Upcountry History Museum

D-Day, June 6, 1944: The Memory Lives On
2024-05-18 10:00 - 2025-04-27 17:00 UTC
D-Day, June 6, 1944: The Memory Lives On
May 18, 2024 – April 27, 2025
Normandy, France will forever be marked by the June 6, 1944, D-Day Landings and the Battle of Normandy that led to the liberation of France and Europe. 2024 will mark the 80th Anniversary of this historic event. The Upcountry History Museum, in its commitment to collecting, preserving, and disseminating the Upstate’s local history and to connecting it to national and international history, will honor this momentous occasion with a special exhibition.
June 6, 1944: More than 156,000 Allied troops landed on the beaches of Normandy, France, as part of the largest seaborne invasion in history. Known as “D-Day,” the name and date loom large in the memory of WWII. D-Day put the Allies on a decisive path toward victory. Beginning with the Normandy beaches, they pushed back the Axis forces until Germany was forced to surrender less than a year later. Their achievements were not accomplished without tremendous sacrifice, as the Normandy invasion resulted in over 6,000 American casualties.
The Upcountry History Museum, in partnership with the Naval History and Heritage Command, Washington, DC, will honor the individuals without whom D-Day would not have been a success: soldiers and sailors, doctors and nurses, engineers and pilots, enlisted men and officers, seasoned fighters and those who had never been in combat. These veterans stormed the beaches, directed the landings, sailed or flew in support of the invasion, parachuted or piloted gliders into France, and arrived in the days after June 6, to continue the perilous work of pushing back and defeating the German Army.
Artifacts, uniforms, archival materials, ephemera, art and more will share this remarkable moment in history and provide answers to What is D-Day? How do you get an army across the English Channel and into France when your enemy is well armed, well trained, and expecting you? How did a single day and its aftermath ultimately liberate Western Europe, defeat Nazi Germany and end the Second World War?
The exhibition will include the contributions and sacrifices of Upstate South Carolinians, many of whom were in their teens, to commemorate their participation in the largest invasion ever assembled and to ensure that “the memory lives on.”

Support provided by

Clyde Butcher's America the Beautiful
2025-02-15 10:00 - 2025-05-25 17:00
Clyde Butcher’s America the Beautiful
February 15, 2025 – May 25, 2025

“The earth is a magnificent piece of art… As a photographer, I am only sharing what I witness.”
– Clyde Butcher
Acclaimed photographer Clyde Butcher has spent more than 50 years capturing some of America’s most unique and beautiful landscapes, from the Redwood forests of California to the Everglade swamps of Florida. Butcher majestically captures the public natural lands set aside by the Federal and State governments for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations.
As one of the most renowned photographers of our time, Clyde Butcher has dedicated his life to capturing the natural beauty of the world around us. The exhibit showcases his unparalleled talent and features a stunning collection of his best work from his illustrious career.
Butcher’s images of these treasured landscapes, including the Great Smoky Mountains, document the changing environment, capturing what is there today and encouraging us to enjoy the beauty of nature. His images speak for countless diverse places of wilderness and respite found throughout all of America, allowing us an appreciation of our land.
America the Beautiful includes 43 large-scale, black and white photographs of the American landscape, spanning beautiful sites across the United States. Butcher’s views include some of the same locations shot by the photographer Ansel Adams, demonstrating the unique light and clarity that his artistic vision brings to those scenes.
The beauty of Butcher’s photographs is further emphasized by the epic size of his works. The exceptional size of his compositions – the largest is 5 by 8.5 feet – allows viewers to experience the beauty of each site from an almost first–hand perspective.
Butcher’s unique technique enables him to capture a breathtaking amount of detail within his images. He shoots with an 8 x 10 wooden large-format view camera from the 1940s, creating an extraordinary depth of field through a synthesis of wide-angled lenses and a small lens opening. His large negatives, combined with orange and blue filters and a longer-than-average exposure time – up to ten minutes – allow for clarity and incredible detail within his compositions.
Clyde Butcher: America the Beautiful showcases Butcher’s skill in capturing the raw beauty of the United States most precious natural landscapes, while also highlighting his passion for preserving these spaces for generations to come.

Support provided by

Beautification: The Environmental Legacy of Lady Bird Johnson
2025-03-15 10:00 - 2025-09-07 17:00
Beautification: The Environmental Legacy of Lady Bird Johnson
March 15, 2025 – September 7, 2025
Curated and produced by the LBJ Presidential Library, Austin, Texas, Beautification: The Environmental Legacy of Lady Bird Johnson, focuses on the life and legacy of Lady Bird Johnson, wife of the 36th President of the United States, Lyndon Baines Johnson. The Upcountry History Museum, Greenville, SC, will be the exhibit’s first stop on its limited national tour.
The former first lady is most often associated with promoting environmental conservation and the wildflowers that brighten the country’s landscape. This exhibition guides visitors through a comprehensive story of Mrs. Johnson’s life, providing more context to her education, family, campaign efforts, acumen as a businesswoman, leadership in education and environmental conservation, and her role as a philanthropist.
Throughout her time in the White House, Lady Bird fought to make American cities more beautiful by planting flowers or adding park benches and by removing billboards and junkyards from the nation’s highways. Her efforts in these areas pushed her further into the political arena, more than any First Lady before her. Even Eleanor Roosevelt, Lady Bird’s declared role model, had not sat in on a legislative strategy session or been given assignments to influence Congressional votes. Lyndon Johnson supported Lady Bird’s efforts, publicly promoting her projects in his State of the Union speeches and during Cabinet meetings.
Beautification: The Environmental Legacy of Lady Bird Johnson will guide visitors through a comprehensive story of Mrs. Johnson’s life, from childhood through her post-White House years. Visitors will be immersed in the life and legacy of Lady Bird Johnson on loan from the LBJ Presidential Library and the Johnsons daughters Lynda Bird Johnson Robb and Luci Baines Johnson include items from Whistle Stop campaign tours, gowns from White House galas, mementos from beautification projects; original art from The Lorax, created by Dr. Seuss; along with letters, photographs, oral histories, home movies, and artifacts – the majority of which have never been shared with the public.

Support provided by

Janis Bandelin & Bill Fitzpatrick Mountain Laurel Garden Club of Travelers Rest
