Home to many important historic locations, a unique culture, lots of cool spots and awe-striking views, lets take a look at 9 reasons why we love St. Helena Island; the largest of the Beaufort Sea Islands.
Coffin Point & the Avenue of Oaks
Coffin Point Plantation is a historic plantation house located off of Coffin Point Road. Once a prosperous sea island plantation, it’s estimated that the home was built around 1801, and like many early 19th century homes on St. Helena Island, it features a tabby foundation. Coffin Point has a very nice private beach area and everybody loves the visually striking 1/2 mile long ‘Avenue of Oaks’ that leads to the plantation house. Adding a mystique to the area, Beaufort’s purported witch doctor Sheriff J.E. McTeer purchased the land in the 1950s and lived in the house, no doubt bringing that hoodoo magic of his with him.
All the HISTORY!
Among the historic spots you will find on St. Helena Island are the Chapel of Ease, Penn Center, and Fort Fremont, as well as the Sams Plantation ruins on nearby Dataw. There is literally some type of history at every turn on the island, on nearly every road. Each of these spots has their own story to tell. Some of them are haunted stories. Some of them are sad stories. But each of these spots are ingrained in the local lore of the island, and also sit on the National Register of historic Places.
Lands End Beach
This little stretch of quiet, out of the way beach is a favorite among Beaufort’s locals. Located several miles down Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd./Lands End Road and adjacent to historic Fort Fremont, you may, or you may not, find little Lands End Beach. A great spot to swim, fish or gather in the Beaufort sun, it’s a quiet spot only accessible by one road, or by taking a simple path leading from the (seaward) grounds of the historic Fort complex.
Any given day will bring you a few locals, crabbers, surf fisherman, golf carts, explorers, sunbathers, and a few out-of-towners who were lucky enough to stumble upon it. Sitting along the beach gazing across the water at Parris Island, it always brings plenty of peace.
Community Praise Houses
Praise houses were first established on St. Helena Island’s many plantations as places to meet and worship. Since there were few formal church buildings on St. Helena Island, most of the island’s slave inhabitants could only walk or ride to the main church on Sunday mornings, if at all. Praise houses became central points in the community as meeting places for the African-American community on St. Helena Island. Whatever the need was, a meeting or a service, they used the praise houses, and were actually often an elder’s cabin.
Once upon a time, these tiny, plain white, small frame, (mostly) 18 x 20 foot houses dotted the island landscape. Their interiors consisted of wooden benches along the walls and several in the middle with a stand at the front of the room from which to preach or to address the congregation from.
There were as many as 25 praise houses on St. Helena Island as recently as 1932, but only three remain today: the Mary Jenkins and the Croft Plantation praise houses, both on Eddings Point Road, and the Coffin Point praise house on Coffin Point Road.
Shrimp boats
When you’re traveling through the southern end of the island you’ll find the historic Gay Fish Company and its small fleet of shrimp boats docked along the windy tidal creeks that cut through the beautiful, pristine coastal marshes of the Atlantic. The quintessential Lowcountry sight to behold, sometimes you’ll even catch them coming in or going out for the day, or offloading the day’s catch at the dock. It’s always special to see a shrimp boat on the water.
Local St. Helena Island Farms
St. Helena Island boasts working farms which sell their fresh produce and other items to the public right there on site. Barefoot Farms and Dempsey Farms are both located along Sea Island Parkway and offer a variety of goodies as the Lowcountry seasons change. Both also operate family-friendly U-Pick fields where folks are welcome to come and pick their own strawberries, tomatoes, and more. You can also find Marshview Community Organic Farm, a five-acre, certified organic farm that hosts lots of local cultural events. You’ll also be pleased to find several roadside stands popping up on the island during the height of the local growing season. Nothing beats fresh local produce grown right here in Beaufort’s soil.
Fabulous Local Restaurants
St. Helena Island boasts several fantastic local restaurants, each holding some of the island’s distinct personality. Enjoy authentic Gullah family recipes and taste the culture in your food at The Gullah Grub Restaurant in Frogmore, BBQ, brisket and burgers at Beedo’s, and you can also indulge in the goodness of local seafood at The Foolish Frog, Shrimp Shack, Seaside Bar & Grill, or The Johnson Creek Tavern. It’s awesome to be able to eat at a restaurant where the food on your plate is tied to the local culture, and is most likely all sourced from right there on the island, too.
Penn Center
The Penn Center, formerly Penn School, sits on some 50 acres with mossy live oaks and seemingly ancient buildings. In 1862 Quakers founded Penn Center as one of the very first schools for freed slaves. In 1974 this incredibly significant African-American historic spot became a National Historic Landmark District, and part of it is included in the Reconstruction Era National Historical Park. The Penn Center is considered to have had one of the greatest positive impacts on African-American education and the preservation of the history of the Gullah/Geechee people, having a notable impact on the overall lifestyle of formerly enslaved. Because of the work done by the founders and participants of The Penn Center, St. Helena Island still has a rich and deep rooted Gullah cultural influence. It’s a loved and preserved way of life that we’re all very thankful that we still get to witness.
Simple Times
Being on St. Helena Island really can be like going back in time to simpler days. The island has a simpler feel, one that’s rooted deep in it’s culture. It’s a place where you can still find sweetgrass basket makers creating and selling their art along the roadside and shrimpers bringing in their catch to our local docks. It’s a place where folks know each other and kids grow up playing outside in the pluff mud. You can stop by a roadside produce stand and ask how the season is going, and a proud local farmer will tell you all about it; and maybe even tell you a story or two.
Stories are always absolutely free on the island. And, you’ll hear lots of them.
