PHOTOS: USC commemorates 60th anniversary of desegregation

The University of South Carolina celebrated its 60th anniversary of desegregation with the groundbreaking for a new monument on Sept. 11, 2023. The monument will stand outside of McKissick Museum and honor Henrie Monteith Treadwell, Robert G. Anderson and James L. Solomon Jr., the first three Black students to enroll at USC. After the commemoration at McKissick Museum, the College of Arts and Sciences revealed a plaque in memory of James L. Solomon Jr. in LeConte College.

Henrie Monteith Treadwell speaks at the 60th anniversary of desegregation on Sept. 11, 2023. In 1965, Treadwell became the first Black graduate of USC since the reconstruction era, earning her bachelor's degree in biochemistry.

USC President Michael Amiridis speaks at the 60th anniversary of desegregation outside of the McKissick Museum on Sept. 11, 2023. Faculty from various colleges attended the ceremony to witness the groundbreaking for the statue that will stand on the Horseshoe in front of McKissick Museum.

A woman looks at a desegregation display outside of LeConte College on Sept. 11, 2023. The College of Arts and Sciences revealed a plaque in honor of James L. Solomon Jr. after the commemoration and groundbreaking for the desegregation monument in front of McKissick Museum.

Cindy Baumgardner, the second cousin of Robert G. Anderson (left), Henrie Monteith Treadwell (center left), James L. Solomon Jr. (center right) and his son, Carl Solomon (right), turn dirt where the statue memorializing USC's desegregation will stand on Sept. 11, 2023. Anderson, Treadwell and Solomon Jr. registered for classes exactly 60 years ago today, marking the beginning of desegregation at the University of South Carolina.

James L. Solomon Jr. talks to attendants of the plaque unveiling at LeConte College on Sept. 11, 2023. Solomon Jr. was the first Black graduate student in mathematics at the University of South Carolina.

A person reads excerpts of an interview with James L. Solomon Jr. that are on display in LeConte College on Sept. 11, 2023. The College of Arts and Sciences unveiled a plaque in honor of Solomon Jr. four years after it was completed. The delay was caused by COVID-19 and construction.

USC President Michael Amiridis (left), Cindy Baumgardener (center) and Henrie Monteith Treadwell (right) smile while breaking ground where a monument will be placed in 2024 to honor the first three Black students to graduate from USC. A sign showing Treadwell, Anderson and Solomon Jr. now stands outside of McKissick Museum.