Agriculture has always been an important part of our lives here in South Carolina!
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The "Slave Task System" was a widely adopted system in which each worker would have a set of tasks to complete on a daily basis.
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The Allstons, and the Manigaults, were prominent and wealthy plantation owners back in the 1800s.
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By 1800, Georgetown was known as the land where planters all made fortunes with rice plantations. In 1839, Georgetown alone produced nearly half of America's Rice.
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Planters made the transition from swamp based rice-growing, to using tidal irrigation. With tidal irrigation, planters used a series of dikes and dams to control the flow of water into rice fields.
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Several dangers to rice crops included hurricanes, floods from the mountains, and swollen rivers. Damage ranged from minor, to total devastation. Animals, such as rice weevils, crows, and ducks, also...
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From May until November, white plantation owners moved further in-land, in order to escape the "country fever" diseases, such as Malaria and Cholera. Those two diseases took a heavy toll on the human...
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"Carolina Gold" was considered the favored variety of rice. This clip describes how the colonial economy boomed as a result of rice.
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Before the American Revolution, the 300 mile coast line of South Carolina was known as the "Kingdom of Rice." Charleston was considered the richest city in Colonial America.
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The Civil War marked the beginning of the decline of rice in South Carolina. Although planters continued growing rice during the Civil War, Georgetown experienced an economic down-turn as a result of...
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The Middleton Plantation, just south of Charleston, is presently a museum. The Middleton Plantation is an example of rice wealth during the early 1800s, and many other planters sought to style their...