Thursday we continued our exploration of South Carolina’s
lowcountry as we went along State Route 17 South to Georgetown, South Carolina, sometimes claimed as one of the
oldest settlements in the United States, and from there to Charleston, an easy hundred
or so miles.
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| Georgetown's Rice Museum |
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| We didn't see any exhibits on rice, but they had a nice shop |
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| More views of the town |
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| The view from the inlet |
On the way, however, we found ourselves at Hopsewee, a
mid-18th century rice plantation, one of the earliest extant.
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| The view of the house as you approach it from Highway 17. This is the back of the house. The front of these houses faced, of course, the water |
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| The water |
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| The front of the house |
What is remarkable here is that the original house, hewn
from the old growth “black” cypress which were cleared from swamps by African
slaves to create the rice fields, stands intact and largely unmodified having
passed through the hands of just five owners in the 270 years it has stood. Sadly
this is another house that does not allow inside photography.
From there it was a relatively short shot into Charleston,
at least until we hit the city outskirts when the heavens opened up. As had
been the case in New Orleans, the last few miles were the hardest. This time it
was not blocked streets, but lightning, hail, two grade-level train crossings
and more rain than either of us has ever seen. It was fun.
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