Picture Courtesy of Jim Kuntz

Picture Courtesy of Jim Kuntz

Picture Courtesy of Jim Kuntz

On November 7, 1861 a flotilla of U.S. warships steamed into Port Royal Sound and the "Cotton Kingdom" came to a swift and thunderous end. The planters forced to flee inland, and, many never to return, abandoning homes, lands and slaves. Beaufort became headquarters for the U.S. Army Department of the South and the chief base for the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron. The houses were used by the occupying forces and thus saved for future generations.

After the war the tough minded adapted quickly and struggled back from defeat and reprisal. The long-fibered Sea Island Cotton recovered and continued to support the economy. The coming of the Boll Weevil, some sixty years later banished cotton forever from the Sea Islands.

In 1893 a great storm came ashore at the high tide, piling water on water until the islands were swept clean of agriculture and shipping, thousands drowned.

Now, where rice, indigo and cotton once flourished, cattle, feed crops, vegetables, and soybeans grow. A fishing fleet "Drags" the local waters for shrimp, crabs and oysters are harvested for local consumption and export. Clean industry, military installations, tourists and retired persons contribute heavily to the present economy.

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