Park interpreter is in touch with history

With her Smoky Bear-style hat and green uniform, Elizabeth Laney looks more like a park ranger than a historian and park interpreter.

Ms. Laney, who usually wears the uniform unless there is a special event requiring period costume, spends her days telling of Redcliffe Plantation Site Historic Site's past.

"I'm an interpreter. They pay you to talk to people and work in a 150-year-old home," said Ms. Laney, who started working at Redcliffe in July 2007.

Ms. Laney said she has always loved history. She earned a bachelor's degree in history from Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C., and a master's degree in museum studies from George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

"I originally wanted to study ancient history," she said.

Finding work in that field would have required her to move out of the country, she said.

The Walterboro, S.C., native had worked part time at Charles Town Landing in Charleston, S.C., and enjoyed the experience.

Ms. Laney said she's fascinated by the Redcliffe house and all the records kept by its first owner, James Henry Hammond (1807-64), a South Carolina governor and U.S. senator.

Hammond, who was interested in agriculture, kept detailed books on his plantings. He also kept a lot of information on his slaves.

"Rarely do you see sites with so much documented evidence," she said.

Another interesting aspect of her job has been the people she has met, she said.

She often meets descendants of Hammond and of the families who once worked at Redcliffe Plantation.

"It's like living history," she said.

Reach Charmain Brackett at charmain.brackett@augustachronicle.com.