On day 43 of “The Ultimate USA Road Trip” we drive from Okefenokee Georgia to Charleston South Carolina. The route passes through an area with many lakes, swamps, forests and the Altamaha River Delta.

The first stop is the Butler Island plantation where rice was grown in the 19th century. Major Pierce Butler, one of the founding fathers of the United States and a supporter of American slavery, took over the property in 1790. Pierce Butler was in charge of the plantation until his death in 1822, his duties being taken over by Roswell King Jr. until Butler's two grandsons reached the age to run the plantation themselves in 1838. Hundreds of slaves worked on the plantation and also lived there with their families.

Conditions on the plantation were unbearable and health rates were abysmal, living quarters were filthy, there were four settlements on the island, each consisting of ten to twenty housing units. A house was about 12 feet by 15 feet, with small rooms opening onto a main room where the slaves slept on their beds made of moss. Usually 2 families lived in such a hut, several of these huts can be seen on the plantation.

By 1859 Butler was in serious debt. To bring in more revenue, 436 were auctioned on March 2 and 3 of that year, creating the largest slave sale in U.S. history. Families and lovers were separated by the auction for the first time in their lives. This gruesome event is known as The Weeping Time.

Today, the Butler Island Plantation is owned by the Department of Natural Resources. The grounds are open to the public every day for recreational activities such as fishing, hiking, and picnicking.
We cross the Butler River (part of the Altamaha Delta) to Darien for the next stop, Fort King George, the oldest surviving English fort on the Georgia coast. From 1721 to 1736, Fort King George was the southern outpost of the British Empire in North America. A cypress blockhouse, barracks and palisaded earthen fort were built in 1721 by scouts under Colonel John "Tuscarora Jack" Barnwell. For the next seven years the fort was garrisoned by His Majesty's Independent Company. They endured incredible hardships from disease, threats from Spanish and Indian attacks, and the harsh, unfamiliar coastal environment. After the fort was abandoned, General James Oglethorpe brought Scottish Highlanders to the site in 1736. The settlement, named Darien, eventually became a major timber export center until 1925.

Using old records and drawings, this 18th-century fort on the Altamaha River has been reconstructed for public tours. The buildings include a bunker, officers' quarters, barracks, a guard house, moat and palisades. A museum and film cover the Guale Indians, the Santo Domingo de Talaje mission, Fort King George, the Scots of Darien, and the sawmill in the 19th century when Darien became a major seaport. In addition to the many fort buildings, remnants of three sawmills and tabby ruins can still be seen.

Less than 2 kilometers away, the next stop is Ashantilly, which was built in 1820 by Thomas Spalding (1774-1851), north of Darien. Construction probably took 2 or 3 years. The cottage is made of tabby (composed of the lime from burnt oyster shells mixed with sand, water, ash and other shells) and is sometimes referred to as Old Tabby. The house is named after Ashintully Castle, an ancestral home in Perthshire, Scotland. The house, destroyed by fire, was restored and donated to the Ashantilly Center (a non-profit organization) in 1993. Ashantilly was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 25, 2015.

Today, the Ashantilly Center is a nonprofit educational and cultural history site organized and founded by William G. Haynes, Jr. Mr. Haynes was an artist, small book printer (The Ashantilly Press) and environmentalist. His legacy, the Ashantilly Center, hosts cultural and historical events and workshops.

The mission of the Ashantilly Center, Inc. is to organize and implement a conservation, education, scientific advancement and charitable effort program focused on the natural and built environments that are integral to Georgia's coast.

After lunch in Darian we drive to Savannah National Wildlife Refuge. This nature reserve was established in 1927 for migratory birds, especially wintering waterfowl. Located in both Georgia and South Carolina, separated by the Savannah River, the nature reserve encompasses more than 30,000 acres of vital wildlife habitats, including freshwater marshes and bottom-dwelling hardwood forests.

The Savannah National Wildlife Refuge is an important link in the chain of nature reserves along the Atlantic Flyway, attracting thousands of migratory birds each year. The refuge also provides nesting opportunities for ducks, purple gallinules, bald eagles, anhingas, and swallow-tailed kites, among others. There are also a number of mammals, reptiles, amphibians and numerous plant species.
In the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge, you can drive the scenic Laurel Hill Wildlife Drive, which is a 4.5-mile one-way route through the Refuge. It is a wonderful tour through this beautiful area.
It is a well-maintained gravel road, accessible to cars, vans, buses, motorcycles and RVs. The road winds along the original dike system and offers views of the reservoirs on both sides. Wildlife, including alligators, can be seen all along the way. Remember that it is a nature reserve and not a zoo. The animals are wild and Refuge regulations prohibit feeding or otherwise harassing the animals in the wild.

The last 140 kilometers to Charleston we drive through green wooded South Carolina. In Charleston we spend the night in one of the many hotels of this bustling city. The next day a visit to the Fort Sumter National Monument is planned. Fort Sumter is located in the middle of Charleston Harbor and is only accessible by ferries through Fort Sumter Tours.

Charleston harbor has other attractions to visit, such as the Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum with two ships in the harbor, the USS Yorktown and the USS Laffey.
The USS Yorktown (CV-5) aircraft carrier of the United States Navy, which was stationed in the Pacific Ocean during World War II. She was also called "The Fighting Lady". She fought alongside the USS Lexington (CV-2) in the Battle of the Coral Sea, where the USS Lexington was sunk, and then in the Battle of Midway. The USS Yorktown has many onboard exhibits including: Medal of Honor museum, featuring biographies of all medalists and 28 naval aircraft of various types.

The second ship is USS Laffey (DD-724), an Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer built during World War II and commissioned in February 1944. The ship was nicknamed "The Ship That Would Not Die" for her heroics during the D-Day invasion and the Battle of Okinawa when she successfully withstood a determined attack by conventional bombers and the most relentless kamikaze air raid in history.
The museum offers several exhibits ashore include:
Civil War and Vietnam War-era cannon assorted helicopters, guns and transporters;
• US Navy Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopter
• US Army Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopter (MEDEVAC)
• USMC Bell AH-1 Sea Cobra helicopter
• USMC Sikorsky H-34 helicopter
• USMC Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter
• PBR-105 river patrol boat
• M114 armored fighting vehicle
• M101 howitzer artillery gun
• M42 Duster mobile anti-aircraft gun
• M35A2 cargo truck
• M43 ambulance
• Military Police Willys Jeep

From the harbor, the ferry departs for Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park, an artificial island on which Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie were built to defend the city of Charleston. The museum at Fort Sumter itself focuses on the activities at the fort, including its construction and role during the American Civil War.

After this day of military history, we drive back to Charleston to enjoy the evening and rest for tomorrow's ride.