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Edsel Taylor was recognized with the Order of the Palmetto after a 51-year corrections career defined by leadership, rehabilitation efforts and decades of public service

This article is republished with permission from the .

Summerville Journal Scene

RIDGEVILLE, S.C. — Edsel Taylor, a Ridgeville resident who spent 51 years with the South Carolina Department of Corrections and became the nation’s longest-serving prison warden, has received the state’s highest civilian honor, the Order of the Palmetto.

“I had a hard time making parole,” he joked when asked about his longevity in the corrections field.

Taylor was presented the award during the July 20 meeting of the Dorchester County Council. The Order of the Palmetto recognizes citizens for extraordinary lifetime achievement, service and significant contributions to the state.

After serving a year in Vietnam, Taylor began his career at MacDougall Correctional Institution in 1969. Realizing he had a knack for administrative leadership, he applied for the warden position of a maximum-security prison in Columbia. Knowing that a handful of wardens had been terminated over the course of several years, he took the challenge in stride. His boss even joked, “If you can survive Vietnam, you can survive here.”

Taylor eventually returned to MacDougall as the warden, where he would retire. In addition to the corrections field, he served for 28 years in the U.S. Army Reserve, retiring as a lieutenant colonel.

While working at MacDougall, Taylor took on additional assignments with other South Carolina corrections facilities.

“I was extremely blessed to have good health and a lot of energy throughout my career,” Taylor said, boasting that he never took a day of sick leave as warden of five different South Carolina prisons.

A proponent of educational and rehabilitative efforts, Taylor established a housing unit for military veterans and oversaw construction of an inmate-built chapel. During his tenure, MacDougall Correctional Institution achieved accreditation from the American Correctional Association.

His military background influenced at least one of the prison programs of which he is most proud: a housing unit designed for incarcerated military veterans. The concept was intended to make it easier to provide services and benefits to veterans while fostering discipline and camaraderie among its residents.

The prison even allowed those inmates to have murals and their unit insignia on their cell walls.

“As I suspected what would happen, they meshed together really well, and it was an easier unit to manage,” Taylor said, adding that the unit developed a reputation for order and discipline. “You walked in, and it was like walking into a true military barracks.”

Taylor noted that education, vocational training and treatment programs are critical to reducing recidivism.

“You can’t simply lock someone up and expect them to be released as a normal person,” he said. “It’s our responsibility to try to make sure they are prepared to be a productive citizen when they get back on the street.”

Taylor remained in corrections through some of the agency’s most difficult periods, including the COVID-19 pandemic. He had planned to retire earlier but stayed on as the prison grappled with unprecedented challenges.

“[That period] made me so proud of our dedicated staff,” he said. “They did not give up.”

During his 51-year career, Taylor worked for nine corrections directors and felt supported by each one. At the same time, he learned to be flexible based on each director’s philosophy on how to run a prison.

Since retiring, Taylor has shifted his focus toward conservation, environmental stewardship and volunteer work.

He has helped secure permanent conservation easements, protecting critical natural areas.

Taylor serves as a master naturalist and works to establish and maintain wood duck habitats, including dozens of nesting sites around his wooded property.

“I truly love being in nature,” Taylor said, before quipping, “When you spend 51 years behind bars, you have a lot of time to make up and spend outdoors.”

As he approaches his 83rd birthday in August, Taylor boasted that his shift toward conservation work has kept him motivated, active and young in spirit.

“I haven’t made a penny since I retired, and I don’t plan to make a penny,” he added.

While accepting South Carolina’s highest civilian honor, Taylor emphasized that the recognition belonged to more than just himself.

“This award is something bigger than I am,” he said. “I was blessed to have employees who were dedicated, hardworking and always trying to do the best job they could or even finding ways to do it better.”

Taylor concluded that he and his colleagues always sought to make prison a “highway to a better life, instead of a dead-end for people.”

RIDGEVILLE, S.C. (WCSC) - Ridgeville Town Hall is now home to the town’s first-ever Little Free Library, built by a local mother and son in memory of three people they say were deeply rooted in the community.

The share box sits alongside the community blessing box and food pantry at Town Hall. Each of its three shelves is dedicated to a different person and the activities they loved.

Three shelves, three legacies

The top shelf holds children’s books in honor of Mattie J. Blanchard, a former assistant librarian at Harleyville Ridgeville School and a longtime crossing guard at Clay Hill Elementary.

The middle shelf is stocked with puzzles to remember Willie Lou Bradley, who spent time doing jigsaws, Sudoku, bingo and scratch-offs to keep her mind sharp. The bottom shelf holds gardening seeds as a tribute to Ransom King, a passionate local landscaper and gardener.

Organizer Shanelle King Arroyo said the project grew out of a conversation with her son, Israel, who used to read to his grandmother and regularly visited Little Free Libraries in nearby towns.

“So, we love going to little free libraries all around town. My son likes to read. He used to read to his nana. And we realized living in Ridgeville, it’s growing really fast. But there’s none here. So, when all three of our family members passed away, it was like, well, how do we remember people that have passed?” Arroyo said. “He said, what about a little free library? I said, sure, let me Google it and figure out how to do it. It was really easy.”

Community response

The library’s grand opening drew roughly 50 people, with face painting, balloon animals, snow cones and ice cream from College Fund Sweets and Treats. Arroyo said the turnout surprised her, particularly the number of adults who engaged with the books.

“I was like, wow, I didn’t even think that adults would be interested in the books,” she said. “Israel was like, I was really just thinking for the kids. But because we have so many shelves, it worked out.”

Since the opening, the library has expanded to include adult books alongside the original children’s titles, puzzles and seeds.

Arroyo said the box was full when she last checked.

While Little Free Libraries are common in nearby Summerville and North Charleston, Arroyo said she was surprised to find Ridgeville had none.

“I’m surprised that still there was only one. But I think after the kind of response we’ve gotten, there will probably be more,” she said.

‘She was a sister to me’

Hazel Parson-Starkes, a longtime friend of Mattie J. Blanchard, said the library carries deep personal meaning.

“It means a lot to me because of the person that they’re doing it in memory of,” Parson-Starkes said. “She had many names because of things that she did for people and with them.”

Parson-Starkes described Blanchard as a constant presence at school board and council meetings, a devoted church worker and a trusted babysitter for her youngest son.

“I loved her like a sister,” Parson-Starkes said. “She became a part of our family.”

Arroyo said the library is meant to extend the reach of all three honorees beyond those who knew them personally.

“It feels good. Like, you know, a great way to remember them more than just from us because all three were very involved in the community,” she said. “So other people are showing their love for them. Like, yeah, I remember her or she was my librarian. I remember that person.”

Arroyo said she also hopes the library encourages families to step away from screens and reconnect over books, puzzles and gardening.

“We’re playing on video games, tablets, in front of screens all the time. And we got to get back to activities with family,” she said.

DORCHESTER COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD) – A Ridgeville man recognized as the nation’s longest-serving prison warden has received South Carolina’s highest civilian honor.

Edsel Taylor was presented with the Order of the Palmetto during a Dorchester County Council meeting Monday night in recognition of his lifetime of public service and contributions to South Carolina.

The Order of the Palmetto is awarded by the governor to South Carolinians who have demonstrated extraordinary achievement, service, and leadership.

Taylor devoted 51 years to the South Carolina Department of Corrections, ultimately serving as warden of MacDougall Correctional Institution. Throughout his career, Taylor became known for advancing rehabilitation, education, and innovative correctional programs.

According to Dorchester County, Taylor helped create a dedicated housing unit for military veterans and oversaw the construction of an inmate-built chapel at MacDougall. Under his leadership, the institution also earned accreditation from the American Correctional Association.

“I have heard countless stories about his integrity, and his character, and his many decades of service. So, I know just on the testimony alone he is worthy of the Order of the Palmetto,” said State Rep. Gil Gatch during Monday’s ceremony.

Beyond his corrections career, Taylor is a decorated Vietnam veteran who served as a Medical Service Corps officer before completing a 28-year career in the U.S. Army Reserve. He retired with the rank of lieutenant colonel.

Following his retirement from corrections and military service, Taylor remained active in conservation and civic efforts throughout South Carolina. County officials said he has helped protect hundreds of acres of land through conservation easements and has served on numerous local boards and commissions.

In a social media post, Dorchester County described Taylor as a corrections leader, Army officer, conservationist and civic leader whose service to South Carolina has spanned more than five decades.

In order to better utilize its American factory and circumvent some U.S. import tariffs, Volvo will shift part of the XC60’s production to South Carolina starting in January.

Indeed, the Swedish automaker is preparing its American manufacturing facility in Ridgeville, near Charleston, for the production of its most popular model.

This decision makes sense, since manufacturing the XC60 within one of its largest markets will reduce transportation costs for the automaker, and it will allow it to make its U.S. factory profitable more quickly.

This last factor is important, since the Charleston plant has never matched its 150,000-vehicle yearly production capacity, especially since the S60 was discontinued in 2024.

This left only the top-of-the-line EX90 and Polestar 3 electric crossovers coming down the production line, which has led to an overall utilization rate of only about 15%.

To rectify this, Volvo will produce a proportion of the XC60s it sells in the United States in South Carolina rather than in Belgium, as it has done since the popular SUV was introduced in 2008.

According to the president of Volvo Cars America, adding production of the XC60 in Charleston will boost the factory’s output by about 20,000 vehicles initially, which is two-thirds of its current production levels of about 30,000 units.

This will require adding at least a full shift, which should also boost employment in the area, and the company is expecting to increase its American production further in the coming years.

While this will likely be done by increasing XC60 output, the South Carolina factory is also earmarked to produce a new flagship plug-in hybrid SUV that will slot above the XC90 in order to compete with the likes of the new Audi Q9, the BMW X7, and the Mercedes-Benz GLS. This new model is expected to arrive in 2028.

The XC60 itself should get a significant refresh next year, with a larger battery for plug-in models, which should help it compete with newer PHEVs, such as the Mercedes-Benz GLC 350e, which has up to 87 kilometres of electric range, compared to the current XC60 T8’s 58 kilometres.

The company also hopes to increase its American sales with the expected arrival of a heavily reworked XC40 and the new EX60 electric SUV.

This comes at a time when Volvo’s U.S. sales dropped by 12% in the first half of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025, in part due to the discontinuation of the U.S. federal tax credit for EVs and PHEVs, along with tariffs on imported vehicles.

Making the XC60 in the United States will not shield Volvo from tariffs entirely, since the automaker will keep importing parts from Europe to assemble the SUV in South Carolina, but it should still help lessen the effects of these tariffs on the completed vehicle’s price tag.