Garden & Gun April/May 2020

HISTORY LOVES COMPANY CHARLESTON, SC Glenn Keyes PRESERVING HISTORIC ARCHITECTURE FOR THREE DECADES (AND COUNTING) In 1986, architect Glenn Keyes opened his preservation-focused practice, Glenn Keyes Architects, in Charleston, South Carolina. Since then, Keyes and his team have been behind the preservation of some of the city’s most iconic buildings, from the Charleston City Market to the Nathaniel-Russell House. Today even the skyline bears evidence of his work. What sets Charleston apart from other historic cities? Charleston feels as much like a European city as it gets in America, in large part due to the historic district—it’s the oldest established district in the country. Members of the community have been actively engaged in preservation since the 1920s, and that engagement is only growing with time. Efforts were originally focused on…

EDITOR’S LETTER Southern Original LESSONS FROM A PIONEERING WILD SPIRIT—AND AN ISSUE DEDICATED TO THOSE PUSHING THE SOUTH FORWARD DAVID DIBENEDETTO Senior Vice President & Editor in Chief Spend time in South Carolina’s Santee Delta with Phil Wilkinson, and you begin to wonder if his blood runs brown like the Santee River itself. A renowned wildlife biologist, Wilkinson, eighty-six, is a product of place, shaped not only by the elemental forces that combine to create the largest river delta on the Eastern Seaboard, located just north of Charleston, but also by that region’s people. PHOTOGRAPH BY MARGARET HOUSTON Jacqueline Stofsick (book) Wilkinson’s first outdoor mentor was an elderly African American man he called Daddy Ben, who gave him his first coonhound and entrusted the young boy with a lifetime of…

A Wildly Good Book Wading deeper into the Santee Delta If Phil Wilkinson and the Santee are topics you’d like to explore further, I highly recommend Seven Days on the Santee Delta (Evening Post Books, $60). Coauthored by John Lane, the recently released book, framed as seven separate adventures through the Delta, follows Wilkinson as he visits places that shaped him and his career. A talented photographer, Wilkinson also contributes a wealth of images he’s taken along the way. It’s the next best thing to roaming around the Delta with the biologist himself.…

CONTRIBUTORS Jon Meacham WRITER After growing up along Missionary Ridge in Chattanooga and passing his college days on the Cumberland Plateau at the University of the South, Jon Meacham spent two decades as a writer and editor in Washington, D.C., and New York City. But like many Southerners, he felt the pull of home. Now based in Nashville, the Pulitzer Prize–winning author has written seven books spanning presidential profiles, the religious faith of the founding fathers, and the ways music has played a role in American history. For “Southern Stand” (p. 36), he returns to a topic close to his heart: the future of the South. “I write about the South for the same reason I respire,” he says. “It’s innate and essential.” Alice Gao PHOTOGRAPHER “I write about the…

LETTERS “I google ‘ Garden & Gun’ and a town name. Best tour guide around” CHARLESTON’S CHOPS I have been a subscriber ever since I purloined a copy from my doctor’s office many years ago. I was delighted to see your issue on Charleston (February/March 2020) because I have been wanting to jump in the convertible with my wife and come down for a nice long weekend. Your issue will be my guide. Lou Hiers Alpharetta, Georgia Your last issue makes me proud to live in Charleston. I love the heirloom silver at Croghan’s Jewel Box; my personal favorite, the Lowcountry hash browns at Marina Variety Store Restaurant; and even the stiff drinks at Salty Mike’s. Robin Smith Charleston, South Carolina COVER CANINE Dear Human: Thank you…

Social Chatter GARDENANDGUN.COM AND BEYOND WE ASKED... Who Newt? A recent gardenandgun.com report on a newly discovered species, the Hickory Nut Gorge green salamander, in Western North Carolina, has people talking about amphibians—and the hope they bring for the future of Southern wildlife. Humans think we’ve seen it all when really, we haven’t even scratched the surface. David Nye Check out those amazing colors! @pickersue_ We see salamanders frequently at our North Carolina home. We’ll have to be on the lookout for this cute fella. @gryphonestate silver Do not care to meet it face-to-face. Lynn Hawkins When I was a little girl, I would go down to the branch and dig up salamanders all the time. Brought back so many memories of our old homeplace. @_alexisjackson Love when a new…