Post #38 Georgia’s Golden Isles

Tuesday, November 10, 2020

The trip really began to change today.  We left the narrow, twisting rivers and shoaling land cuts and began to follow wider tidal rivers that flow between (creating sounds and inlets) and behind the barrier islands that make up Georgia’s coastline. I don’t have any photos of Tuesday’s passage because they would all look like this. So instead I’ll fill you in on a bit of the history of the islands we passed.

The first, Sapelo Island, is accessible only by aircraft or boat and you must have a permit to visit. It is the site of Hog Hammock, the last known Gullah community. It was once owned by tobacco magnate, R.J. Reynolds but the southern end is now home to the University of Georgia’s Marine Institute. The entire western perimeter is the Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve.

Next came Blackbeard Island and Blackbeard Creek, named for the legendary pirate a.k.a. Edward Teach. Legend has it that Blackbeard buried his pirate loot on the island but no treasure has ever been found.  That we know of. 

Here’s a factoid to which we can all relate. Blackbeard Island was used after the Civil War as the South Atlantic Quarantine Station in response to the yellow fever epidemic of 1876 which killed over 1000 people in Savannah alone. Vessels arriving from the Caribbean had to be inspected and disinfected, if necessary, for fear they carried mosquitos carrying the deadly disease. (When a ship is under quarantine, it must fly a yellow flag, symbol for the letter “Q” in marine signal flag “language”.) When vaccines developed by Walter Reed and others virtually eliminated yellow fever, the quarantine station was deactivated and in 1914 Blackbeard Island became a wildlife preserve, a treasure in its own right.

Although these islands (and the ones further south) are now heavily wooded, this was not always the case. The abundant live oak timber was much prized during the first half of the nineteenth century because of its suitability for the construction of the curved “knees” used in the framing of wooden ships’ hulls, including the USS Constitution, “Old Ironsides.” Once the land was cleared, the era of cotton plantations began and thousands of enslaved people were forcibly brought to the islands.

We followed along behind St. Simons Island and anchored in the Frederica River for the night. Although now known mostly for its lighthouse and as a resort area including the exclusive Sea Island Golf Club, people have lived on the island for 2500 years. St. Simons was home to missions founded by Jesuit and Franciscan priests from 1566-1685. (Wait, you mean before Plymouth?  Before Jamestown? Did I miss this in high school?)

Remember James Oglethorpe who established Savannah in 1733?  He recognized the importance of protecting the city from Spanish raids and built a fort and town on the banks of the Frederica River in 1736. He also brought two Anglican priests, brothers John and Charles Wesley to St. Simons. They would later become the founders of the Methodist Church.  The Wesley Oak tree that they preached under still stands.