A Closeup On “Carolina Tony”

To South Carolina native Tony Purvis, he’s just doing something fun that he loves. But to his more than 1,400 YouTube subscribers, he’s entertaining and educating viewers one video at a time on some of the most unique spots and adventures you can find in the Carolinas as “Carolina Tony.”

The 64-year-old YouTuber started his video series about two and a half years ago, although capturing his travels with photos on Facebook, whether by way of his motorcycle, Traveller (named after Robert E. Lee’s horse) or by truck, is something he’s been doing for the last 20 years from Canada to Texas.

“YouTube became an outlet to not just share with family and friends, but with the whole world,” Purvis. “And, and my channel was kind of unique. At the same time, there’s an interest on there for everybody. … It’s family-friendly.”

For instance, he says, about a year or so ago, he traveled beyond South Carolina to Chicago, where he shot a video in the American Doll store and museum.

“On video, I said, ‘How many bikers do you know would be here?’” says Purvis. “Even my 8-year-old granddaughter watches my stuff.”

His 10- to 15-minute videos have him exploring everything from the oldest bridge in South Carolina to the oldest wax museum in the country (in St. Augustine, Fla.) to diving into a dive bar in Asheville, N.C., filled with oddities and curiosities or diving into a tank with whale sharks at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta – and so much more. Many of the destinations are inspired by those in a book he purchased called “Strange Carolinas.”

Purvis shoots everything solo, with the help of either his Nikon d5300, Sony HX 80, a GoPro, his Samsung Galaxy 9 or his drone. He says he can sometimes shoot 10 to 15 videos in two days’ time, but editing and releasing the actual videos may take months of work. Regardless, they’re timed out to post weekly for his anxiously awaiting subscribers.

One day he learned not to shoot a video? His wedding anniversary.

“This coming March, I’ll be married 44 years,” says Purvis. “But this past March, my wife and I went to Savannah, Georgia, for our anniversary and I found out it is not a good idea to film constantly on your anniversary.”

When he’s not filming, he runs his own company, Airtech Air Conditioning & Heating, in Cheraw. Born in Bennettsville, Purvis has lived in Chesterfield County since 1978. He and his wife have two grown children and two grandchildren.

“I want to grow my channel as big as I can,” says Purvis of his future plans and travels.

To check out his past and future videos, which update weekly, visit: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCC_Xi4PPLEDZgHb3bFsn9sA.

He’s also on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/Carolina-Tony-1787641591540124/.