University of South Carolina — Horseshoe

The University of South Carolina campus anchors the north end of downtown Columbia. The historic core is the Horseshoe — an oval green enclosed by antebellum buildings dating from the early 19th century, some of which served as a Confederate hospital during the Civil War. The South Caroliniana Library, the oldest freestanding college library in the US, occupies one end of the Horseshoe and is open to visitors.

The broader campus blends into the Five Points neighbourhood to the south, a lively concentration of bars, restaurants, and shops popular with students. The McKissick Museum at the top of the Horseshoe has free admission and good exhibitions on Southern folk art and natural history.

things to do sight architecture neighbourhood
A story
The South Caroliniana Library, on the Horseshoe, holds one of the most significant collections of Southern historical documents in the country — including manuscripts, maps, and photographs that document the history of the state from colonisation through the Civil War. It opened in 1840 as the first freestanding college library in America, and the building still functions as a research library today.

Other places in Things to Do