SUMTER, S.C. — Whether you like it boiled, grilled or anything in between, at an annual event in Sumter, you can find all different kinds of shrimp.
On Thursday, the Sumter County Museum is hosting its 22nd annual Shrimp Feast.
“Boiled shrimp, grilled shrimp, shrimp skewers, shrimp alfredo, lowcountry boil, shrimp and grits,” Executive Director Annie Rivers lists off the options her team is serving. “And then we also have barbecue, coleslaw and dessert.”
Rivers says it takes close to 300 pounds of shrimp and months of preparation to get ready for the Shrimp Feast.
Historic House Manager Deborah Watts is charged with making grits for 500 people.
“I'm stirring grits,” Watts explained. “If you don't stir them, they get lumpy.”
While Watts works in the kitchen, other employees set up tents, cut sausage and chop onions to prepare for the event, which raises money for the museum to offer free and low-cost programs for the community year-round.
“Sumter has a very unique history. There's a lot to it that a lot of our residents don't really know or fathom. So we really love preserving that history, preserving it through the collections that we take care of, through the exhibits that we display and through the programs that we provide,” Rivers detailed. “We preserve the history. We share it with our community so that future generations can learn from it and understand it and use it as they go in the future.”
Watts has been working at the museum for 35 years, watching it grow to include a backcountry homestead and Temple Sinai Jewish History Center.
“I saw all those buildings coming in and being constructed,” Watts remembered.
She’s also been here for all 22 years of the Shrimp Feast since it started.
“It's really good,” Watts explained about the yearly turnout. The Sumter community does support the museum.”
Rivers says seeing attendees visit the museum for the event is her “favorite aspect.”
“Just seeing all the people on the museum grounds, getting them engaged with our building, our site, showing them what we offer. It's wonderful to see so many different types of people here, and them really involved with a museum,” Rivers elaborated. “It's very exciting. You know, this was a pretty well established event before I started, but we've been able to add in different things each year to make it a little bit more appealing to the community, some new things so people keep coming back.”
This year, Rivers says that new addition is a big announcement. In addition to the Williams Brice House, Heritage Education Center, the Carolina backcountry homestead and Temple Sinai Jewish History Center that currently stand as part of the museum, there will be an expansion project starting soon.
The expansion will feature a military gallery and local history galleries, along with research space and storage for collections.
Also, Rivers says the museum is rebranding.
“We really wanted to share with the community who we are and what we do and we felt like we needed to update, you know, our brand, our logo to better represent what all we encompass because we do have a lot of facilities,” Rivers said. “We’re not just one building. So everyone at Shrimp Feast will see that and we'll be publicizing that more in the coming days.”
That expansion is set to begin in September on the empty lot right next door to where the museum stands now. It’s expected to be done in 2026.
“I think it's wonderful,” Watts smiled. “It's really good for the community.”
The Shrimp Feast is happening from 6 - 9 p.m. Tickets are $45 for members and $65 for the general public.