Edisto Island
Edisto Island | |
---|---|
UTC-4 (EDT) | |
ZIP Code | 29438[1] |
Area code(s) | 843 and 854 |
GNIS feature ID | 1247638[2] |
Edisto Island is one of
The island, the town, and the Edisto River are named after the historic Edistow people, a Native American sub-tribe of the Cusabo Indians, who inhabited the island as well as nearby mainland areas.
History
Indigenous peoples often had fishing camps on the islands, using them seasonally. The historic Edisto people are known to have occupied the island as well as mainland areas and traded with the upcountry Catawba.[3] The sub-tribe became extinct during the colonial period. The Wassamasaw Tribe of Varnertown Indians is a group of descendants of various tribes, including Edisto, who intermarried and who have occupied a settlement between Summerville and Moncks Corner in Berkeley County, South Carolina. In 2009, they gained state recognition as an Indian Tribe, one of nine tribes to do so.[3][4]
The first tracts of land, called plantations, were granted on Edisto Island before 1700. There were several attempts by the French and the Spanish to settle in this area in the 1500s, however, those attempts all failed. The first group of Europeans who succeeded in settling Edisto Island were English people who settled the island in the late 1600s and early 1700s. Though it is unclear when the modern name was adopted, the island was called "Locke Island", after the English philosopher and Secretary to the
During the American Revolution, there were huge amounts of British soldiers present on Edisto Island. After retaking Savannah in 1788, the British pushed into South Carolina, during this time Beaufort was made into their headquarters and large amounts of British troops were stationed on Edisto Island under the capture of Charleston in 1780.[7]
The 1790 census reported the island had a population of 223 Whites and 1,692 Black slaves. The 1860 census indicated 329 Whites and 5,082 slaves.[8]
Civil war
Edisto Island was largely abandoned by planters in November and December 1861, and escaped slaves began setting up their own refugee camps there. In January 1862, armed settlers from the island and Confederate forces clashed, and a Confederate raid in reprisal killed unarmed settlers. In February, Union forces were stationed on the island to develop it as a staging area for future campaigns against Charleston, twenty-five miles away, as well as to protect the colony, which would eventually number thousands of settlers. As Union forces took control of the island, a number of skirmishes occurred, and Confederates withdrew. Pineberry Battery was further up the
Reconstruction
From 1865 until 1877 the Island was primarily run by agents of the Freedmen's Bureau as well by recently freed
Historic preservation
Since the twentieth century, the island has been redeveloped for use as a tourist destination and resorts, although some private plantations remain.
The Alexander Bache U.S. Coast Survey Line, Bailey's Store, Bleak Hall Plantation Outbuildings, Brick House Ruins, Brookland Plantation, Cassina Point, Crawford's Plantation House, Edisto Island Baptist Church, Edisto Island Presbyterian Church, Fig Island, Frogmore, Paul Grimball House Ruins, Hutchinson House, Middleton's Plantation, Oak Island, Old House Plantation, Peter's Point Plantation, Presbyterian Manse, Prospect Hill, William Seabrook House, Seaside School, Seaside Plantation House, Spanish Mount Point, Sunnyside, Hephzibah Jenkins Townsend's Tabby Oven Ruins, Trinity Church, Wescott Road, and Windsor Plantation are listed in the National Register of Historic Places.[11]
Geography
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/National_Scenic_Byway_-_Edisto_Island_%28South_Carolina%29_-_NARA_-_68886659.jpg/257px-National_Scenic_Byway_-_Edisto_Island_%28South_Carolina%29_-_NARA_-_68886659.jpg)
Edisto Island is located 26 miles (42 km) southwest of Charleston. Edisto Island is home to Edisto Beach and Wyndham Oceanridge resort.
Edisto Beach State Park is also located on the island. The park is open to day visitors as well as tent and RV camping. The park has a ranger station, bathrooms with running water and showers, a playground, and an education center. The campsites are unique in that there are many that are on the beachfront, overlooking the ocean. Hanging moss trees shade the park. Each site is equipped with electricity and water hook ups, a fire pit, and a picnic table.
Demographics
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/ISS036-E-8381_-_View_of_South_Carolina.jpg/257px-ISS036-E-8381_-_View_of_South_Carolina.jpg)
As of the
There were 1,030 households, out of which 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.4% were married couples living together, 21.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 28.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.16.
In the CDP the population was spread out, with 27.0% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.8 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $25,962, and the median income for a family was $31,000. Males had a median income of $24,609 versus $19,131 for females. The
Notable people
- Kardea Brown, cook and host of Food Network's Delicious Miss Brown, films the show on the island at her family's house. [12]
- James C. Greenway, a member of the Lauder Greenway Family and founder of the Yale School of Public Health, combined several properties to create Botany Bay on the island.
- Funk Brothers, who played Motownhits in the 1960s, was born here.
- Micah Jenkins, Confederate general in the American Civil War, mortally wounded by friendly fire at the Battle of the Wilderness
- Jasper Johns, artist b 1930 SC, bought a home and studio at Edisto Beach in 1961. This burned down in a fire in 1966.
- Eleanor Frances Lattimore, author and illustrator of over 50 children's books including the Little Pear series about a boy in China.
- Patti LuPone, Broadway singer and actress, makes a winter home on the island
- Emily Meggett, Geechee-Gullah community leader, chef, and author
- Lucia Murchison, social worker born on Edisto Island; president of the South Carolina Public Health Association in 1965
See also
References
- ^ "Edisto Island ZIP Code". zipdatamaps.com. 2022. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
- ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. June 30, 2015. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ a b Bo Petersen, "Researchers explore local tribe's ties to legendary temple"[permanent dead link], The Post and Courier, April 17, 2005, accessed December 14, 2011
- ^ Bo Petersen, "Local tribe reclaims its roots, heritage"[permanent dead link], April 17, 2005, accessed December 14, 2011
- ISBN 9780738517674.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: date and year (link - ^ "Edisto's Storied Past". May 3, 2021.
- ^ Wicked Edisto: The Dark Side of Eden by Alexia Jones Helsley
- ^ Starobin, Paul (April 11, 2017). Madness Rules the Hour: Charleston, 1860 and the Mania for War (First ed.). Public Affairs.
- ^ Tomblin 2009, p65-73, 85-86, 95
- ^ Edisto Island, 1861 to 2006: Ruin, Recovery and Rebirth By Charles Spencer
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ "15 Minutes with Kardea Brown | Charleston Magazine". August 25, 2020.
Sources
- Tomblin, Barbara. Bluejackets and Contrabands: African Americans and the Union Navy. University Press of Kentucky, 2009. - via Project MUSE(subscription required)