Thursday, Apr. 10, 2008

Roots of Gullah culture

One of the jobs of the new Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission is to make it easy for people to explore the unique heritage created by former slaves on Southern sea islands.

The commission’s challenge is pulling together all of the places that already provide snippets of that history and lifestyle. If you don’t want to wait for them, here are a couple of Gullah-related trips.

• St. Helena-Hilton Head: The York W. Bailey Museum at the Penn Center on St. Helena Island is a great first stop. After viewing its exhibits, stroll around the grounds and imagine the freed slaves building a new life at the former school. The Coastal Discovery Museum on Hilton Head also provides some Gullah components.

But the best way to experience the culture is to time your visit for one of the local Gullah festivals. Beaufort County’s festival traditionally is in late May, and Hilton Head’s is in February. Other events occur sporadically throughout the year.

• Charleston area: Both the Caw Caw Interpretive Center south of Charleston and the Charles Pinckney National Historic Site north of Charleston have Gullah exhibits. The Pinckney site kicks things up a notch with historical presentations on February and March weekends.

The section of U.S. 17 in Mount Pleasant is lined with stands where artisans weave Gullah sweetgrass baskets for sale. And if you get hungry while in the area, stop at Gullah Cuisine (1717 Highway 17 North) for okra, she crab soup and rice and gumbo.

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