Ashley River (South Carolina)

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Ashley River
AshleyRiverFromDraytonHall.jpg
Ashley River, as seen from Brittlebank Park
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Map of the Charleston Harbor watershed showing Ashley River
USA South Carolina relief location map.svg
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Location of mouth
Location
Country United States
State South Carolina
Physical characteristics
Mouth  
  location
Charleston Harbor, Atlantic Ocean
  coordinates
Coordinates: 32°45′46″N79°55′44″W / 32.76278°N 79.92889°W / 32.76278; -79.92889

The Ashley River is a blackwater and tidal river in South Carolina, rising from the Wassamassaw and Great Cypress Swamps in western Berkeley County. It consolidates its main channel about five miles west of Summerville, widening into a tidal estuary just south of Fort Dorchester. The river then flows for approximately 17 mi (27 km) along the historical banks of the City of North Charleston before reaching peninsular Charleston. The much wider Ashley joins the Cooper River off the Battery in Charleston to form Charleston Harbor before discharging into the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2012 the land around the Ashley River (or in Ashley Barony, as the original land grant was called) is mostly undeveloped. [1] [2]

The river was named for Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury and chief Lord Proprietor of the Carolina Colony by explorer Robert Sandford. [3] In 1675 Cooper was granted 12,000 acres (4,900 ha) of land along the river after a permanent settlement was made at Albemarle Point in 1670. This settlement was the “first permanent European settlement” in South Carolina and today Albemarle Point is known as Charles Towne Landing. The settlement would be moved to its current peninsular location across the river ten years later and is well known as Charleston.

The land closest to the river was developed by plantation owners throughout the eighteenth century. During the Revolutionary War the British occupied the plantations from 1780 to 1782. The major crops grown along the Ashley River included rice, indigo, and cotton. After the Civil War much of the region began to be used predominately for hunting and tourism. [4]

The Ashley River area contains 26 separate sites listed in the National Register of Historic Places with 22 mi (35 km) being designated a State Scenic River, extending from Sland's Bridge (US Highway 17-A) near Summerville to the Mark Clark expressway (I-526) bridge in Charleston. [5] Within this segment, a visitor can experience a blackwater swamp, the tides of the Atlantic, and the history of South Carolina. Some of the sites include Drayton Hall, Middleton Place, Magnolia Plantation, and the Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site.

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Charleston, South Carolina City in the United States

Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean formed by the confluence of the Ashley, Cooper, and Wando rivers. Charleston had a population of 150,277 as of the 2020 U.S. Census. The 2020 population of the Charleston metropolitan area, comprising Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester counties, was 799,636 residents, the third-largest in the state and the 74th-largest metropolitan statistical area in the United States.

Summerville, South Carolina Town in South Carolina, United States

Summerville is a town in the U.S. state of South Carolina situated mostly in Dorchester County with small portions in Berkeley and Charleston counties. It is part of the Charleston-North Charleston-Summerville Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population of Summerville at the 2010 census was 43,392, and the estimated population was 52,549 as of July 1, 2019.

North Charleston, South Carolina City in South Carolina, United States

North Charleston is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, with incorporated areas in Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester counties. On June 12, 1972, the city of North Charleston was incorporated and was rated as the ninth-largest city in South Carolina. As of the 2010 Census, North Charleston had a population of 97,471, growing to an estimated population of 115,382 in 2019, and with a current area of more than 76.6 square miles (198.5 km2). As defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, for use by the U.S. Census Bureau and other U.S. Government agencies for statistical purposes only, North Charleston is included within the Charleston–North Charleston–Summerville metropolitan area and the Charleston-North Charleston urban area. North Charleston is one of the state's major industrial centers and is the state's top city in gross retail sales.

Province of Carolina Former British province in North America

Carolina was a province of England (1663–1707) and Great Britain (1707–1712) that existed in North America and the Caribbean from 1663 until partitioned into North and South on January 24, 1712. It is part of present-day Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and The Bahamas.

Albemarle Sound An estuary on the coast of North Carolina, United States

Albemarle Sound is a large estuary on the coast of North Carolina in the United States located at the confluence of a group of rivers, including the Chowan and Roanoke. It is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Currituck Banks, a barrier peninsula upon which the town of Kitty Hawk is located, at the eastern edge of the sound, and part of the greater Outer Banks region. Roanoke Island is situated at the southeastern corner of the sound, where it connects to Pamlico Sound. Much of the water in the Albemarle Sound is brackish or fresh, as opposed to the saltwater of the ocean, as a result of river water pouring into the sound.

Cooper River (South Carolina) Tidal river of South Carolina, United States

The Cooper River is a mainly tidal river in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The cities of Mt. Pleasant, Charleston, North Charleston, Goose Creek, Moncks Corner, and Hanahan are located along the river. Short and wide, the river is joined first by the blackwater East Branch and then farther downstream at the tidal Wando River. Almost immediately thereafter, the Cooper River widens into its estuary and unites with the Ashley River to form the Charleston Harbor.

National Register of Historic Places listings in South Carolina

This is a list of the properties and historic districts in each of the 46 counties of South Carolina that are designated National Register of Historic Places.

Wadmalaw Island is an island located in Charleston County, South Carolina, United States. It is one of the Sea Islands, a chain of tidal and barrier islands on the Atlantic Ocean.

Chowan River

The Chowan River (cho-WAHHN) is a blackwater river formed with the merging of Virginia's Blackwater and Nottoway rivers near the stateline between Virginia and North Carolina. According to the USGS a variant name is Choan River.

Dorchester was a town in the Province of South Carolina. Situated on the Ashley River about 18 miles (29 km) from Charleston, it was founded in February 1696 by followers of Reverend Joseph Lord from Dorchester, Massachusetts. They named it after their home town, which had been named by earlier immigrants after the English town Dorchester).

South Carolina Highway 61 United States historic place

South Carolina Highway 61 (SC 61) is a 67-mile-long (108 km) state highway in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The highway is designated on a north–south direction, but physically travels in an east–west direction, from SC 30 in Charleston to U.S. Route 78 (US 78) near Branchville. The portion of SC 61 from Church Creek Bridge and 10 miles (16 km) north is designated a National Scenic Byway.

Blackwater River (Virginia)

The Blackwater River of southeastern Virginia flows from its source near the city of Petersburg, Virginia for about 105 miles (170 km) through the Inner Coastal Plain region of Virginia. The Blackwater joins the Nottoway River to form the Chowan River, which empties into Albemarle Sound. The Blackwater-Nottoway confluence forms the boundary between Virginia and North Carolina.

Magnolia Plantation and Gardens (Charleston, South Carolina) United States historic place

Magnolia Plantation and Gardens is a historic house with gardens located on the Ashley River at 3550 Ashley River Road west of Ashley, Charleston County, South Carolina. It is one of the oldest plantations in the South, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Magnolia Plantation is located near Charleston and directly across the Ashley River from North Charleston. The house and gardens are open daily; an admission fee is charged.

Middleton Place United States historic place

Middleton Place National Historic Landmark is a plantation in Dorchester County, directly across the Ashley River from North Charleston and about 15 miles (24 km) northwest of Charleston, in the U.S. state of South Carolina. Built in several phases during the 18th and 19th centuries, the plantation was the primary residence of several generations of the Middleton family, many of whom played prominent roles in the colonial and antebellum history of South Carolina. The plantation, now a National Historic Landmark District, is used as a museum, and is home to the oldest landscaped gardens in the United States.

West Ashley

West Ashley, or more formally, west of the Ashley, is one of the six distinct areas of the city proper of Charleston, South Carolina. As of March 2020, its estimated population was 82,341. Its name is derived from the fact that the land is west of the Ashley River.

Ashley River Historic District United States historic place

Ashley River Historic District is a historic district located in the South Carolina Lowcountry near Charleston, South Carolina, United States. The Historic District includes land from five municipalities, almost equally split between Charleston and Dorchester counties. The district includes dry land, swamps, and marshes of the Rantowles Creek and Stono Swamp watershed.

The Coastal Carolina Council is the Boy Scouts of America council that services much of the South Carolina Lowcountry. It operates 6 districts and two scout camps—Camp Ho Non Wah and Camp Moultrie.

South Carolina Highway 165

South Carolina Highway 165 (SC 165) is a 28.393-mile (45.694 km) state highway in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It connects Yonges Island to U.S. Route 17 (US 17) in Ravenel and US 17 Alternate in Summerville.

Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site

Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site sits along the Ashley River, near the town of Summerville in Dorchester County, South Carolina. In 1969, the site was donated to the South Carolina State Park Service and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 2, 1969. Currently the site of a 325-acre park, Old Dorchester State Park offers visitors a glimpse into South Carolina's Colonial past. The park boasts one of the most well-preserved oyster-shell tabby forts in the country, St. George's Bell Tower, log shipping wharves, burial sites and cemeteries, as well as on-going archaeological digs that are still unearthing the settlement's history.

Wambaw Swamp

Wambaw Swamp is a swamp in northeastern Charleston County, South Carolina. It is located entirely within the Francis Marion National Forest and contains 4,755 acres (19 km2), all of which is designated as a wilderness area. This forest wetland is a mix of river-bottom hardwood and pine. To the southeast lies the Little Wambaw Swamp Wilderness, a 4,967 acres (20 km2) wilderness area managed by the U.S. Forest Service. The area is similar to the main Wambaw Swamp ecologically with more high ground for walking and camping. Wambaw Creek Wilderness protects 1,832 acres (7 km2) of the watershed along the Charleston and Berkeley County line as it leaves the swamps and empties into the South Santee River near Hampton Plantation State Historic Site.

References

  1. "South Carolina Department of Natural Resources - Ashley Scenic River". Archived from the original on April 19, 2012. Retrieved May 8, 2012.
  2. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Ashley River
  3. Robert Sandford, “A Relation of a Voyage on the Coast of the Province of Carolina, 1666,” in Salley, AS, ed [1911], 1967, “Narratives of Early Carolina, 1650-1708, Vol. 4 of “Original Narratives of Early American History,” Edited by J. Franklin Jameson (New York: Barnes and Noble) p. 108, found in Lockhart, Matthew A. “Quitting More Than Port Royal: A Political Interpretation of the Siting and Development of Charles Town, South Carolina, 1660-1680”, Southeastern Geographer, Vol 43, N 2, Nov 2003, UNC Press
  4. "The History of the Ashley River Corridor" . Retrieved October 10, 2014.
  5. "Ashley Scenic River" . Retrieved May 28, 2021.