Evolution of a Village

People Have Always Gathered Here...
We know from ancient shell middens found on these bluffs that Native American hunter-gatherers inhabited this site as early as 1564. Like today's residents and visitors, they appreciated the breezes off the May River, and the expansive views helped them keep track of neighboring villages.

In 1913, R.T. Wilson Junior completed work on an enormous mansion he named "Palmetto Lodge". The house and its grounds became a village unto itself, with a machine shop, wood shop, power plant, ice plant and even a school. Dozens of people were employed on the site- engaged not only in running the house and entertaining the numerous guests, but in farming and timbering the 18,000 acres which Wilson owned. For ten years following the Wilson fire, Varn Turpentine and Cattle Company farmed the property, with the turpentine distilleries and shipping facilities on this very bluff.

In 1937, the Palmetto Bluff property was purchased by Union Bag Co., which later became Union Camp. From then until year 2000 it was run as a hunting lodge and retreat, hosting many luminaries, including heads of state.

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Show me all markers in:  Bluffton, SC  |  Beaufort County  |  29910  |  South Carolina  |  United States of America

Palmetto Bluff
Church of the Cross
Bluffton United Methodist Church
Bluffton, S.C.
Michael C. Riley Schools
Pinckney Island
Charles Cotesworth Pinckney
St. Luke's Church
The Barrel Landing Schoolhouse
In Honor Of All Veterans

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