Marcy's Travel Blog- Goodbye Florida, Hello South Carolina!

A taste of South Carolina's beauty!

Monday was a day of travel! At 7:15 a.m.  Jan and I packed the car and headed out. The trip was about a 9 1/2 hour trip by car. BUT---I needed a stop about every hour and a half, to give my old tail bone a break. So, it turned out to be more like 12 1/2 hours. (Thank goodness, Jan took this all in stride!)

Jan has a GPS named Nellie. Nellie GPS was good, though at one point she took us on a secondary road instead of a freeway. Jan didn't really yell at her much- but I did hear her say "Sorry honey, I'm NOT doing that!" I thought it was funny. (We do tend to yell at our electronic devices from time to time.)






We arrived at Isle of Palms (just outside of Charleston) around 7:45 p.m. Our hostess extraordinaire is Deb, who has been friends with Jan for many years. She greeted us with a wonderful dinner (Salad, Spaghetti, and meatballs) and gift bags filled with chocolate, trail mix, and lavender toiletries! Wow!
(Deb spends her winters here at the Isle Of Palms which is situated right outside of Charleston.)

Tuesday morning found me on the balcony. From there I looked over the courtyard surrounded on all sides by green and white condos. The courtyard has a  manicured lawn, palm trees, and a swimming pool. Beyond that, the Atlantic Ocean! The rising sun gave the sky and ocean the same twinkling silver color. I couldn't tell where the sky ended and the ocean began. I sipped my coffee and let the rising sun kiss my face!

The main level as viewed from the balcony!

The condo here has three levels. The main level has a great room, Kitchen, half bath, and laundry- and a sweet balcony that's well protected from the wind. The second level has two bedrooms with each having it's own bathroom.    The third level is the master suite with it's own full bath and balcony overlooking the ocean.

After breakfast we took off for the "Magnolia Plantation". We were looking to tour the home, see their "zoo", and wander the wonderful gardens.














I felt sad when I heard that cameras were not allowed inside the house, but understood their concern. Privately owned, the family has made this request.

This house is the third to stand on this spot at Magnolia Plantation. The original was built in 1680. It was struck by lightening and burned to the ground in 1811. The second home was burnt down by Confederate soldiers in 1865. The present home was built here in 1865- with several additions from that time to this. The plantation has been owned by the Drayton family and descendants since 1680- over 330 years!

Our guide through the house was Caroline, who was knowledgable on the subject of the house and  furnishings,  but much of the family history as well. Thank you, Caroline! Excellent tour!












Within the tradition of the time, the eldest son inherited the family wealth and holdings. The second sons often entered the  service.of the ministry. For the  Drayton family, the plantation passed to a Rev. John Drayton in the 1830's. He was a second son, but when his older brother died, he became the owner of the plantation. At the time he was in his early 20's.!

After the civil war, Rev. John Drayton went from being one of the South's wealthiest landowners to being reduced to near poverty. He had to sacrifice some of his land and holdings in order to rebuild. Since his home had been burned to the ground, he needed to rebuild adequate housing. He had owned a modest summer home in Summerville, so he disassembled it, loaded it on barges, and floated it down  the Ashly River to the plantation. There he mounted it on the burned out ground floor walls.







The stucco-like material covering the house today was applied after the earth quake of 1886. Originally there were two bedrooms on the main level. The entrance of today used to be the dinning area and great room. A loft was on the second floor. Later a formal dinning room and living room were added, as well as a master bedroom and additional bedrooms upstairs. The third floor was a water tower. The large wrap around porch was also added later.

At some point Rev. John was diagnosed with tuberculosis. His doctor suggested working outdoors as a way to improve his health. Thus began a life long passion for gardening.

The garden and grounds are very extensive, so I'll save those  for another post. But trust me when I say, they  are fascinating!

Until tomorrow then! Meanwhile, I plan on seeing a bit more of Charleston, as well as the Isle of Palms. And I look forward to sharing my wanderings and adventures with you!