Folly Beach History
Note from our
developers: Folly Beach has such a wonderful and interesting
history that we think it is a shame that there isn't more detailed
information on the internet about our wonderful island... so we're going to do some thing about
it.:)
We have decided to
create a large Folly Beach history section (by the time we are done we
expect to have 50+ pages devoted to all kinds of hard to find
information about the beginning and "growth" of Folly throughout the
years. At the peak of our "visitor traffic" season, 12,000 people a
day will have the opportunity to learn about the unique and storied
history of Folly Beach.
We will be breaking down
our History section into the following time periods...
1600 - 1861:
Shipwrecks, Slaves and Pirates
First record of Folly Island is September 9, 1696 when it was
was given as a royal grant to William Rivers. It was privately
owned and changed hands several times over the years. During
the time before the Civil war, Folly Island was also known as Coffin
Land and was somewhat secluded from the civilization and the control
of Charleston government. In fact, during the fall and winter
of 1832, Charleston officials unsuccessfully attempted to quarantine
Folly from James Island and Charleston due to an outbreak of cholera
that began with the shipwreck of Brig Amelia on Folly Beach just
west of the current Holiday Inn. Folly Island, held a
reputation as a hideout for pirates, with only occasional presence
of law from Charleston, the few adventurous people of this small
island of Folly
Beach governed themselves.
Accounts of shipwrecks,
pirates, freed slaves and scavengers can be found in Ghosts or
Devils, I'm Done: Startling Adventures of Two Officers of the
62nd Ohio Infantry On Folly Island (Deadwood, S.D.: 1908) and
Edge of America: Folly Beach A Pictorial History (James W. Hagy:
1997).
1861 - 1865:
Folly Island Becomes A Civil War Camp Ground
Charleston is a port city on a peninsula protected within a bay.
Folly Island is a six and a half mile long, half mile wide barrier
island that receives the brunt of the harsh winds, waves and weather from
the Atlantic Ocean. It also became the campsite from which the
United States Union would try to take back Charleston from the
South. Little fighting occurred on Folly Island, but of the
thousands of troops who occupied Folly, many died or fell ill from
exposure to the elements and poor sanitation.
Folly Island was a fascinating, strange and uninhabitable jungle
like place for northern troops back in the 1860s. During the beginning of the Civil
War, strategically useless fortification and still surviving streets
were constructed by General Israel Vodges. On July 10th, 1863,
General Gillmore led Federal Navy and ground forces in taking the
lower portion of Morris Island. By September 6th, Rebels
abandoned Fort Wagner, leaving the entire Morris Island to Federal
forces. Eventually the entire island was a huge campground
covered with tents.
1865- 1918: Folly Island - Post
Civil War to World War I
More info coming soon.
1918 - 1945: The Peaceful Years;
Prosperity and Optimism
More info coming soon.
1946 - 1964: The Beginning of the
"Baby - Boom"
More info coming soon.
1959 - 1989: Disaster Strikes
More info coming soon.
1989 - Present: Rebuilding for the
Future; Post Hugo to the present
More info coming soon.
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