Bulow Plantation Ruins

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After our walk around the camp, it was time to go exploring again. The motorcycles were causing a constant roar everywhere so I thought I might get on the road and join them. Top down, windows down, breeze in my hair and we were off. Another day I had noticed a platform overlooking a pond and I set out to find it. We traveled mostly through the oak and spanish moss woods, the branches forming a canopy keeping the road shady. The temp were already in the high 70s so shade was very welcome.



I found the pond and after about a 1/2 mile hike we were looking at a tidal pond at low tide. Nothing much was happening. Then I noticed the tide was coming in so we waited a short time and yes, the water birds started to appear. First there were tri colored herons, then some ducks arrived. It was a pretty spot but we had other places to explore so off we went to the Bulow Sugar Plantation Ruins.



The road in was beautiful, very narrow with large trees leading us forward like we were in a tunnel. The Bulow Plantation was built in 1821 useing slave labor where 2,200 acres were cleared and planted in sugar cane, cotton, rice and indigo. The plantation was very successful until the Second Seminole Wars in 1836 and sometime in January of that year the Indians burned the Bulow Plantation along with several others. The pictures show what is left.



I found out a little more about indigo. It is a plant that is used to make blue dye. The Indians would take the entire plant, small shrub, roots and all and put them in a large square container made of coquina (a mix of shells, sand and the earth that became hard as concrete). Then they would stomp the plants and urinate in it, that aided in the breaking down of the plant material and after that process would put the juices in another similar container to dry. They would cut it in cakes and ship it to England to use in dying material blue. It was so expensive that only the very wealthy could afford to buy it, so the name royal blue was born. This may be a tourist story, but it's what I was told.



The Plantation was built along a large creek and the plantation goods were set into boats and traveled into the Halafax River and on to ports where large ships took the goods to market. It was quite a successful operation. The boat slips are still here today because John Bulow lined them with empty wine bottles from his house parties.



So Oscar and I had a lovely time walking around the plantation, getting exercise and learning about our country's past.

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Photos

what's your guess about these tracks?
think it's racoon