August 25, 2025 • 24 mins
Elizabeth V. Chew, CEO, South Carolina Historical Society
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
iHeartMedia presents CEOs you Should Know. Welcome to CEOs you
Should Know. Joining us today is Elizabeth vqu CEO of
the South Carolina Historical Society. Elizabeth's a historian, curator, and educator.
She's worked for museums and historic sites for over thirty years.
Prior to arriving in Charleston, she served as executive vice
(00:21):
president and chief curator at James Madison's Mount Peelier in Orange,
Virginia and his curator Thomas Jefferson's Monticello in Charlottesville. An
art historian, she's worked in curatorial positions at the Phillips
Collection and National Gallery of Art and the Smithsonian American
Art Museum in Washington, d C. And Reynald Thomas Museum
(00:43):
of American Art in Winston Salem, North Carolina. Elizabeth received
a BA from Yale University, an MA from the University
of London, and a PhD from UNC Chapel Hill. Welcome
Elizabeth cho, Thank you so much. Thanks for having me start.
Can you please give us some history on the historical Society?
Speaker 2 (01:04):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
The South Carolina Historical Society was founded in eighteen fifty five,
so we're in one of those old South Carolina Institutions.
We are both an archive and a museum. So we
have a very important collection of all kinds of materials
(01:28):
going back to the very beginning of the South Carolina
Colony actually and coming up to the present day. So
we have the records, correspondents, ledger books, plantation records of
any family in South Carolina that you can possibly think of.
Speaker 2 (01:48):
We have business.
Speaker 3 (01:50):
Records, we have the records of organizations, we have law
firm records, we have architects records. We are a wonderful
recon source for historians, just for anybody in the public
who wants to do research, and for genealogists. And then
in our headquarters in the beautiful fireproof building on Meeting
(02:14):
Street and Chalmers Street, we have a wonderful museum of
the history of the state of South Carolina and we
are the only museum in Charleston that covers the entire state.
We have programs throughout the year of all kinds, and
we publish two publications. We published the South Carolina Historical Magazine,
(02:36):
which started in nineteen hundred, and then we publish a
more kind of general interest magazine called The.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Cara Log And that's kind of a general interest history magazine, right,
that's right, and those publications come out what twice.
Speaker 3 (02:51):
A year, Well, the magazine comes out four times a
year and the caralog comes out twice a year, and
by being a supporter of the organization, you receive those publications.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
Now you're at one hundred Meeting Street, that's where the
museum is downtown. That's right, yes, And you have several
exhibits on display right now. Explain to us which exhibits
are on display.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Are So we have a permanent exhibition that goes back
to the founding of the South Carolina Colony in the
late sixteen hundreds, and we have material on the development
of the colony, the American Revolution, the settlement of the upcountry,
(03:36):
the Civil War, you know, post Civil War, and we
have a very rich collection of the Charleston Renaissance era.
So that's all in the exhibition. And then we have
another gallery where we do changing exhibitions, and we are
getting ready to open in early September an exhibit called
(03:59):
Voices of Revolution in South Carolina that will be part
of commemorating the two hundred and fifty feth anniversary of
the Revolution. And we'll talk about how the Revolution really
impacted everybody who lived in South Carolina at the time.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
Well, this state is so rich in history, one of
the thirteen original colonies, and you've lived and worked in
different historical places around the country. What was the most
surprising thing that you found out that you didn't know
about South Carolina.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
Well, I will admit that, even though I grew up
in Augusta, Georgia, I had never heard of the Battle
of Sullivan's Island, which, as I'm sure everybody listening knows,
took place on June twenty eighth, seventeen seventy six, when
South Carolina forces from a pal meadow log and sand
(04:53):
fort on Sullivan's Island fought off the mighty British Army
and the British Navy. I think that is the most
amazing fact, and that it happened right as the Declaration
of Independence was being adopted and signed, and that it
was just a great initial victory for the American patriots.
(05:15):
And I think everybody should know about this, everybody in
the country, and hopefully with the two fiftieth happening starting
next year, the nation will hear about it.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
Maybe Mel Gibson needs to make a movie about.
Speaker 3 (05:29):
It one percent somebody does.
Speaker 1 (05:32):
Yeah, well, I mean, you know, he made the swamp
Fots Francis Marion known nationwide, and maybe he can do
the same thing for the Battle of Sullivan's Island in
it Lily. And it's just such a rich place of history.
Like I said, it's amazing to me that, you know,
driving into work and out of work every day, driving
across the Revenol Bridge, you can see where the Civil
(05:53):
War started.
Speaker 3 (05:54):
Absolutely, and I say all the time, South Carolina history
is America and history, and I think that, I think,
truly more than any other state in the Union, the
trajectory of South Carolina just impacted the story of the country.
So many things happened here, either first or kind of definitively.
(06:17):
South Carolinians have never been afraid to stand up and
say no way and to work for change. And this
is why I wanted to come down here and be
part of it.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
Now you mentioned two fifty. What are some of the
big celebrations or exhibits or things that we should know
about during the two fifty celebration.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
Sure, well, I think most every museum and an organization
in Charleston will have some kind of exhibit or programming.
And then there is a local steering committee that is
organizing large celebrations that will happen next year, both on
(06:58):
Carolina Day, the twenty eighth, the anniversary of the Battle
of Sullivan's Island, and then just a few days later
July fourth, So everyone should pay attention to what's going
to be going on. There'll be a lot of things
happening down on the waterfront, kind of a festival atmosphere,
drone shows, fireworks, sort of displays in Marion Square, and
(07:22):
just a lot of things for both local people and
tourists to do.
Speaker 1 (07:27):
And if people want to keep up, they can always
go to your website.
Speaker 3 (07:30):
Correct, They can go to the website of the SC
two fiftieth Commission, which is a state, a state wide
commission that's really looking over the organization of everything I see.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Another thing we didn't mention was the Historical Society also
has a podcast, don't they, The Vault.
Speaker 3 (07:50):
We have a fantastic podcast called from the Vault as
you as you said, that's hosted by my colleague Sidney Derek,
one of our librarians, and the idea of the podcast
is to bring documents out of our archive and you know,
I bet a lot of people think that archives are.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
Just full of dusty, old, boring stuff.
Speaker 3 (08:14):
But I'm telling you, archives, as it is said, are
the rough draft of history, and the coolest stories come
out of I mean, every historical story comes out of
an archive. So, for example, one of the things we
have in our archive, and I think that this is
absolutely amazing, is a regiment order book kept by the
(08:40):
fourth the fourth South Carolina Militia that are the fourth
South Carolina Regiment. This regiment fought in the Battle of
Sulomon's Island and in this regiment order book is our
first hand witnesses people who were there in the battle
(09:00):
wrote about it, either while it was going on or
just shortly thereafter. So one of the things we did
in our podcast was my colleague Sydney kind of went
through it and did several episodes about it where she
can really just pull out of these handwritten pages written
in seventeen seventy six and talk about the exciting story
(09:24):
in the words of someone who was there.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
That's just amazing.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
Yeah, look it up schistory dot org.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
Perfect. It's called from the Vault. From the Vault And
speaking of the archives, now, do you have to pay
a visit to the Historical Society in order to access
the archives or have they been digitized and you can
do that online.
Speaker 3 (09:43):
That is a great question. So our archives used to
be housed in the Fireproof Building, but for about ten
years now they have been located in Addlestone Library on
Calhoun Street at Coming at the College of Charleston, and
there are archives our staff works there, but the college
(10:07):
just very very generously houses us in Addlestone Library, and
anybody with any kind of question can go there. You
can make an appointment, but you don't have to. You
can just drop in and our incredible team will assist
you and whatever your research question is. But some things
(10:32):
are digitized and are available on the Low Country Digital Library,
and so you can go there. And in fact, one
of the things that is digitized is that Fourth Regiment
Order book that I was just talking about with the
first hand account of the Battle of Sullivan's Island, and
a lot of other things are there as well, and
we're working continually to put more things up there.
Speaker 1 (10:55):
And if somebody is doing some research and they can
find necessarily what they're looking for online, they can always
make an appointment or to show up, like you said,
at the Addleston Library. Absolutely college at Charleston. And see
you know what the staff can dig up for them.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
Right, anybody with a just a family genealogy question up
to somebody writing a book.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
Everyone is welcome.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
Well, we call the show CEOs. You should know, so
we like to find out more about the organization, but
also about you as an individual. Where did you grow up, Elizabeth? So?
Speaker 3 (11:28):
I grew up in Augusta, Georgia, So I, you know,
on the Savannah River right next to right next to
South Carolina. And I went to college at Yale in Connecticut.
And if you had told me when I was eighteen
that I would live in the South, I wouldn't never
have believed it. But I I know now that I
(11:55):
believe the South is by far the most interesting part
of the country, and it's where I want to be.
So I after college, I worked in art museums in Washington,
D C. And because I'm actually an art historian by training,
so I first worked in art museums and I realized
that I was really interested in how works of art,
(12:19):
but all kinds of other stuff too, whether it's furniture
or you know, a stuffed elkhead or scientific instruments or whatever,
how those things work in a house with all kinds
of people around it. And so I ended up going
to work at Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, which was an incredibly
(12:40):
fascinating place to think about all that kind of stuff.
I mean, Jefferson had a wide array of belongings. We
had to, you know, put them all in the house
in a way that makes sense so that visitors can
come and take tours. And so I've that got me
more interested in history organizations. And so I worked at
James Madison's plantation Mott Peelier, and I was recruited to
(13:05):
come here and I started here in January of twenty
twenty four. So I've only been here about a year
and a half. I've been coming to Charleston my whole
life to vacation and visit friends, but I've never lived here.
But I absolutely love it and I'm thrilled to be here.
Speaker 1 (13:22):
Well, sure, it's really only a stone to throw away
from where you grew.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
Up, exactly.
Speaker 3 (13:26):
I haven't been this close to home since I left
to go to college a long time ago.
Speaker 1 (13:31):
So when you left and went to college, and was
it a culture. Shock.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
Well not really, because I was very lucky in that
my family had traveled a lot, and I was really
fascinated by New England, I think because of the history there,
and you know, when you're growing up, you always think
that somewhere else is more interesting than where you are,
So so I had this, I just had this fascination
with going to New England, and I you know, I mean,
(13:57):
American history is everywhere, So of course the history of
you know, Colonial America, the American Revolution is all there
in the north, but obviously the stories of the South
are incredibly important to absolutely.
Speaker 1 (14:13):
So tell us about your family, what about your mom
and dad?
Speaker 3 (14:16):
What you do. So my father was a professor of
medicine at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta. My
mom was a kindergarten teacher. I have in My father
is deceased, my mother is ninety years old and doing great.
I have a younger sister who lives in Richmond, Virginia,
and a younger brother who lives in Augusta. And I
(14:39):
have a son who's twenty three years old. And I
am recently divorced after a long, a thirty year marriage.
But I'm very good friends with my ex husband, so
it's all very amicable.
Speaker 1 (14:52):
Growing up. What kind of household was it? Was it?
You know, was it very regimented or you know? And
I because it kind of it kind of gives you
an insight into the individual. Sure, was it regimented or
were you free to explore or Yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:08):
So my father's I said, was a medical school professor,
and so he was a scientist. But he the thing
that he was the most proud of was that his
children all studied the humanities, and he also loved history.
So we, as I said, we traveled all the time.
When I was in the fourth grade, he did a
(15:30):
sabbatical and we lived in London for a year, and
I think that's what really opened my eyes to museums
and history and being interested in wanting to visit, you know,
other places all over the world really, and so our
household was he really encouraged curiosity, and I think that
was one of the most important lessons that he gave me.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
And what about your mom? Was she interested in history also?
Speaker 2 (15:57):
Or absolutely?
Speaker 3 (15:59):
My mom is still is a huge reader, and so
she would take us to the library regularly. We all
grew up loving to read, and I think through that
we also got interested in history as well.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
Now, who was the this is kind of a loaded question.
Who is the biggest influence on your leadership?
Speaker 2 (16:20):
Wow? I so ill I have been extreme. It's very interesting.
Speaker 3 (16:26):
I've been really lucky in my career to have very
strong female role models. In my very long time in
the field, I have literally only had two male bosses,
and those were both for a very short time. So
I really value women, who you know, and when I
(16:47):
was growing up, I it wasn't entirely you know, the
way it is now where women are.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
Leaders everywhere. So I saw that it was possible.
Speaker 3 (16:56):
For women to lead, you know, in the field, and
that was just very inspiring to me. And they also
I had wonderful mentors and bosses who gave me a
lot of opportunity.
Speaker 1 (17:09):
I mean, it's so important to have mentors in somebody
that actually cares about helping you and doesn't look at
you as the competition.
Speaker 3 (17:17):
That is exactly right, and who will nurture what they
see in you and help you realize what your strengths are,
what your gifts are, what you're really good at, and
sort of you know, push you in that direction. And
I try to do that myself now as a leader
and supervisor.
Speaker 1 (17:34):
Yeah, well, what's the philosophy that drives you each day?
If you could, if you could pare it down into
a simple sentence or two.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
Sure, I've done. You know, there's a bunch of like
leadership quizzes and tests you can do, and I've done
some of them. And one of the words that came
out of one is that I am a maximizer and
that I really like to you know, understand what makes
(18:02):
the people that I work with tick and to kind
of help them, you know, as my mentors did for me.
See what they're good at, see what they see what
they're capable of doing. And I have always worked with
people younger than I am, which I think is incredibly important,
you know, so that I don't become a relic myself.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
But I've always I've never been afraid.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
To put younger people in positions of you know, leadership
themselves and to you know, to kind of to not
you know, to not I mean, I trust younger people
to get get work done and to know to achieve
things maybe they didn't know that they could. And I've
heard time and again from my younger colleagues how much
(18:51):
they appreciate this.
Speaker 1 (18:53):
I find that very interesting that you say that, because
if I look back on my career, when I first started,
I was always the youngest person, and I think that
that helped me grow and because I didn't want to
be embarrassed in front of these more seasoned people, and
I wanted to prove myself and that I could hang
with them and perform right along with them. So it
(19:15):
was a challenge and I think that helped me. And
then now on the other end of that, I feel
the same way about young people is I don't want
to become a relic, and they they keep me grounded
and they keep me in tune with what's going on currently.
Speaker 3 (19:30):
It is so important I mean with technology for one thing,
but really just sort of with you know, the zeitgeist
in the world, and so keeping up with social media
is obviously critically important because that's how people get information now.
Speaker 1 (19:44):
Absolutely, I mean they can teach you so many things
and even you know my kids and I'm sure you
experienced the same thing and they're like, hey Dad, hey mom,
here's how this works.
Speaker 3 (19:55):
Absolutely, it's like having your in house IT department exactly.
Speaker 1 (20:02):
And sometimes but you have to put up with the
teasing because they're like, come on, now, you don't know,
and you're like, hey man, give an old man at break.
Speaker 2 (20:09):
You get the major eye roll.
Speaker 1 (20:10):
Yeah, yeah, exactly. So what do you do when you're
not working, Elizabeth?
Speaker 3 (20:15):
Well, I love to walk on the Revenel Bridge because
I live kind of near there.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
That's really fun.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
I will never exhaust the historic sites and museums, you know,
in South Carolina, but also all over I love to travel.
I read a lot. I don't watch TV for news.
I get all my news basically they are reading, which
(20:44):
might be old fashioned, but I like it. And I'm
there's so much to do in Charleston, and I never
ever get tired of walking around Charleston.
Speaker 1 (20:54):
Now, if somebody is sparked by this conversation and they say,
you know, I've had an interest in history, but they
feel maybe overwhelmed. They don't know where to start, you know,
they don't know what direction to take or even maybe
what kind of history they're interested in. Where do you
suggest that they start on their journey.
Speaker 2 (21:14):
That's a really good question.
Speaker 3 (21:16):
Well, there's so many things you can do with history,
which of course nobody believes. I mean, you know, you
can be a historian, but you can also be an archivist,
a librarian.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
Someone who works in a museum or historic site.
Speaker 3 (21:34):
And I think studying history is just a great way
to train your mind, in your brain for doing anything
at all in the future. But for someone who really
does want to think about studying history and making it
a career, I would recommend that they actually look around
(21:54):
and see, you know, see what's available, and then don't
be afraid to ask people if they can just come
and talk to them.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
Professionals love to.
Speaker 3 (22:06):
Talk about themselves and their careers, and I think, you know,
they most people are happy to talk to a younger
person who's interested in whatever feel they're in and to
you know, to you know, to tell them how they
got where they are, et cetera. So I think, you know,
talking to people in the field, going to museums and
(22:26):
historic sites and seeing what, you know, what they're all about.
If they're interested in being a professor. You know, talk
to your own professors in your you know, school or college,
and you know, if you want to be a librarian
or archivist, they're wonderful programs for that.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
And you know, email me, well that's a that's well,
that's a wonderful offer. I actually don't have too many
people say that.
Speaker 2 (22:55):
Oh, I'm happy to help you.
Speaker 1 (22:57):
Want to give you your email address.
Speaker 3 (22:58):
Sure, it's my first name, Elizabeth dot my last name
q C. Chw at SCHS online dot org. So Elizabeth
Dot you at SCHS online dot org.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
Well, that's a wonderful offer. And uh, you know, and
it's great that you're willing to do that, and it's
very charitable of you.
Speaker 2 (23:23):
Sure, it's my pleasure.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
And believe it or not, we are out of time. Wow,
it goes click, it does. It goes a lot faster
than most people think, and especially when you're talking about
something so interesting is you know, the history of our country,
the history of South Carolina, the history of Charleston. And
once again, you need to check out all of the
great resources that the South Carolina Historical Society has to offer,
(23:50):
and you can go to their website to find out
more and kind of point you in the right direction
for all of that.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
Schistory dot org.
Speaker 1 (23:58):
Perfect a schistory dot org. And Elizabeth, thank you so
much for being a guest and taking the time to
talk to us today.
Speaker 2 (24:07):
It's been a great pleasure. Thank you.
Speaker 1 (24:09):
Elizabeth VQ, CEO South Carolina Historical Society. Thank you very much,
Thank you you've been listening to Iheartradios. CEOs you should know,
heard every Tuesday and Saturday morning right here on this
iHeartRadio station.
iHeartMedia presents CEOs you Should Know. Welcome to CEOs you
Should Know. Joining us today is Elizabeth vqu CEO of
the South Carolina Historical Society. Elizabeth's a historian, curator, and educator.
She's worked for museums and historic sites for over thirty years.
Prior to arriving in Charleston, she served as executive vice
(00:21):
president and chief curator at James Madison's Mount Peelier in Orange,
Virginia and his curator Thomas Jefferson's Monticello in Charlottesville. An
art historian, she's worked in curatorial positions at the Phillips
Collection and National Gallery of Art and the Smithsonian American
Art Museum in Washington, d C. And Reynald Thomas Museum
(00:43):
of American Art in Winston Salem, North Carolina. Elizabeth received
a BA from Yale University, an MA from the University
of London, and a PhD from UNC Chapel Hill. Welcome
Elizabeth cho, Thank you so much. Thanks for having me start.
Can you please give us some history on the historical Society?
Speaker 2 (01:04):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
The South Carolina Historical Society was founded in eighteen fifty five,
so we're in one of those old South Carolina Institutions.
We are both an archive and a museum. So we
have a very important collection of all kinds of materials
(01:28):
going back to the very beginning of the South Carolina
Colony actually and coming up to the present day. So
we have the records, correspondents, ledger books, plantation records of
any family in South Carolina that you can possibly think of.
Speaker 2 (01:48):
We have business.
Speaker 3 (01:50):
Records, we have the records of organizations, we have law
firm records, we have architects records. We are a wonderful
recon source for historians, just for anybody in the public
who wants to do research, and for genealogists. And then
in our headquarters in the beautiful fireproof building on Meeting
(02:14):
Street and Chalmers Street, we have a wonderful museum of
the history of the state of South Carolina and we
are the only museum in Charleston that covers the entire state.
We have programs throughout the year of all kinds, and
we publish two publications. We published the South Carolina Historical Magazine,
(02:36):
which started in nineteen hundred, and then we publish a
more kind of general interest magazine called The.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Cara Log And that's kind of a general interest history magazine, right,
that's right, and those publications come out what twice.
Speaker 3 (02:51):
A year, Well, the magazine comes out four times a
year and the caralog comes out twice a year, and
by being a supporter of the organization, you receive those publications.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
Now you're at one hundred Meeting Street, that's where the
museum is downtown. That's right, yes, And you have several
exhibits on display right now. Explain to us which exhibits
are on display.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Are So we have a permanent exhibition that goes back
to the founding of the South Carolina Colony in the
late sixteen hundreds, and we have material on the development
of the colony, the American Revolution, the settlement of the upcountry,
(03:36):
the Civil War, you know, post Civil War, and we
have a very rich collection of the Charleston Renaissance era.
So that's all in the exhibition. And then we have
another gallery where we do changing exhibitions, and we are
getting ready to open in early September an exhibit called
(03:59):
Voices of Revolution in South Carolina that will be part
of commemorating the two hundred and fifty feth anniversary of
the Revolution. And we'll talk about how the Revolution really
impacted everybody who lived in South Carolina at the time.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
Well, this state is so rich in history, one of
the thirteen original colonies, and you've lived and worked in
different historical places around the country. What was the most
surprising thing that you found out that you didn't know
about South Carolina.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
Well, I will admit that, even though I grew up
in Augusta, Georgia, I had never heard of the Battle
of Sullivan's Island, which, as I'm sure everybody listening knows,
took place on June twenty eighth, seventeen seventy six, when
South Carolina forces from a pal meadow log and sand
(04:53):
fort on Sullivan's Island fought off the mighty British Army
and the British Navy. I think that is the most
amazing fact, and that it happened right as the Declaration
of Independence was being adopted and signed, and that it
was just a great initial victory for the American patriots.
(05:15):
And I think everybody should know about this, everybody in
the country, and hopefully with the two fiftieth happening starting
next year, the nation will hear about it.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
Maybe Mel Gibson needs to make a movie about.
Speaker 3 (05:29):
It one percent somebody does.
Speaker 1 (05:32):
Yeah, well, I mean, you know, he made the swamp
Fots Francis Marion known nationwide, and maybe he can do
the same thing for the Battle of Sullivan's Island in
it Lily. And it's just such a rich place of history.
Like I said, it's amazing to me that, you know,
driving into work and out of work every day, driving
across the Revenol Bridge, you can see where the Civil
(05:53):
War started.
Speaker 3 (05:54):
Absolutely, and I say all the time, South Carolina history
is America and history, and I think that, I think,
truly more than any other state in the Union, the
trajectory of South Carolina just impacted the story of the country.
So many things happened here, either first or kind of definitively.
(06:17):
South Carolinians have never been afraid to stand up and
say no way and to work for change. And this
is why I wanted to come down here and be
part of it.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
Now you mentioned two fifty. What are some of the
big celebrations or exhibits or things that we should know
about during the two fifty celebration.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
Sure, well, I think most every museum and an organization
in Charleston will have some kind of exhibit or programming.
And then there is a local steering committee that is
organizing large celebrations that will happen next year, both on
(06:58):
Carolina Day, the twenty eighth, the anniversary of the Battle
of Sullivan's Island, and then just a few days later
July fourth, So everyone should pay attention to what's going
to be going on. There'll be a lot of things
happening down on the waterfront, kind of a festival atmosphere,
drone shows, fireworks, sort of displays in Marion Square, and
(07:22):
just a lot of things for both local people and
tourists to do.
Speaker 1 (07:27):
And if people want to keep up, they can always
go to your website.
Speaker 3 (07:30):
Correct, They can go to the website of the SC
two fiftieth Commission, which is a state, a state wide
commission that's really looking over the organization of everything I see.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Another thing we didn't mention was the Historical Society also
has a podcast, don't they, The Vault.
Speaker 3 (07:50):
We have a fantastic podcast called from the Vault as
you as you said, that's hosted by my colleague Sidney Derek,
one of our librarians, and the idea of the podcast
is to bring documents out of our archive and you know,
I bet a lot of people think that archives are.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
Just full of dusty, old, boring stuff.
Speaker 3 (08:14):
But I'm telling you, archives, as it is said, are
the rough draft of history, and the coolest stories come
out of I mean, every historical story comes out of
an archive. So, for example, one of the things we
have in our archive, and I think that this is
absolutely amazing, is a regiment order book kept by the
(08:40):
fourth the fourth South Carolina Militia that are the fourth
South Carolina Regiment. This regiment fought in the Battle of
Sulomon's Island and in this regiment order book is our
first hand witnesses people who were there in the battle
(09:00):
wrote about it, either while it was going on or
just shortly thereafter. So one of the things we did
in our podcast was my colleague Sydney kind of went
through it and did several episodes about it where she
can really just pull out of these handwritten pages written
in seventeen seventy six and talk about the exciting story
(09:24):
in the words of someone who was there.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
That's just amazing.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
Yeah, look it up schistory dot org.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
Perfect. It's called from the Vault. From the Vault And
speaking of the archives, now, do you have to pay
a visit to the Historical Society in order to access
the archives or have they been digitized and you can
do that online.
Speaker 3 (09:43):
That is a great question. So our archives used to
be housed in the Fireproof Building, but for about ten
years now they have been located in Addlestone Library on
Calhoun Street at Coming at the College of Charleston, and
there are archives our staff works there, but the college
(10:07):
just very very generously houses us in Addlestone Library, and
anybody with any kind of question can go there. You
can make an appointment, but you don't have to. You
can just drop in and our incredible team will assist
you and whatever your research question is. But some things
(10:32):
are digitized and are available on the Low Country Digital Library,
and so you can go there. And in fact, one
of the things that is digitized is that Fourth Regiment
Order book that I was just talking about with the
first hand account of the Battle of Sullivan's Island, and
a lot of other things are there as well, and
we're working continually to put more things up there.
Speaker 1 (10:55):
And if somebody is doing some research and they can
find necessarily what they're looking for online, they can always
make an appointment or to show up, like you said,
at the Addleston Library. Absolutely college at Charleston. And see
you know what the staff can dig up for them.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
Right, anybody with a just a family genealogy question up
to somebody writing a book.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
Everyone is welcome.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
Well, we call the show CEOs. You should know, so
we like to find out more about the organization, but
also about you as an individual. Where did you grow up, Elizabeth? So?
Speaker 3 (11:28):
I grew up in Augusta, Georgia, So I, you know,
on the Savannah River right next to right next to
South Carolina. And I went to college at Yale in Connecticut.
And if you had told me when I was eighteen
that I would live in the South, I wouldn't never
have believed it. But I I know now that I
(11:55):
believe the South is by far the most interesting part
of the country, and it's where I want to be.
So I after college, I worked in art museums in Washington,
D C. And because I'm actually an art historian by training,
so I first worked in art museums and I realized
that I was really interested in how works of art,
(12:19):
but all kinds of other stuff too, whether it's furniture
or you know, a stuffed elkhead or scientific instruments or whatever,
how those things work in a house with all kinds
of people around it. And so I ended up going
to work at Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, which was an incredibly
(12:40):
fascinating place to think about all that kind of stuff.
I mean, Jefferson had a wide array of belongings. We
had to, you know, put them all in the house
in a way that makes sense so that visitors can
come and take tours. And so I've that got me
more interested in history organizations. And so I worked at
James Madison's plantation Mott Peelier, and I was recruited to
(13:05):
come here and I started here in January of twenty
twenty four. So I've only been here about a year
and a half. I've been coming to Charleston my whole
life to vacation and visit friends, but I've never lived here.
But I absolutely love it and I'm thrilled to be here.
Speaker 1 (13:22):
Well, sure, it's really only a stone to throw away
from where you grew.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
Up, exactly.
Speaker 3 (13:26):
I haven't been this close to home since I left
to go to college a long time ago.
Speaker 1 (13:31):
So when you left and went to college, and was
it a culture. Shock.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
Well not really, because I was very lucky in that
my family had traveled a lot, and I was really
fascinated by New England, I think because of the history there,
and you know, when you're growing up, you always think
that somewhere else is more interesting than where you are,
So so I had this, I just had this fascination
with going to New England, and I you know, I mean,
(13:57):
American history is everywhere, So of course the history of
you know, Colonial America, the American Revolution is all there
in the north, but obviously the stories of the South
are incredibly important to absolutely.
Speaker 1 (14:13):
So tell us about your family, what about your mom
and dad?
Speaker 3 (14:16):
What you do. So my father was a professor of
medicine at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta. My
mom was a kindergarten teacher. I have in My father
is deceased, my mother is ninety years old and doing great.
I have a younger sister who lives in Richmond, Virginia,
and a younger brother who lives in Augusta. And I
(14:39):
have a son who's twenty three years old. And I
am recently divorced after a long, a thirty year marriage.
But I'm very good friends with my ex husband, so
it's all very amicable.
Speaker 1 (14:52):
Growing up. What kind of household was it? Was it?
You know, was it very regimented or you know? And
I because it kind of it kind of gives you
an insight into the individual. Sure, was it regimented or
were you free to explore or Yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:08):
So my father's I said, was a medical school professor,
and so he was a scientist. But he the thing
that he was the most proud of was that his
children all studied the humanities, and he also loved history.
So we, as I said, we traveled all the time.
When I was in the fourth grade, he did a
(15:30):
sabbatical and we lived in London for a year, and
I think that's what really opened my eyes to museums
and history and being interested in wanting to visit, you know,
other places all over the world really, and so our
household was he really encouraged curiosity, and I think that
was one of the most important lessons that he gave me.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
And what about your mom? Was she interested in history also?
Speaker 2 (15:57):
Or absolutely?
Speaker 3 (15:59):
My mom is still is a huge reader, and so
she would take us to the library regularly. We all
grew up loving to read, and I think through that
we also got interested in history as well.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
Now, who was the this is kind of a loaded question.
Who is the biggest influence on your leadership?
Speaker 2 (16:20):
Wow? I so ill I have been extreme. It's very interesting.
Speaker 3 (16:26):
I've been really lucky in my career to have very
strong female role models. In my very long time in
the field, I have literally only had two male bosses,
and those were both for a very short time. So
I really value women, who you know, and when I
(16:47):
was growing up, I it wasn't entirely you know, the
way it is now where women are.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
Leaders everywhere. So I saw that it was possible.
Speaker 3 (16:56):
For women to lead, you know, in the field, and
that was just very inspiring to me. And they also
I had wonderful mentors and bosses who gave me a
lot of opportunity.
Speaker 1 (17:09):
I mean, it's so important to have mentors in somebody
that actually cares about helping you and doesn't look at
you as the competition.
Speaker 3 (17:17):
That is exactly right, and who will nurture what they
see in you and help you realize what your strengths are,
what your gifts are, what you're really good at, and
sort of you know, push you in that direction. And
I try to do that myself now as a leader
and supervisor.
Speaker 1 (17:34):
Yeah, well, what's the philosophy that drives you each day?
If you could, if you could pare it down into
a simple sentence or two.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
Sure, I've done. You know, there's a bunch of like
leadership quizzes and tests you can do, and I've done
some of them. And one of the words that came
out of one is that I am a maximizer and
that I really like to you know, understand what makes
(18:02):
the people that I work with tick and to kind
of help them, you know, as my mentors did for me.
See what they're good at, see what they see what
they're capable of doing. And I have always worked with
people younger than I am, which I think is incredibly important,
you know, so that I don't become a relic myself.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
But I've always I've never been afraid.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
To put younger people in positions of you know, leadership
themselves and to you know, to kind of to not
you know, to not I mean, I trust younger people
to get get work done and to know to achieve
things maybe they didn't know that they could. And I've
heard time and again from my younger colleagues how much
(18:51):
they appreciate this.
Speaker 1 (18:53):
I find that very interesting that you say that, because
if I look back on my career, when I first started,
I was always the youngest person, and I think that
that helped me grow and because I didn't want to
be embarrassed in front of these more seasoned people, and
I wanted to prove myself and that I could hang
with them and perform right along with them. So it
(19:15):
was a challenge and I think that helped me. And
then now on the other end of that, I feel
the same way about young people is I don't want
to become a relic, and they they keep me grounded
and they keep me in tune with what's going on currently.
Speaker 3 (19:30):
It is so important I mean with technology for one thing,
but really just sort of with you know, the zeitgeist
in the world, and so keeping up with social media
is obviously critically important because that's how people get information now.
Speaker 1 (19:44):
Absolutely, I mean they can teach you so many things
and even you know my kids and I'm sure you
experienced the same thing and they're like, hey Dad, hey mom,
here's how this works.
Speaker 3 (19:55):
Absolutely, it's like having your in house IT department exactly.
Speaker 1 (20:02):
And sometimes but you have to put up with the
teasing because they're like, come on, now, you don't know,
and you're like, hey man, give an old man at break.
Speaker 2 (20:09):
You get the major eye roll.
Speaker 1 (20:10):
Yeah, yeah, exactly. So what do you do when you're
not working, Elizabeth?
Speaker 3 (20:15):
Well, I love to walk on the Revenel Bridge because
I live kind of near there.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
That's really fun.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
I will never exhaust the historic sites and museums, you know,
in South Carolina, but also all over I love to travel.
I read a lot. I don't watch TV for news.
I get all my news basically they are reading, which
(20:44):
might be old fashioned, but I like it. And I'm
there's so much to do in Charleston, and I never
ever get tired of walking around Charleston.
Speaker 1 (20:54):
Now, if somebody is sparked by this conversation and they say,
you know, I've had an interest in history, but they
feel maybe overwhelmed. They don't know where to start, you know,
they don't know what direction to take or even maybe
what kind of history they're interested in. Where do you
suggest that they start on their journey.
Speaker 2 (21:14):
That's a really good question.
Speaker 3 (21:16):
Well, there's so many things you can do with history,
which of course nobody believes. I mean, you know, you
can be a historian, but you can also be an archivist,
a librarian.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
Someone who works in a museum or historic site.
Speaker 3 (21:34):
And I think studying history is just a great way
to train your mind, in your brain for doing anything
at all in the future. But for someone who really
does want to think about studying history and making it
a career, I would recommend that they actually look around
(21:54):
and see, you know, see what's available, and then don't
be afraid to ask people if they can just come
and talk to them.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
Professionals love to.
Speaker 3 (22:06):
Talk about themselves and their careers, and I think, you know,
they most people are happy to talk to a younger
person who's interested in whatever feel they're in and to
you know, to you know, to tell them how they
got where they are, et cetera. So I think, you know,
talking to people in the field, going to museums and
(22:26):
historic sites and seeing what, you know, what they're all about.
If they're interested in being a professor. You know, talk
to your own professors in your you know, school or college,
and you know, if you want to be a librarian
or archivist, they're wonderful programs for that.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
And you know, email me, well that's a that's well,
that's a wonderful offer. I actually don't have too many
people say that.
Speaker 2 (22:55):
Oh, I'm happy to help you.
Speaker 1 (22:57):
Want to give you your email address.
Speaker 3 (22:58):
Sure, it's my first name, Elizabeth dot my last name
q C. Chw at SCHS online dot org. So Elizabeth
Dot you at SCHS online dot org.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
Well, that's a wonderful offer. And uh, you know, and
it's great that you're willing to do that, and it's
very charitable of you.
Speaker 2 (23:23):
Sure, it's my pleasure.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
And believe it or not, we are out of time. Wow,
it goes click, it does. It goes a lot faster
than most people think, and especially when you're talking about
something so interesting is you know, the history of our country,
the history of South Carolina, the history of Charleston. And
once again, you need to check out all of the
great resources that the South Carolina Historical Society has to offer,
(23:50):
and you can go to their website to find out
more and kind of point you in the right direction
for all of that.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
Schistory dot org.
Speaker 1 (23:58):
Perfect a schistory dot org. And Elizabeth, thank you so
much for being a guest and taking the time to
talk to us today.
Speaker 2 (24:07):
It's been a great pleasure. Thank you.
Speaker 1 (24:09):
Elizabeth VQ, CEO South Carolina Historical Society. Thank you very much,
Thank you you've been listening to Iheartradios. CEOs you should know,
heard every Tuesday and Saturday morning right here on this
iHeartRadio station.
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