Weldon Auditorium is an 1,100-seat auditorium that hosts a variety of musical and theatrical performances

including plays, local, state and regional dance competitions, beauty pageants, graduations, concerts, and

various fundraising events including Dancin’ with the Swampcats and Dancin’ with the Saints.

 

Weldon Auditorium also hosts educational events including several South Carolina Independent School

Association (SCISA) events including their annual statewide spelling bee, chess competition, math

competition, dance competition and drama competition.

 

Featuring a large seating capacity, special lighting, and a state-of-the-art sound system, Weldon Auditorium

offers its unique capabilities to families as they choose a venue for their loved one’s Celebration of Life

services.

 

Weldon’s atrium and lobby offer a special and intimate place for small reunions, business announcements,

meetings, parties and events. Weldon’s atrium and lobby has also hosted an exhibit from the Smithsonian

Museum.

 

Weldon Auditorium’s large parking lot has welcomed several festivals, including a Juneteeth Jazz Festival, a

festival raising awareness of addictions and suicides, and a candlelight service to enhance awareness of

child abuse. Weldon is also the kick-off location for the Clarendon County Chamber of Commerce’s annual

Soups, Stews, and Sweets fundraiser. Not only is Weldon, the first top as attendees enjoy the event’s

special foods, Weldon partners with Clarendon County Fire Rescue to serve one of the fundraiser’s most

popular treats, Brunswick Stew.

 

Weldon also serves the community during municipal, national, state, and local elections. Weldon’s spacious

parking lot, handicapped accessibility, and large atrium and lobby make the venue an excellent place for

voters to cast their ballot. Weldon serves Manning and Clarendon County as Manning Precinct 1.

 

Weldon has also hosted a plethora of governmental, civic, educational, political, and community-inspired

events. From county council meetings, Manning City Council meetings, garden club events, and school

convocations to town meetings, various county and city departmental meetings and more, Weldon is where

the community comes together to meet.

 

Having the Clarendon County Recreation Department’s gymnasium linked to Weldon by a short hallway,

competitors don’t have to leave the comforts of the facilities during inclement weather. Weldon Auditorium’s

stage can be directly accessed from the gymnasium to the rear of the stage for the ease, convenience, and

timeliness of changing acts.  Weldon Auditorium can be accessed from the gymnasium down the Loggia

that runs the length of the auditorium and enters the lobby and atrium area. 

 

The size of the gymnasium can also accommodate competitions with large numbers of competitors who

 need a private area where they can quickly make costume changes before returning to the stage.

 

Weldon Auditorium History

In 1954, the auditorium and stage were built to showcase MHS’s graduations, beauty pageants, talent

shows, band concerts, school assemblies, and community events. 

 

More than 70 years ago, Manning High School built an auditorium and stage to showcase the school’s

graduations, beauty pageants, talent shows, band concerts, school assemblies, and community events.

 

In 1967, the auditorium was named Weldon Auditorium in memory of William Heathley Weldon, a former

superintendent of Manning public schools.

 

For the next 20 years, MHS auditorium served thousands of students, teachers, administrators, and

members of the community.

 

In 1984, a devastating fire destroyed the auditorium’s adjacent classroom facility, but that didn’t stop the

school district or the community from holding a variety of productions and performances in the auditorium.

For more than a decade, the auditorium continued to be used. However, over the years, fewer and fewer

events were held at the facility and what was once a shining star fell into disrepair.

 

In 2004, the community launched a plan to return the once grand auditorium to its former glory. Four years

later, a groundbreaking ceremony marked the beginning of a multi-million dollar renovation and expansion

project. On Dec. 3, 2010, a gala reception was held to unveil the new additions and the renovations to

Weldon Auditorium, the cornerstone of the new Clarendon County Community Complex.

 

The Clarendon County Community Complex is comprised of Weldon Auditorium with its Grand Atrium,

Loggia, and Art Corridor; the Clarendon County Community Center with its regulation-sized basketball

court, bleachers and dressing rooms along with adjacent classrooms; and the Breedin Garden Room, a

catering venue with an adjoining commercial kitchen. While Weldon Auditorium and the Clarendon County

Community Center are part of the Clarendon County Recreation Department, the Breedin Garden Room is

part of the Clarendon County Disabilities and Special Needs Board.

 

Keeping Weldon’s original architecture in mind, the design of the auditorium renovations and its additions

reflected the architecture, style, and colors of the mid-1950s.

 

The Grand Atrium’s spectacular 3000-plus sq. ft. addition welcomes visitors to Weldon Auditorium.

 

During the renovations, a Loggia was added along the northern side of the facility and serves as home to

the Clarendon County Athletic Hall of Fame. The Loggia also houses the Art Gallery where world renowned

artists as well as numerous local, state, and regional artists and artisans have displayed their works.

 

The Loggia is a wonderful area to host intimate receptions and parties as well as book signings.

 

Weldon Auditorium, the “Hub of the Community,” is a welcoming venue where residents and visitors can

enjoy the arts from the comfort of a beautiful and timeless facility that has been lovingly restored.

 

Stop in. Enjoy an event. Walk through the auditorium. Take a stroll down the Loggia and remember the

athletes who adorn the Hall of Fame. Visit the Art Gallery.

 

“The Hub of the Community,” Weldon Auditorium is a venue that you’ll enjoy visiting time and time again

with your family, friends and folks simply passing through our small, quaint community.