April 11, 2008 - Charleston

Today we took the car in to have a tire fixed. We had a slow leak and must have picked up a nail or something. After that got done we drove to the visitor center downtown Charleston. We got on the trolley and rode in part way down into the historic district. We got off and started walking the streets to look at all the houses. It is amazing how big some of them are and the various porches (piazzas), and the iron work in front of the houses.

The various churches were all so different in their architecture. Beautiful in their own way.

After walking about 3 miles we hopped back on the trolley and then got off again near a restaurant called Jestine’s Kitchen. The restaurant had been recommended to us by our tour bus driver the day before and he suggested that we get there early to avoid the crowd. Since it was a Friday, we decided to get there around 4:00 p.m. It was perfect timing because we were able to go right to a table.

Jestine was the housekeeper for the Ellison family. The owner of the restaurant is the daughter of the Ellisons’ only child. She is sharing some of the wonderful style of home cooking that Justine provided the family. Jestine died at the age of 112 in 1997.

I tried the fried green tomatoes and lightly breaded flounder. It was the best. Loved the green tomatoes and had been wanting to try them ever since we got into the south. After eating a great meal, we walked a couple of blocks down to the City Market. We bought a sweet grass basket from one of the local women. She was so nice and her baskets were beautiful. Works of art that is for sure. They use pine needles, sweet grass and bulrush. Basket making is one of the oldest art forms of African origin in the United States. Mount Pleasant, South Carolina is the only place that this type of basketry is practiced. Here the descendents of slaves from West Africa continue the tradition. The traditional art has been passed on from generation to generation for the past 300 years.

April 9 10, 2008 - Charleston, SC

Arrived in Charleston and set up camp. Drove the car downtown to the visitor’s center. It was a huge complex made out of brick. We got lots of information and stood in a long line to buy our tickets for an all day tour the next day. Then we drove to the Morris Island Lighthouse (1876) and the Charleston Lighthouse (1962). The Charleston Lighthouse is unique because it has been built in a triangular shape and has an elevator for the Coast Guard personnel to use to go to the top.

April 10 - Charleston, SC

Went on a tour in a mini bus to see the historic district and some of the old houses in downtown. Charleston was founded in 1670 and grew quite prosperous. Many owners of plantations became wealthy growing rice. Some of the homes are very large, one of them being 24,000 square feet. There are several styles of homes also. A single house has one room in the front and one in the back. The front door does not face the street but instead faces south. The other style is a double house with two rooms in the front and two in the back. The large porches are called Piazzas and are trimmed in iron work. The homes are quite colorful and the gardens are beautiful. Many of the homes and building are covered with a vine called creeping fig. The vine grows very slowly so you can tell the age of a building by how much it is covered with the vine. Some of the homes had carved wooden rope around their windows which indicated that the owner was a shipping merchant.

We drove by the 137 year old jail. It was made out of brick and had windows with bars. The prisoners were not given any blankets for the winter and in the summer they had to fight the heat/humidity and mosquitoes. No electricity and no running water. The hangings took place out in the courtyard and were held on Saturday for everyone to come and watch. The gallows were only one foot off the ground. The prisoner was covered with a hood over his head and a rope around his neck. The rope was then tied to weights which were dropped to pull the prisoner up and snap his neck.

The second half of the tour took us out to the Magnolia Plantation. The front door of a plantation always had to face the river. Guests were never brought into the home through the back door. Stephen Fox who was already very wealthy and living in Barbados decided to invest in some property in Charleston. He bought 2,000 acres on the Ashley River just north of Charleston. When Thomas Drayton, Jr. married Anne, the daughter of Stephen Fox, he gave the property to them as a wedding gift which began a long line of Drayton family ownership that has lasted over 300 years.

The original house was built in 1676 and it was destroyed by fire caused by lightning. The second house was burned down by the Yankees. After the war was over no one including Drayton had any money. He owned lots of land but had no cash. He went up to his summer cabin and took it apart and brought all the lumber down by barge on the Ashley River. He built the new house on top of the old foundation. After his death his daughter Julia became the new owner and she wanted more room. So, she added on to the side of her father’s house. All the hand-made quilts were amazing and the furniture was beautiful. Every room but one had a fireplace. One room upstairs had a picture hanging over the fireplace that depicted a style of art called head hunter art. The artists would travel around the country and paint scenery and different bodies (with clothing - not nude) in the picture. Then they would meet a family that wanted a portrait done and place the head on the body that was already in the picture. This particular painting over the fireplace showed how obvious it was because the head was a young girl and the body was of a woman.

Wisteria wraps itself around the palm trees and appears to be growing right out of the palm frawns.

Several salve houses still remain on the property.

After touring the home, we got on a tram that drove us 3 miles through some of the property. There are camellias, azaleas, trees of all variety. We saw alligators, turtles and a variety of birds.

April 8, 2008 - Beaufort, SC

Today we drove to Beaufort. We decided to stay here because it was a central location for us to see the Hunting Island Lighthouse. The RV park was named Tuck In the Wood Campground and it was literally tucked back into the woods. The office was a 1986 Winnebago. We drove out to Hunting Island Lighthouse located in a state park. The original lighthouse was built in 1859 and after two years the civil war put out the light. In 1875 the lighthouse was rebuilt with a tower that was in sections so it could be taken apart quickly and moved elsewhere. When erosion threatened in 1885, the lighthouse was moved inland about a mile. We walked behind the lighthouse and out onto the beach. We started walking along the beach searching for sea shells. We found two large Welk Shells (look like a conch shell) and several other unique shells. It was fun to search for different type shells.

We drove back into the town of Beaufort passing docks filled with shrimp boats. In town we could drive around and see many old churches and houses. One church we stopped at was the St. Helena’s Episcopal Church. St. Helena’s Parish was established in 1712. The church was erected in 1724. We walked through the cemetery. It was interesting reading the head stones that were dated back to the 1700-1800s.

April 7, 2008 - Hardeeville, SC

Once again we had several choices of tours. We picked the deluxe tour that took three hours. Our tour guide was like a walking encyclopedia. He knew names, dates and historical facts that quickly over loaded us. His father turned out to be a well known reporter working for Walter Cronkite. We saw every square in town, housing that freedom slaves had built and lived in as well as famous other homes. We saw Juliet Low’s home, who founded the first American Girl Scout Troop in 1912. It was difficult to take pictures from the mini bus so when we returned to our car we went back to some of the sites that we thought were unique. We went inside the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist built in 1873. It was absolutely beautiful inside.

We drove down to the river front and found a nice restaurant for lunch. Then we walked and walked the river front. Lots of shops and restaurants everywhere. We saw several statues; one honoring the many black slave families, one for the Viet Nam War and one named, “The Waving Girl“. In the early years of the 20th century the city light-tender’s sister, Florence Martus, became known to seamen all over the world for waving at every ship. One legend maintains that she promised her sailor sweetheart to greet every ship until his return.

We enjoyed Savannah, and as so many other southern cities, it is full of history and beautiful architecture .

April 6, 2008 - Hardeeville, SC

Drove to Fort Pulaski located on Cockspur Island. Construction of the fort began in 1829. It was built to guard the river approaches to Savananah and named after a Polish Count who lost his life in the unsuccessful siege of Savannah in 1779. The fort cost $1 million, used 25 million bricks and took 18 years to finish.

The fort is surrounded by a moat and there are stillcannon balls in the brick walls. We walked around the fort and then out to the Cockspur Lighthouse. As we started our 1 mile hike, we started hearing this loud humming noise. It turned out that the path was lined with Juniper trees and the bees had nests in them. They would dive bomb you once in a while and I had to remind myself to keep my head down and my arms at my side. It freaked me out and it was such a beautiful walk except for that worry. We were able to walk right to the water’s edge and see the lighthouse. The shore was covered solid with white oyster shells. As we walked along the path, little crabs would pop out of tiny holes and scurry across the path. It was a fun walk and I was really proud of Larry for walking 2 miles.

Next stop was at the Tybee Island Lighthouse. The original Tybee Island Lighthouse was built in 1791 out of wood. Unfortunately, it burned down in that same year. The second lighthouse was built out of brick and lasted until the Confederate troops burned it in 1861. After the civil war, it was rebuilt with 12-inch thick walls at the base. We drove around the island for a while and then went to the Crab Shack for lunch. We were able to sit outside on their patio. The patio tables have a hole in the middle so you can throw all your seafood shells into the trash. It was a nice and relaxing place for lunch.

After lunch we drove to Harbor Town on Hilton Head Island. It was a pretty drive with the roads lined with tall green trees. We reached the entrance to Sea Pines Plantation where we paid our $5 to enter. It was a short drive from there to Harbor Town. A marina with lots of condos, yachts and plenty of shops. Right in the middle of the marina, sits this beautiful red and white striped lighthouse. The lighthouse was completed in 1970 and was the first lighthouse to be privately financed since the 1800s. We walked around the marina and enjoyed the beautiful day.

April 5, 2008 - Hardeeville, SC

Our quest to take pictures of lighthouses took us out to Sapelo Island. We took a ferry over to the.island and when we got off the boat we were met by a guide who put us on a small tour bus. She was one of the few descendents left of the slaves that lived on the island many years ago. The island has been inhabited by Native Americans for over 4,000 years. It became a plantation in the 1800s and was subsequently owned by a succession of wealthy businessmen. The last one was tobacco magnate R. J. Reynolds, from 1933 to 1965. Our tour included the Sapelo Island Lighthouse originally built in 1820, the Afro-American community of Hog Hammock and the Reynolds mansion.

The original mansion was tabby (shells, limestone and sand) by Thomas Spalding in 1810 as his permanent plantation home and used until 1861. It was vandalized during and after the civil war and then rebuilt in 1907. It was completely restored in 1922-25 by Howard Coffin. Richard J. Reynolds modernized the house during his ownership of Sapelo in 1934-64 and used it as a private retreat.

The house is now maintained by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and is used as a conference facility. The mansion has had many famous visitors including President & Mrs. Calvin Coolidge in 1928, President & Mrs. Herbert Hoover in 1932, and Charles Lindbergh in 1929.

The island got electricity in 1967. When the slaves were freed many stayed on the island and purchased their own land. There are only 70 residents today living on the island. There cemetery is called Behavior. When the slaves were brought over to Georgia and South Carolina, many of them were so depressed from being taken from their home land and didn’t want to be a slave to anyone, that they would get off the ship and walk straight into the ocean and drown. Others would get off the ship and run into the woods. The plantation owner would say, “just leave them their until they can behave”. Many died in the woods and were buried in Behavior Cemetery. The headstones always pointed to the East. Some say it is because they point to Africa, the slaves homeland. A book I purchased at the store in Hog Hammock explains that the headstones point to God in the East. The west is the devil.

April 4, 2008 - Darien, GA

Drove out to St. Simons Island. We took a 90 minute tour on the St. Simons Trolley. Our tour guide, Bunny, is a direct descendent of Pocahontas. She was terrific and very informative. We got to see the 200 year old working lighthouse (1872), the Bloody Marsh (site of the famous 1742 battle), Fort Frederica and Christ Church. Christ Church was built by a priest as a memorial to his wife in 1885. When she was dying, he made a promise to her that he would keep her by his side forever. He buried her right next to the alter. He later remarried. When he passed away, he had left instructions to have his wife‘s casket removed from the alter and buried beside him behind the church. When the tour was over we walked through the small village area of shops and restaurants. We had lunch at Barbara Jeans their crab cakes were the best.

In the afternoon we took a drive to Fort King George. The fort was built in1721 and abandoned in 1732. Named for King George I of Britain, the fort was a small triangular-shaped fort and was the first English settlement in what is now known as Georgia. Surrounded by a moat on two sides and the north branch of the Altamaha River on the third. The fort we toured is an exact replication of the original fort. We toured the barracks, officers’ quarters, the guardhouse and the various other buildings.