Gullah-Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor

Last updated
Sweetgrass basket made by the Gullah culture of coastal Georgia or South Carolina Gullah basket.JPG
Sweetgrass basket made by the Gullah culture of coastal Georgia or South Carolina

The Gullah-Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor is a federal National Heritage Area in the United States. The intent of the designation is to help preserve and interpret the traditional cultural practices, sites, and resources associated with Gullah-Geechee people. Gullah-Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor, and the federal Gullah-Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission established to oversee it, were designated by an act of Congress on October 12, 2006 through the National Heritage Areas Act of 2006. [1] [2]

The Gullah-Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor was the result of more than 15 years of research of a Gullah-Geechee descendant Derek Hankerson, [3] [4] [5] Kristopher Smith, Diane Miller [4] and others. They established the Gullah-Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor, spanning from Pender County, NC, to St. Johns County, FL in 2006 and helped raise Fort Mose in St. Augustine as both a national historical site and part of the corridor. [6]

The Gullah-Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor extends along the coast of the southeastern United States through North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida in recognition of the Gullah-Geechee people and culture. Gullah-Geechee are direct descendants of West African slaves brought into the United States around the 1700s. They were forced to work in rice paddies, cotton fields and indigo plantations along the South Carolina-Georgia seaboard where the warm and moist climate conditions helped them to preserve many African traditions . After the abolition of slavery, Gullah-Geechee people settled in remote villages around the coastal swath, where, thanks to their relative isolation, they formed strong communal ties and a unique culture that has endured for centuries. [7]

The corridor is administered as a National Heritage Area in partnership between the National Park Service and local governments and cultural and tourism authorities. [2]

The corridor is specifically focused on 79 Atlantic barrier islands within the designated area and their African-American inhabitants, and adjoining areas within 30 miles (48 km) of the coastline. [2] The corridor includes Charles Pinckney National Historic Site, from which it is administered. [8]

Related Research Articles

Navassa is a town in Brunswick County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 1,505 at the 2010 census, up from 479 in 2000.

Navassa is part of the Wilmington, North Carolina metropolitan area.
<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gullah language</span> Creole language of southern US

Gullah is a creole language spoken by the Gullah people, an African-American population living in coastal regions of South Carolina and Georgia as well as extreme northeastern Florida and the extreme southeast of North Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gullah</span> African American ethnic group in south United States

The Gullah are an African American ethnic group who predominantly live in the Lowcountry region of the U.S. states of South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, and Florida within the coastal plain and the Sea Islands. Their language and culture have preserved a significant influence of Africanisms as a result of their historical geographic isolation and the community's relation to their shared history and identity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sea Islands</span> Chain of barrier islands along the coast of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida

The Sea Islands are a chain of tidal and barrier islands on the Atlantic Ocean coast of the Southeastern United States. Numbering over 100, they are located between the mouths of the Santee and St. Johns Rivers along the coast of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. The largest of these is Johns Island in South Carolina. The Sea Islands, particularly Sapelo Island, are home to the Gullah people. The islands are very acutely threatened by sea level rise due to climate change.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Helena Island (South Carolina)</span> Island in South Carolina, United States

St. Helena Island is a Sea Island in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. The island is connected to Beaufort by U.S. Highway 21. The island has a land area of about 64 sq mi (170 km2) and a population of 8,763 as of the 2010 census. It is included as part of the Hilton Head Island-Beaufort Micropolitan Area. The island is renowned for its rural Lowcountry character and being a major center of African-American Gullah culture and language. It is considered to be the geographic influence behind the children's television program Gullah Gullah Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daufuskie Island</span> Census-designated place in South Carolina, United States

Daufuskie Island, located between Hilton Head Island and Savannah, is the southernmost inhabited sea island in South Carolina. It is 5 miles (8 km) long by almost 2.5 miles (4.0 km) wide – approximate surface area of 8 square miles (21 km2). With over 3 miles (5 km) of beachfront, Daufuskie is surrounded by the waters of Calibogue Sound, the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean. It was listed as a census-designated place in the 2020 census with a population of 557.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Carolina Lowcountry</span> Geographic and cultural region located along South Carolinas coast

The Lowcountry is a geographic and cultural region along South Carolina's coast, including the Sea Islands. The region includes significant salt marshes and other coastal waterways, making it an important source of biodiversity in South Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marquetta Goodwine</span> American author, preservationist, and performance artist

Marquetta L. Goodwine is an author, preservationist, and performance artist who serves as Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation.

Emory Campbell is a community leader among the Gullah people, African Americans who live in the coastal low country region of South Carolina and Georgia. The Gullahs have preserved more of their African linguistic and cultural heritage than any other black community in the US.

Mandarin is a neighborhood located in the southernmost portion of Jacksonville, in Duval County, Florida, United States. It is located on the eastern banks of the St. Johns River, across from Orange Park. It's a short drive south of Jacksonville's city center, and is bordered by Beauclerc to the north, Julington Creek to the south and St. John's River to the west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atlantic Creole</span> Ethnic group

Atlantic Creole is a cultural identifier of those with origins in the transatlantic settlement of the Americas via Europe and Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">McLeod Plantation</span> Historic house in South Carolina, United States

McLeod Plantation is a former slave plantation located on James Island, South Carolina, near the intersection of Folly and Maybank roads at Wappoo Creek, which flows into the Ashley River. The plantation is considered an important Gullah heritage site, preserved in recognition of its cultural and historical significance to African-American and European-American cultures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph Opala</span> American historian

Joseph A. Opala, OR is an American historian noted for establishing the "Gullah Connection," the historical links between the indigenous people of the West African nation of Sierra Leone and the Gullah people of the Low Country region of South Carolina and Georgia in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penn Center (Saint Helena Island, South Carolina)</span> United States historic place

The Penn Center, formerly the Penn School, is an African-American cultural and educational center in the Corners Community, on Saint Helena Island. Founded in 1862 by Quaker and Unitarian missionaries from Pennsylvania, it was the first school founded in the Southern United States specifically for the education of African-Americans. It provided critical educational facilities to Gullah slaves freed after plantation owners fled the island, and continues to fulfill an educational mission. Leigh Richmond Miner photographed students and activities at the school.

Sierra Leonean Americans are an ethnic group of Americans of full or partial Sierra Leonean ancestry. This includes Sierra Leone Creoles whose ancestors were African American Black Loyalists freed after fighting on the side of the British during the American Revolutionary War. Some African Americans trace their roots to indigenous enslaved Sierra Leoneans exported to the United States between the 18th and early 19th century. In particular, the Gullah people of partial Sierra Leonean ancestry, fled their owners and settled in parts of South Carolina, Georgia, and the Sea Islands, where they still retain their cultural heritage. The first wave of Sierra Leoneans to the United States, after the slavery period, was after the Sierra Leone Civil War in the 1990s and early 2000s. According to the American Community Survey, there are 34,161 Sierra Leonean immigrants living in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hog Hammock, Georgia</span> United States historic place

Hog Hammock is an African-American community on Sapelo Island, a barrier island of the U.S. state of Georgia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haint blue</span> Shade of blue

Haint blue is a collection of pale shades of blue-green that are traditionally used to paint porch ceilings in the Southern United States. Hex #D1EAEB is a popular shade of haint blue.

The Gullah are African Americans who live in the Lowcountry region of the U.S. states of Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina.

Griffin Lotson is an African-American historian, born in Crescent, Georgia. He is a seventh-generation Gullah Geechee. He serves as a councilman and the mayor pro-tem in Darien, Georgia. He also manages the Geechee Gullah Ring Shouters. He is the national Federal Government vice-chairman and former treasurer of the federal Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Representations of Gullah culture in art and media</span> Representations and portrayals of Gullah Geechee culture in art and media

The Gullah are African Americans who live in the Lowcountry region of the U.S. states of Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and North Carolina, in both the coastal plain and the Sea Islands. They developed a creole language, also called Gullah, and a culture with some African influence.

References

  1. "ABOUT | Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor". www.gullahgeecheecorridor.org. 26 October 2017. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
  2. 1 2 3 "Background". Gullah/Geechee National Heritage Corridor. National Park Service. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
  3. Gardner, Sheldon. "Festival to celebrate Gullah Geechee culture". The St. Augustine Record. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
  4. 1 2 "10/18/2012 Florida Crossroads – Florida's Underground Railroad: Southern Route to Freedom - The Florida Channel". The Florida Channel. Retrieved 2018-09-07.
  5. Johnson. "Hankerson says his work paid off with state recognition". historiccity.com. Retrieved 2018-09-07.
  6. "Gullah Geechee Corridor | Poplar Grove Plantation".
  7. Adeline Chen; Teo Kermeliotis. "African slave traditions live on in U.S." CNN. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
  8. "What is a National Heritage Area?" (PDF). Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor. National Park Service. Retrieved 17 April 2012.