Not Identical Twins
You wouldn't think that there would be that much difference between North and South Carolina, but there you would be mistaken. The change became apparent as soon as we crossed the border. First thing we noticed was more litter along the roadside. We can only pozit as to why that might be, but for some reason, North Carolinians keep their garbage in the cars, and their Southern cousins seemingly toss it out the window. We also noticed that the road surface was rougher, and shoulders or accomodations for bicyclists were virtually non-existant (at least in this part of the state. It would change some as we moved southward). We had also started to observe Palmetto Pines in NC, but they were evident everywhere (including on the license plates) in SC. It gives a nice, almost tropical feel to the place.
A Long, Rich and Unique History
South Carolina stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the Blue Ridge Mountains, containing 31,113 square miles. Fortieth in geographic area among the fifty states, it ranks twenty-sixth in population.
Spaniards explored the South Carolina coast as early as 1514. Spanish fears of French rivalry were heightened when Huguenots led by Jean Ribaut attempted to settle on what is now Parris Island near Beaufort in 1562. After Ribaut returned to France for reinforcements, the soldiers who were left behind revolted, built themselves a ship, and sailed for France the next year. The horrors of that voyage went beyond eating shoes to cannibalism before an English ship rescued the pitiful remainder of the French attempt to colonize here.
The Spanish built Fort San Felipe on Parris Island in 1566 and made the new settlement there, and made it the capital of La Florida Province. This was a good 50 years before Jamestown was settled. In 1587 after Sir Francis Drake had destroyed St. Augustine, the Spanish decided to concentrate their forces there. With the withdrawal from Santa Elena to St. Augustine in 1587, South Carolina was again left to the Native Americans until the English established the first permanent European settlement at Albemarle Point on the Ashley River in 1670.
King Charles II had given Carolina to eight English noblemen, the Lords Proprietors. The proprietors' first settlers included many Barbadians, and South Carolina came to resemble more closely the plantation economy of the West Indies than did the other mainland colonies. By 1708, a majority of the non-native inhabitants were African slaves. Native Americans, ravaged by diseases against which they had no resistance, last significantly threatened the colony's existence in the Yemassee War of 1715. After the colonists revolted against proprietary rule in 1719, the proprietors' interests were bought out and South Carolina became a royal province.
By the 1750s, rice and indigo had made the planters and merchants of the South Carolina lowcountry the wealthiest men in what would become the United States. Government encouragement of white Protestant settlement in townships in the interior and migration from Pennsylvania, Virginia, and North Carolina were to give the upcountry a different character: smaller farms and a larger percentage of German, Scots-Irish, and Welsh settlers. By 1790, this part of the state temporarily gave the total population a white majority, but the spread of cotton plantations soon again made African American slaves the majority.
Charlestonians were strong supporters of their rights as Englishmen in the Stamp Act crisis in 1765, and South Carolina would play a significant role when differences escalated into the American Revolution. Over two hundred battles and skirmishes occurred in the State, many of them vicious encounters between South Carolinians who opted for independence and those who chose to remain loyal to King George.
The first shots of the Civil War were fired in Charleston Harbor on April 12, 1861. Two days later the federal garrison in Fort Sumter surrendered to Confederate forces. Union troops occupied the sea islands in the Beaufort area in November, beginning the move toward freedom for a few of the state's slaves, but few military engagements occurred within the state's borders until 1865. One-fifth of South Carolina's white males of fighting age were sacrificed to the Confederate cause, and General William Tecumseh Sherman's march through the state at the war's end left a trail of destruction. Poverty would mark the state for generations to come.
Rapid expansion of the textile industry in the 1890s began the state's recovery from a share-cropper economy, but the boll weevil gave the Great Depression a head start here in the 1920s. The state’s poverty and racial practices caused many African Americans to seek opportunities in Northern cities; after 1920, South Carolina no longer had a black majority. The expansion of military bases during World War II and domestic and foreign investment in manufacturing in more recent decades have revitalized the state. The Civil Rights movement of the 1960s ended legal segregation and discrimination and began the incorporation of the state’s African Americans into the political and economic power structure of the state. In most recent times, tourism and retirees have become a driving force in the economy.
Our first day in the Palmetto State was quite a challenge. While the terrain was still flat, the headwind made it feel like we were pedaling uphill all day. It was a 3 gear wind, and there was no let up. Our moods turned foul, and tempers flared a bit. We've spent a lot of time together on this trip. In fact, people often comment that you really need to be in love to travel like this. Well, they're right...we are in love, but every once in a while the road gets the best of us. Today's disagreement was over what type of bread to buy. Imagine that, standing in the Piggly Wiggly bakery section in Conway SC, arguing over the merits of store bought bagels vs. squishy rolls. The disagreement was quickly settled when Matt did a 180 and headed to the wine section, letting Mary Ellen to choose. It seems ridiculous to even mention it now, but it's just another way to say that hard riding days take on a life of their own. The spat ended as quickly as it began, and we enjoyed another fine dinner, camping along the edge of the Big Cypress Swap on the outskirts of town, enjoying the stars under a clear, moonless sky.
A Long, Rich and Unique History
South Carolina stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the Blue Ridge Mountains, containing 31,113 square miles. Fortieth in geographic area among the fifty states, it ranks twenty-sixth in population.
Spaniards explored the South Carolina coast as early as 1514. Spanish fears of French rivalry were heightened when Huguenots led by Jean Ribaut attempted to settle on what is now Parris Island near Beaufort in 1562. After Ribaut returned to France for reinforcements, the soldiers who were left behind revolted, built themselves a ship, and sailed for France the next year. The horrors of that voyage went beyond eating shoes to cannibalism before an English ship rescued the pitiful remainder of the French attempt to colonize here.
The Spanish built Fort San Felipe on Parris Island in 1566 and made the new settlement there, and made it the capital of La Florida Province. This was a good 50 years before Jamestown was settled. In 1587 after Sir Francis Drake had destroyed St. Augustine, the Spanish decided to concentrate their forces there. With the withdrawal from Santa Elena to St. Augustine in 1587, South Carolina was again left to the Native Americans until the English established the first permanent European settlement at Albemarle Point on the Ashley River in 1670.
King Charles II had given Carolina to eight English noblemen, the Lords Proprietors. The proprietors' first settlers included many Barbadians, and South Carolina came to resemble more closely the plantation economy of the West Indies than did the other mainland colonies. By 1708, a majority of the non-native inhabitants were African slaves. Native Americans, ravaged by diseases against which they had no resistance, last significantly threatened the colony's existence in the Yemassee War of 1715. After the colonists revolted against proprietary rule in 1719, the proprietors' interests were bought out and South Carolina became a royal province.
By the 1750s, rice and indigo had made the planters and merchants of the South Carolina lowcountry the wealthiest men in what would become the United States. Government encouragement of white Protestant settlement in townships in the interior and migration from Pennsylvania, Virginia, and North Carolina were to give the upcountry a different character: smaller farms and a larger percentage of German, Scots-Irish, and Welsh settlers. By 1790, this part of the state temporarily gave the total population a white majority, but the spread of cotton plantations soon again made African American slaves the majority.
Charlestonians were strong supporters of their rights as Englishmen in the Stamp Act crisis in 1765, and South Carolina would play a significant role when differences escalated into the American Revolution. Over two hundred battles and skirmishes occurred in the State, many of them vicious encounters between South Carolinians who opted for independence and those who chose to remain loyal to King George.
The first shots of the Civil War were fired in Charleston Harbor on April 12, 1861. Two days later the federal garrison in Fort Sumter surrendered to Confederate forces. Union troops occupied the sea islands in the Beaufort area in November, beginning the move toward freedom for a few of the state's slaves, but few military engagements occurred within the state's borders until 1865. One-fifth of South Carolina's white males of fighting age were sacrificed to the Confederate cause, and General William Tecumseh Sherman's march through the state at the war's end left a trail of destruction. Poverty would mark the state for generations to come.
Rapid expansion of the textile industry in the 1890s began the state's recovery from a share-cropper economy, but the boll weevil gave the Great Depression a head start here in the 1920s. The state’s poverty and racial practices caused many African Americans to seek opportunities in Northern cities; after 1920, South Carolina no longer had a black majority. The expansion of military bases during World War II and domestic and foreign investment in manufacturing in more recent decades have revitalized the state. The Civil Rights movement of the 1960s ended legal segregation and discrimination and began the incorporation of the state’s African Americans into the political and economic power structure of the state. In most recent times, tourism and retirees have become a driving force in the economy.
Our first day in the Palmetto State was quite a challenge. While the terrain was still flat, the headwind made it feel like we were pedaling uphill all day. It was a 3 gear wind, and there was no let up. Our moods turned foul, and tempers flared a bit. We've spent a lot of time together on this trip. In fact, people often comment that you really need to be in love to travel like this. Well, they're right...we are in love, but every once in a while the road gets the best of us. Today's disagreement was over what type of bread to buy. Imagine that, standing in the Piggly Wiggly bakery section in Conway SC, arguing over the merits of store bought bagels vs. squishy rolls. The disagreement was quickly settled when Matt did a 180 and headed to the wine section, letting Mary Ellen to choose. It seems ridiculous to even mention it now, but it's just another way to say that hard riding days take on a life of their own. The spat ended as quickly as it began, and we enjoyed another fine dinner, camping along the edge of the Big Cypress Swap on the outskirts of town, enjoying the stars under a clear, moonless sky.
posted by Matt and Mary Ellen | 10:21 AM
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