The first stop for many of our over 4,000 annual visitors to The Conroy Center is the Museum, where aficionados of all things Pat Conroy will find one-of-a-kind exhibits, memorabilia, writing, photos, awards and so much more. One of the most cherished opportunities is to sit in Pat’s writing chair at his desk where he wrote several of his novels. Immerse yourself in Pat’s world; you’ll be forever touched by this intimate opportunity to learn more about his life, family, friends and inspiration for much of his writing.
The nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center is home to a three-room exhibit gallery, curated thematically, with exhibits about Pat Conroy as student and teacher, the Conroy family, and Conroy’s writing and reading life. Touring the Conroy Center with our trained volunteer docents is an immersive experience in storytelling, augmented by a treasure trove of memorabilia.
Our artifacts include Conroy’s handwritten manuscripts, family photographs, school yearbooks and boyhood writings, his Citadel ring, the Great Santini’s flight jacket and medals, the writing desk from Conroy’s Fripp Island home, a representative selection of books from his home library, Conroy’s many honors and awards, and the quilt gifted to him by his sister Kathy as a 70th birthday present, as well as artwork commissioned for the Conroy Center by local students. Our hallway features art and writing from our Camp Conroy summer camp.
Our education room includes a special exhibit of photographs and oral history narratives of Conroy’s storied year of teaching on Daufuskie Island. Our conference room is decorated with books and photos from more than a dozen female authors mentored and befriended by Pat Conroy and his widow and fellow southern writer, Cassandra King. Even our two restrooms feature exhibit materials, all collectively telling the story of Pat Conroy’s legacy as author, educator, advocate, and mentor.
