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April 17, 2018February 29, 2024 • History • Charlotte Page

The Water Wheel

We have written about the Rockbrook water wheel in the past but wanted to share this new photograph that we just came across while doing some research into the history of Rockbrook at the Transylvania County library. It is a great view of the water wheel from the perspective of the lake. We know the water wheel was in use from the founding of the camp in 1921 until Duke Power brought electrical lines to the camp in 1930. If you stand on the dam at the lake today and look down you can still see the stone remains of the water wheel foundation.

Rockbrook Camp water wheel — The Rockbrook water wheel, date of photograph unknown

Elizabeth O'Neill Verner waterwheel sketch — The Rockbrook water wheel, by Elizabeth O’Neill Verner

The water wheel was such an important and certainly noticeable part of the camp in those early years that there was even a song written about it! Take a look at this earlier post to learn more about the Rockbrook Camp water wheel song.

There is also a beautiful etching by famed Charleston artist Elizabeth O’Neill Verner of the camp water wheel. Mrs. Verner was an art instructor during the early years of camp and her daughter Elizabeth Verner Hamilton was the first camper at Rockbrook! In this earlier blog post, you can see a photograph of Mrs. Verner teaching an art class at camp. Maybe they were drawing the water wheel?

A local rumor has it that when the water wheel was taken down it was given to another camp in the area at some point in the 1940’s. We have not been able to verify the story, however. Wouldn’t it be cool if we could track down the old wheel?

We also have a little bit of amazing video of the wheel in motion! This footage came to us from an alum and it was incorporated into a video about Rockbrook’s history. We’ve since made a more complete video about Rockbrook’s History, but it’s still fun to see this shorter version too. Enjoy!

The Amazing “Jerky”

In the stories and history of Rockbrook, perhaps no one is more legendary than former counselor and director Ellen Hume Jervey. Fondly known as “Jerky”, she was an institution at Rockbrook for over 40 years. Jerky grew up in Charleston, SC (just an interesting side note, Jerky lived next door to The Verner Gallery, the art gallery of Elizabeth O’Neill Verner, another memorable Rockbrooker). She began her Rockbrook career as a counselor in the 1920’s. After college, Jerky was the Physical Education Director at Hood College, but she continued to work at Rockbrook for the summer. In the 1940’s Jerky became a Director at Rockbrook and continued working at camp through the 1960’s. She lived in Charleston, SC during the school year where she taught at Ashley Hall, a private girls school. She is referred to by many of our alumna as one of the most influential people in their lives.

One of the most shared stories about Jerky is that during WWII she was commissioned as an officer with the US Naval Reserves! Rockbrook closed for the summers during the war and many women became involved in the war effort. None more so than Jerky! We have searched high and low for more information about it and were thrilled to find the following article from a Charleston, SC Newspaper.

The WAVEs (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) division of the Naval Reserve consisted entirely of women. From the very beginning, the WAVES was an official part of the Navy, and its members held the same rank and ratings as male personnel. The first commissioned female officer in the Navy was the commander of the WAVES, and she was commissioned in August, 1942. You can see from the article that Jerky was not far behind, being commissioned in December. We are not sure how long Jerky served, but will continue our research to find out more about her time in the Navy. You can see just one of the reasons why she was an amazing role model and mentor to so many Rockbrook women.

Stay tuned for more Jerky stories! If you have any you would like to share we would love to hear from you!

SC Artist Elizabeth O’Neill Verner

Charleston Artist Elizabeth O'Neill Verner — Elizabeth O’Neill Verner by Marie Danforth Page, 1937

There are many fascinating and inspirational women who have been a part of Rockbrook and it’s history. None more so than the artist Elizabeth O’Neill Verner of Charleston, South Carolina. Mrs. Verner was a long time neighbor of Rockbrook, her seasonal home Hanty Branch Hill is located next door. Her daughter Elizabeth Verner Hamilton was the first camper at Rockbrook in 1921. Mrs. Verner and Mrs. Carrier were good friends and Mrs. Verner was often recruited to come teach the campers the art of sketching and pastels. We can imagine her walking over from her home, ready to teach the enthusiastic campers. She is mentioned in the journals and scrapbooks of several campers from the mid 1920’s. It must have been a great occasion when Mrs. Verner was in attendance.

While at Rockbrook she also created an etching of the waterwheel that ran the power for the camp. We will be sure to share that image with you in a later blog posting.

Rockbrook campers in the early 1920's take part in a drawing class — Rockbrook campers sketching with Elizabeth O’Neill Verner

As an artist, Mrs. Verner is recognized as the “matriarch of the Charleston Renaissance” and is considered the “best known twentieth century woman artist of Charleston. “She is famous for her etchings and pastels of life in Charleston. Her studio The Elizabeth O’Neill Verner Gallery is still in operation in Charleston and is the oldest fine arts gallery in the city. She is such a well respected and important artist that the state of SC has named their highest honor in the arts after her. The Elizabeth O’Neill Verner Awards recognize outstanding achievement and contributions to the arts in South Carolina. According to their website: “These awards honor South Carolina arts organizations, patrons, artists, members of the business community, and government entities who maximize their roles as innovators, supporters and advocates of the arts. In 1980, the Verner Awards took on a special significance with their designation as the official “Governor’s Awards for the Arts.”

Mrs. Verner’s great great grandchildren are current campers at Rockbrook. What a treasure that they can share in their families wonderful legacy at RBC!

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