This month’s Back in My Day is about summer vacations growing up in Colleton County. When I was growing up, our summer started just after Memorial Day and ended just after Labor Day. During that time, bicycles hit the street, the rule was you had to be home when the streetlights came on, and you listened to all adults. (In my day, if you did something, word made it home before you did.). It was a time where the entire town was your playground, and you could go where your pedals could take you.
Summers were also time for travel, whether it was to the beach, the mountains, or the river. Colleton County always provided a good launching point for a summer adventure. Edisto Beach was always a good time. After making what seemed hours in the back seat of the car and crossing the two-land bridge, the beach greeted you with the first view being the pavilion. The pavilion provided a great hub to keep you entertained for hours. With pinball machines, skee-ball, bowling, ping pong, and a large assortment of mechanical games to choose from. The pavilion was a favorite stomping ground for entertainment and a quick snack. The pier was also a great place to do some saltwater fishing. With its rows of beach houses, I have great memories of driving around the beach to keep cool.
Folly Beach Park was a little further away but a great weekend trip. With the rides, music, and carnival games, the excitement of the lights and the crowds was a great weekend trip. Further up the coast was Myrtle Beach with its Pavillion and every Putt-Putt course imaginable. Myrtle Beach, the home of the Shag, had the Magic Attic dance club, Studebakers, and entertainment for the entire family.
Vacation could also include a trip the river. Whether it was the Edisto, Asheepoo, or the Combahee. Fishing, boating, watersports, and the Saturday Cookout with friends provided the day-to-day distraction during the summer. Water Skiing on the Asheepoo was aways fun with the logs (gators) to dodge. These was a great incentive to get back on the boat.
Another option was a trip to Florida, Before Interstate 95 was built a trip to Florida was an adventure. Driving down US-301 through the small towns of Georgia took you just west of Jacksonville, Jacksonville Beach was accessed by the Mayport Ferry crossing the St. Johns’s River. Further down the coast was St. Augustine with its beautiful architecture. The highlight for me was “Marineland”, this amusement park was home to “Flipper” the bottlenose dolphin in the television series by the same name. Lucky children could actually play ball with Flipper. Marineland was before Disney World, Sea World, and Universal. Instead, we had Silver Springs, the ski show at Cypress Gardens Florida, and Six Gun Territory. Six Gun Territory, located in Silver Springs, was also the sister park to Ghost Town in the Sky. While on the west coast of Florida you can still catch the Weeki Wachee Springs State Park mermaid show.
If you were not a beach person, you could always check out the mountains. Cherokee, Maggie Valley, Saluda, and Tryon were just a few hours away. The cool mountain evening and the beautiful views and wading in the cold mountain water were a great way to spend some time during the summer. Taking a trip down Sliding Rock, visiting Chimney Rock, Cherokee, or Maggie Valley adventure was always around the corner. Some of the attractions are still there today, Santaland in Cherokee, The Indian Village on the Reservation, Newfound Gap and Gatlinburg, Tennessee with its bustling downtown, including souvenir shops, restaurants, and stores selling homemade candy. You could also make a trip toward Boone and visit Tweetsie Railroad.
Some of my favorite attractions are no longer around. Do you remember Frontierland, it sat on the same property the Cherokee Casino sits today. You entered Frontierland by train and the station had a great model train in the waiting area with a diorama of the amusement park. The park had ride, Indian dance demonstrations, a gun fight, and a Saloon Show. Frontierland was very much like Ghost Town in the Sky, which has been long closed but is still visible above Maggie Valley with its entrance, chairlift and tram station silent but still waiting for someone to step up and reopen the park that once hosted movie stars and entertained thousands of guests over the years.
Today Pigeon Forge/ Gatlinburg is the entertainment hub, Dollywood, Anakeesta, and the various attractions entice the vacationers to cross the mountains. Did you know Dollywood started as Rebel Railroad and was owned by the family that owns Tweetsie today. Rebel Railroad which opened in 1961 became, Goldrush Junction and was purchased by Herschend Entertainment in 1973 and renamed Silver Dollar City to match its sister park in Branson, Missouri. Silver Dollar City became Dollywood in 1986.
Today on you summer vacation, take the time to explore the roadside attraction and local food. Find the historic attractions still in existence. Stay off the phones, spend time with the family and stay off the interstates, it might take a little more time to make the trip, but the sites of the backroads of North and South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida take you back to simpler time.
