Port Royal in Beaufort County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)

Blue Channel Corporation

Photographed by Bruce InCharlotte, March 17, 2023

1. Blue Channel Corporation Marker, Side One

Inscription.
(side 1)
In 1939, the Blue Channel Corporation opened a crab canning factory on this site. Founded by inventor Sterling Harris, the company worked with food scientist Dr. Carl Fellers to patent a process that eliminated the blue coloration of canned Atlantic blue crab meat without altering its flavor. The company kept principal offices in Beaufort and briefly operated on Lady's Island before moving here to Port Royal and expanding. (Continued on other side) (side 2) (Continued from other side) For years, Blue Channel was the nation's top producer of Atlantic blue crab and one of the largest crab packing firms in the country. The crabs processed here were caught and picked primarily by African American men and women of the local Gullah community, who had long crabbed and fished along the Sea Islands. Blue Channel moved its canning operations to the Beaufort Industrial Park in 1978 and closed in 1990.

Erected 2020 by Beaufort County Historical Society, Historic Port Royal Foundation, and Town of Port Royal. (Marker Number 7-66.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans

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• Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 1939.

Location. 32° 22.595′ N, 80° 41.768′ W. Marker is in Port Royal, South Carolina, in Beaufort County. It is on 11th Street 0.1 miles west of Madrid Avenue, on the left when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1699 11th St, Port Royal SC 29935, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Lowcountry

and on the Sea Islands.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Deep South,

and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: The Historic Union Church (approx. 0.2 miles away); Camp Saxton (approx. one mile away); a different marker also named Camp Saxton

Blue Channel Corporation Marker, Side Two image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bruce InCharlotte, March 17, 2023

2. Blue Channel Corporation Marker, Side Two

(approx. one mile away); Emancipation Day (approx. one mile away); Old Fort Plantation (approx. one mile away); First South Carolina Infantry (approx. one mile away); "The Year of Jubilee Has Come!" (approx. one mile away); Emancipation Day / Camp Saxton Site (approx. 1.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Port Royal.

Credits. This page was last revised on April 3, 2023. It was originally submitted on April 3, 2023, by Bruce InCharlotte of Charlotte, North Carolina. This page has been viewed 1,528 times since then and 160 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on April 3, 2023, by Bruce InCharlotte of Charlotte, North Carolina. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.

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