More than a game: SC State's Bulldog Lanes to reopen with history, memory and purpose

Ribbon-cutting follows Orangeburg Massacre commemoration and reconnects campus, community and generations 

For years, the lanes sat quiet. No crashing pins. No laughter drifting out of the student center.  

On Sunday, that changed, as South Carolina State University reopened Bulldog Lanes in the Kirkland W. Green Student Center, hours after the campus paused to remember the Orangeburg Massacre. 

The ribbon-cutting marked the return of a longtime campus and community space following renovations to the Student Center and coincided with the university’s 58th commemoration honoring the three students killed and the 28 wounded during the 1968 Orangeburg Massacre. 

The six-lane bowling alley had been closed for several years because equipment needed repair. The upgraded Bulldog Lanes now features modern bowling technology, refinished lanes and new décor, restoring the space as a contemporary gathering place for students and the Orangeburg community. 

President Alexander Conyers said the bowling alley was originally created to serve both SC State and Claflin University students and to offer a place to gather beyond the classroom — a direct response to the Orangeburg Massacre, which grew out of student efforts to desegregate the city’s only bowling alley, then the last segregated business in Orangeburg. 

Conyers said reopening Bulldog Lanes will restore something missing not only from campus life but from the broader Orangeburg community. 

“This is to give this bowling alley back to our students, to give this bowling alley back to the community, because there's currently not an active bowling alley in the city or the county of Orangeburg,” he said. 

He said the space is intended to elevate both student life and community engagement. 

“So, this will elevate the student experience, as well as the community,” Conyers said. “This bowling alley will be open to the community as well.” 

Born from tragedy, built for students 

SC State also marked the occasion with a tangible tribute to those most directly affected by the Orangeburg Massacre. Old pins once used at Bulldog Lanes were repurposed into keepsakes for the families of the three young men who were killed and for survivors who were wounded. 

The pins were fastened to acrylic stands commemorating the occasion, transforming a piece of the bowling alley’s past into a lasting symbol of remembrance and resilience. Conyers showcased the keepsakes during the ceremony.

Conyers symbolically rolled the first balls alongside student leaders and members of the families of Henry Smith, Samuel Hammond Jr. and Delano Middleton, the three young men killed in the Orangeburg Massacre on Feb. 8, 1968. The lanes will officially open to students and the public pending the acquisition of a final piece of equipment. 

The reopening of Bulldog Lanes is the final phase of the recent renovation of the Kirkland W. Green Student Center. A $20 million expansion of the center will get underway this spring.

Sunday’s occasion also included a ribbon-cutting for the Student Center’s barbershop, which also had been closed for several years. The space has been leased to a local barber to serve students and community members. The shop is open for business.

The ribbon-cuttings capped a day that moved from remembrance to renewal on the SC State campus.

 A full circle moment 

Among those watching the lanes come back to life was Bill Hamilton, whose classmate Samuel Hammond Jr. was one of the three students killed in the massacre. Hamilton was a student at SC State when the bowling alley first opened in the early 1970s.  

Hamilton, who later spent decades at SC State as sports information director and now serves as the color commentator on Bulldog football radio broadcasts and as athletics historian, said reopening Bulldog Lanes brings the story full circle. 

“Oh, yeah, it’s like going to a real circle,” he said. “Because we had lots of kids that loved to bowl. And when they opened a bowling alley here, it became real popular.”  

He said university leaders at the time understood the importance of making the space welcoming beyond campus.  

“Our administrators, they had a lot of wisdom and vision,” Hamilton said. “So, they started inviting them. We started having birthday parties in it. Young kids came to have their birthday party.

“It was a source of delight for us because we had something that came out of the Orangeburg Massacre,” he said.  

Alumni see growth, connection 

Summerville resident Vivian Bryant Gadson, SC State Class of 1981, said the reopening brought back memories of campus life and the evolution of the Orangeburg Massacre commemoration. 

“I do remember going to the bowling center for that center of enjoyment here,” Gadson said. “And it was nice occasion to come back because I actually attended several of the memorial service when I was a student here and to see how it had evolved and the professionalism and the upgrade.” 

She said the university’s growth is evident in both its facilities and its care for students. 

“It’s wonderful to see the bowling alley, the barbershop,” Gadson said. “The students, are not having to go off campus if they don’t need to.” 

Loretta Jenkins Sumter, a Charleston resident and member of the SC State Class of 1981, said the Student Center, including Bulldog Lanes, was the anchor of student life when she was a student. 

“This was a mega point of socialization for us,” Sumter said. “As we were transitioning between classes, meals on Sundays when a lot of us could not go home — that’s what we used it for.” 

She said reopening the space continues the connection between campus history and the surrounding community. 

“It shows a connection between a community and a campus,” Sumter said. “There’s a connection between the community and the college here, because the college is relying upon the community, community relying upon the college for a lot of its revenues.” 

A space for today’s students 

For current students, the return of Bulldog Lanes represents both a new gathering space and a deeper connection to campus history. 

“It gives us more engagement on campus,” said Tyvon Boston, a junior majoring in business management. “Everyone can go in there, chill, hang out, bowl and make new friends.” 

Boston said reopening the bowling alley after the Orangeburg Massacre commemoration added meaning to the moment. 

“It’s kind of sentimental,” he said. “I’m here witnessing it now, and when I leave, there will be other people who come here and witness it and understand what happened.” 

The upgraded facility also plays a role in SC State’s dedication to women's athletics and student opportunity. Conyers said Bulldog Lanes will serve as a home base for the university’s newly re-established women’s bowling team. 

“I'm also super, super excited to bring back South Carolina State's women's bowling team,” he said. “They will have their own place to practice. 

“So, when they bowl, not only are they representing South Carolina State University, they will be representing the legacy of Smith, Hammond, and Middleton, and the Orangeburg Massacre,” Conyers said.