10. A Park System ; Including Squares and Playgrounds, Historic, Scenic and Other Reservations, and Their Proper Uses ... 40 11. Southern Conditions 43 [2. The General Improvement of Columbia 47 PART II. THE PLAN OUTLINED i. Suggestions for the Improvement of Boulevards and Streets ... 53 2. The Park System ; Approximate Cost 54 3. Historic, Scenic and Other Reservations 64 4. The Street Trees of Columbia, and Recommended Street Plans . . 70 PART III. TABLES i. City Park Statistics 83 2. List of Native Trees Suitable for Street Purposes in Columbia, with Descriptions 85 3. List of Native Trees Observed in and Around Columbia 87 iffliiuni JHruuaut JlrrHsi /. Horace JXCcFarland Company Harrisburg,\Pa. By Tr»n**>r SEP : 5 1919 The Improvement of Columbia South Carolina To the Officers and Members of The Civic League, Columbia, South Carolina. We beg to submit the following report on "The Improvement of the City of Columbia," prepared at the request of your League. We did not deem it desirable, at this time, to place too much em- phasis upon detail, because, in doing so, the main objects sought might easily be lost sight of. Such detail can best be determined only after a general scheme of city improvement is finally and permanently adopted. We have made a close personal study of the territory in and around Columbia during the year, and have carefully examined all available data referring to the city since its foundation. This report may therefore be considered preliminary, and we trust the general scheme outlined may be found worthy of adoption. In any event, we recommend that a Joint Improvement Commission be created by your city and state, with full power to adopt and carry out a systematic, well-conceived scheme of improvement that would not be subject to the passing whims or fancies of even well- intentioned individuals who might be in temporary municipal or state authority. Only in this way can a plan necessarily involving many years of time for completion be properly initiated and carried out, and the best permanent results secured. With such a Commission, working on broad lines and with far-seeing eyes, the greater Colum- bia will be made into a dignified capital city, worthy of such a state as South Carolina, and a center which will reflect the best life and character of its people. The consideration of a comprehensive plan for the development and improvement of any city should be based, to an extent, on the experience of those cities of the world which have advanced farthest in all that goes to make urban life pleasant and profitable; for, in a general way, the principles of growth in all cities are simi- lar, and the lessons of success and failure already recorded else- 6 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. where may be applied with great profit, and be the means of avoiding, at the outset, expensive mistakes that later may be im- possible of remedy. However, the life and requirements of the southern city are, in many ways, so radically different from those of the city of colder zones, that while the underlying principles of municipal development and progress may be the same the world over, their application in the South, and especially in regard to de- tails, must be very different and designed to meet these special needs. It is quite probable that this report will be more useful in its suggestions than in the plan outlined. With study, an outsider, viewing With unprejudiced eyes, may often be able to perceive existing conditions that are lost sight of by those in daily contact with their surroundings, and thus be able to suggest means for betterment. While certain suggestions we make may be found inexpedient, yet, as a whole, we believe them to be logical and quite possible of carrying out economically and successfully. Desiring to expedite this report, we secured the services of Mr. W. W. Ashe, a well-known botanist of Raleigh, who ably as- sisted in making a survey of the street trees of Columbia, and in determining the botanical nomenclature of the native trees of Columbia and vicinity. We acknowledge with thanks the many courtesies and much valuable information supplied by many citizens of Columbia, and especially the kind assistance of Miss Belle Williams and other members of your League ; Dr. J. W. Babcock, superintendent of the State Hospital ; Mr. Clark, secretary of the Columbia Chamber of Commerce ; Mr. E. J. Watson, Commissioner of Agriculture, Commerce and Immigration of the State of South Carolina; Secre- tary of State Gantt and many other state, county and city officials. Acknowledgement is gladly made to Mr. G. A. Parker, of Hartford, Conn., for valuable suggestions on southern park prob- lems so freely offered on numerous occasions. Respectfully submitted, Kelsey & Guild. Boston, Mass., October 20, /ooj. Plan Showing a Suggested System of Inner and Outer Parks and Reservations and Connecting Roads and Driveways The Improvement of Columbia South Carolina PART I. THE DISCUSSION OF A PLAN AND OF VARIOUS DETAILS FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA. 1. NEED OF A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN It is quite recently that cities have awakened to the urgent need of a systematic plan for future development along lines that would provide for parks, playgrounds and boulevards ; for sewer, water, lighting and transportation, and at the most reasonable cost to their citizens. Columbia, like Washington, had the remarkable and unusual privilege of "choosing its own site," and the fortune to have its plan laid out by those who wisely looked far enough into the future to provide uniformly broad streets, wide enough for a metropolis, and capable, under proper treatment, of giving to the entire city a unique, park-like effect, enjoyed by no other city we recall, at least in America. It is extremely unfortunate, however, that the plan was so arbitrary, with apparently little, if any, consideration given to the topography of the land. Even on a flat plane, the gridiron plan can never be said to be entirely satisfactory, and with no diagonal or " ring" (encircling) streets the conditions are still more unfa- vorable, and become aggravated as the city grows. Columbia being situated on a broad, undulating plateau, with sudden breaks in the levels, the wide, right-angled streets often have unsatisfactory, or almost impossible, grades (as parts of Assembly, Taylor, Bull, Pickens, and others), or terminate alto- gether (as Senate, Lady, Washington, Henderson, Barnwell, Blanding and many others). Had the engineer but provided diagonal streets, radiating from the capitol, and taken into consideration the contour of the land, a much better foundation would have been laid for a convenient and beautiful capital city of large population. 8 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. Unfortunately, too, as in Washington, the tendency has ever been to ignore the original street plan on which the city was founded, for the seeming profit or convenience of the moment ; and the partial obliteration of some streets, and the narrowing of others, where entirely unnecessary, has resulted. Further, the only park within the corporate limits — once a cool, natural forest of magnificent specimen oaks, pines and other native trees, di- rectly in the heart of the city, with abundant crystal springs burst- ing from the hillside, which at one time amply supplied a popula- tion of thirty thousand * — has disappeared, and a scarred, sun- burned hole, of doubtful use as a railroad dump, coal chute and ice factory, shows the sad results of indifference and lack of fore- sight now bitterly regretted by Columbia's citizens.f Not only this, but Columbia, with its sudden increase in wealth and population, caused by the South's general prosperity, and the centering here of new manufacturing industries, has long since outgrown the two-mile-square limit of its founders, and serious problems of street extension, sanitation, water-supply, police and fire protection, are confronting the "greater city," and cannot longer be ignored. With the tide of trade and manufacturing turning south, it takes but little foresight to predict of the future Columbia a city of vastly increased dimensions, population and wealth. Is it not, therefore, the veriest part of wisdom to acknowledge present conditions, and as far as possible anticipate the needs of the future, so that expensive mistakes may be avoided and a "city beautiful" result, rather than a "city of chance," with sore spots festering within and without narrowed corporate limits! Had it not been for its original plan, establishing wide streets, it is plain that Columbia today would be merely the ordinary Amer- ican city of narrow, tortuous, disconnected streets, so extremely difficult of treatment that the carrying out of an adequate city plan would be possible only at enormous expenditure. * South Carolina Resources. t Sidney Park.—" Originally these lands were covered with a magnificent growth of immense oaks, hickories and pines. . . . Natural springs issuing from a valley between the town and river afford an excellent supply of water, which is raised 120 feet by steam power for use at the rate of 1,000,000 gallons per day. . . . Columbia is noted for the beauty of its public and pri- vate grounds, and for its beautiful flower gardens. Sidney Park covers twenty acres, furnishing attractive promenades." — Smith Carolina Resources. " The Seaboard Air Line Railroad Company instituted proceedings to condemn Sidney Park for a railroad station in this city. The City Council made merely formal objection and the em- paneled jury assessed its value at $30,000, which was paid to the city. . . . As soon as the Railroad Company obtained possession they at once proceeded to convert the trees into firewood, the shrubbery into trash, and the park into a big hole in the ground. It is now used as a place of storage for cars, and for leased industries."— Extract from letter dated December S, 1904. Sidney Park and Parkway i. The destruction of Sidney Park. 2. From Seaboard Air Line fill. 3. Locomotive yards. 4. Entrance of Seaboard Air Line Railroad into Columbia. 5. Sidney Parkway. 6. Fringe oi trees along brook. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 11 What would now be the cost of widening Main street alone to its present width had it been built up as a narrow thirty-five or forty-foot street? Today American cities are paying millions of dollars for widen- ing streets and securing park areas, where thousands would have sufficed, had reasonable foresight been used and a plan made and adhered to that would have provided for the needs of future growth. Harrisburg, Pa., for example, a city but little larger than Columbia, has recently voted $1,090,000 for good streets, water, sewer and park systems. Careful plans have been prepared by experts in each line, all working together so that the improvements are harmonious, and they have proceeded rapidly on these lines with great success. Boston * also has already spent millions of dollars for the extension of boulevards and a park system, and the results of care- ful planning for the future is better seen here, perhaps, than any- where else in America. Louisville, Detroit, Springfield, Mass., Providence, Hartford, Seattle and many other smaller cities, are carrying out extensive park and city improvements along carefully considered lines, while New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, St. Louis, Buffalo, and Cleve- land are considering plans involving vast expenditure and many years' time for completion. In studying the conditions of growth obtaining in Columbia, we have been much impressed with the rapid development of the out- lying suburban districts immediately adjoining the city limits. The suddenly narrowed streets and utter lack of uniformity of plan and administration one encounters on reaching the city's boundary give a warning that, unless soon heeded, disastrous conditions will result, impossible of remedy, except at a cost almost prohibitive. The outlying districts need the fire and police protection, paved streets, water and sewer systems, and the schools of Colum- bia ; but far more does the city itself need the suburbs, to protect itself against poor and imperfect sanitation, and polluted air and water ; and to secure, before too late, available areas for park pur- poses. Especially is it necessary to control the development of streets, boulevards and blocks, which, unless laid out somewhat in ♦"Boston has, until very lately, grown in a most accidental and haphazard way. It has cost the city more to undo the mistakes perpetrated through the short-sightedness o' former genera- tions than it has to provide for its legitimate growth. It is, therefore, time for it to grow intelli- gently, and to proceed along carefully considered lines of development. These lines have already been laid down or are now being laid down, in several important directions, and their extension in others is thereby made all the more desirable." — Mass. House No. 150 Report of Metropolitan Park Commission. 12 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. accordance with the broad lines of Columbia's original plan, will soon hedge in the city with an iron-bound network of narrow, inconvenient, alley-like streets and roads, totally unfit to become an integral part of any city. From an esthetic standpoint, the conditions are even now intolerable; the broad, shaded streets of the city usually terminat- ing in what are little more than alleys, or at best, narrow country roads, often lined with small negro houses, abutting the sidewalks. As population increases, the streets become inadequate to the de- mands of traffic, and give little leeway for underground systems of conduits, and no room for shade trees or park strips. But, per- haps, the most evil results come from the building up of cheap residence and tenement districts in a continuous belt around the present city, lessening valuations and congesting the very popula- tion that should, at least from a sanitary standpoint, have every chance for fresh air and breathing space. Why should Columbia, with its wonderful opportunity of being noted as the "City of Magnificent Streets," allow itself, through inaction and lack of foresight, to be "built in" by sporadic growth and the stupidity of land "improvement" companies, and awaken too late, only to find much of the evil impossible of correction ? The suburb of Shandon is a notable exception, broad streets being here the rule. Some day, Columbia will appreciate the fact more fully than at present. Land companies, in their anxiety to use every possible inch of land for building purposes, continually fail to realize that narrow streets and twenty-foot lots often defeat the very objects they are seeking. Such conditions attract the cheaper class of builders only, and never make attractive residence centers of high land valuation. So much of the proper future development of Columbia depends on the actual municipal control of these suburban districts, which are even now a physical part of the city, that we would urge such immediate action as may be necessary to accomplish this purpose. Practically all of the important cities of the United States have provided, or are now providing, an adequate system of parks, the best planned being usually connected by boulevards or parkways. Where in a small town a central "square" is perhaps suf- ficient, — the citizens being able to reach the country in any di- rection within a few minutes' walk, — as the built-up area increases, and the population becomes more dense and congested, the oppor- tunities of the individual for outdoor recreation decrease. Columbia is fast becoming a great industrial center, and upon REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 13 the health, happiness and well-being of the laboring classes must depend no small proportion of its future prosperity. With parks and playgrounds so accessible as to be within easy walking reach, the vitality of every man, woman and child who labors will be in- creased and his potentiality in every way enhanced. Without these means of recreation and rejuvenation, physical and moral degeneration must surely mark the city's industrial de- velopment, with danger of our native-born laborer being forced out and an undesirable foreign element taking his place. Mr. An- drew Cowan, Park Commissioner of Louisville, Ky., has very hap- pily expressed the meaning and value of parks in the following words: "The use of public parks is to promote the well-being and happiness of the people, to alleviate the hard conditions of crowded humanity, to encourage outdoor recreations and intimacy with Nature, to fill the lungs of tired workers from city factories and shops with pure and wholesome air, whenever they will or can afford to spend a day in shady groves, under spreading trees or on the jeweled meadows. They are havens of sweetness and rest for mothers and wives and sweethearts ; above all, they are for the children, for all the people, high and low, rich and poor, without distinction, with equal rights and privileges for every class. A city that does not now acknowledge the necessity for public parks, as a means for promoting the welfare and happiness of its people, and recognize the substantial advantages that follow the making of a city attractive and comfortable as a place of residence, is not pro- gressing, but is already on the wane." The average city pays too dearly for its park system, not that it is not worth the cost, but because it might have been acquired more cheaply had reasonable foresight and imagination and suf- ficient faith in the future needs and growth of the city been applied by its citizens. Before it is realized, suburbs lose their charm and become fully urbanized, and it is then extremely difficult, except at great cost, to widen streets and to secure adequate open spaces for play- grounds and parks, or to place them in the proper localities. Even at great cost, park systems almost invariably prove to be extremely valuable investments to the city, looking at the finan- cial side alone. From the report of the New York Park Commis- sioners, we find that Central Park, the first large city park in America, and Prospect Park in Brooklyn, furnish striking ex- amples. " In 1856, the assessed valuation of the three wards ad- joining Central Park was $20,429,565. In 1873, it had increased 14 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. to $236,081,515, a gain in seventeen years of $215,651,950. The natural average increase of three other wards in the city, when all the wards had been averaged, was $53,000,000, making the earn- ing capacity of the park for that period $183,081,515. In Brook- lyn, in 1864, when Prospect Park, with its 515 acres of land was ac- quired, the assessed valuation of the three neighboring wards was $19,949,395, and at the end of three years the valuation had risen 38 per cent, or over $7,000,000 — which, by the way, was twice the cost of the land which had been parked." W. E. Edgerton, Superintendent of Parks of Albany, New York, says of the Albany Parks: "The history of Albany is that the value of the ground contiguous to the parks has not only doubled, but quadrupled and sextupled. One piece of property was worth $8,500, and, by the simple expenditure of $4,800 on it, the value of that property was raised more than forty times in eight years." In their Eleventh Annual Report, the Park Commissioners of Boston, in referring to the Back Bay improvements, show an in- creased valuation in eight years of $11,935,449, with a total in- crease of revenue from taxes of $280,734. Mr. W. H. Harmon, secretary of the Chicago Park Depart- ment, in a letter to the secretary of the New York Park Associa- tion, says, in reference to the effect of parks upon the value of adjacent land: "The immediate effect was to double and quad- ruple property." Bulletin No. 3, Park Department, American Civic Association, states : "In Brookline, Mass., a town of thirteen thousand inhabi- tants, the pecuniary advantage of parks is thus spoken of by the secretary of the Park Board in that town : ' Beacon street was widened into a parkway at a cost of $615,000. In six years the in- crease in assessed values of land on each side of the street, through- out its entire length, and for an approximate distance of only five hundred feet from the side line, is $4,330,400, with no allowance for any increase in personal estate incident thereto. The Beacon parkway is, therefore, paying for itself long before its most zealous advocates thought it would, and is a striking proof that well-con- sidered plans for large public improvements of this kind are profi- table ventures.' " These examples of increased valuation, and consequent increase of revenue, following city improvements, and particularly park ex- tension, could be multiplied indefinitely. Ruskin says: "You may have thought that beauty was expensive. You are wrong. It is ugliness that costs." REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 15 2. WHAT A PLAN SHOULD INCLUDE A comprehensive plan for the development of a city should consider well the tendencies of growth, and the physical features that to an extent must in the future govern such growth. It must reasonably anticipate the needs of the community as indicated by the present and future business and social require- ments, and should, as far as possible, reflect the traditions and character of its people, while at the same time suggesting the best in municipal advancement that may with profit be locally applied. It should especially consider local conditions, for no two cities are in all ways alike, and be so designed that the individuality of a community is emphasized. It should be consistent as a whole, its parts having proper relation to each other both as to general design and detail, so that improvements undertaken at any given point may, in the end, har- moniously adapt themselves to the general scheme. Such a plan, therefore, involves not only general considera- tions of city growth,* but must include its main parts governing the establishment and extension of parks, playgrounds, boulevards and streets and the location of public buildings and institutions. Such questions as tree planting, the paving of streets, the loca- tion of statues, monuments and drinking fountains, the preserva- tion of historic spots, public lighting, sidewalks, manner of indi- cating street names, and other like matters must be treated with more or less detail, and should tend toward cultivating in the minds of the public a taste and desire for the most highly artistic and appropriate in the small things that make up so large a part of a city's attractiveness. Finally, a plan to be of practical value must be, as carefully as possible, gauged to the resources of a community. While city improvements of necessity entail large original cost, no plan can be considered a good one that requires extravagant expenditure or imposes a greater burden for construction or maintenance than can comfortably be sustained. And the most successful plan is one in *" The wisdom of adopting a general scheme, which maybe modified in detail as occasion requires, but which will be planned in its general features in advance of urban growth, executed as rapidly as possible and in harmony with which parks will be constructed, monuments erected, public buildings located and other structures provided, is evidenced by foreign experience. There is continuity and harmony in the various improvements, and the work accomplished by each gen- eration does not need to be undone by the succeeding generation. Instead of conflict, each addi- tional improvement adds far more than indicated by its cost, and the improvements already car- ried out add tone and character to the new work, which would be lacking if there were no in- terdependence and if they had been carried out in a haphazard way."— Milo Roy Maltbic, in Civic Ail in Northern Europe. 16 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S C. which the improvements, in the end, pay for themselves in a finan- cial way, at least in part, and with a large surplus invested in the health, happiness and social betterment of the community. 3. A CIVIC CENTER OR GROUP PLAN The grouping in a city of public or semi-public buildings offers two important and convincing advantages. First, by the central- izing of public business it adds immeasurably to the convenience of the officials and of the general public, and is therefore conducive to economy in the conduct of such business. Second, by arrange- ment around an open space or mall, the dignity and architectural importance of each building is enhanced by those around it, while the larger group forms a unit which can be treated with proper regard for architectural effect and in a manner commensurate with its civic importance, — a result entirely impossible if the buildings are scattered promiscuously throughout the city. That such a plan may be economical, when viewed from the financial standpoint alone, is proved by figures submitted by the Cleveland Group Plan Commission, which show that the city will secure a magnificent group of imposing public buildings, arranged around a great central mall supplying ample approaches from a new union station and an esplanade facing the lake, at a cost less than would be required to provide independent sites for the same buildings. No less than six American cities (Cleveland, St. Louis, Buf- falo, St. Paul, Hartford and Providence) have already prepared such group plans, or are actually carrying them out at enormous expense, while the experience of European cities uniformly con- demns the haphazard location of public buildings. There is hardly an important city in this country that is not facing this question, now universally recognized as a problem of prime and vital importance. Washington has not only returned to its original splendid street plan, abandoned over fifty years ago, but proposes in the future to intelligently group all new public buildings according to a logical scheme, devised by a commission appointed several years since. As noted before, Columbia is unfortunate in having no diagonal streets to furnish vistas, circles and triangles, such, for instance, as those to be found in Washington.* While there are but few pub- lic buildings outside the Capitol architecturally worthy of perpetu * Washington has 275 such spots less than an acre in extent, nearly all at the intersection of parallel and diagonal streets. A Suggested Civic Center for the Grouping of Columbia's Future Public Buildings Alternative Plan for Civic Center The area included in this plan occupies six city blocks, or about twenty-two acres exclusive of streets. Its acquirement would be comparatively easy, as there are very few buildings located on it at present of even moderate valuation. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 19 ation, a number of fine old antebellum buildings,* still in public use, exist in different parts of the city, of quiet and unpretending architecture, and rich in historic associations. As these become inadequate for municipal and county needs, they should be care- fully preserved and jealously guarded for their historic interest. In a group plan, it is of fundamental importance that the gen- eral style of architecture of the different buildings be the same. It is evident that such a grouping should radiate from the Capitol, this being the building of greatest prominence and importance. Therefore a style agreeing with the Capitol is necessary. The simple forms, familiar in the classic Renaissance of the South, which has come to be known as the "Colonial style," would seem most harmonious, and would give the most fitting architectural expression, — in keeping, also, with the best traditions of Southern architecture. The recently erected City Hall and Opera House directly in front of the Capitol is a striking example of the lack of both a scheme for grouping and the entire absence of an architectural motive for the city's public buildings. Its style, whether good or not in itself, is certainly in total discord with the dignified lines of the Capitol, detracting materially from the prospect both looking from and toward the Capitol grounds. Its location directly on the street is unfortunate, in not providing suitable perspective for its front, or surrounding areas that might be made attractive with lawn and shrubbery. No city, large or small, can afford to ignore such important considerations, which bears so vitally on its appearance, convenience and permanent prosperity. Nothing else so impresses a visitor within a city, favorably or unfavorably, as the general appearance of the public buildings, grounds and streets, and the manner in which they are cared for. Dirty streets, slovenly kept buildings, and littered-up grounds, have caused many a stranger to quickly transact his necessary busi- ness and betake himself to more congenial odors and scenes, car- rying with him an uncomplimentary (but we are glad to say, often erroneous) opinion of the citizens themselves. If, however, the traveler's introduction is through a broad, well-paved boulevard, lined with noble shade trees, and flanked on either side with groups of dignified, clean public buildings, each surrounded by abundant light and air, and with smoothly kept * Notably, Public School Building, Laurel and Pickens streets ; The South Carolina College for Women, Pickens street ; The First Baptist Church, Plain near Marion streets; the County Court House, Washington and Sumter streets, and others. 20 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. lawns, — the whole a scene of harmony and beauty, — his feelings are exalted and he unconsciously places the aims and ideals of the inhabitants on the same high plane. 4. THE TOPOGRAPHY OF COLUMBIA AND VICINITY AND ITS CHIEF LANDSCAPE FEATURES, AS RELATED TO IMPROVEMENTS Within its present two-mile-square limits, Columbia presents a rather varied topography, the highest point being approximately one hundred and fifty feet above the Congaree River on East Gervais'street. This variation in elevation is often very sudden, notably on the streets bordering upon Sidney Park, at Lady and Washington streets, where they intersect with Pickens street, at Senate, Pendle- ton and College streets at the crossing of Laurens street, and in many other places to a hardly less degree. At these points it is quite impossible to adhere to the existing gridiron plan of streets, a frank departure having already been made where it was found impossible to secure a reasonable grade to satisfy the demands of traffic. The city should exercise great care to preserve its title to such portions of the original street sys- tem as may thus prove wise to abandon, until their proper perma- nent use is decided. For it is quite often the case that these very sections with extremes of grade, and which are of little building value, are best adapted to the making of interesting parks and squares. Perhaps the most striking example of the city's relinquishment of street ownership may be seen in the section bounded by Pickens, Plain, Laurel and Gervais streets, where the title to certain parts of those streets which originally passed through this area has evi- dently been transferred to private parties. As a result, the greater part of twelve city blocks in the very heart of the residential sec- tion of the city, and but little more than three blocks distant from the State Capitol, is given over to the cheapest negro tenements, in many places the back wall of one house closely crowding the front door-steps of another. An examination shows the sanitary conditions here to be in- tolerable, much of the sewage from tenements on the higher ground passing under those on lower elevations, till it finds an abiding place in the low swampy center of the tract, there to reek and fes- ter in the hot sun, the breeding place of typhoid and other disease germs. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 21 Picture this same tract swept clear of all buildings and sore spots, and converted into a small park, with trees and shady walks, a tiny lake with foliaged banks nestling near the center, and a high outlook at the termination of Lady or Washington streets from which the whole may be viewed, and one sees some of the possi- bilities in these "unavailable" spots if Columbia will but take advantage of them. On the western side of the city, what was once Sidney Park, and the valley extending from it to the Congaree River, has even greater possibilities, — the total area being larger, the elevations more ab- rupt, and the configuration of the land more varied and interesting. Magnificent views maybe had from the high surrounding property, which has the benefit of the dry southwest summer breezes. Yet, owing to the destruction of this beautiful park and the undesirable class of houses which occupy the valley below it, but few fine resi- dences have recently been erected in the vicinity. In the southeastern part of the city, and possibly including parts of Shandon, is a low, comparatively level tract drained by Rocky Branch, as yet practically undeveloped. A portion of this could readily, and at small cost, be converted into an interesting park which would provide areas immediately available for playgrounds. Directly to the south of this tract, and extending beyond the limits of the city boundary at Lower street, the ground rises rapidly into an undulating plateau, commanding extended views of the city and surrounding country, which must eventually become a favorite residential section, although in rather close proximity to the mill villages which lie to the west and northwest. At one of the highest and most sightly points in the city, im- mediately to the east of the South Carolina College, is a notable property owned by the state and now used as private golf links in connection with the College. On it are several splendid groups of pines, and the views to the south and east are particularly fine. To the west and southwest of this tract the land falls toward the Congaree River in a series of uneven undulations, until, between the course of the "old canal " and the river-bank itself, are many low stretches where the river overflows during high water. From many points in this vicinity near the river may be had perhaps the best distant views obtainable of the Capitol and its imposing dome. From Gervais street northward along the narrow strip between the Columbia Canal and the Congaree River the banks become more precipitous and the views of the river itself more varied and beautiful. Along Congaree River i. Capitol from Congaree Park. 2. Along the canal. 3. The swin Congaree i^ filled with small islands. 4. The river from park. 5. Riverway, the canal. 6. The meadows ii 1 Congaree Park. 7. Crane creek, in Ridgewood Park. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 23 The Congaree River is undoubtedly by far the most notable landscape feature of Columbia, and should receive first consider- ation in any general plans adopted. While its fall of thirty-six feet * in two miles makes the flow too swift for safe pleasure-boat- ing, at least above the southern boundary of the city, its attractive- ness from a scenic standpoint is greatly enhanced thereby. To the north of the city, the valleys of Smith's Branch and Crane Creek, with their magnificent growths of timber and high surrounding hills, form features of inestimable value for the future of the city. To the east of the city, the topography is not greatly varied and presents but few special features. A series of low ridges, cov- ered with second-growth pines, oaks, hickories and other common forest trees, slope gently to Gill's Creek, about five miles distant from the Capitol. Dent's pond on the Camden road is a beautiful sheet of water, to be especially mentioned later. A considerable forest of the long-leaf pine (Pinus palustris), apparently almost extinct in the region around Columbia, is notice- able, lying on Gill's Creek watershed to the north of Dent's pond. South of Columbia and west of Bluff Road, lying along the east bank of the Congaree River, is a low, wide, swampy tract, many miles in extent. This reaches to a point below Kingsville, where the Congaree and Wateree Rivers unite, and is covered with a heavy growth of oaks, elms, maples, gums, poplars, ash and other trees, with an almost impenetrable undergrowth of shrubs and cane-brake. To the west of Columbia and across the Congaree lies Lexing- ton county, which should be considered in any general plan, at least so far as the banks of the river are concerned ; for any damage to this western shore would be immediately noticeable from the opposite side. Columbia was originally planned to be a city two miles square, with right-angled streets ioo feet wide, the four boundary streets and the two central streets, Senate and Assembly, each being 150 feet wide. If the founders had placed the Capitol at the intersection of these two last-named streets, this would have insured magnificent vistas of the building extending to the four city boundaries. It seems, however, that a higher point, one block to the east and north of this intersection, commanding a wider view was chosen, and consequently the Capitol was erected directly across Main street and at no intersection. It will always be regretted that such an opportunity for giving * South Carolina Resources, p. 699. 24 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S C. the Capitol a noble location was forever lost through zeal for geo- metrical accuracy ; for, by merely conforming to the topography, and making Main the wide street, and placing the Capitol at the intersection of this and Senate street, could the ideal location have been secured. The least that can now be done is to preserve and enhance in every possible way the only extended vistas of the Capitol, which are those to be had from North and South Main streets. 5. THE ACQUIREMENT OF LAND FOR PARK PURPOSES; METH- ODS OF PAYING THEREFOR AND FOR IMPROVEMENTS As is well known, a majority of cities, when making any exten- sive municipal improvements, usually finance them by the issue of long-time bonds, securing their payment by means of a sinking fund. Thus future generations who reap the greatest benefit of such improvements very justly share a part of the cost. Issuing bonds for temporary improvements should be avoided. Small parks, playgrounds, street extensions and other less costly undertakings may be provided for by special loans or by a small fraction per centage increase of tax levy. The maintenance of a park system, as of streets, sewers, water- supply, etc., must be provided for in the annual tax levy, and, in the case of a Capital city, should have the benefit of an annual state appropriation. The methods adopted in establishing Boston's city and metro- politan park systems have resulted so successfully that in consid- ering parks for Columbia it might be well to examine the different acts and regulations governing the appointment and duties of these Commissions, as well as other laws relating to parks in Massachu- setts.* The plan f recommended by the Metropolitan Park Com- mission and adopted by act of the Massachusetts Legislature, whereby the state lends its credit for a comprehensive park sys- tem, is especially worthy of consideration. * See "Manual Relating to Public Parks in Massachusetts," prepared by direction of Metro- politan Park Commission, Boston, 1894. t"That is, for the commonwealth to lend its credit, to a certain specified amount in the shape of a loan, for which reimbursement will be obtained from the various communities forming the metropolitan district. By this means, while the commonwealth is put to no expense in thus advancing its credit, the procedure is made an easy one for the communities. The payments being so distributed over a long term of years, an excessive taxation is not imposed and the bur- den therefore weighs but lightly upon any one community. Moreover, the credit of the common- wealth enables the money to be obtained at much lower rates than the communities themselves could hope to obtain advantage of, making a net saving of something like one per cent in interest. —Mass. House No. /50, p. 14, Report of Metropolitan Park Commission. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 25 So far as we can find, the well-known principle of assessing betterments against abutting property owners for street and other public improvements has not been applied to any extent in Colum- bia. The city is therefore continually increasing the valuation of private property at public expense, and receives no adequate re- turn therefor. A considerable legitimate source of revenue is thus being annually lost to the city. Too much cannot be said in favor of a plan adopted by many European cities and which has actually been made possible in one American commonwealth * at least, of condemning more than the area actually required for improvement. In their report of De- cember, 14, 1904, the New York City Improvement Commission urges its adoption as follows : ' ' Although, as above said, the expenditures necessarily required by any proper plan must be large, they can, in many instances, be greatly reduced, if the city had the power exercised in many Euro- pean cities of condemning more than the area actually required, so that the city might reap the benefit to be derived from the enhanced value of neighboring property, and, in the judgment of the Commission, steps should be taken to secure such changes in the constitution and legislative enactments as may be necessary for the purpose. This method of tak- ing more land than required, with the object of re-sale at an advance and of recouping part of the expanse, has been applied in various large cities of Great Britain and the Continent where extensive alterations have been undertaken for securing architec- tural effects, remedying unsanitary conditions or improving the city generally, and it is questionable whether many of the improve- ments would have been otherwise accomplished." By act of the Connecticut Legislature, the trustees of Keney Park, Hartford, were authorized to exercise this power, which they did with the most gratifying results. It appears that the approximate area of Columbia f is 2,508 acres, the streets as originally laid out (including land and water) occupying 963 acres, or 38^ per cent of the total area. Streets that have been abandoned, or which, owing to excessive grades, * " By recent act of the legislature (Ohio) cities are empowered to acquire land contiguous to public buildings and parks and to re-sell such land with restriction in the deed of sale as to the character of the buildings to be erected thereon, for the purpose of protecting such public build- ings and parks." — Report of the Grouping Plan Committee of the Chamber of Commerce of Cin- cinnati, September 27, 1904, page 6. t As laid out iti 400-foot blocks and 100- and 150-foot streets, it is evident that an area originally intended to be exactly two miles square would not be fully occupied. Existing maps would indi- cate that this discrepancy was arranged for by platting it some hundred feet less than two miles square. 26 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. cannot be used, somewhat lessen this ratio. Even with this reduc- tion, the streets occupy an excessive percentage of space as com- pared with the usual American city. It must be admitted that this is wasteful in the case of many of the streets ; for example, in the greater part of both Senate and Assembly streets, where topo- graphical and other conditions are not favorable for high develop- ment as a' residential boulevard. The same may be said of Lower and Harden streets, unless these streets can be used as broad con- necting links in a park system, or in some sections actually serve for certain park purposes. Colombia's broad streets, however, if properly developed and cared for, will give a distinctive charm to the city, making it one large garden, and these streets are already the property of the city, and require no outlay jor- purchase. For this reason, also, tracts that may be condemned for park purposes within the city limits will cost much less than otherwise, because the city now possesses title to a considerable area occu- pied by streets necessarily forming a large percentage of the land required. 6. COMPOSITION AND ADMINISTRATION OF IMPROVEMENT COMMISSIONS Columbia has already provided for modern water and sewage systems, and it would have been fortunate indeed if the problems of streets and street trees, a park system and the general improve- ment of the city had been considered at the same time. It is obvi- ous that all municipal improvements have vital relation to each other. The sewer, drainage and water systems should have their pipes laid where they will affect the permanent tree planting the least, and where they can be reached with the smallest possible damage to pavements. For these reasons also such conduits should be laid, where expedient, in the same trench. Especially should these matters be considered from the standpoint of meeting the needs of a much larger population, scattered over a far greater area than at present, and with a view to satisfying the require- ments of a future park system. Before determining, therefore, what a commission should be, it is necessary to clearly define its scope and the objects to be attained. If a general improvement commission is contemplated, cover- ing a broad field of activity, it will require possibly a fairly large REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 27 personnel, so that the experience and judgment of the members covering a wide range of effort in many lines may be available. It seems best, however, to here consider mainly the chief require- ments of a Board of Park Commissioners, its personnel and administration. In providing for a metropolitan or city park commission, it should be composed of three or five citizens, and its head, at least, should be a broad man of acknowledged business and executive ability ; the other members to be chosen preferably for their artistic and refined taste, so that the many questions relating to the beauty and embellishment of the parks, squares and parkways might have due consideration. It might be advisable to have a separate art commission appointed which would consider mainly the questions relating to the treatment of historic points of inter- est, the erection of fountains, statuary, memorials and other de- tails so important to the esthetic development of a city, and which would work in harmony with the park commission. But here authority would have to be clearly defined, to avoid clashing, and it is not certain that an art committee of the com- mission itself would not be more satisfactory if it contained proper material. It would, furthermore, seem advantageous and altogether desira- ble to have at least one member of the commission a woman. Not only have women, as a rule, more time than men to consider es- thetic problems, but they have usually a more sensitive and delicate natural appreciation of the highest ideals in art and nature, and are therefore peculiarly fitted to pass upon such questions as are continually brought before a commission of this character. Express provision is made in the charter of at least one American city* that no person shall be ineligible as a member of the park board by reason of sex. The New Orleans Park Commission has three women members on its board, and this has proved eminently satisfactory. In the establishment, construction and management of a park system, sound business judgment and skill are so absolutely essen- tial that without the fullest provision in the beginning for these requirements a commission is badly crippled and the results it aims at suffer accordingly. Proper, but not undue economy, without allowing essentials to suffer, must be exercised always, and a thoughtful realization of the ultimate aims sought after must be kept constantly in view. ♦Charter of the city of Pottland, Oregon, Chapter IV, Article VII, Section 259. 28 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S C. Above all, a park commission should be absolutely non-politi- cal, and should hold a coordinate and not subordinate position in the city government. Unfortunately, the reasons are only too obvi- ous, for we have but to examine the records of American political, and especially municipal, activity to learn that under our present system clean and efficient administration of large public improve- ments has, up to the present, been well-nigh impossible, — the taint of graft or favor, direct or indirect, too often permeating the very foundation of public effort. Tie the hands of a commission by making it the subservient creature of an ever-changing and unstable city government, without power to act except through the will of such authority, and its best usefulness is killed at the outset. All action by a board should be taken with the sole object in view of securing for the public the greatest good, without fear or favor to any individual. It is quite customary for members of a park commission or board to serve without remuneration. No serious improvements should be undertaken without the services and advice of competent experts, who should supply de- tailed plans to be executed under the immediate direction of a trained superintendent. The members of a board should make themselves acquainted with the practices of park boards in other cities, and should, so far as possible, visit the best examples of parks and study the meth- ods by which they are administered. 7. STREETS, AND STREET TREES At first thought it would seem that the excessive street surface of Columbia, over one-third of its entire area, would make the proper paving and maintenance so burdensome as to be almost prohibitive. If so, this would necessitate either adequately con- structing the principal streets and leaving the others to decay, or else poorly paving and maintaining all the streets, — either alterna- tive being most undesirable. By carefully considering, however, the probable traffic each street must sustain in the future, it is possible to reduce to a mini- mum the actual surface to be paved, treating the remaining area with grass or parked strips planted with shade trees, and side- walk. Thus, not only may the expense of construction and the cost Columbia's Street Trees i. Live oak in Audobon Park, New Orleans; plenty of room and food. 2. Oak on Divine street, not crowded, 3. Wires and poles vs. trees, Assembly street. 4. Tree butchery. 5. A pro- perly planted avenue. 6. The right way to begin ; a street in Biltmore, N. C. (See also page 71). 30 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. of properly caring for the streets be greatly decreased, but the beauty of the streets enhanced many fold. Prof. Lafayette Higgins, in the Municipal Journal and Engineer, gives three important points to be considered in the proper treat- ment of street grades. First, safety to human life ; second, surface drainage ; third, the demands of traffic ; to which we would add proper consideration for landscape effect. He urges, further, that "in all cases where possible, no grades should be established until profiles are made for all the streets of the city or town." Columbia particularly, on account of its varied contours, is sadly in need of an accurate topographical map, not only of the land lying within the city limits, but covering most, if not all, of the entire township. Numerous bench marks should be fixed at convenient points. Practically all permanent improvements must eventually be based on such a map ; and until it is available for free and constant use, and definite and final street and sidewalk grades established, all street improvements and the determination of the first-floor grades of business blocks will be unstable and unsatisfactory, and often require reconstruction or be always inconvenient if not ac- tually dangerous. The surface drainage problem cannot be properly solved until street and sidewalk intersections are permanently established.* This question is daily becoming more urgent, not only on ac- count of Columbia's growing population and the consequent in- creased use of its streets, but more particularly because of the open brick drains, which are in many places quite worn and require constant repairing if not entire reconstruction. The flow of surface water during rain-storms is rapid, and, at least at the lower eleva- tions, of excessive volume. At a distance from the center of the city, where dirt gutters take the place of the brick drains, erosion is badly damaging the streets, which will require expensive filling at some future time.f On many of the streets the trees occupy narrow strips along the *" There are three distinct methods of establishing street grades, namely: i. By center lines. 2. By curb lines. 3. By lot lines. The order given is also, I believe, the order of their de- velopment in engineering. Any such rule should be flexible. There can be but one grade for a sidewalk at a block corner, and this should be higher than any point of the curb running around such a block corner, so that the water will always drain from the building or sidewalk on that corner. I prefer the latter method lor the larger city work, because of fewer resulting difficul- ties. I think, however, that the second method of establishing grades, the curb corner method, is probably the better method for small cities or towns."— Profkssor Lafayette Higgins, in Mu- nicipal Journal and Engineer, Vol. XVIIT, No. 5. t West Gervais street below Huger furnishes a good example. A gully nearly fifteen feet deep now exists, and hundreds of yards of earth have been washed into the river below. It is a very dangerous place and is constantly growing worse. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 31 sidewalks, which are incapable of furnishing suitable or sufficient food for their proper development, while immediately outside a wide, unimproved street area is going to waste, at best only par- tially used by wagons zigzagging back and forth in search of a dry spot. To reach the sidewalks and the entrances to buildings across the open gutters, each abutter has a more or less dilapidated bridge. It is, perhaps, reasonable to say that this untidy, unsafe and unsightly system of street and curbing connections does more to impair the appearance of Columbia's streets than all other causes combined. Together with the surface drainage question, of paramount im- portance are the sidewalk and street* problems. Their relative proportions of width must be determined in advance, the chief considerations being permanence, utility and beauty. Some cities have established a definite ratio f between the width of the streets and the sidewalks, and in certain cases this plan might be safe and desirable ; but the universally wide streets of Columbia, where their uses and the plans for development are likely to be greatly varied, and where existing rows of shade trees are at unequal distances from the property lines, make any fixed rule inadvisable. In southern cities the sidewalks are usually much used as promenades, particularly where well shaded and in residential sec- tions. They should, therefore, where feasible, be made of suf- ficient width on all streets to easily satisfy requirements. Certain proportions, however, are necessary to maintain a proper street perspective, and in no event should such matters be left to chance or snap judgment. In the case of Columbia's wide streets, after determining what space will satisfactorily provide for the demands of wheeled traffic, all the remaining area possible should be devoted to strips of lawn with street trees, usually between the sidewalks and the curbing, and also where possible along the center of the streets. The various kinds of pavements should be carefully considered, so that those best adapted for each particular street be chosen. It * Well-paved streets are not only essential to the commercial development of a city, but for various reasons they are an indispensable necessity. Nothing has done more to assist in the up- building of Montgomery than the permanent improvement of her streets. Our highways of gravel, vitrified brick and granite blocks are a magnificent advertisement, reflecting, perhaps, more credit upon our citizens than any other form of public improvement.— Annual Report, City of Mont- gomery, Ala., 1904, page 9. t In the recent extensive improvements of Cohoes, New York, the ratio of one to six was de- termined upon, and for the rather narrow streets of that city have proved generally satisfactory. 32 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. is well worth bearing in mind that white or glaring material is not only disagreeable and injurious to the sight when under foot, but that it reflects the heat of the sun's rays to such an extent as to materially increase the temperature. Cities, especially those of the South, which must endure the longest period of the sun's direct radiation, have too long ignored this important matter, which affects, to such a marked degree, the comfort of its citizens. All mixed or concreted pavements, while being prepared, can readily and at little expense be given a gray or other agreeable color, where necessary.* Although Columbia is unfortunate in its lack of diagonal avenues, it would seem unwise to arbitrarily cut such thoroughfares through the city, both on account of increasing the already undue percentage of street area and because of the excessive cost of such an under- taking. Therefore, to supply the need of numerous small areas for parks and sites for statuary, fountains and the like, we must turn to the broad, rectangular streets themselves. We believe such features, which are so necessary to any city's interest, convenience and beauty, may be quite happily and successfully treated by using the centers of certain streets and their intersections with other streets for this purpose. Monuments may be erected at such intersections and command splendid vistas from four directions, looking over smooth lawns and between rows of stately trees. Fountains may receive like treat- ment or be placed on park strips between blocks, vistas being thus obtained from two directions. Some of the broadest parked areas might serve the use of "breathing spots," and be provided with seats and benches, es- pecially where there was no park or public square in the vicinity ; in fact, such use might often obviate the necessity of acquiring small public squares in certain portions of the city. The lines of vision affording the most extended vistas — caused usually by the variations in grade — should be very carefully pre- served, so that views of the most notable structures might not suf- fer detraction by the intrusion of less important details placed in the foreground. In other words, such use of the parked strips must not be overdone ; good taste and sound judgment are of prime necessity in this as in all other matters pertaining to the beautifying of a city. The entire care of and responsibility for such monuments and * White throws off while black absorbs heat. For this reason very dark material would retain heat late in the evening after sun-down. A neutral tint would probably prove most satisfactory. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 33 fountains, as well as for the parked strips along and through the centers of the streets and boulevards, and the trees and shrubs thereon, should be left to the park commission, and a liberal amount from the street fund placed at their disposal for maintenance, in- asmuch as it is relieving the street department of just so much la- bor and expense, and greatly reducing the area for that department to keep in repair. Moreover, this is the only way that such streets will be properly and uniformly cared for. On streets so treated and used as to be termed "boulevards," it might even be wisest to delegate the en- tire responsibility and care to the park department ; but as a ma- jority of Columbia's streets may and should have some treatment of the kind, this might prove too great a burden to the department, and therefore be inexpedient. All trees, the property of the city and not in the care of the de- partment, should be under the direct supervision and control of a complete tree warden.* He should have a thorough knowledge of trees and their habits of growth and understand how to properly care for them, and his decisions should be final. Elsewhere is given a detailed report of the street trees of Co- lumbia, but a few remarks here on this subject may be desirable. The streets of Columbia were, at one time, shaded by a magnifi- cent growth of oaks, apparently, for the most part, of the water, willow and laurel species. Today, fine specimens of these grand long-lived shade trees are so uncommon as to be almost landmarks, and the short-lived Celtis or hackberry, in all stages of decay, though occasionally to be seen in fine condition, is, for the most part, inadequately taking their place. The disastrous burning of the city during the civil war de- stroyed a great part of the fine larger trees for which the city was widely and justly noted, and neglect and decay have almost com- pleted the ruin. It is manifestly short-sighted to plant the city's streets with trees which have little to commend them but their quick growth, and which can never attain to the size or grandeur of our oaks, elms, maples and other native shade trees. There are perhaps a dozen or more species of native oaks alone, most of them to be found in or near Columbia, that are especially suitable for this purpose, besides many other varieties of trees eas- ily available and of distinctive character as shade trees. * This position might be held with good results by the park superintendent. 34 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. It is from such material, if from any, that Columbia must, in time, replace what was once the crowning glory of the city. If properly planted and cared for, it is surprising what rapid growth this desirable class of street trees really makes, particularly in the mild climate of the South. But warm, moist conditions are also peculiarly favorable to decay, and it is of the first importance that injuries to trees be treated promptly and decay arrested. Trees planted too closely are especially susceptible to the in- vasion of fungous diseases, and this trouble can be guarded against only by giving each tree abundant space, and letting in light and air. In planting street trees in northern cities, owing to rig- orous climatic conditions, the authorities are compelled to use the most well-developed nursery-grown trees obtainable, with adequate root systems and symmetrical tops, and pay high prices for them. The growth is in every way fostered by careful planting and prun- ing, in order that the tree may have abundant food and room to properly develop under most favorable conditions. Even so, it ordinarily takes many years to bring the trees to a reasonable size that will shade the sidewalks and street. In the cities of the South* the usual method employed is to select an oak, maple or hackberry tree in the thick shaded forest, dig it by cutting off all its roots to within a few inches of the butt, and, after trimming it by decapitating the entire branch system, plant what is left in the shape of a stunted pole or big stick, in a "hole" possibly a foot or two in diameter. Strange enough, so prodigal is Nature, and so wizard-like the soil under the warm, sunny skies of the South, that even the first rains usually start latent buds into growth, new roots strike into the soil, and in a surprisingly short time what might be called a shade tree results. It is usually one-sided, however, with a thick cluster of over-vigorous shoots at the extreme top, some- what resembling a crow's nest, and retains this appearance for years, until many limbs die from crowding, and the tree possibly, but rarely, regains its natural vigor and symmetrical shape. But in most cases, even where the tree has a pleasing appearance and good shape, its early wounds have never healed and an examina- tion shows decayed limbs and a hollow trunk, giving the tree a short life at best, — the prey of passing storms and a menace to the safety of the passer-by. Such street trees can never be seriously considered as even reasonably satisfactory or permanent. * Note tree-planting in Augusta, Georgia, on Broad street, in Birmingham, Alabama, on 19th and 20th streets, and many examples in Columbia. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 35 With careful observance of the proper rules for tree planting, and with the right selection of trees, Columbia may soon com- pletely transform its streets into permanent, well-shaded avenues. 8. OVERHEAD WIRES The time when a maze of overhead wires for different purposes supported by a forest of bare poles rising from the sidewalks and curbings was considered the sign of a city's prosperity is past, unless, indeed, it be in the small rustic village endeavoring to swell prematurely into a city by copying the worst features of the city's larger activities. Fortunately for Columbia's trees, the broad streets have made it possible to separate the lines of poles from the rows of trees, at least in most cases. But while saving the trees from the usual disastrous injuries so common where trees and poles alternate in the same line along the street, it has by no means resulted in an improved appearance to the streets themselves; for the separate long lines of poles, with their weight of arms and wires, stand out in bold, unhappy relief, block after block, unbroken save where other streets crossing at right angles carry similar burdens with not so much as an insulator hidden by the protecting verdure of the trees. Unquestionably, the only satisfactory way of disposing of these wires is to eventually place them underground. But it would hardly seem feasible or just to the companies operating the sys- tems to compel them to do so without giving due notice and grant- ing reasonable time. The soft subsoil on which Columbia rests, and the absence of heavy frost at any time of the year, would seem to make possible the placing of underground conduits comparatively easy. And yet, to place Columbia's entire system of wires under ground, unless through a short series of years, would entail burdensome, and, we fear, unreasonable expense. It should be undertaken on the principal business and residen- tial streets first, and extended as rapidly as possible over the rest of the city at a specified mileage per annum. Permits for the erec- tion of new lines overhead should not be granted, at least on streets. Should an alley system be adopted, as suggested later, all poles and wires might be removed to it, thus practically ridding the streets of their presence at once, except where the wires crossed from block to block, and giving perhaps more time to finally place 36 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. them underground. This, we believe, would give the greatest satis- faction to all concerned, and open a way to dispose of a vexing problem of vital importance to the immediate and future welfare and appearance of the city. 9. COLUMBIA'S CITY BLOCKS In addition to the wide streets, another unique feature of the existing city plan, differing radically from the plan adopted in most cities, is the system of very large square blocks, measuring 400 feet on each side. In planning the Capitol City of Columbia* it seems that the founders had a totally different conception of its destiny and uses than is warranted in the light of successive events since 1865, which have wrought such complete social and industrial changes throughout the entire South. This original plan contemplated not an industrial city of large population with solidly built-up business blocks, vast manufactur- ing plants and the objective point of trunk railroad lines ; but rather a quiet, dignified center, around which the representatives of the people of the entire state of South Carolina might assemble to deliberate and enact laws, and a fitting place of residence for the state's executive department. It was to be primarily this and in consequence Columbia naturally became a leading social and edu- cational center. These large blocks, each containing nearly four acres, were de- signed for private ownership, estates occupying the entire area or the blocks being divided into two, lour or eight parts, as re- quirements demanded. Thus abundant room was available not only for the landlord's residence of ample dimensions, but for a lawn with its well-ordered arrangement of trees, flowers and shrub- bery. The rear was usually occupied by the kitchen, with its gar- den supplying fresh fruits and vegetables, the buildings in which the slaves and other servants were housed, and finally by the stables, well filled with fine horses and equipages, the whole often surrounded by a high brick wall ensuring privacy. Such an ar- rangement was almost ideal fifty years ago, and would be so today, no doubt, in a city concerned with government and social functions alone, and with a limited population! represented almost entirely ♦Laid out and incorporated in 1787. The Legislature met for the first time in 1789.— South ( 'arolina Resources, page 699. t Columbia's population in 1820 was 4,000 and in 1880 only 10,036, an average gain in 60 years of but 100 souls per year. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 37 by freeholders and their servants. The few fine old estates or gar- dens which remain today even partially intact, should be carefully preserved, for their historic interest and great landscape value. However well the size and shape of the city blocks suited pre- vious conditions, it is very apparent that as the city is now develop- ing they are not only awkward and inconvenient, but inadequately meet the city's growing needs. On their future proper treatment will depend to a marked degree the health, cleanliness and appear- ance of the entire city ; therefore, let us first carefully consider their disadvantages and then see if this unusual size and shape may not be utilized so as to be of real benefit. At present many blocks in the business district on Main street are built up almost solidly on the four frontages, the depth of building around the square averaging probably less than 50 or 60 feet ; but allowing even 75 feet for the average depth of buildings, this leaves an irregular area in the center of the block of 62,500 square feet, or considerably over one-third of the total area ; and it is safe to assume that there are few, if any, blocks in the city that can show even one-half of their surface actually covered with buildings. These areas eventually become totally inaccessible except by narrow private passageways, or through the buildings themselves. It is but natural to find that they are used as dumps, for the stor- age of boxes, barrels, and all sorts of refuse and waste, for decay- ing vegetable matter and garbage of every description, — a constant menace to the health of the city, an ever-increasing danger be- cause of inadequate fire protection and a stench in the nostrils of Columbia's citizens. This condition also makes necessary the re- ceiving of all supplies and the eventual disposal of ashes and gar- bage by way of the front doors, blocking up the sidewalks and impeding street traffic. In the best residential parts of the city the need for relief is not so apparent, the centers of the blocks being occupied to an extent by gardens, though even here household supplies must be received and garbage disposed of by way of the street in front. But a visit to the tenement districts discloses a condition, from a sanitary standpoint, worse, if anything, than in the business blocks. A trip through parts of the section bounded by Assembly, Plain, Gadsden and Pendleton streets, where tenements of every description cover blocks in every conceivable way and with an al- most total lack of regard for sanitation, will convince the observer that not only are such unwieldy blocks a disadvantage if allowed ^~E a~~ "a 1 m 3 C EL .* "o £ U 2 O T3 >, E S S o g E REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 39 to be built over indiscriminately, but that the city should endeavor to improve the general sanitary conditions in such localities as this without delay. We fully believe, however, that if properly treated, the size and shape of Columbia's city blocks may be made one of the most for- tunate and distinctive features of the city's plan. The first step recommended is the establishment of a complete system of alleys or very narrow streets through the centers of the blocks. A map should be prepared on a large scale showing the ownership of each lot and building in the city, with their assessed valuations, and the property affected by either a north and south or east and west sys- tem (generally a north and south system paralleling the principal streets would seem most advisable) or both. These considerations and many others including grades, and the probable lines giving greatest service, must determine a final alley plan. Obviously the alleys should be arranged in continuous lines where possible. The title to such alleys should in all cases rest with the city. The alleys, if twenty to twenty-five feet wide, or even less, would not only serve the purpose above referred to, but could easily carry the wire systems of the city, and have all future sewer- and water- pipes laid in them, thus, to an extent, doing away with the damage to trees and pavements, and the interruption to traffic caused by the consequent tearing up of streets, which is a perpetual nuisance in any city. This system of alleys will undoubtedly increase valuations, and should thus more than pay for its cost in time, outside the unusual benefits it will bestow upon the city. But, even if costly, early action seems imperative, and each day's delay but adds to the difficulty and expense of satisfactorily solving the problem. With alleyways established, a rear entrance is effected to every lot in each block, both in the residence and business districts. A garden for flowers, fruits and vegetables may then occupy the rear of each lot and yet leave ample room to place the house a reason- able distance back from the street. Business blocks may be treated differently, with either a large central court used in common, pos- sibly with a drinking-fountain, or with some formal-garden arrange- ment in the back yard of each quarter section of the block. Thus, not only would congestion of population be effectually checked, and every citizen in every part of the city enjoy abundant breath- ing space and daily contact with "nature outdoors," but the city would truly become a city of trees, gardens and fountains, — an idealized urban community. 40 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. 10. A PARK SYSTEM; INCLUDING SQUARES AND PLAYGROUNDS, HISTORIC, SCENIC AND OTHER RESERVATIONS AND THEIR PROPER USES "Even the costliest municipal edifices, well as they may serve thtir purposes, sooner or later fall into ruin. They begin to deteriorate at the very start, and, though they may remain as architectural monuments for one or two centuries, their duration is as naught in comparison with that of the public pleasure playground, whose beauty increases, whose value augments, as the years go 0)1." Conceding the necessity and importance of a park system for Columbia, the considerations governing the proper planning of such a system may be summed up as follows : 1st. The amount of park area that will adequately satisfy the needs of the present population and anticipate, so far as possible, future growth. 2d. Cost ; the selection of property with a view to its availabil- ity, so that the cost of acquiring, improving and maintaining it properly may be within reasonable limits. 3d. Adaptability. The choice of locations that are best adapted to the various purposes for which the parks will be used, and, further, be conveniently accessible from the different parts of the city. 4th. The relative positions of the different units, with a view to connecting them, so far as practicable, by boulevards or parkways. Taking up the questions in their order, it is not easy to say off- hand, or even by comparison with other cities, what percentage of a city's area should be properly applied to park purposes. Physical conditions and the density and character of population should un- doubtedly have an important bearing in determining this question. A mere comparison of the area devoted to park purposes in dif- ferent cities as related to their population, while interesting, would give little tangible results if considered alone, although it seems certain that the ratio of park area adequate to the needs of a com- munity increases with the growth of population. A majority of cities have confessedly far too little space devoted to park uses. G. A. Parker, the leading authority in America on park sta- tistics, says on this subject : "One-twentieth of the city area should be reserved for parks and squares. A playground 300 feet square, at least, should be al- lowed to every square mile, and in densely populated districts, more than one. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 41 "Four small squares, of at least one-half acre each, should be allowed to the mile, and at the rate of sixty to eighty* acres for every 1,000 acres the city may contain, should be separated out for one or more large scenic parks. In the most dense por- tions of some cities, the proportion of public grounds is over forty per cent. From what light I have, it would seem as if there should be no less than one acre of parks to 200 population." f " Already eighteen cities have more than that." If we use this ratio to illustrate, and accept Columbia's popu- lation as 35,000 within the corporate limits, this would give ap- proximately 175 acres on a population basis, and 125 to 225 acres on an area basis, as the proper amount to set aside for park purposes. If we estimate "greater" Columbia's population at 50,000 and the city limits as extended one mile to the north, east and south, or three times its present area, which would really be the only way these figures would apply to Columbia, if at all, we find 250 acres as the proper amount on a basis of population, and 375 to 675 acres on a basis of area, to be used for parks at the present time. Should Columbia's population increase largely or its ultimate limits be even further extended, the reasonable park area would increase proportionately. In Part III of this report will be found tables, compiled from the statistical department of the United States Department of Commerce and Labor, January i, 1903, giving the park statistics of twenty-one leading southern cities of 28,000 population and over, with similar statistics from a few other American cities. These tables, we believe, will prove of the greatest interest and are not without great value in the present discussion. Columbia's wide streets will not take the place of a park sys- tem, the need of which the city is now feeling with increasing urgency. If a park system is to be had at all, suitably satisfying the requirements not only of the present but of the future, an ade- quate plan must now be made and the land secured without delay. In considering the second question, that of cost, and securing the most available land that may be acquired, improved and main- tained at reasonable expense, it is fortunate to find that property of low assessed valuation, and industrially most unproductive, is * Ten acres in playgrounds and squares and 80 acres in large parks out of each thousand acres equals about one-eleventh of a city's total areas, or 9 per cent. t Lynn, Mass., has one acre of parks to every 28 population ; Los Angeles one acre to 30 popu- lation and many other cities a showing of one acre for less than 100 population. On the Los Angeles basis, Greater Columbia should now have over 1,500 acres in parks. 42 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S C. often the most useful and easily improved and maintained as parts of a park system. Here, also, it is hard to fix a ratio and to say definitely what amount a city should spend to construct and main- tain its parks, reckoning upon a basis of population. Mr. Parker's figures, made after careful investigation, are again worthy of consideration. On the basis of one acre of parks to each 200 population, he says, " If the income for parks per capita is a little over one cent a week, that is sixty cents per year, then such income for 200 people is $120, which is a good average amount for maintaining an acre of parks. Then, also, if the cost of construc- tion is $200 per acre, — and it usually costs that to do thorough work,*— and the amount is raised by sale of bonds, the amount of bonds sold would be $10 per capita, not a burdensome or unusual amount. "The per capita cost for expenses of the city for all purposes is usually from $25 to $40 ; f therefore sixty cents per capita for parks is not excessive, and if this is considered the annual fee for the year's enjoyment, the investment is a safe one, for the land can always be sold for more than it costs. "Besides, the city's parks, if properly located and developed and cared for, always increase the value of all the other property in the city, and the increased value which it creates increases the taxes sufficiently in the end to entirely pay for the first cost of the park and for its annual care. In large cities, parks lessen more often than increase the tax rate, and are, in fact, not only self- supporting, but are a source of property to the city. This has been demonstrated by several cities." It is extremely important that the many different uses of parks be borne in mind continually, not only after construction, when the parks are in daily use, but in selecting locations. Many of our largest and finest American parks are planted almost entirely with the native trees, shrubs and plants collected in their immediate vicinity, thus saving great cost and securing the most permanent results and the best possible natural landscapes.]; * For the South, with its climatic and other advantages, we consider these two last estimates excessive, and in this we are confirmed by Mr. Parker himself. It seems probable that the figures might be reduced one-third or even one-half, and still be safe. t The average per capita cost in the twenty-one largest southern cities is but $15.78 (1903). X " Much of the waste land about our towns is already grown up with native trees and vines. I have been arguing for years that a park in its planting need not be costly. We need to use only the vegetation which is native to Iowa to make our town park as beautiful as any in the land, indeed more beautiful than it can be made in any other way. Our own vegetation, our oaks, our lindens, our hazels, our sumacs, our wild grapes, and creepers did once clothe these hills and banks with summer beauty, and autumn glory, and the plants will make all such locations splen- did again if we but afford them a chance. "Minneapolis did not ask for tree ferns and palm trees to make the parks the pride of the town and of the Mississippi Valley; she has used conditions as she found them, with results we see."— The Present Status of Iowa Parks, Thomas H. MacBRIDE. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 43 Playgrounds should not only be located where the ground is fairly level and suitable for games and gymnasium apparatus, but in the centers of populous districts and in such relation to each other that every child has ready access to one within at least a few blocks of his home. And so with athletic fields, squares, small parks, large scenic parks, historic or forest reservations, each should be selected with a view to its especial fitness to serve a special purpose, bearing in mind convenience and accessibility. "Public grounds should meet the needs of all classes — from the baby who first sees the park in a baby carriage, and progresses to sand gardens, swings, ball grounds, parades, love-making, to the man of affairs, who seeks rest from over-work, and old age, who needs them for relief from the burdens of declining years. Each stage of life takes different things from the parks, and, therefore, they should be so constructed that all ages and conditions can find their needs met at one and the same time, without disturbing each other." Finally, the connecting links of a park system should be care- fully considered and provided for in the original plans. They not only lend dignity and importance to the parks themselves, but sup- ply continuous and charming drives between the parks, and make the parks accessible from all parts of the city by way of beautiful and worthy approaches. No city's parks can truly be called a "system" unless the principal ones at least are so connected. 11. SOUTHERN CONDITIONS As a southern city, if Columbia would seek the ideal, it must be along lines that will truly express the best in southern traditions, accomplishments, and hopes and aims for the future. As it grows, it should, each day, reflect more of that which is most worthy in southern life and character. Its dwellings, public buildings, parks, streets and exterior adornments are the exponents by which its culture, intelligence and enterprise will, in the future, be judged by its own citizens as well as by the outside world. Right principles may and should be freely sought for and adopted, no matter what the source ; but their application should be distinctively southern, and their adaptation such as to best meet the needs of the city's own people. Undoubtedly, these needs will multiply and become more com- plex as the community grows in population and attainments; yet 44 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. we cannot but think that the highest ideals in public as in home life will always be marked by simplicity of expression and entire lack of the display that serves only for mere passing show. Columbia, with its present magnificent opportunities and posi- tion of prominence as capital of the state, may well become the center for all that is highest and best in South Carolina civic art and life, and be the source to which the other cities and towns of the state and their citizens will come for guidance and inspiration. Columbia can reach the highest development by taking advan- tage of its natural opportunities of location. As the city spreads, it should anticipate growth, and thus not only save great cost, but compel development along approved lines. In his report to the New York Improvement Commission on Civic Art in northern Europe, Milo Roy Maltbie says, "The ad- vantage of laying out the street plan in advance of population may also be illustrated by reference to a Brussels suburb. The city officials, noting the steady growth of the town, perceived that in a few years houses would be springing up in this new locality. Re- calling the bad effects of haphazard expansion and the great ex- pense of rearranging streets after a district is built up, they at- tacked the problem in advance, with most excellent results. A beautiful park was laid out with trees, fountains, statuary and floral displays. Diagonal streets with pleasing vistas were provided. Streets of generous width and well adapted to rapid transportation followed. Trees were planted along many of the less important streets as well as the boulevards. A new suburb was thus planned from its inception with comparatively little expense and no incon- venience to the public and according to plans made in advance." The architecture of Columbia's public buildings and business blocks should be carefully considered, so that they may be con- sistent and harmonious, and a pleasing sky-line presented from all parts of the city. "Skyscrapers " have no place in any city outside of a metropolis, where land values are excessive and business and population congested to an extreme degree. High business blocks detract from a city's appearance, and not only damage the street per- spective, but belittle the effect of monumental public buildings. It hardly seems probable that Columbia's business needs will ever require buildings more than six stories in height, and, if this is so, they should be carefully restricted in the future. Southern cities especially should seek to avoid crowding and a congestion of population, and should secure the maximum amount of air and light possible. Tall buildings are not conducive to the best conditions. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 45 The types of architecture should be confined to the best of those usually obtaining in warm latitudes. So with the parks and gardens, they should be essentially southern parks and gardens, in their best expression, and not weak imitations of their northern prototypes, or even direct copies of the Italian or other gardens typical of warm countries. We be- lieve, however, that development along the latter lines will more nearly meet the requirements of the South than strictly natural treatment most common even in city parks in England and America. The larger scenic parks should, of course, have their nat- ural landscapes preserved and accentuated ; but even here it is the southern landscape that is desirable, with its luxuriant growth and soft effects, and harsh treatment is nowhere permissible. The southern park is a problem which still remains to be suc- cessfully worked out, but its bearing on the happiness and well being of the people of the South is so vital that its study cannot be undertaken too quickly or its solving accomplished too soon. Undoubtedly, water should play an important part in the treat- ment, not only of the southern park but of the city itself. Where- ever practicable and in good taste, fountains should be erected at street intersections and in other places in the city. They would en- hance the beauty of the city many fold, cool and purify the atmos- phere, and refresh the citizens through the long summer months. With Columbia's unlimited water-supply, an opportunity pre- sents itself to notably beautify the city and at reasonable cost, for most often a pool and simple jet is the most appropriate and ser- viceable fountain possible of construction. Where set fountains are erected, they should be in good taste and durable, and in no event should cheap iron structures be allowed. It is often the good fortune of a city to be presented with me- morial parks, fountains, statues, and occasionally buildings ; and the donors, having the best interests of the city at heart should be, and usually are, quite willing to have plans submitted for approval by competent authority, so that incongruous structures, out of harmony with the surroundings, may be avoided. In suitable locations public baths should be established to care for the health, comfort and happiness of the rapidly increasing laboring population of the city. Columbia seems to be in urgent need of adequate hospital facilities.* For obvious reasons, a quiet, central location should be * Since writing this, an important addition has been made to the city hospital, at its pre- sent location. 46 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. chosen, especially where the same buildings must serve general and emergency cases. The block bounded by Plain, Henderson, Washington and Barnwell streets, or the block to the west occupied by the Colum- bia Female College, would be admirably adapted for the purpose, both of these blocks facing a proposed park, which would afford convalescents a pleasant outlook. A southern general hospital, it would seem, should be located with especial reference to avoiding tenement districts and localities where continual unpleasant odors exist. As a well-planned and well-ordered residence has its different rooms, each set apart for a distinct use, so a well-planned city should have its manufacturing or industrial, its business and shop- ping, its public service, and the residential districts be kept distinct, the city protecting each district by carefully restricting the erec- tion of buildings that would injure its legitimate use and appearance. The typical mill village, usually on the outskirts of the modern manufacturing city of the South, is perhaps the most distressing and unpleasant feature of the landscape, as viewed from the car- window ; and closer inspection lends little, if any, charm to the view, the small squatty, once white, double tenements stretching at right angles in rigid, disheartening rows, the back yards con- tinuous with no provision for privacy, and often unsanitary in the extreme. Commercialism rarely recognizes any law other than that of dollars ; but it is fortunate that many mill owners throughout the South now realize that a well-ordered, clean village, planned with winding shaded streets that do not violate the contour of every hill and valley, and with schools, playgrounds, gymna- siums and other blessings that make for the moral and physical well-being and happiness of its employees, means better labor, better products, larger out-put, and thereby greater profits ; and many of them are now acting on this knowledge. The people of Columbia should be vitally interested in these mill villages, which must eventually become, and are even now in all but name, an integral part of the city. It is noticeable in many southern cities that curbings are set too shallow and public construction generally is not carried out with a view to the greatest permanency. This is the natural consequence of a mild climate where the ravages of frost do not have to be con- tended with. As a result, however, curbing in time becomes mis- placed, gutters are broken, and uneven sidewalks and leaning walls are sure to result. The best in municipal construction is none too REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 47 good for the South, as well as for other sections of the country, and in the end it is cheapest. We are not altogether in sympathy with the movement that would do away with all walls, fences or hedges around residences. On streets well built up, a uniform lawn area extending from the houses to the sidewalk undoubtedly adds greatly to the park-like effect of the street and to the appearance of the residences them- selves ; as may be seen in such notable examples as Delaware ave- nue, in Buffalo, and parts of Euclid avenue, in Cleveland, which may well be imitated with profit in many cases. Yet the privacy of the home is paramount, and the rear of dwell- ings may with every propriety be protected from public gaze by plantings of shrubbery, hedges, vine-covered fences, or in any way that good taste and the wishes of the owner may dictate. Such screens may often start from the rear or front wall of the house or from a convenient point between. The gardens of the South which satisfied our ancestors, and reflected their character and nobility, should not be replaced by the "new South." Maintain them not only as monuments to the past, but a blessing for the present and inspiration for the future ! Keep the old box hedges, the " Japonicas," crape myrtle, mag- nolias and jasmines, the vine-covered walls ; set them in straight lines and in formal array ; revive the dignified colonial architecture and the charming old-fashioned gardens, letting them still express that unbounded courtesy and hospitality which has made the South's people known and loved everywhere ! 12. THE GENERAL IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA Should Columbia undertake, in the near future, extensive im- provements of any character, it might be seriously hampered at the outset by an inadequate or restrictive city charter. All progressive cities have found it necessary to provide new charters, or many amendments to the old, at certain intervals. In very recent years municipal government in America has been rap- idly and fortunately improving, and far more thought and study is today given to a city's charter than formerly ; for it is found that the fixed provisions of a charter have a most vital bearing on the government of a city and the welfare of its citizens, — more, per- haps, than any other single factor. An analysis of the principles and the result of their application in the most successful city charters, both American and foreign, 48 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. are now in available form for reference ;* and no city at the pres- ent time can afford not to keep up with modern municipal prog- ress and avail itself of all the best that may be applicable to local conditions. The unfortunate arrangement of the railroads which enter and completely encircle the city has already seriously hampered the best development of the streets and certain sections of the city, and stands in the way of much legitimate future development. Tracks occupy many streets and cross others at grade, while two freight and repair yards,f at least, on opposite sides of the city, begrime and disfigure what otherwise would be a continuation of the choic" est residential sections. It is, perhaps, needless to say that these unfortunate conditions might easily have been avoided with foresight, or had there been any influence exerted to properly safeguard the interests of the city. Many of the difficulties are now, no doubt, beyond remedy, except at unwarrantable cost. A lesson for the future may be wisely drawn, however, for the time has come when railroads may not, through corporate greed, arbitrarily and in total disregard of a city's best welfare, enter and despoil its beauty and become a constant and unnecessary menace to the lives and happiness of its citizens, unless, indeed, it be with the consent of the citizens themselves. It would have been wise, and may even yet be feasible, for the Seaboard Air Line to enter the city by paralleling the Southern Railway's tracks, and to combine .passenger stations, to the infi- nitely greater convenience and advantage of the city and of pas- sengers, if not of the railroads themselves. This would seem possible, notwithstanding the great expense already incurred by the Seaboard Air Line in cutting and filling into the city by an ap- parently most unreasonable location, and in building its own pas- senger station. At all events, the railroad problem in Columbia must sooner or later be more reasonably and logically solved than at present, and delay but adds to the complications and makes the best solu- tion more difficult and expensive. A commission of experts should be appointed by the Legislature on which the state, the city and the different railroads are suitably represented, to study and report upon a plan that would simplify ♦See" Municipal Progress." Also the new charter of the city of Grand Rapiils, Michigan, adopted this year U905). t Southern Railway repair shops and freiglt yards at Blanding and Laurel streets, and Sea- board Air Line yards occupying Sidney Park. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 49 the trackage, eliminate grade crossings, and, if possible, arrange for all freight and passenger handling in the southwestern part of the city where already the chief manufacturing industries are located. The many country roads entering Columbia should receive the earnest consideration of the city ; it is evident that all that con- tributes to the improvement of the surrounding country and that aids in building up the outlying districts is, to a greater degree, of benefit to the business interests of the city. Furthermore, these roads, for the most part, pass through regions naturally beautiful, and when improved will become attractive and valuable pleasure drives. The city is fortunate in possessing granite of a fair grade for road-building purposes, and it could be put to no more profit- able use than in macadamizing a certain mileage of these roads annually. But first the roads should be surveyed and good grades established. The street railway lines on residential streets and boulevards should be located in the centers of the streets and their road-beds grassed. This is now a common practice in progressive cities, and takes away much of the always disagreeable appearance of the tracks. Ornamental trolley-poles may also be used with good effect. ° The distribution of all wires using the city's streets or alleys should be reduced to a system and be under the control of a capa- ble administrative officer, with ample legal powers to protect the city's rights and interests. The blocking of existing or future streets with public or private buildings should be carefully guarded against. Science Hall on Sumter street, the City Market on Assembly street and the State Hospital, the latter actually terminating no less than four existing and many more possible streets, are examples. The location of the State Hospital is especially unfortunate, and it is to be hoped that the suggested plan of removing it to a location suitably dis- tant from the city may, in the near future, be realized. South of the city, the Capitol City Mill stands directly in the way of a future extension of Main street. It would seem as if this had happened in utter perversity, for if there is any street which can be directly continued to the south with advantage, it is Main street. Street signs and fixtures, commemorative and memorial tablets, the decoration of the fronts of business houses, the sightly as well as sanitary disposal of garbage, are all problems that bear directly 50 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. on a city's pleasing appearance in just so far as thought and good taste are used in considering them. Columbia is no more free perhaps than are other cities from the curse of advertising signs and the bill- board. It is strange how the average American has come to accept these desecrations almost as a part of nature. In traveling, he finds the entire landscape from station to station apparently owned by these despoilers of nature — the bill-posters who thickly cover with daubs of paint and flaunting posters, all available buildings, fences, trees, rocks and other features. Throughout the city the same disregard is shown for the eternal fitness of things, and scarcely a view may be had in any direction or on any street that is not blotted by the persistent presence of the execrable bill-board. Much can be done to abate this growing and intolerable nuisance, by educating public taste and opinion, and by enacting and enforcing suitable city ordinances and state laws. The record of many municipalities proves that it is an evil that can be successfully fought in many ways. As soon as practicable, the city should establish * a nursery that would supply the proper trees, well grown, for Columbia's streets, to replace those missing or that may need removal, and to plant streets where little or no planting now exists. Columbia needs a modern cemetery, laid out on the "park" plan, and with provision made for perpetual care of lots and with other suitable restrictions. In no other way will a cemetery re- main permanently beautiful and a fit resting-place for the dead. The negro cemetery in its present condition is a disgrace to the city. The city's water-works (land around pumping station, reser- voirs, etc. ) should be parked and planted, and will serve as places of rest and refreshment to people living in the vicinity. In many cities they are often an important part of the park system itself. As the population of a commonweath increases, and as its nat- ural landscape features are encroached upon or even destroyed altogether, its citizens may be induced to take tardy action looking toward the permanent setting aside as state reservations, of nota- ble mountains, fine tracts of virgin forest, waterfalls and other natural scenery. If Columbia realizes its hopes of having the Congaree River made navigable from the southern limits of the city to the sea, an avenue will be opened by which it will be possible to operate pleasure craft for excursions down the river. Fringing the banks * Preferably in charge of a park department or city tree warden. REPORT TO THE CIVIC LEAGUE 51 of the river, at least as far as where its waters join the Wateree below Kingsville, is a magnificent growth of heavily timbered swamp forest almost tropical in luxuriance, and covering many thousands of acres. Undoubtedly, in time, this will disappear before the axe unless steps are taken for its protection, thus saving one of the finest natural features of the state from ruin and the wonderful beauty of the river's banks for the perpetual enjoyment of the people of Columbia and the state. It may be said that these swamp jungles are inaccessible and, therefore, in no danger of destruction,— and this was said of the Adirondacks and the White Mountains at one time,— but if so, no harm can come if the state should make a permanent reservation of a tract along the river banks wide enough to forever keep the wild beauty of the river inviolate. The people of Columbia should take peculiar interest in the es- tablishment of reservations, which will protect the banks of the Congaree River, and should endeaver to bring about a careful investigation to determine the feasibility of such a plan, so that definite action by the state might be made possible. So also with other state and national reservations that may have a bearing on the flow of the waters of the Congaree,* for as this river is one of the largest assets of the city, both commercially and esthetically, everything that may permanently affect it in any way should be a matter of deep concern to its citizens. Investigation shows that real-estate valuations (as assessed) in Columbia are unstable and uneven ; in fact, it appears that there is actually private property within the city limits on which no tax is being paid. Most of the land is assessed for only one-third to one-half its value as held by the owners, and in these ways the city is un- doubtedly losing a considerable annual income. It is difficult under such conditions to give, even approximately* estimates of the cost of acquiring park properties, but should the city condemn certain tracts, and a jury fix the valuations as now assessed, then the cost of a park system to the city would be very moderate. If, however, it were proved that such property was assessed greatly under its true valuation, then a general readjust- ment would be in order, and with its increased income the city could as easily meet the same improvements at larger cost. The only reasonable basis, therefore, on which we can give esti- mates is that of assessed valuations, and this we have done. The * Special reference is made to the proposed National Appalachian Forest Reserve. 52 THE IMPROVEMENT OF COLUMBIA, S. C. city itself can best determine how much these figures should be corrected. We would not give the impression that Columbia may be greatly improved, or such part of these suggestions as may seem good carried out without cost. But this is to a great extent a business proposition, and no business man objects to any cost pro- vided returns are adequate. We believe in this instance that they will be, and abundantly so, even from a purely pecuniary stand- point ; but in much greater measure in the increased health, happi- ness and comfort of every man, woman and child of Columbia. Begin with the most necessary and fundamental improvements. But we would again urge that haphazard work will in the end be most expensive, and that all improvements should be undertaken with a view to an ultimate homogeneous whole, and only after the careful consideration of a definite and comprehensive plan. PART II. THE PLAN OUTLINED 1. 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