James Harrison McHugh came to Clemson in 1890 when he was 15 or 16 years old.
00:04: L.C. Littlejohn begins the interview by describing the amount of coal that James H. McHugh had to haul by wheelbarrow and asks how many loads he rolled, but McHugh can’t come up with a number it was enough to build a field from here to Calhoun. Littlejohn then describes how the boiler room added stokers and a coal hopper outside the building.
1:34: McHugh worked outside during vacations. The powerhouse didn’t run during vacations. McHugh’s brother, Lee, worked at the powerhouse. The powerhouse shut down at 11 o’clock at night. Winked the lights once 5 minutes before lights out. No lights were on during vacations, so McHugh worked outside in the summer time.
2:21 McHugh piped the first library building, called agricultural hall at the time. Riggs put McHugh in charge, and McHugh and Bill Goodman piped the building. Riggs also put McHugh in charge of laying the water and sewer lines in Chiggerville, North Clemson for three months and they paid more money than the college, but Riggs let him go down and work that job. Earnest Dillard and George Pike worked with him.
3:32: The well down by Dave Watson’s shop had a pump that supplied drinking water to the barracks. It was a spring, but they dug a well twenty-five feet deep. The surplus water went to a tank at the Kimmel Laboratory, and that was used for laundry. Good clean water with no filters. Water for the standpipe came from a pump down behind the old sheep barn. The water was mostly clear but not filtered nor safe to drink and occasionally would get muddy. Water for the campus was supplied by wells dug at most of the dwellings. Dr. Craighead had the first toilet put in his house, the old president’s house. Bathrooms were later built on back porches of the old houses. The barracks had water closets in the very beginning. There were a lot of wells including one at the Trustee’s House.
7:31: McHugh was rooming in the main barracks in room 25 with the Mess Hall Sergeant A. Schilletter, whom they called Shorty, on May 22, 1894 when the main building burned. Someone said the college building was on fire. McHugh ran out in his night clothes and saw a blaze coming out of the top story. There was a museum up there, with all kinds of stuff stored, like alcohol and straw. They don’t know how exactly the fire started. McHugh says maybe someone smoking a cigarette threw it in there. The college building burned down, all but the chapel. There was no way to get water up to the top floor. They used two hoses to keep the chapel wet to keep it from burning. The brick wall between the chapel and the college building also helped. McHugh saw the building reconstructed exactly like the original one. Littlejohn mentions that he recently saw the black marks from the fire on the original bricks when they were exposed during some work on the building.
10:27: McHugh talks about who worked with him when he first started working in the Mechanical Room. Tom Wright ran the Machine Shop. Litton ran the wood shop.
11:27: McHugh knew Riggs very well and they were good friends.
12:01: The repair shops were located under the chapel next to the barracks, where the canteen is now. John Goodman was in charge of those. Joe Hewer replaced him and Goodman became a butcher. He bought cattle and butchered them for the barracks. Simon Hunt from Mountain Rest always had a headache. Hunt said he’d had a headache for about 25 years. Littlejohn describes Hunt as honorable and honest. Goodman ran the butcher pen down the hill from the armory, west of the stadium. Cattle were brought in down there and fed and butchered.
13:34: John Goodman and Mr. Hewer used to look after the buildings and had charge of the barracks. Will Greson, from Greenville, looked after the plumbing, electrical, and heating. Riggs, prior to becoming president, was a teacher in the mechanical department and ran the plumbing, electrical, and heating. Professor Earle, later dean, took over when Riggs became president until the original mechanical building burned. Professor Earle was called Big Sam.
15:34: Dr. Sloan lived in the house that Sam Earle lives in now. Sloan came from Pendleton where he ran a drug store. His son Paul Sloan was named after Dr. Sloan. Dr. Sloan was treasurer and was a big man and a lot of fun. He used to carry a stick and hit people over the head with it. Dr. Sloan and John Goodman were good friend and used to talk about the Civil War. As they got older the two used to quarrel with one another. Dr. Sloan liked a little dram and Goodman liked it too much, and Colonel Dawson of the board of trustees liked to get dram from Dr. Sloan. Littlejohn recalls that one time Dr. Sloan and John Goodman were arguing about the Civil War and Dr. Sloan went and got a bottle of dram and stuck it up under Goodman’s nose. McHugh recalls Dr. Sloan and Goodman arguing about religion, and Dr. Sloan said he was Episcopalian and Goodman said no Episcopalian ever had politics or religion.
18:14: McHugh and Littlejohn recall John Goodman’s sons: Jim, Sam, John, Shufeldt, Taft, Bill, Pat, Lewis. Shufeldt went to Texas and is the only one still living. There were also two girls. McHugh thinks there 11 children: 8 boys and 3 girls. Lewis Goodman married Ms. Carrie Reid. Lewis worked in the drug store and then was postmaster.
19:48: McHugh describes his own family. There were 3 boys and 1 girl. McHugh is the only one still living. McHugh’s wife, Melinda Robinson Beaty, was raised in Anderson County. Littlejohn was good friends with Walter Beaty, a first cousin of Melinda. McHugh had two sons. One son, Ralph, recently visited from Texas. Walter Beaty was a pilot in the Marines.
21:29: Littlejohn begins describing the old textile building, which is now the physics building. The first half of the building came up to the tower and then it was expanded past the tower. There was a boiler house near it. McHugh says that boiler house heated the old textile building and was fired by Whit Billman. Littlejohn comments on how McHugh gets up early every morning and how he used to go up to the boiler plant ever day and that it is an inspiration to the students. McHugh says students often ask him questions about where pipelines and sewer lines are at. Littlejohn begins talking about Henry Goodman. Henry started out as a butcher, and then moved to heat, light, and water. McHugh says that Henry was one of the best men Clemson ever had and he knew how to get work out of men. Littlejohn comments that people have been willing to work on Sunday, Mondays, and nights, for Clemson.
24:34: McHugh says he made an engineer out of Bob Lindsay. Lindsay could not read a water gauge and McHugh sent him into town to get glasses.
25:00: Littlejohn recalls how McHugh took him when he was a boy and taught him about running the engines and firing the boiler. Littlejohn still maintains an interest in that kind of work.
25:48: Littlejohn wants to meet again and continue their conversation.
26:14: McHugh begins talking about the present boiler plant Clemson has, and how they have the best stokers he’s ever seen. The stokers are made by Westinghouse. He’d like to see another boiler put in like the one with the Westinghouse stokers.
27:10: Audio ends.
William "Uncle Bill" Greenlee was born March 4, 1871 and was on the Clemson College payroll for 51 years.
00:12: A man named William talks with L.C. Littlejohn about going to Anderson to pick up his car, a Pontiac. This person does not seem to be William Greenlee.
1:25: Recording starts again William “Uncle Bill” Greenlee. Greenlee was raised in Clemson. Turned 79 years old last March 4th. He remembers Thomas Clemson and says Clemson looked like the monument out in front of the main building.
2:23: Greenlee remembers Thomas Clemson engaging in farming. Clemson grew corn, cotton, peas, potatoes, molasses cane, and rice. Clemson grew 4 acres of rice at the foot of the old mill. Thomas Fruster worked the rice.
3:23: People that worked for Thomas Clemson lived on the road next to the Seneca Rive, near the Goodman house.
3:45: Slave quarters used to be near the mule barn on either side of the hill. They were little houses cut into two and built in the ground. He helped tear them down. They were primarily made of wood and red clay. They had one door and one little window.
4:44: People who worked for Thomas Clemson did not live in the old slave quarters. They lived on the road to what is now the Seneca River Bridge.
5:10: The Seneca River Bridge used to be a toll bridge. It was 15 cents per day to cross on a wagon, and 5 cents per day to walk across. If you stayed overnight on the other side you had to pay the daily amount again, but if you crossed and came back in the same day you only had to pay the daily rate once.
5:43: There used to be a flat down at the Cherry’s place. This ferry was large enough to carry two wagons full of mules. The ferry operated by cable.
6:26: Ms. Cox was the toll bridge keeper. It was an old, wood covered bridge. It remained until the paved highway was built. It was built with wood, logs, cement and wooden pegs. He never saw a nail in it.
7:13: Greenlee used to live in Andrew Lewis’ place.
7:17: He used to work for Thomas Clemson. Mr. Andrews used to come over and stay all day with Thomas Clemson. Aaron Boggs, an overseer before the Civil War, used to visit Thomas Clemson a lot. Boggs told Greenlee that he was not an overseer but slave trader and that’s how he got rich. Boggs lived near the old overhead railroad bridge, where Mr. Tate lives now. He would see Clemson and Boggs counting money. Boggs had a mule and buggy and he’d ask Greenlee to take a sack and pick up all the compost and put it in the back of his wagon.
9:25: D.K. Norris’ father used to visit Thomas Clemson frequently. D.K. Norris was on the first Board of Trustees.
10:09: Greenlee lived in Andrew Lewis’ place. The Lewis place was between Mr. Cherry’s property and Clemson’s property. He was there before Clemson started.
10:50: Thomas Clemson used to salt his hogs in a nearby holler. He’d tell Greenlee to bring the salt and Clemson would go up to the house and get his gun. Clemson would kill a hog and ring a bell once and both white and black community would rush to get fresh meat.
12:07: He first heard about the college when Mr. Andrews and Ms. Sue were talking about it.
12:43: A man from Columbia, kin of Ben Tillman, came to facilitate the building of college. He got off the train at the depot in Pendleton and stayed with Andrew Lewis.
13:23: Greenlee could not remember when Dr. Sloan first arrived. Greenlee used to carry the payroll from Clemson and Dr. Sloan kept the money in Pendleton where he lived. Dr. Sloan ran the drug store in Pendleton.
13:58: Jim Hall was the brick mason that oversaw construction.
14:29: Gus Shanklin was the first man that worked at Clemson. Gus Shanklin left but came back to Clemson. Jules Shanklin, Virginia Shanklin’s father, also worked at Clemson.
15:23: Mr. Cochrane made the first bricks for the college. The bricks were made in a holler on the way to Calhoun. Rocks came from a holler where the first pump station on campus was located, on the road to the Lewis place. Rocks also came from between Keowee and Long’s place for about a year. On top of a hill by the river there was a rock quarry. Rocks were also brought in from the other side of the cemetery.
17:43: He was paid 50 cents a day to haul rocks in his wagon.
18:22: The first building on campus was a post office behind the powerhouse. They also built houses for people to live in.
19:07: The Cherry Club was the first big building he remembers.
19:34: He hauled the brick from Calhoun and Anderson to build the main building and the barracks. The first bricks were made by hand and not hard enough so Jim Hall removed them. Mr. Cochrane paid him 20 cents a day to grease the molds for the bricks. They took drag pans and wagons and hauled out the top soil. About 8 feet down they got the blue clay.
21:34: He worked for the college for 51 years. The college was not completed when he was first on the payroll.
22:19: Captain Doc (this is probably James Percival Lewis) stole every bit of his father’s money. Greenlee helped him put it in his carriage. He was over everything for five years. Greenlee used to eat at the old wooden hotel but he never saw Captain Doc eat.
24:07: Dr. Brackett, Mr. Dupree from Walhalla, and Mr. Newman from Atlanta were among the first students he remembers.
24:30: Captain Doc lived where the golf ground used to be. Doc was the first one to sell the college cows to start the Clemson Dairy.
24:50: Ms. Allen had two cows, Lady Baby and Daisey. Ben Tillman found out that Ms. Allen sold the cows for $200 apiece and said he wanted to see the cows even though he only had one good eye.
26:02: Littlejohn wants Greenlee to think about Captain Doc building the athletic field, Greenlee driving the trustees around in carriages, and other things of importance, so Littlejohn can record it and someone else can use it to write a history about Clemson.
26:50: Recording ends.