The locations, destinations and institutions that define the Midlands

Riverbanks Zoo. Harbison Forest. Williams-Brice Stadium. The Midlands' landscape is dotted with iconic locations.

Iconic destinations

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  Columbia trains might thwart traffic, but they spur commerce

  Downtown Columbia area commuters would do well to keep an eye out for trains. While various train crossings are sprinkled across the region, one of the greatest concentration of tracks can be found in the area between the University of South Carolina campus and Williams Brice Stadium and surrounding areas including Olympia Mills. That concentration, combined with various seasonal events like USC football games and the South Carolina State Fair, can require a bit of patience due the inevitable backup due to a train stop.
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  3 Columbia outdoor getaways

  Just because a couple hours’ drive can get you to the mountains or beaches doesn’t mean you have to leave the Columbia area for a good ol’ outdoor adventure.
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  The Horseshoe historic center of USC campus

  The tree-covered, brick sidewalk-lined Horseshoe is the birthplace – and the center – of the 214-year-old University of South Carolina. Students gather in the Horseshoe for studying, meetings and sunbathing. They string hammocks between the oak trees near the university museum and visitor center. The school’s president lives there.
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  Who is Eddie?: Call him Columbia's largest child

  If you’re visiting EdVenture Children’s Museum, 211 Gervais St., Columbia, you can’t miss the chance to see Eddie. Standing 40-feet-tall and weighing in at 17.5 tons, Eddie is boasted to be “the world’s largest child.” The model of a 10-year-old boy is big enough for adults and children to explore, and visitors can climb Eddie’s vertebrae to his brain and explore his heart, stomach and intestines.
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  Main Street is jumpin’ these days

  From the popular New Year’s Eve party to First Thursday get-togethers, Columbians increasingly are making the city’s Main Street more vibrant.
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  Need some time at the old ballgame?

  Columbia is a baseball city with multiple teams and venues hosting quality players and teams.
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  Gamecock Park enhances USC’s football experience

  Five years ago, a trip to Williams-Brice Stadium was hardly an aesthetic treat. The landscape surrounding Williams-Brice Stadium has come a long way in the last five years.
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  Cabooses prime venue for Gamecock football tailgaters

  They’ve been featured on ESPN, described as one thing any college football fan must enjoy before they die, and displayed in magazines ranging from Southern Accents to Playboy. All of it came from an idea late Columbia businessman Ed Robinson had in 1990 – why not put a row of retired train cabooses on a stretch of track beside Williams-Brice Stadium?
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  6 top spots for barbecue in the Midlands

  The Midlands barbecue scene offers a wide range of flavors and choices. South Carolina is home to four distinct types of sauces – tomato, ketchup, vinegar-pepper and mustard – and you can find restaurants in Columbia and Lexington that will offer them all. Here are some of the area’s most frequented pit-stops.
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  Lake Murray: Suburban, rural resort

  Lake Murray has two personalities when it comes to recreation and living along its 650-mile shoreline.