Lowcountry Waterways

Lowcountry Waterways. . , During colonial times any trip to Charleston from Snee Farm was by way of tidal creeks and rivers. While today we depend on the automobile and a network of highways and bridges, life was not so convenient for the people of Charles Pinckney’s time., A trip to Charleston was planned around favorable tides. Travelers departed on the outgoing tide and returned on the incoming tide. Sometimes a trip might last several days – depending on how long it took to complete one’s business and when one could catch the next tide to return home., ( Sidebar : ) , Carolina Gold , The major cash crop of the period was rice, and the “Carolina Gold” variety brought the most at market. On most Lowcountry plantations, diked rice fields were flooded with fresh water pushed by the incoming tide. Later the water was drained with the outgoing tide. This process was repeated three times during the growing season., At Snee Farm, the inland method was used to grow rice. Similar to the tidal method, fields were flooded with rain water collected in reservoirs., Besides providing the means for growing rice, the waterways of the Lowcountry were also a rich source of wild foods. The waters teemed with fish, shellfish, and waterfowl.