Land’s End Woodland River Festival

The annual Lands End Woodland River Festival is returning to St. Helena Island for its 21st year on Labor Day weekend, Friday, September 4th and Saturday, September 5th.

The festival is a two‑day family friendly, cultural event, celebrating the ancestry of the 47 Gullah families who pooled their money together and purchased 328 acres of land at Lands End on St. Helena Island in the 1920’s.

Families on the Island wanted a place to have fun, fish, hunt, chop wood for kindling, and bury their family members; not to mention to be able to have a legacy for future descendants and for the land to be carried down through the decades.

They called themselves the Woodland Club and held events to raise money to pay the property taxes over the remainder of the 20th Century.

The River Festival is an annual Labor Day weekend favorite for residents and visitors looking to enjoy cultural festivities along with the rich history of St. Helena Island.

On Friday, September 4th, enjoy an day of fun starting at 12pm with a traditional Crab Crack and Fish Fry with entertainment along the river bank alongside the historic tabby ruins of the Riverside Plantation, next to historic Fort Fremont.

On Saturday, September 5th, from 10am to 7pm, enjoy a day full of music and performances by Aunt Pearlie Sue, African dancers & drummers, a Libation Ceremony and Gullah Storytellers along with local cultural groups and lots of food, seafood, Disney Princesses, craft vendors and a whole lot more.

The mission of the Lands End Woodland River Festival is to conserve and utilize the property as intended by the founders and to keep its legacy alive.

The festival is located 6 miles south of the historic Penn Center on St. Helena Island at 100 Lands End Road. Visit this link for a map if you’re unsure how to get there.