A Brief History of Daufuskie Island
Daufuskie Island, Located between Savannah and South Carolina, is one of the most treasured islands in the Lowcountry. Due to its rich and long history, it has been protected on the National Register of Historic Places since 1982. From a vast indigenous culture, to a blessedly preserved West African community, and finally the Civil War, this small island has borne witness to the full story of Southern America.
Originally inhabited by numerous Muskogean nations for thousands of years, the name of this island means “Sharp Feather”. Today, the sharpest things on the island are the thousands of ancient oyster shells used by the indigenous people as food, shelter, jewelry, and ceremonial instruments. Later, these shells were used by the previously enslaved West African population for the very same things. Tabby ruins from handmade living quarters dot the island, refusing to let their history be forgotten. After the colonization of the Lowcountry, Daufuskie Island was the host of eleven plantations.
Each of these plantations, which grew rice, cotton, and live oaks for shipbuilding relied solely on slave labor to keep them running. These enslaved people were taken mainly from West Africa before being sold into the hands of Daufuskie’s slave owners. It was at this time that the Gullah-Geechee culture was born. Life as an enslaved person in the South was both traumatic and difficult, but as the African people adapted, a rich history was established.
By the end of Sherman’s March to the Sea; Union soldiers began to occupy Daufuskie Island. Their reputation preceded them, and the slave owners and their families fled the island in terror, leaving behind their properties and a vast population of people who were no longer enslaved. The remoteness of the island allowed for this West African population to flourish, along with its Gullah culture.
Over the years, the Gullah people developed into a stable and well-known population in the Lowcountry. Their bright and rich culture has touched each corner of this blessed marshland, and served as the inspiration and basis for Pat Conroy’s novel, The Water is Wide, which detailed his time spent teaching on the island. Jimmy Buffet’s song, Prince of Tides, laments the threat to Gullah culture due to city development on the island, with realty moguls hoping to turn it into an exclusive, resort-like club for America’s most elite. Luckily, Daufuskie’s place on the National Register of Historic Places allowed for the preservation of the enriching culture of the Gullah people. Today, the local dialect consists of rural English heavily influenced by West African languages. We are so lucky to be submerged in such a strong and beautiful community.