Today I explore the source of Charleston’s wealth, the rice plantations along the rivers. Most of them have been subdivided at this point, so getting an authentic view of one is difficult. The Charleston area has four that have been turned into museums. I knew that more than two would produce fatigue, so I picked carefully. I ended up with two that give very different perspectives on the plantation life. Drayton Hall Drayton Hall was founded in 1738 by John Drayton, a member of one of South Carolina’s wealthiest families. It produced rice for nearly a half century, and then switched to cotton. It is the only plantation along the Ashley River that survived the Civil War intact. The exact reason has
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