Decades ago, Hamlin, located on both sides of Rifle Range Road north of Mount Pleasant, was a rural farming community. Though its mostly black residents lacked paved roads, city water and sewer and convenient places to buy groceries, they enjoyed a close-knit relationship with their neighbors and a long-term attachment to the land – some of them able to claim lineage that … [Read more...]
Darius Rucker: Mount Pleasant’s Best Local Celebrity
In the Lowcountry, when the first notes of a Hootie & The Blowfish or Darius Rucker song stream through the air, look around and you’ll see people bobbing their heads or singing along. It’s been that way since 1994, when “Cracked Rear View” debuted, and Rucker and the rest of his then-Columbia-based band played themselves into the hearts of every South Carolinian who owned a … [Read more...]
Boone Hall Plantation: Adding Depth and Enrichment to History
The Lowcountry is a region richly steeped in American history, and, for those who are dedicated to honoring this history, there are certain special places to visit and take in the past in order to better understand the present. One such location is Boone Hall Plantation in Mount Pleasant. A historic plantation that hosts thousands of visitors each year who desire to learn the … [Read more...]
Southeastern Wildlife Exhibition: A Grand Celebration of Nature
We advanced slowly through the longleaf pines, carefully watching our guide’s dogs in front of us as they scoured the brush for our quarry. The morning had been productive, and our game bag was filling. The dogs methodically worked the area from left to right with some occasional encouragement and instruction from their master. The jingling of the bells that were affixed to … [Read more...]
Welcome to Tennis Town … And the Volvo Car Open
In the dead of winter, sunny days on the court may be far from people’s thoughts, but, come spring, the Tennis Center on Daniel Island will be heating up the Lowcountry when some of the top female players in the world descend upon the green clay courts to mix it up for glory and prize money at the Volvo Car Open. The tournament, slated for March 30 through April 7, has … [Read more...]
Flying the Eye: The Hurricane Hunters
Howard Elgison called Mount Pleasant home from the late 1970s through the mid 2000s. He raised his family here and was living in Snee Farm when Hurricane Hugo blew through town. Though not a journalist, he helped tell many storm stories in the Hurricane Hugo: Storm of the Century publication and interviewed Jim McFadden, a hurricane hunter who flew across the eye of Hugo as it … [Read more...]
Beauty from the Ashes: St. Andrew’s Finds Strength in Community
It’ll take more than a fire to crush the indomitable spirit of St. Andrew’s Church in Mount Pleasant. In fact, the tragedy seems to have done just the opposite. The Rev. Steve Wood, bishop of the Diocese of the Carolinas, has been the rector of St. Andrew’s in the Old Village for 18 years. He takes the paraphrased words of the prophet Isaiah 61:3 to heart: God brings beauty … [Read more...]
Hunting the Wild Turkey – Planning and Perseverance
I sat frozen with my shotgun resting between my knees, pointed at the food plot in front of us. The lower half of my body was either numb or cramped with pain. I had been sitting atop an exposed root on the side of a hill overlooking a clearing for hours. The thin cushion attached to my vest offered little comfort or relief from the hard ground. I didn’t dare move or try to … [Read more...]
It’s Sweater Weather – Where to Find the Ugly Ones
Ugly Christmas sweaters. There are whole stores dedicated to them; parties planned for them; contests held for them. Why the fascination? Why the adoration? Some might wonder why we even bother when they see those decked-out sartorial atrocities, outer garments so mind-numbingly ugly that even our grandparents wouldn’t wear them – not even to shuffle down the driveway to … [Read more...]
Casual Crabbing with Tia: How Quitting Cigarettes Changed One Woman’s Life
It started when Tia Clark quit her 20-year smoking habit cold turkey – she simply wanted to make a positive change in her life. What she didn’t realize was that this monumental alteration was only the beginning. Nearly two years later, the Charleston native has started a new business, lost over 100 pounds and has a completely different outlook on herself and her life. When … [Read more...]