In what promises to be a family-friendly day of history, reenactments and games, Old Santee Canal Park, the Berkeley County Museum and Lord Berkeley Conservation Trust are welcoming visitors of all ages to their Colonial Day and Fort Fair Lawn grand opening, which kicks off at 10 a.m. on Sept. 24 at 900 Stony Landing Road in Moncks Corner.

The occasion marks the grand opening of Fort Fair Lawn, situated a mile away from Old Santee Canal Park.

Fort Fair Lawn is one of only two earthen military strongholds left in the United States, recounts Berkeley County Museum Director Chelsy Proper, with the other being Star Fort at the Ninety Six Historic Site, about 60 miles south of Greenville.

The Sept. 24 event will allow spectators to see Fort Fair Lawn in its current state, along with taking in reenactments provided by performers dressed in colonial attire. Some of the on-site actors will be armed with muskets and they may even fire off a canon or two.

As for the historical significance of the site, Proper explains that Fort Fair Lawn was actually built in the late 1770s by the British as a holding area to store their military armaments.

“They had it here because it’s close to the Cooper River and they were able to get their supplies up here. Moncks Corner was strategic during the revolution because it was kind of the gateway to Charleston,

“They really wanted to capture Charleston — which they did. The fort was held by the British until (late) 1781, when the patriots came in and attacked [it] and took it over.”

From that point, American troops never utilized Fort Fair Lawn, as the structure was left to be surrounded in overgrown vegetation while it progressively sank deeper into the ground.

And though it was practically abandoned by American forces, centuries later, historian Douglas Bostick of the South Carolina Preservation Battleground Trust describes the site in glowing terms by stating: “Fort Fair Lawn is probably the most pristine, intact original American Revolutionary War fortification in South Carolina, if not the country.”

Over the next 240 years after its abandonment, many locals would go drink beers at the fort or even ride their go carts around the old fortress.

So, while much of the action and reenactment activities are taking place at the fort site on Sept. 24, those who seek a deeper understanding of what transpired in Moncks Corner and the surrounding Charleston area during the American Revolutionary War period can drop in on a lecture at Old Santee Canal Park. The historical learning sessions are scheduled to run from 10 a.m. through 3 p.m.

The subjects covered during these discussions will include a snapshot of residents who remained loyal to the British regime, as well as South Carolina’s connection to Barbados, as many Charlestonians of the time originally came from the island country in the West Indies. In fact, many plantations in South Carolina very closely resemble similar estates that were prevalent in Barbados.

In addition, the first annual Colonial Day will feature games for children in the form of scavenger hunts. Other event activities include indigo dyeing, candle making, native birds/plant talk, the fabrication of sweetgrass baskets and an information session on colonial medicine.

And those who wish to tour the Berkeley Historic Museum can enjoy an up-close and personal view of artifacts found inside Fort Fair Lawn in the form of buttons, soldier belt and shoe buckles and more.

Proper considers Colonial Day and the grand opening of Fort Fair Lawn as an exciting learning opportunity for many newcomers to the Lowcountry.

“There are so many people moving to the area that a lot of them don’t know this history. So, there has been a renewed interest just in the [American] Revolutionary War in general. I’m not sure where that renewed interest comes from, I’m just glad it’s here,” says the researcher/interpreter who hails from the Bluegrass State of Kentucky.

Additional information on the Sept. 24 affair can be found on Berkeley County Museum and Heritage Center Facebook page.

In an effort to quell homeowners along the southern terminus of Vanihayn Drive in Moncks Corner, Charleston-based developer Wofford Stribling recently agreed to close off access from a portion of his Kitfield development project to ward off increased congestion for the concerned residents in question.

Those intentions were communicated during an Aug. 23 Moncks Corner Planning and Zoning meeting at the local Town Hall venue at 118 W. Carolina Ave.

The story begins with the applicant (Stribling) receiving approval from Town Council in December 2020 to attain rezoning for the addition of 160 new homes at what’s known as the Kitfield Road subdivision.

Subsequently, the builder informed the planning and zoning commission of his plans to annex an additional 16.02-acre tract along Vanihayn Drive, yielding a maximum of 33 units.

Upon hearing of this, one family owning property on each side of Vanihayn Drive opposed the prospect of allowing new residents of Stribling’s development to drive in and out of the proposed residential complex using their private road.

Those sentiments were communicated to Stribling and the commission during a July 26 public session.

During the following meeting on Aug. 23, the speculator confirmed claims that Vanihayn Drive was indeed a private roadway and thus assured affected stakeholders that he would place emergency access gates that could only be unlocked by first-responders during crisis situations. These structures would be installed on Vanihayn Drive and Prospect Drive.

Community Development Director Douglas Polen explained: “No one from this development or this new annexed part will be able to get onto Vanihayn Drive past [a certain point] or onto Prospect.”

Moncks Corner Planning & Zoning Commissioner Connor Salisbury affirmed that outside access to Vanihayn Drive via an existing “through-put” would be terminated by the new gates.

Kitfield community president and resident Riley G. McKelvey asked for further clarification.

“We want to make sure that in our community we’re taken care of ... we want to keep light traffic right now. But we want to make sure we don’t impede anyone else’s property as well because we pay taxes. The last thing I want happening is that someone comes in and says, ‘You know what? We’re going to take this, we’re not going through that — it ain’t happening,’” he stated.

Other community members in attendance asked the planning and zoning commission to properly inform them of new additions/renovations that could affect homeowners in the future. Some of them felt that a sign reporting the July meeting was poorly placed in an area where it wasn’t readily visible to locals.

Area resident Carole Williams, however, expressed her apprehension about all of the traffic from the new development spilling over to the west end of Kitfield Road, as drivers would only be afforded one-way in and one way out on that stretch. Cars traversing that path, she added, would end turning on Broughton Road or California Avenue, while headed toward West Main Street.

Stribling reported that a DOT traffic study had been completed to focus on traffic mitigation for vehicles emanating from the Kitfield development. As a result of conferring with the government agency, the land developer stated that he would install a right-hand turn lane from Kitfield Road onto Broughton Road. In order to facilitate the insertion of that lane, he continued, Broughton Road would be widened. Furthermore, residents also learned that the entire intersection would also be restriped.

Williams countered that she is more distressed about making a left turn from Broughton Road to West Main Street rather than going right.

Salisbury told Williams that issue would be addressed when his group composes their next comprehensive plan.

In the meantime, Stribling communicated his willingness to contribute to the Community Redevelopment Program, whereby all residents of the surrounding Kitfield community would receive between $500-$1,000 per lot for infrastructure improvements.

During a day trip to Old Santee Canal Park in Moncks Corner, north of Charleston, it’s not difficult to imagine life in the Lowcountry as it was 200 years ago: A swampy creek bordered by cypress trees, alligators cruising through black water, egrets wading in the shallows, and frogs croaking from behind a curtain of rustling marsh grass.

All that is missing is a long, slender wooden flatboat filled with barrels of molasses, sacks of cornmeal and bales of cotton, being poled along toward the spires of the city of Charleston in the distance.

Old Santee Canal Park in Moncks Corner preserves 195 acres surrounding Biggin Creek, a swampy waterway that was once the site of America’s first summit-level canal that was an engineering marvel of its day.

Backed by business leaders and some of the most famous names in colonial South Carolina — including Revolutionary War generals such as William Moultrie, Francis Marion and Thomas Sumter, and eminent figures such as John Rutledge, signer of the U.S. Constitution — the Santee Canal was an ambitious project. The canal, stretching 22 miles connected the Cooper River in Charleston with the Santee River and opened a waterway of trade to Columbia and the heart of the Carolinas.

Begun in 1793, under the direction of Lt. Col. Christian Senf, a Swedish or Danish-born engineer who had saved with the patriot army, the Santee Canal took nearly a decade to build and at its height employed over 1,000 laborers, many of whom were indentured slaves. The canal used a series of locks, built of hand-made brick, to raise and lower flatboats over a 35-foot elevation change between the Santee and Cooper rivers.

Farmers and traders from the midlands to the mountains could more easily sell their goods in Charleston, and merchants there could ship their wares far inland. Despite its success, the Santee Canal was soon overtaken by railroads and this new technology rendered it obsolete.

A section of the Santee Canal is preserved at Old Santee Canal Park in Moncks Corner, and when you visit today, you will be fascinated by the unique history, and amazed at the natural beauty of the park. When you arrive you will encounter the 11,000-square-foot interpretive center, the entrance to which is a replica of an old canal lock.

Inside, the well-maintained building houses a museum outlining the history of the canal, the technology behind its construction and the cultural impact of its success. The natural world is celebrated, too, as a giant live oak highlights the oak bluff ecosystem surrounding the park, and live examples of Lowcountry wildlife can be viewed.

There are guided tours, educational programs and special events held year-round that make Old Santee Canal Park a facet of culture that benefits young and old alike.

Outside, more than four miles of boardwalks and trails crisscross Biggin Creek and the swampy canal trace. Wildlife abounds and can be easily seen from well-sited viewing areas.

Canoes and kayaks are available to explore the waterway, too. While watercraft speed by in the nearby Tailrace Canal, life in Old Santee Canal Park remains a quiet oasis where nature and history can be explored together. This history also includes nearby Stony Landing and the 1843 plantation house that still sits high on the bluff over the river it once served.

Here was a hub of trade from colonial times and during the Civil War it became known for another important role: The small semisubmersible “Little David” was built, and armed with a torpedo, was sent against the Union fleet blockading Charleston. There it successfully damaged a Union ironclad and made history.

A replica of the “Little David” can be seen on the grounds of Old Santee Canal Park at the Berkeley County Museum, and inside the park’s interpretive center.

For a day of adventure through history, a glimpse at a fascinating technology of the past, and a walk on the wild side, Old Santee Canal Park in Moncks Corner is well-worth a visit.

Old Santee Canal Park in Moncks Corner in Berkeley County is located at 900 Stoney Landing Road., is just under two hours from the Beaufort area and very easy to find.

Take U.S. 17 toward Charleston to Ravenel and turn left onto S.C. 165. Take 165 to Summerville and take a right onto U.S. 17A toward Moncks Corner. In Moncks Corner, turn right onto Mountain Pine Road and turn left at U.S. 52. Follow the signs to Old Santee Canal Park and turn right onto Stoney Landing Road.

Old Santee Canal Park is open year-round from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $5 per person, $3 for seniors and children under 6 free. Guided tours and group rates are available and there are numerous educational and cultural programs throughout the year.

For more information on Old Santee Canal Park, call 843-899-5200 or visit https://www.oldsanteecanalpark.org

This story was originally published September 5, 2022 5:00 AM.

Too many animals, not enough space — that’s been the mantra of humane societies and shelters throughout South Carolina for months.

The Charleston Animal Society on Sept. 1 called the situation a state of emergency, saying that almost every shelter in the state is “at the breaking point.”

Dorchester Paws took in 21 cats and kittens on Aug. 27 after a home burned down in Summerville, maxing out the already at-capacity shelter. In nearby Moncks Corner, Berkeley Animal Center has been in their new, larger building for a little over a year, but has so many animals it has resorted to using pop-up cages.

The Horry County Animal Care Center in Conway has had to temporarily close to treat animals after taking in over 170 animals in August.

Shelters all over are experiencing overwhelming numbers of animals making it difficult to keep up to give them homes.

In the Upstate, Greenville County Animal Care has so many animals it is euthanizing some for space — something they hate doing, said Paula Church, the shelter’s community relations coordinator.

She said they look at animals with behavioral issues — for example, if a dog had bitten a child — and severe medical issues that would require lots of time and expense.

“If we had the time, we could find placement for them,” Church said. “But we don’t have months and months to find space for animals that have behavior and medical issues.”

Part of the problem was caused by the winding down of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, which at first took the burden off shelters as more people adopted pets to keep families busy or to be company for employees working from home.

Joe Elmore, president and CEO of Charleston Animal Society, said shelters had been anticipating intake numbers to increase after that initial adoption surge. When lockdowns first began in 2020, the American Veterinary Medical Association recommended all veterinarians in the country pull back from elective procedures, such as spaying and neutering, so it would not tax the healthcare system.

“We usually do about 10,000 surgeries a year,” Elmore said. “But in the spring of 2020, when hospitals were overwhelmed, we stopped doing those elective type of procedures. We only did what was necessary and pulled back the number of public spay-neutering.”

Elmore said shelters are now seeing the results of putting off those surgeries, with more animals being born than there are people who can keep them.

Other factors also are at play. Of the 75 animal shelters in South Carolina, 75 percent of them do not have a veterinarian on staff, according to Elmore. This makes adoption harder because state law mandates the animals cannot be adopted unless they are fixed.

State law also says an animal that is brought to a shelter must be held for five days before being treated.

As people move in, animals move out

In areas like Charleston County, growth and development are also a factor in overcrowding. As more people and buildings push strays and feral animals out of their natural habitat, more of those animals are surrendered to shelters.

“We get calls from time to time here with people saying, ‘I’ve gotten deer in my yard, and I’ve never had deer in my yard.’ It’s because they’re being flushed out from the development,” Elmore said. “The same thing will happen with feral cats and dogs. Folks will then start calling animal control, animal control will go out and start bringing more and more of these animals in.”

Dorchester Paws, which has been operating over maximum capacity and been “in crisis mode” all summer, understands that growth and development in the Summerville area is having a huge impact on animals. Danielle Zuck, marketing and development director, said there are plans for Dorchester Paws to get a new, bigger building.

“Our building was designed to be a holding facility 50 years ago,” Zuck said. “It was not designed to have taken 4,000 animals a year, and that’s the number that we’re anticipating taking this year, if not more.”

Usually, Dorchester Paws takes in about 10 to 15 animals per day on average, Zuck said. Recently, it has been taking in 15 to 35 animals per day. That, combined with slower adoptions, is playing a big part in the overcrowding of the shelter.

“We’re constantly playing this jigsaw game of animals,” Zuck said.

Not only is the building old and too small to accommodate all of those pets, it also is in a flood zone. Every time it rains, Dorchester Paws is flooded and the animals in kennels are stuck standing in water, Zuck said. The staff has to take buckets to try and empty the shelter of floodwater.

In December, Dorchester Paws purchased land along Highway 17A — not in a flood zone. Now they’re in the midst of a financial campaign to help fund a new building on the property, one that will include a spay and neuter clinic. They are still in the process of figuring out the cost of building, but it’s estimated to cost somewhere between $3 and $8 million.

Zuck said Dorchester Paws is excited the new location will be in a growing neighborhood, right by the Palms and Summer’s Corner.

“Summerville is one of the fastest growing cities,” Zuck said. “We need the shelter badly in order to provide for the new population that’s coming in.”

A new building will also help Dorchester Paws elevate its status as a shelter, she added.

“A lot of people still don’t know that Dorchester Paws exists. They either call us the pound, or they don’t know where we’re located,” Zuck said. “A new shelter will just bring this brand up and elevate our mission for the animals.”

Right now, Dorchester Paws has over 400 animals in their care, with almost half of them living in a kennel or pop-up in the shelter.

Zuck said the shelter has made Dorchester Paws’ adoption process simple over the past year to try and incentivize people to adopt: just a one-page application, reduced fees and a conversation with an adoption counselor.

“We have removed all barriers from the adoption process,” Zuck said. “We want animals to be placed in loving homes.”

Zuck said it is hard to say why adoptions have been slow, but there could be several reasons: summer vacation, back-to-school, current world affairs.

One thing that isn’t a factor is a significant uptick in pets adopted in 2020 going back to shelters. Elmore said it is a myth that people surrendered their animals as soon as they returned to work.

“We saw some people who were returning to work actually coming back to adopt a companion animal for the animal,” Elmore said.

As a result of most shelters in the state being overcrowded, some are partnering up to ship animals to others that don’t have as many animals.

Elmore, of Charleston Animals Society, said they’ve started a statewide transport program where his staff takes animals to other local shelters, and even ones out of state. Some shelters Charleston Animals Society partners with include Hallie Hill Animal Sanctuary in Hollywood and the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty for Animals.

Church, of Greenville County Animal Care, said the shelter partners with rescue organizations almost daily to transport animals to other shelters. Some organizations they partner with include the Animal Sanctuary Society (New Jersey), Hearts of the North Rescue (Minnesota), Jackson’s Legacy (New York) and Lovable Mutts Adoption Center (Pennsylvania).

Tiffany Hoffman, event coordinator for Berkeley Animal Center, said the shelter is lined up with pop-ups.

“As much as I don’t want a dog in a pop-up, it’s still saving a life,” Hoffman said.

The center has recently relocated to a bigger building with more amenities, including a surgical suite, a meet-and-greet room and play yards. After being in the new building for 14 months, Hoffman said the staff are grateful they now have more space and are able to not just take better care of the animals they have, but also take in more.

“We are able to care for more animals, but with that, we need more fosters. We need more volunteers, more adopters,” Hoffman said. “With (the new building) comes the need for the community.”

Hoffman said there are many community members that already help. Those who foster pets are essential.

“We have a very hardworking staff, but we could not save the thousands of animals without the fosters,” Hoffman said.

Hoffman said fostering from Berkeley Animal Center is completely free, and they have a 24/7 phone service for fosters in case they have questions about the animal they’re taking care of. She said the center also provides food crates and medical care.

“We literally give everything needed,” Hoffman said. “They just have to give the love.”

Hoffman said the staff — a group of just over 10 — often fosters animals as well.

“Our staff work here because they love animals,” Hoffman said. “If you work in animal rescue, if you work in an animal shelter, you do it because of your love of an animal.”

This story was originally published September 11, 2022 1:00 AM.

In what she describes as a comeback outing of sorts, jazz vocalist Alterea Baxter is set to take the stage with Terrance Bryant and Sherlyn “Dee Dee” Johnson on Sept. 10 as part of a music spectacular hosted by the Berkeley County Library System (BCLS) at the Berkeley County Administration Building.

Baxter, 62, plans on emerging from her COVID-fueled hiatus by kicking off the 4 p.m. show with a segment of classic jazz standards and later adding a dash of R&B and sprinkle of soul to the late-summer affair.

The global pandemic combined with two recent corneal transplants temporarily forced the current Goose Creek resident to put her live performances on the shelf, but now the veteran entertainer is declaring herself primed and ready to dazzle audiences with her unmistakable crooning ability.

As an unabashed aficionado of the golden era of jazz, Baxter recommends that the uninitiated to the genre take in a sampling of Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and other masters to capture the true essence of the music form that originated in African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana.

“Get into those songs because that’s where you’re going to find all your jazz notes. That’s where you’re going to be introduced to that flow that other genres do not carry,” observed the native of Downtown Charleston, who has been singing on a professional level over a period of four decades.

“The golden era ... that’s my favorite because that’s where the meat of jazz is. That’s where the notes are that will give you the feel of loving jazz,” she adds.

Since her reemergence, many of her go-to performance venues have gone out of business, including a number of restaurants, due to COVID. However, the loving mother and grandmother has designs on continuing her stage work at banquet halls and senior homes in the St. Stephens, Moncks Corner areas and beyond. In the past, she’s toured the southeast in markets, such as Panama City, Florida and Atlanta, Georgia.

When Baxter isn’t putting on a show for her adoring fans, she serves as a vocal coach for those hoping to hone their skills.

“I’m always vocalizing at home. My studio is right here in my living room. I periodically, on Mondays, teach lessons.”

A point of emphasis in her lessons is what she calls “lip trills,” which are prescribed by the voice expert to put the body in proper positioning to ensure both healthy singing and speaking.

“It sounds crazy, but it works,” Baxter assures. “It’s the best thing you can do as far as putting your voice where it needs to be.”

As for tips she dispenses for aspiring acts on the come, Alterea advises folks to hire a reliable booking agent and assembling a quality bio and references. But beyond that, she encourages people who are serious about their craft to simply sing as frequently as possible on stage, in the car or in the shower.

Baxter’s Sept. 10 show promises to be a joyous experience, as she plans to belt out a collection of feel-good tunes, including hits from Michael Buble, Frank Sinatra, Bobby Caldwell and other well-known music icons.

For more information on Baxter’s upcoming schedule or her training availability, email her at pamperme_23@yahoo.com.