Beaufort, SC 18-20 Apr 2018
From the Bahamas, we hit the US East coast running,
with a plan to “do” the complete ICW (Intra-coastal Waterway) between Lake
Worth (Florida) and Chesapeake Bay (Virginia).
Our other challenge was to stop over in places we’d not visited
before. The textile search was on again,
however, if there’s one thing I’ve learned is that many small communities don’t
have/can’t sustain patchwork suppliers.
I can see why mail order is such a big deal in the US. That said, I discovered a few interesting
textile facts along the way. So, all was
not lost.
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| A well-kept Townhouse in historic Beaufort, SC...nice blue (just not indigo) |
Let’s start in Beaufort,
South Carolina. Located on
Port Royal Island, it dates from 1512 and was once a busy hub for Low Country
produce. Its delightful riverside setting
drew many plantation owners who built townhouses, leaving for us today an
inspiring collection of antebellum mansions.
Did you know that the State Colour of South Carolina
is indigo?
Facts all learned from our friendly guide at the Beaufort History Museum. Time well spent!
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Flag of South Carolina; public domain image on Wikipedia.
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The Beaufort History Museum
is located at the historic Arsenal (1798) and it's brimming over with
informative exhibits. Whilst rice was
the colony’s economic mainstay building great personal fortunes, indigo is
considered the crop that grew the colony in terms of land and population. Eliza Lucas in 1742 (at the age of 16) is
credited with successfully cultivating indigo.
Woad, as it was also known, was well established and growing
commercially between 1747-1800. Indigo
production was greatly enhanced by indigo slaves who understood the complex
task of processing the dye.
Facts all learned from our friendly guide at the Beaufort History Museum. Time well spent!
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| Indigo dyed fabrics |
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| Spinning Wheel at the Beaufort History Museum |
