Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
These new African Americans were able to retain many of their homeland tradi-
tions, even after the fall of slavery and well into the 20th century. The resulting Gul-
lah (also known as Geechee) culture has its own language, an English-based Creole
with many African words and sentence structures, and many traditions, including
fantastic storytelling, art, music and crafts. The Gullah culture is celebrated annu-
For a Gullah-style meal, stop in Mt Pleasant for the lunch buffet at
Gullah Cuisine
(
www.gullahcuisine.net
;
1717 Hwy 17 N; buffet adult/child $8.25/4.50)
.
History
More than 28 separate tribes of Native Americans have lived in what is now South Caro-
lina, many of them Cherokee who were later forcibly removed during the Trail of Tears
era.
The English founded the Carolina colony in 1670, with settlers pouring in from the
royal outpost of Barbados, giving the port city known as Charles Towne a Caribbean fla-
vor. West African slaves were brought over to turn the thick coastal swamps into rice
paddies and by the mid-1700s the area was deeply divided between the slave-owning ar-
istocrats of the Lowcountry and the poor Scots-Irish and German farmers of the rural
backcountry.
South Carolina was the first state to secede from the Union, and the first battle of the
Civil War occurred at Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor. The end of the war left much of
the state in ruins.
South Carolina traded in cotton and textiles for most of the 20th century. It remains a
relatively poor agricultural state, though with a thriving coastal tourism business.
In recent years the Palmetto State has garnered headlines because of its politicians,
from Nikki Haley, the state's first woman and first Indian American governor, to dis-
graced ex-governor and now Congressman, Mark Sanford. While governor, Sanford fam-
ously claimed that he was hiking the Appalachian Trail when he was in fact visiting his
Argentinian honey.
Information
South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism
( 803-734-1700;
www.discoversouthcarolina.com
; 1205 Pendleton St, room 505; )
Sends out the state's official
vacation guide. The state's nine highway welcome centers offer wi-fi. Ask inside for
password.
