The man behind 100,000 Myrtle Beach memories: Why Jack Thompson is letting go of past
Jack Thompson thumbs through photos on his phone, occasionally stopping to tell the story behind the black-and-white frames. They’re all snapshots taken from a lifetime of chronicling Myrtle Beach’s history, starting when Thompson was a 13-year-old hitchhiker who made his way to the coastal city after hearing tales of beautiful girls in bathing suits and shag dancing on the beach. For 75 years, the 90-year-old has been the unofficial city historian, a recorder of long-gone Myrtle Beach landmarks such as the Pavilion and the opulent Ocean Forest Hotel, and a witness to such events as the devastating Hurricane Hazel in 1954, which transformed the Grand Strand. People would often say, “if Jack Thompson showed up, it must be important,” Thompson said. Thompson estimates he’s taken over 100,000 photos over the years — all based on the advice of his father, who was a newspaper editor. “My dad told me to photograph everything I thought was important, that one day it would be famous,” Thompson said. Now, the Garden City resident is preparing to let his collection go, selling off his archives so other people can enjoy them for years to come. “I’m beginning to admire the sunset more than the
