Rice Field Boat Tour At Magnolia Plantation And Gardens--A Great Float Into The Past

With rough tools, immense wooded swamps were cleared along the Ashley River. Next, massive hydrological systems such as dams, dikes, and floodgates called "trunks" were constructed to irrigate the newly developed fields. Then, the cherished grain was sown using a heel-toe dance and tirelessly cared for all the way to harvest. Working these fields was considered one of the deadliest occupations of the time. These were the proud plantation systems that reigned in the Lowcountry up until the American Civil War brought them to a crashing conclusion by fire and tempest. As time passed, the watery, golden topped green fields were slowly taken back by cattails and alligators.

Rice plantations shaped and reshaped the Lowcountry geography and economy. It is not exactly known who brought the first rice to Carolina or under what particulars it arrived. The British backers of colonization, both financial and political, intended for Carolina, like other colonies, to fit into the mercantilist system--a political economy that sought to enrich the country by restraining imports and encouraging exports. To that end they suggested that settlers try a range of crops, rice among them.

Historians of South Carolina continue to argue over the introduction of Madagascar gold seed rice, which doubtfully authentic, although widely circulated as being true, came via Captain John Thurber's ship in 1685. Scholars have all but definitively shown that Carolinians grew white rice in the seventeenth century with gold rice being introduced after the American Revolution. Regardless of the circumstances of rice’s introduction, colonists successfully grew small amounts of the grain in the Charlestown colony by 1690. By 1712, Carolinians not only produced rice for local consumption; they had begun exporting the excess to England. Through Carolina gold, Charleston became one of the richest cities in the world.

Today, Magnolia Plantation is a caretaker of one of those stories. Originally consisting of about 1872 acres, all but 390 acres were sold off after the Civil War's devastation. Of the remaining 390 acres, 25 acres are devoted to the gardens of John Grimké Drayton, 16 acres for the wide lawn surrounding the live oak allée, and 150 acres for a marsh and water fowl conservatory. Since 1941, about 199 acres have been used for a wholesale ornamental plant nursery to raise money for garden operations.

The old flooded rice field, part of the 150 acres, was dredged to a depth of 6 to 8 feet along its perimeters to make way for a system of canals for a boat tour that runs along the edges of the Ashley River--the average depth of a rice field is 2-3 feet deep.

The guide explains the plantation culture and history behind the area as you get an up-close look at the wildlife that calls this peaceful sanctuary home. I saw white egrets catching fish from the cattails right at the side of the boat while alligators of various sizes sunned on the islands and edges. I saw about twenty alligators.

I learned about the anhinga. You often see these birds standing with their wings out-stretched when they are not in the water. Their feathers don't produce oil, as a result, water does not run off, so, they let the sun and wind dry out their water-soaked wings. Since their feathers soak in the water, they are expert divers. It is a balanced trade-off.

Then, there is the Great Blue Heron, a beautiful and majestic avian with long legs and long necks and stands over 4 feet tall. When it takes off, you can feel the rush of compressing pressure as its powerful wings slap the air.

When I arrived at the kiosk at the start of my quest, my interest was to only do the Rice Field Boat Tour since I had never done it before, but I found out you have to buy the $20 admission ticket for the garden walk in order to do the boat tour.

After walking the beautiful gardens, the boat tour offers a most welcoming and relaxing respite while you sit onboard one of two pontoon boats decked out with very comfortable seats and plenty of standing room for viewing the wildly preserved ecosystem. The narration by the naturalist captain was informative and sprinkled with some light humor--questions and comments were encouraged. The breezes coming off the Ashley River were refreshing and the quiet float on the canal uplifting. It is well worth the extra $8 ticket. Children under 6 are free.

A Rare And Beautiful Find On The Ashley River

It was a beautiful partly cloudy May day with temperatures in the high 80's--perfect for my excursion into Summerville's wild country. A hefty breeze played havoc with the heavily laden branches of the tall tupelo and oak trees scattered about and exaggerated the push of the changing incoming tide. I was kayaking the Ashley River looking to get some good photographs of whatever wildlife I would happen upon. Heading in the direction of Middleton Place from Herbert H. Jessen's Public Boat Landing, I decided to venture down one of the river's feeder creeks.

Not long after entering, I spotted a colony of dark green plants bearing an unusual looking seven-inch spider-looking white flower along the muddy edge. Little did I know, I happened upon what is today a rare sight. Rare, because greedy, thoughtless humans have decimated these beautiful plants by smothering them under dammed up rivers and polluting their life lines.

The native Indians were no doubt familiar with the flower as it flourished in the few rocky rivers in the lower Piedmont where their bulbs traveled downstream, lodged in rock crevices, and, in time, established clusters. As for European settlers, it was first observed and documented in 1783 by Naturalist William Bartram and described as the "odoriferous Pancratium fluitans which almost alone possesses the little rocky islets." He saw it growing in the Savannah River near Augusta, Georgia. Today, it is classified as Hymenocallis coronaria. Other names include shoal lily and rocky shoals spider-lily.

There are approximately over 60 extant populations of Hymenocallis coronaria left, all in the states of Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina. Georgia’s largest population of the lily is found in Flats Shoal Creek near the Alabama border and other sizable populations are in the Flint and Broad rivers. In Alabama, they are found in the Cahaba River where they are called the Cahaba lily and in South Carolina, populations are in the Catawba River. A section of the river at Landsford Canal State Park below Rock Hill boast the largest stand in the world. Stephens Creek, a tributary of the Savannah River, contains the State’s other significant population.

How it got on the Ashley River may be a mystery, but as a possible explanation, it could have been carried by a bird or transported through the Wassamassaw Swamp during severe flooding.. Whatever the reason, it is an oddity because this particular lily is known to proliferate in shallow, rocky shoals of swift moving water, not the pluff mud banks of the Ashley.

The plant produces pecan-size seeds that grow into bulbs. Dense colonies of the 3-foot lily burst forth displaying a striking, white-flower, which blooms from early May to late June. Each fragrant flower blossom opens overnight and last for one day. It is praised for its pleasing odor, especially strong at night. The fragrance readily attracts pollinators, such as the Paratrea plebeja, commonly known as the plebeian sphinx moth, and Battus philenor, the pipevine swallowtail butterfly as well as hummingbirds. To have viewed this rare and beautiful flowering plant is considered an amazing experience, of which, I agree.

I have been up and down the Ashley River and I have come across colonies of this endangered flower between Old Fort Dorchester and Middleton Place. If you would like to see the rare rocky shoals spider-lily, I would be happy to take you to my favorite spots, but that would have to be sooner if not immediately. The window is swiftly closing. Just grab your kayak or paddleboard and meet me at Herbert H. Jessen's Public Boat Landing, preferably around slack tide on any given day.

Home Sweet Home--A Short Summerville Story From The Past

Sara and Harry Woodruff's White Gables

The well-known "a man's home is his castle" quote comes from a legal case dating from 1604 England. In typical English fashion, Chief Justice Sir Edward Coke stated, "the house of every one is to him as his Castle and Fortress as well for defence against injury and violence, as for his repose." It found its way into American culture in time, and the simplified version we know today was coined. However, in the small footprint, there lurked the hidden clause "unless his wife has other plans."

The following is a short story about one of Summerville's most colorful couples, Sara and Harry Woodruff. The Woodruffs were a very traditional Southern Summerville family. Harry worked for the Charleston railroad as a station master, without a doubt, a career that attributed to his being a much-regimented man who did things to a particular schedule. Sara diligently cared for the needs of their family and the business transactions of their home, which Harry had little interest in handling. Mr. Woodruff no doubt felt comfortable and sheltered in his castle home.

Mr. Woodruff was somewhat of a big spender and had a weakness for gambling. A family story reported he lost downtown Houston in a card game one time while in Texas. A constant concern for Sara, she worried about their finances, and because Harry was ten years older than herself, she worried about being left with no income and children to raise. To ensure the family's success and survival, she put in motion a shrewd plan.

One evening, Harry had returned to town after completing business for the railroad. As usual, he was met at the Summerville train station by the family retainer with his horse and carriage. However, to Harry's bewilderment, they did not take their customary route home upon leaving the station. Puzzled, he asked the driver, "Where are you taking me?" Unknown to Mr. Woodruff, his home address had changed while he was away. Sara had purchased a new home on the corner of Richardson Ave and Palmetto Street.

Always respectful of her husband, this certainly was a bold move on Sara's part. Still, she had no qualms about buying the house and property without her husband's knowledge. Despite the deception, Mr. Woodruff appreciated Sara's resourcefulness.

From 1914 to 1939, Sara's White Gables was a haven of Summerville hospitality and comfort for visitors. She rented out the three cottages on the property and boarded rooms in the house for ten months out of the year to visitors from Charleston and some nationally famous people. It proved to be one of Summerville's most famous and successful bed and breakfast inns during the town's Golden Age years.

Except for his rooms and the first-floor parlor, Mr. Woodruff never went in any other part of the house, but it was his castle. All the family came to love their new home. It became the financial prosperity Sara envisioned and the security she scrupulously and shrewdly planned for.

White Gables today

Visit Summerville

Build A Bridge. Bring Land Over Water. Bring Worlds Together.

Everyday hundreds of commuters cross it and a handful of boaters pass under it without giving a thought to the significant role it played in the growth and development of the Ashley Barony and Dorchester/Summerville areas. From Charles Towne, it was the first crossing point downstream over the Ashley River. During the American Revolution and American Civil War, controlling it was strategic. In recognition of its importance, it was honored with a historic marker in 2014, and in 2017, residents, town officials and members of the Summerville Preservation Society formally commemorated it with a celebration. Bacon's Bridge is the place.

John Stevens was the first owner of the crossing site. He had acquired two grants of land near the Dorchester settlement called Boo-shoo and Rose's Land. The grant was laid off in two divisions and then one of the divisions was divided into two ranges. The first range consisted of 26 lots of 50 acres each parceled out along the Ashley River. His bridge was built between 1696 and 1700. He named it Stevens's Bridge. Then, Michael Bacon received a lot in the first range and purchased Lots 6 and 7 in the same range from John Stevens. On one of these lots was situated the bridge and he renamed it Bacon's Bridge. It became a public bridge in 1722. The area around the bridge developed alongside the Town of Dorchester.

The Ashley River was navigable by small boats as high as Bacon's Bridge, approximately 30 miles from Charleston. Slann's Bridge was located three miles upstream, after which the Ashley becomes a stream and then the Cypress Swamp. During the American Revolution, Patriot and British/Loyalist commanders in the lowcountry considered Bacon's Bridge to be strategic. In February of 1780, General William Moultrie built an earthwork nearby to defend the bridge and the approaches to Charleston. The exact location of this earthwork fort is not known. Today, it is known as Moultrie’s "lost fort" and is one of the most significant regional sites from the period still to be found.

In the same year, according to the story, Francis Marion and the Second South Carolina Regiment camped under a live oak tree at Bacon's Bridge. Located on the Summerville side of the bridge, it became known as the "Marion Oak." Standing in the same location today, you can view an old oak tree on top of the bluff where a dam and a pump house was located at one time. Whether it is the same oak tree or not, is highly unlikely. The age of the tree would have to be evaluated. There is another famous "Marion Oak" located on what was the Hayes Plantation, today known as Ingleside.

About the dam and pump house, Elliot Mellenchamp Jr of Summerville explains, "The dam had two purposes. The dam converted the Ashley River into a reservoir. Fresh water flowed from the Edisto River at Givhans through the tunnel into the Ashley. The dam also separated the fresh water from the brackish water...The pump house sent the water into Summerville and Goose Creek." The old aquaduct tower remains at this location and is an historical marker on the Ashley River Blue Trail.

old aquaduct

The British gained control of the bridge. In 1782, General Nathaniel Greene's forces took Bacon's Bridge from the British that still occupied Charleston. Greene's Southern Army, including Francis Marion's militia, camped at Bacon's Bridge March of 1782. Also, Bacon's Bridge was the launching site of Americans who captured the British gunboat Alligator on the Ashley River on March 19, 1782.

It was in that same year, Colonel Francis Marion wrote these words to Peter Horry in a letter on May 3rd, “I am posted here, two miles in front of the Continental Army, within three-quarters of a mile of Bacon's Bridge. The General, according to custom, keeps me between him and the enemy." You can read those words on a trail marker in Rosebrock Park at 507 Beech Hill Rd in Summerville--a Dorchester County Park and natural setting for riverside hikes through forest and wetlands along the Ashley River with a picnic shelter. The park is well worth a visit.

Greene's papers indicate that the bridge was used as a rest and staging area for American troops. They would hold that position until July. Control of Bacon's Bridge allowed the Americans to "more effectively restrict British movements into the countryside and impede the flow of provisions and goods into Charleston."

In 1850, Reverend Robert I. Limehouse built a house on the redoubt and named his plantation "The Hill." Rev. Robert I. Limehouse was a  magistrate and a Methodist minister who is believed to have built the Old Town Hall on West Carolina Avenue. Limehouse served as mayor in 1860-1861 and again in 1867-1868.

During the Civil War, Bacon's Bridge continued to serve as an important transportation route and mustering point for soldiers. Confederate General Johnson Hagood gave orders to his forces on October 5, 1863 during the battle of Fort Wagner, "If the Union effect a crossing east of Rantowles road, running rapidly take position behind the Ashley crossing at Bacon's and Slann's Bridges, but keeping a strong advanced guard on the west side."

Before retreating from the Charleston area, Confederate troops destroyed the bridge. A Federal regiment of black combat veterans rebuilt the bridge. On May 7, 1865, the Union Provisional Brigade moved from Charleston and camped in the vicinity of Bacon's Bridge before moving into Summerville the next day.

Bacon's Bridge

Since, it has gone through several improvements. The most recent was in 2014 when the road and bridge were widened to accommodate the growing commuter traffic. The history marker was erected after the improvement was completed, but many residents are unaware of it because the bridge is a low pedestrian traffic attraction. The Howard Bridgman River Access is situated at the base of the bridge on the Dorchester side of the river. The Boat Landing is owned and operated by the Town of Summerville Parks and Recreation. Dorchester Parks future Ashley River Park entrance is also located there.

Next time you cross over South Carolina's Black Pearl on your way to or from Summerville via Bacon's Bridge, remember its strategic significance in South Carolina history and in the growth of the Charleston Lowcountry. Just another reason the Flowertown in the Pines is at the heart of it all.

History note: The old Georgian style former Prettyman House on W 2nd South Street" is decorated with a fireplace mantle and a window salvaged from the old Francis Marion Plantation.

John Grimke Drayton's Magnolia-on-the-Ashley And His Noble Vision Of Love And Affection

The ominous storm clouds of reprisal had abated, but the unforgiving intruder's fires of retribution had accomplished its merciless task. With the blinding grey smoke finally whisked away by the Ashley River's appeasing breezes, the remaining heap of suffocating ash blanketed the desecrated landscape. The grand two-story clapboard plantation house with porticoes on either side was now a heap of blackened timber. Only the brick steps and the English style ground floor basement remained. A left over lingering pungent odor crept through the surrounding gardens where the estate's precious Azalea Indica's delicate branches had once flourished in fragrant tranquility, now a trampled and twisted stroll of despair. The glory that was Magnolia Plantation had been laid to near waste. It was the early days of 1865.

In 1861, John Grimke Drayton lamented, "Shadows have become substance--and threats and bitterness have marched out of Congress and off of Paper and embodied themselves in gathering armies and the bristling implements of war. The die is cast and the fears of the Father of his country have been realized--We are no longer one People--a gulf yarns between us--a gulf which, I very much fear the largest concessions can henceforth never bridge...Everything hear looks very dark...our population walking as if it were upon the crust of a volcano."

When the ravaging Union troops grew closer and closer to Charleston, Reverend John Grimke Drayton and his family had fled Magnolia Plantation for their mountain residence at Flat Rock in North Carolina. Around 1859, he built a summer home there and named it Ravenswood. Drayton served as a rector in Flat Rock at the Wilderness Church of St. John from 1843-63. Care of Magnolia and its gardens was left in the hands of his trusted slave foreman, Adam Bennett. The Drayton family waited the inevitable.

According to stories, the marauding Union soldiers tied Adam Bennett to an oak tree on the plantation and threatened to hang him when he refused to tell them where the family silver was buried. They let him live and burned down the house.

Reverend Drayton received a letter from his mother in Charleston that his plantation had been "taken for their own" by his former slaves. In the meantime, as the story goes, Adam Bennett walked the 250 miles to Flat Rock to personally inform the Drayton’s about what had happened and the plantation's former slaves were caring for the remaining gardens.

He and his family returned to Charleston with Adam Bennett. Upon returning, he sold all but 390 acres of the plantation to raise money. He also sold off the family town house at 42 South Bay in Charleston and all of the family's sea island properties on the Coosawhatchie River and Kiawah. He went to work at restoring and expanding the previous gardens to a greater glory with the help of Bennett. His noble vision to create a series of informal romantic gardens focused on emotion, the dramatic, and the spectacular for his wife had always been the driving force. Expressing this affectionate desire to a fellow minister in Philadelphia, he once said, "...to create an earthly paradise in which my dear Julia may forever forget Philadelphia and her desire to return there."

He continued to devote himself to the enhancement of the plantation gardens despite having suffered from tuberculosis. His own cure for the illness was working outside in the gardens he loved. In 1870, the endearingly cultivated gardens were opened to the public for the first time and Magnolia Plantation was saved from ruin, but there was still no house.

Like many Charleston planters of that time, Reverend Drayton owned a summer cottage in nearby growing Summerville, which was serving as their current home. Built prior to the Revolutionary War, it was of a typical design for summer cottages at the time with four rooms--two rooms on each side of a breezeway and an attic above. In 1873, he had the cottage disassembled, loaded onto barges, and floated down the Ashley River 14 miles to Magnolia. It was then mounted on the brick remainders of the devastated house.

Today's one and a half story home has gone through several modifications and additions since Reverend John Grimke Drayton, who did not have any sons, passed the home to his elder daughter, Julia. With this action, he did what his grandfather refused to do due to the practice of primogeniture--only leaving property to a male heir. It was by that twist of fate--his uncle, William Henry, passing without a male heir and his older brother, Thomas, getting shot in a hunting mishap--John Grimke came to inherit Magnolia and the Drayton name. He was the son of Thomas and Mary Drayton's daughter Sarah Daniels, who married Thomas Smith Grimke.

The home's high steps lead to a piazza which is supported by Doric columns and enclosed with a balustrade. The two story stucco tower is set in a gable roof which also features gabled dormers. A porch was added on that surrounds the house. Later, the house was extended south and west with the addition of the present living room, dining room, two upstairs bedrooms, and a water tower. Some of the porch area was lost due to these additions.

More than anyone else, he can be credited with the internationally acclaimed informal beauty of the garden today. He introduced the first azaleas to America and was among the first to utilize Camellia Japonica in an outdoor setting--naming his particular varietal after his wife. He befriended John James Audubon, the famed writer and illustrator of Birds of America. They were such good friends that Audubon painted two of his final works at Magnolia. Later, the estate’s swamp garden would be dedicated to Audubon and bear his name.

Reverend John Grimke Drayton, the renowned horticulturalist at Magnolia-on-the-Ashley, served as rector of St. Andrew's Church until 1891. Located just two miles south of Magnolia Plantation, the church was one of the few buildings along the Ashley the Union troops did not burn to the ground at the end of the Civil War.

Just a final point of fact. Some articles written about the final days of Magnolia Plantation in 1865 attribute the burning of the house to the troops of Sherman. By the time General Sherman left Savannah with his troops, most of Charleston was already devastated by a 15 month bombardment by Union troops on Morris Island. Sherman referred to Charleston as a "mere desolated wreck" and no longer had any military importance. Taking the city would merely be a symbolic victory. Sherman's formidable force headed for Columbia.

It was reported Sherman had felt some affection for Charleston having spent four years stationed at Fort Moultrie in the 1840's. After the war, Sherman visited the Holy City and was stricken by the sight of his former home. "Anyone who is not satisfied with war should go and see Charleston," the general later wrote, "and he will pray louder and deeper than ever that the country may in the long future be spared any more war."

The famous oak tree where Adam Bennett was tied and threatened was taken down by Hurricane Matthew in 2016.

The family town house at 42 South Bay is the William Gibbs House at 64 South Battery today.

The Historic Lowcountry River Flowing Through The Heart Of It All

Beginning at Slands Bridge and extending 22 winding miles through thick stands of moss-covered oaks and dense marshes to the site of Charleston's first settlement in 1670, its brackish waters and pluff mud shoreline are saturated with early Antebellum history. It was a thoroughfare to Charleston and a lifeline for its dependent downstream settlements and expansive plantations, including the Colonial Dorchester settlement and the Ashley Barony site.

Relatively undisturbed by the passing of time, this undulating liquid menagerie is unparalleled in its historic significance and natural value. People by the droves come from all over the United States to its lush banks to drink in its tranquility and wonder at its one-time opulence.

Middleton Place, Magnolia Plantation, Drayton Hall, and the lesser known but equally enchanting Runnymede Plantation are poetic names indelibly written on the river's adjoining signposts welcoming visitors to their riverside gardens and reflective ponds. These scenic estate vistas are saturated with history and part of the stunning tidal river named after the 1675 Chief Lord Proprietor of the Carolina Colony, Anthony Ashley Cooper.

This living ecological attraction was and is the Ashley River Corridor--home to 26 separate sites listed in the National Register of Historic Places and designated a State Scenic River. Events inviting you to explore and experience the river's natural amenities are scheduled throughout the year, especially in the spring, when it all comes to life in the Lowcountry's warming sun and pleasant evenings. Something for everyone, following is a list of March's offerings.

1) Middleton Place Spring Wine Stroll--The weather and the setting were perfect. There was but a whisper of a breeze playing on the long branches of the old oaks. The fading sun cast a tranquil shade of pleasant over the beautified gardens--considered the oldest in America. The numerous reflective ponds, alive with the chatter of its amphibious residents, were one with the surroundings. Their mirror-like surfaces are disturbed only by the watchful eyes of the long-toothed reptiles common to these Lowcountry waters.

Stroll the gardens of Middleton Place while sipping on samplings of old and new world wines. Each Wednesday evening, a different garden location is paired with a selection of wines for you to sample. Enjoy spectacular views and light snacks. It begins March 18 and runs to May 27 this year.
Tickets are $25 in advance, $30 at event.
Date: Wednesday, March 18 – May 27, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m.
4300 Ashley River Road
Charleston, SC

For complete details, go to Middleton Place Wine Stroll.

Here is a sampling of a previous wine stroll.

2) Magnolia Plantation Rice Field Boat Tour--Slip back in time as your boat glides through Magnolia's old flooded rice field along the Ashley River. While you explore the cattail-fringed canals, your naturalist captain will transport you to the age of rice growing and river-going. Alligators still slip silently across its channels as egrets wade along the shore, stalking fish or frogs. You might even surprise a flock of wood ducks or spy a grackle building its nest. Today the rice is gone, but the history is still alive.

LENGTH: One hour
LOCATION: Departs from a dock in the historic Garden.
TIMES: Seven days a week from March through October each year.
COST: $8 per person with paid garden admission, children under 6 free.
3550 Ashley River Road
Charleston, SC

For complete information, go to Magnolia Plantation Rice Field Boat Tour.

3) Drayton Hall Historic Entertaining and Wine Tasting--Originally a fruit orchard, Drayton Hall was built somewhere around 1738, thus making it over 282 years old. The house is part of the most significant, undisturbed historic landscapes in America and one of the earliest and finest examples of Georgian-Palladian architecture in the United States. Of course, the use of the word undisturbed must be dissolved in a glass of salty brine and consumed with a grain of rice.

Please join us for a historic entertaining-inspired interpretive conversation followed by a wine tasting. Take the opportunity to learn about the Draytons’ entertaining through research, archaeological discoveries, and Drayton diaries. Then, enjoy wines with histories relevant to entertaining at Drayton Hall through the generations.
March 21, 2020
3380 Ashley River Road
Charleston, SC

For more details, go to Drayton Hall Historic Entertaining and Wine Tasting.

4) The 2nd Annual Ashley River Adventure Race at the Bridgman River Access/Future Ashley River Park Site--Features a 5k trail run through the future park, an 8-mile downriver paddle, a post-race party at the Inn at Middleton Place, and a Fun Float (no running; untimed; you paddle your boat with everyone else) for those that want to participate in a more leisurely manner. As always, post-party tickets are available for your friends, family, and general spectators.

Kayak or SUP are not provided. Bring your own, or make it super easy on yourself by renting from Edisto River Adventures who will meet you at the race start with your boat and pick it up from you as soon as you finish at the Inn. Cost is $35 for boat rental and all gear. Contact ERA at 843-695-8146 or email at info@edistoriveradventures.com.
March 21, 2020
200 Renken Road
Summerville, SC

For times and complete details go to 2nd Annual Ashley River Adventure Race.

Last year's 2019 Ashley River Adventure Race.

5) The Charleston Bluegrass Festival--A brand new event presented by Friends With Benefits Productions, Awendaw Green, and Ear For Music. The festival takes place on the pristine 6,000-acre grounds of the Woodlands Nature Reserve across from Middleton Place.
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Patrons can expect a weekend of revelry complete with some of the finest names in bluegrass across three lakeside stages. The event offers plush camping options, local food/craft vendors, and outdoor activities. Patrons can look forward to mind-bending art installations and exciting performance art.

The Charleston Bluegrass Festival reaches beyond your typical weekend music festival, offering festival-goers the opportunity to rent a kayak to fish on two stocked lakes, go for a hike on miles of wooded trails, or hop on a stand-up paddleboard and enjoy a view of both stages from out on the water, and if being lazy is the desired activity, Eagles Nest Outfitters will be on hand, providing a plethora of hammock options for fans to lounge.

The Woodlands Festival is proud to partner with some of Charleston’s finest culinary curators to offer vast food options, from local food trucks and neighborhood restaurants, offering fans from around the country a taste of Charleston. In addition to curating a world-class bluegrass lineup, The Charleston Bluegrass Festival will most certainly showcase the best of everything Charleston has to offer—nature, food, art, music, and more.

GENERAL ADMISSION WEEKEND PASS: $109.00
VIP WEEKEND PASS: $249.00--Prime Viewing/Private Bar/Private Restrooms
GENERAL ADMISSION SINGLE DAY - FRIDAY: $65.00
GENERAL ADMISSION SINGLE DAY - SATURDAY: $65.00
Ticket prices do not include camping-camping price details.
March 20-21, 2020
4279 Ashley River Road
Charleston, SC

For complete details, go to The Charleston Bluegrass Festival.
Tickets.

"Over The River And Through The Woods"--A Love Letter To Grandparents Everywhere

"Over the River and Through the Wood" was originally a poem published way back in 1844, but whenever you see or hear the words, you can't help but sing it because the words were later set to music. More recently, that well known opening phrase has become a title of a play written by Joe Dipietro, which is now showing at the James F. Dean Theatre in Summerville.

Truth be told, the play and its premise was unfamiliar to me until this week, so on opening night of the Flowertown Players presentation, going in, I had no real expectations. After seeing it, Director Sue J. Vinick and her capable cast set the bar pretty high with their performance of Over the River and Through the Woods, so next time I see the play, I will have expectations to meet.

Joe DiPietro was born in New Jersey. He is best known for writing the book and lyrics to the musical comedy hit I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change. His most recent works include the musical comedy All Shook Up; the 2010 Tony Award-winning musical Memphis; and the 2012 Tony-nominated "Nice Work If You Can Get It." He wrote Over the River and Through the Woods in 1998 in tribute to his Italian grandparents. It played Off-Broadway at the John Houseman Theatre for 800 performances over two years.

Nick is a young marketing professional living in New York City. His two sets of loving grandparents live where they have for many years, in Hoboken, New Jersey. For the grandparents, he is the only remaining son and grandchild of the family that has not moved away. Nick judiciously goes "over the river" to his grandparent's house every week for Sunday dinner. Frank laments about his Sunday visits, "You're here, but you are not."

Nick is a very anxious young man. His grandparents say it was the reason why he chewed on his rattle when he was a baby. This one particular Sunday, he had an important announcement to make, which makes him even more anxious compounded further by the fact he can't get the four of them to focus on what he has to say. His one grandfather is having driving issues, his one grandmother is fixated on preparing him food, and his other two grandparents are sidetracked by the revelation he is seeing a head doctor.

When he finally gets them settled down, he makes the announcement. He has been offered a promotion in Seattle, Washington and is considering the move. Frank, Aida, Emma, and Nunzio are heartbroken by that prospect. So, they cook up a matchmaking scheme to invite a lovely nurse by the name of Caitlin O'Hare over for the next Sunday dinner. Whoops. Generations apart in their thinking, he wonders how he could have come from "you people." They don't understand answering machines, VCRs, or the right way to play Trivia Pursuit.

"As the play unfolds, it does so as a memory, a recollection, a remembrance not only of Nick Cristano's grandparents, but of yours and mine, too. It does not matter what we called them, what their nationalities were, or even where they lived. This is a love letter to grandparents everywhere," stated Susan J. Vinick.

Nick is conflicted with a imprudent temperament and Chase Graham passionately portrayed that shortfall through the play with comedic flare, sometimes a bit over the top--he scared the girl away. Visiting his grandparents every Sunday for dinner was thoughtful, but as Caitlin pointed out, played by Ashley-Ann Woods, he lacked appreciation for what he had in his grandparents. The cure just might be a panic attack and guess what, a few days at his grandparent's house.

Susie Hallat and Mary Anne Dyne were superbly entertaining as the food peddling Aida and the Mass card pushing Emma. Susie's mannerisms were delightfully expressive and Mary Anne's endearing accent reminded me of Anne Meara and her bluntness reminiscent of Joan Rivers. Both were flawless in their script delivery.

Fred Hutter as Frank, who was put on a boat destined for America at age fourteen by his father, was the only one of the cast that delivered his lines with an attempted heavy Italian accent. Frank's life story was an emotionally touching moment and Fred conveyed it well.

Larry Wineland as Nunzio, an Italian who faked being an Irishman to get a job, rounded out the grandparent foursome as Emma's lifetime mate. Larry was paired well with Mary Anne, but I have to say, if it wasn't for the Perillo Tours and "Tenga familia," the couple did seem more Irish than Italian, or maybe, is it Americanized, sort a speak.

Congratulations Director Sue and cast for a performance well done. There were no discernible miscues. A couple interludes were a little slow in developing, possibly due to wardrobe changes. Set was decorated and furnished simple appropriate--the automatic revolving front door was genius. Got to give a shout out to those behind the scenes--prop management and lighting well done.

Over the River and Through the Woods is a play with two different temperaments like its main character, Nick, only in a different way. The first act is lighthearted and the laughs came as fast as Aida's food, the dinner scene with Caitlin was priceless. The second act pulls a switch and takes on a more dramatic tone that tugs at the heartstrings. I would cross over the river and through the woods to see it again.

Purchase your tickets for Over the River and through the Woods.

January 17, 18, 23, 24, 25, 30, 31, and February 1, 2020 at 8pm, January 19, 26, and February 2, 2020 at 3pm