A View of Our Past

Photos and text from "A View of Our Past" have been reprinted here courtesy of the Georgetown County Library. "A View of Our Past", the Morgan Photographic Collection depicting Georgetown South Carolina c. 1890-1915, was published in 1993 by the Georgetown County Library System. 


A Peninsula of Industry

Gardner & Lacey Lumber Company was one of Georgetown's prized industrial jewels when this photograph was taken with the insert of two schooners for the back cover of the promotional booklet, "Georgetown, South Carolina 1902 - Its Past, Its Present, Its Future". The firm, which handled all kinds of lumber, specialized in cypress and shingles, and was capitalized at $150,000. Heading the company were two westerners, H.H. Gardner, president and J.D. Lacey, vice-president. F.B. Gardner was the secretary and treasurer. The company shipped lumber from Georgetown's busy port to many northern and foreign outlets. 

Scenes of Gardner and Lacey

Vast quantities of timber were processed at this site of Gardner and Lacy Lumber Company on this narrow peninsula of the Sampit River behind Georgetown's Front Street. These views were taken from high vantage points on Front Street. Gardner and Lacey was one of the four lumber companies in Georgetown in 1902 which produced 150 million board feet of lumber annually.

A Maritime Contrast

The Sampit River was the epitome of a maritime contrast when this photograph was taken of a steel hulled freighter with a screw propeller docked behind a side wheeler, Maggie. Side wheelers were extensively used in the Georgetown area around the turn of the century to move commerce and provide transportation for individuals destined for Charleston or traveling up and down rivers. 

A Busy River Scene Behind Front Street

Handsome handwriting identified this scene. The stream freighter is docked at the Clyde Lines dock immediately behind the 900 block of Front Street. It is being loaded with cargo transferred from lighters in the river into the side of the ship. The two homes are the Pawley House (now the Stewart-Parker House) and the Kaminski House (now the Kaminski House Museum).

The Sea Cloud

The magnificent Sea Cloud, owned by General Foods heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post, used Georgetown from 1939 -1941 as a favorite port of call.  

Links:

Sea Cloud Cruises - History of the Sea Cloud

Sea Cloud - the Ship is the Destination

Sea Cloud, A Living Legend by Jennifer Conover, grandaughter of Joseph Davies